Mini-Update

We just got back from visiting a crater left by a volcano, and survived the most harrowing cab ride ever. We had to go from the SE of the island to the SW, and took a cab to get back. The driver was -insane-. (Zane: "You should title this entry, 'I'm glad I'm alive'"). We were going between 70 and 80mph, up and down winding mountain roads. At one point, he passed -two cars at once-, while -cresting a hill-. He turned LEFT at a T, coming from the bottom of it, without stopping. He just sort of blinked three times, to let any car nearby know he was going to be barreling through. It was just nuts, and it didn't even seem as efficient as the route we took to get out there. He ended up underestimating his cost to us, but didn't make us
pay the whole fare on his meter. He kind of "Whewed" at the end, relief clear on his face, as if he realized how crazy he was driving and how lucky we were to arrive in one piece.

We've done a lot in the past few days. I'm sorry I haven't been posting, but internet has either been (1) unavailable, or (2) expensive. I lack a USB drive, so I really can't write up the entries here and transfer them to another computer. I'm posting this now from our hotel (the Hyatt Regency, Jeju! Only 80 something a night between us, with stairs leading right down to the beach. Staying in a Hyatt is luxurious. We told the Concierge we wanted to try "Black Pork", but didn't want an expensive restaurant. So, he called a local resturant, who sent a car to pick us up. The price wasn't more than we were willing to pay, either. We just ordered room service, and it was excellent. Off-season prices FTW). The trouble is that it charges something like 2 dollars for 15 minutes of internet usage. This is useful for checking up on minor things, but not really conducive to writing blog posts. I have several -done-, but I'll probably have to wait until Sunday to post them, when we're back in Seoul (it's a bit of a process to upload the pictures, then check flickr to get the right URL). I tried uploading pics earlier today, but wasn't able to get more than around 8 done before the internet gave out (admittedly, I was checking other things at the same time. Gmail, trying to arrange a trip to the DMZ over email, checking NHL news. I was 6 / 8 on my 1st round playoff picks, with my two misses coming from the Conference I pay no attention to whatsoever. Detroit's going to win the West anyway, so... not like it matters).

ANYWAY, here's a sumup of what we've done in the past few days, with the pictures to follow when I have time.

Seoul, where we watched a Lantern parade and dodged floats, and walked through a Buddhist street festival.

Gyeongju, where we hiked a mountain, were treated like rockstars by elementary school students, hiked another mountain (and got sorta lost, which only made me nervous when it started to rain as we were going downhill on rocks), and visited a few temples.

Jeju, where we were treated like rockstars by a group of high school students (which kinda began to become grating, only because I do not like being the center of attention), walked several beaches, saw a few waterfalls, spent some time on hexagonal rocks made from lava flows, and hiked into a crater left over from a Volcano. We also had a crazy-scary cab ride, as mentioned above. Tomorrow we plan to climb the central volcano of Jeju, Mt. Halla.

Thus far, most Koreans have been exceptionally nice, and the country is perhaps the most beautiful I have ever visited. It's filled with forested mountains, and, since i'm visiting in May, lots of flowers are in bloom. Every Buddhist temple is adorned with colored lanterns. I've definitely been doing a nature-oriented vacation, which is turning out to be a wonderful choice, as the country is visually stunning (though I feel exhausted at the end of each day of hiking).

The Buddhist Lantern festival was out of control. Huge lanterns / floats made their way down the main streets of the city. Originally, the cops did a good job of keeping people back, but, for the most part, it kinda descended into a "walk wherever you want" and "avoid the giant floats as they're coming down the street". I have far too many pictures to sort through, and will write up a longer entry on the way to our next destination, Gyeongju. But, yeah, it was a blast.


Me and a Buddha in a helicopter. Why a helicopter? -no clue- We originally through the Buddha was -part- the float, as it was moving in a slow, rhythmic style, and seemed to be just cycling through waves. Then I thought I noticed it -looking at me-. Then we saw it grab its head!

Touring the Place of the Fallen Star

There are some people who travel as gourmands - they wish to experience novel foods and unique tastes from the cultures of the world. Most who know me could attest that I am -not- one of these people, between my plain turkey sandwiches, or my tendency to order only from a very limited menu, depending on the restaurant I visit. I -can- eat different things, but without need or motivation, I tend to gravitate towards the familiar. As such, I find it vaguely ironic that I would character my travels so far as adventures in cuisine more than scenery or location.

A correction last night about the the BONE SOUP. It is actually called "haejang-guk", which apparently literally translates into "sick intestine soup". but is understood to mean "hangover soup". I had the "byeonji" variety of the soup, or "pig spine". I mean, I figured it was some sort of spine, based on the shape of the bones, but the actual confirmation that it is so is sort of... unpleasant? I believe I shall simply record this for posterity and conveniently forget that fact.

After purchasing several necessities, such as a small mattress for me to sleep on, we headed to lunch. Today I had Dol Sot Bi Bam Bap, "Hot Stone Pot Mixed Rice", which is a veriety of vegetables (lettuce, mushroom, carrots, bean sprouts, and some sort of root / cucumber-like product) and rice, with a fried egg in the shape of a star on top. Zane: "One of the top five representative Korean Foods".



It was served in a stone pot (still steaming hot on arrival, cooking the rice as it was set before us), and came with a pepper-based paste (Gochujang) and soup. Zane told me that the proper way to eat it was to add the paste into the vegetable/rice mix, and mash everything together. I did so, but as last night's BONE SOUP was too spicy for my tastes, I added only a little bit. The aftermath of my mixing:



However, I found it to be excellent. The little bit of paste I added, probably a third of the total that was given to me, was just right. The mixture contained a slightly sweet taste, but I wasn't overcome by any of the spiciness. My amalgamation of food was a much lighter orange than Zane's.

Following that, we went to a shrine in Zane's town, Nakseongdae ("Place of the Fallen Star"), that is dedicated to a Korean General, Gang Gamchan. Legend says that an emissary noticed a shooting star. He followed it to where it landed, and found a house there. In the house was a woman who had recently given birth. The child was Gang Gamchan. There are tons of stories associated with him, including that he once summoned a Tiger who had been impersonating a Buddhist monk to court and "sternly lectured" it, and wrote a spell on a scroll that was tossed in a local pond to silence the noisy frogs that lived there (an ancient equivalent of the Chuck Norris facts generator?). On a more factual note, he is one of Korea's three greatest generals, and helped to end a period of war and defend the nation that was to become S. Korea.



(I had woefully forgotten my Camera 101 in this picture, so it is far too dark)











It had started to rain by this point, which was bad for my cameras, but good in that we had the entire shrine to ourselves. Even though we were not far from central Seoul, the temple felt very secluded. I suppose it is located on the outskirts. Apparently there are paths behind / near it that lead up into the mountains surrounding Seoul (which we intend to climb one of these days). We spent some time at the temple snapping photos, before the rain drove us away.

For lunch, we ducked into a little diner that Zane frequently patronizes, and had "Jjin Mandu", or "Steam Dumplings" and "Kim Bap", or "Wrapped Rice". Of the two, I preferred the dumplings.



Oh, and Kimchi has been served with virtually every meal we have had. I believe it is an acquired taste. Zane loves it, and insists that he has enjoyed it since he first came here. I could probably eat it regularly, if I had to survive. However, I find myself eating the other items before the Kimchi, more often than not. Describing tastes is difficult for me, because it is all so foreign and I really don't have equivalents. I mean, some things taste better than others (favorite so far is the Bim Bap).

We had intended to go to a small festival tonight, but had screwed up the alarm and ended up sleeping through it. I don't feel too terrible about it, as I really needed sleep. We picked up a small, foldable mattress before we went out for breakfast so that I could have something to sleep on, and that nap we took was probably the best three hours of sleep I've gotten in the past three days. So, upon waking, we could've rushed to see the end of the festival, but I was in no mood for rushing. We ended up walking to a bar where Zane is a regular, "S Bar". Unfortunately, I forgot my camera here.

The owners are both young, and are friends of Zane. Apparently Zane is enough of a regular that the bartenders -call him- if he doesn't come in in a week. He and Andy (the male owner. Andy's partner is known as "Cool", though I don't know her real name) get along very well, regularly engaging in bets and such over dart games or Jenga, where the wagers are things like "Zane's tab" or "loser has to eat a whole lemon in one bite". The owner expressed palpable dismay when Zane said he would be leaving in several weeks. When Zane asked if "S Bar" would hire him, Andy said Zane would have to go on a diet. Only beautiful people can work at "S Bar".

We had a couple of drinks there, and played some darts. It was a cool little business they ran, very comfortable and casual. They had thrown a huge Halloween bash last year, and never took the decorations down. A giant spiderweb hangs from the ceiling, and various hideous masks and plaques line the walls. Characters from the Nightmare before Christmas exist on three different walls, with the male bathroom door having a lifesize Jack Skellington painted on it, while the female door has Sally. Very cool. It is probably one of the only bars I've ever actually liked, largely because there wasn't an army between me and the bar (or chairs), and I was able to sit down and have a conversation with my friend where we didn't have to strain to hear one another.

I'm in Zane's apartment. It's sort of small, as it is an efficiency, but it is neat. He has a washer / dryer, which is one up on my apartment. The strangest thing is the bathroom. It looks normal enough, but there is no stall for a shower. There is simply a drain in the ground.

It's around 8:30 local time. We went to sleep last night around 2:30-ish. He doesn't have an airbed or a travel mattress, so I made do with a comforter and the floor. However, I sleep light, and was probably awake every hour or so. I feel like I'm lucky that the time passed as quickly as it did. He had intended to sleep in, as he's had a lot of work at his job lately, and has gotten barely any sleep.

Last night Zane met me at the airport alright, and we took a bus to his apartment. Korean people thus far seem nice, though I need to pick up a bit more of the basics. Zane lives a few blocks away from a subway stop. The area he lives in is nice enough, and he knows several of the local shopkeepers (he introduced me to a husband and wife who ran a local convenience store). It strikes me as just kind of your usual city neighborhood, filled with apartments above small family-owned shops. There is a metro station nearby, and several restaurants and bars.

Koreans apparently like to drink a lot, enough that there really is no word or recognition of a condition like "alcoholism". He regaled me with several stories about students going out to drink with their bosses until three, then showing up the next morning for class. We saw evidence of that in the subway, as the crowd moved aside to avoid a large pile of vomit in front of the escalators. Zane: "I've seen more people throw up here than in four years at Ohio University" (one of the largest party schools in the country). He also mentioned how Soju, the alcoholic drink of choice in Korea, is the most consumed type of spirits in the world, despite being sold almost exclusively in Korea (haha, the wiki article says that the average Korean drinks about 90 bottles a year). The restaurant we ate at last night stocked solely water and soju as beverages. As one who drinks only rarely, my hope is that I do not give offense by not drinking to the point of senselessness.

Last night, shortly after dropping my stuff off at his apartment, we went to a small soup shop, and ordered the BONE SOUP. Zane had said this menacingly, and I had no idea what to expect from Bone Soup. Truthfully, I was imagining a wan yellow broth with fibula and tibula and finger bones just floating about in it. Anyway, this is what it turned out to be:



It was a sort of meat (beef, I believe. And hope), that simply boiled in a vat of broth to the point where the meat simply slipped off the bone. It was very easy to separate. The soup was delivered to us literally boiling (and it continued to do so for like a minute as it cooled down). The broth tasted like vegetable soup, but a lot spicier than expected. The little cubes in the middle of the table are a type of Kimchi (I forget which), and there are various sauces for dipping.



The food is spiced a bit more than I like. The meat tasted good, and the sauces were fine, though I preferred the meat plain. I found that I enjoyed the broth best when I ate it with rice to take away much of the heat. It was still tasty, though I would've enjoyed it a lot more had it been a little cooler. However, food here is cheap. That total cost of the meal was 9000 won, or, by the current exchange rate, $6.72 (for both of us).

Anyway, today we plan on going to the lantern festival and touring some temples, woo!

To Seoul

Currently sitting in Narita airport in Tokyo, waiting for my last connection. I typed up this entry while waiting for my plane, but wasn't able to get wifi until now. Meh. Anyway, here we go.

This year, I shall be travelling to South Korea. One of my friends from High School, Zane, was hired to teach English in Seoul last year. When he gave me the news, one of the first things I suggested was that I visit him (as I did with Karen in Velez Malaga last year).

Truth be told, I know very little about the Koreas, probably less so than any destination that I have visited. I read the background section in a couple of guidebooks, and it seems that for much of its history, Korea has had to walk a fine line between the powers of China and Japan. It was occupied by both for periods of time, and finally split in two at the 54th parallel between communist china and the western powers in the 50s. S. Korea has traditionally been one of the stronger economies in Asia since then. Also, they -love- their Starcraft.

I will be visiting Seoul (obviously. It's very difficult to get into N. Korea, and, while it might be fascinating, given the recent political climate, N. Koreas penchant for kidnapping and general craziness, and the questionable morality about my tourist money supporting a repressive, autocratic regime, it would probably be a -bad idea-). Like last year, I managed to, by accident as much as intention, schedule my trip during around several major festivals. In the weeks preceding my departure, Zane has sent me a websites showcasing all of the various celebrations going on in Seoul during my stay. The most notable, and the ones I am most interested in seeing, are the festivals related to Buddha's birthday (on May 2nd). Apparently there is a lantern parade, and a lot of cultural activities going on around the temples. I'm typing this in an airport, and don't have access to either my email or the internet, so I can't provide links at this time.

Next week, Zane is taking a vacation, and we are doing a sort of loop of the country. The are to the SE is Gyeongju, the historical center of the first unified Korea. It has several UNESCO sites, in the form of various temples. After that, we are catching a flight from Busan to Jeju island. Jeju is apparently a resort island, dominated by a massive dormant volcano. It has the largest set of lava tubes in the world (hmm.. I wonder if I've ever been to the largest of something). While Zane's interests are more directed to R&R, I'm kind of interesting in doing some hiking, and examining the little Easter-Island like statues that dot the island.

Following that, we'll fly back to Seoul for Buddha's birthday, and the next week will be spent investigating the area around Seoul. I may try to join a tour to the DMZ, though I haven't email anyone about it yet, and I believe that is the kind of thing that requires advance notice.

So, there's the plan in a nutshell. I plan on updating the blog with pictures as often as I can, though I don't know how much time or access I'll have once we reach Jeju.

Here are some pictures of flying over the arctic. It just kinda boggles my mind that we were flying there, in our little controlled atmosphere, while outside were some of the most inhospitable conditions on Earth.