Last Saturday was sort of a big date. First, it was White Day in Korea. This is similar to Valentine's Day. On VDay in Korea, the women will give chocolate to guys. On WDay (Mar 14), men will give chocolate to the girls. It's really another holiday made up by the chocolate companies. I'm not dating anyone so I really didn't give a flip. Except my lady co-workers got plently of candies while I was left empty handed.
It was also Pi Day. Think back to middle school math and the pi symbol. Remember what it equals? Pi = 3.14 = Mar 14 I was supposed to have pie, but I totally forgot to buy some.
Some friends and I did head to Seoul for Lotte World, a half indoor half outdoor theme park. It was pretty awesome. We took the subway there so we didn't walk outside for outdoors (there's an entrance gate in the station). It was almost like the Magic Kingdom except on a much smaller scale. Our first ride was a hot-air balloon that circled around the indoor part. We rode a few other rides but nothing too exciting. Some of the people I was with didn't really want to ride anything too extreme so we really spent most of the day walking around. We did get to ride the Gyro Swing, which is this huge spinning wheel that swings up over all of the buildings. Needless to say, I really want to head back sometime with some fellow thrill seekers. I was pretty beat when I got home that night.
On Sunday, I headed to Namdaemun market with some of the newbie teachers. They wanted to buy some Korean things. I ended up buying some things myself. I bought a traditional Korean game called yut. I really didn't want to go; my stomach and my body ached. I had a good time, anyways. When we walked around looking for a place to eat, our Korean manager called us because he wanted to cook dinner for us. Perfect timing! His Korean friend came over later to play yut with us. He distracted us Americans by bringing ice cream with him. Consequently, we failed in our mission to bring down the Koreans.
Pictures will be forthcoming.
Showing posts with label seoul. Show all posts
Showing posts with label seoul. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Monday, December 29, 2008
Christmas Eve in Seoul
A fellow teacher and I decided to head to Seoul to spend Christmas Eve. What a great decision that was! We started off at City Hall, where the city has installed a giant skating ring for the citizens and visitors of Seoul. A person can skate for an hour and rent skates all for 1 buck. Talk about amazing! The ring, however, wasn't the greatest quality. The skates slipped around pretty easily and hurt the side of my ankle; the ice was also pretty chopped up. It made skating a tad difficult, but I got the hang of it after a while. My fellow teacher can't really say the same thing, though. Before skating, we bought some reindeer antlers. So being white people, we stuck out like sore thumbs. It was a good thing, though. Everyone was cheering us on, waving at us, giving us high fives, and cheerfully yelling Merry Christmas. After our hour was up, we decided we had a very successful skating run considering we didn't fall down once.
After skating, we walked around downtown Seoul and looked at all of the Christmas displays. We came up on Lotte Department Store, where we found an awesome display. The trees were covered in lights with icicle lights. The building was covered with snowflakes, ornaments, and icicles. There was even an Alice in Wonderland display. The best part was the snow! They had many snow machines (that produced soapy snow) on top of the building so the snow fell down on the sidewalks and streets...so awesome! We then went inside to find the Krispy Kreme, where we were greeted with free original glaze doughnuts. Oh, so yummy!
We then headed over to the Cheonggyecheon Stream, where a crowd met us. There was a huge wall of lights around the stream that was synchronized to pumping Christmas music. There were also huge snowflakes that hung above the stream. Although there were fewer lights than I expected, it was still pretty amazing. It really felt like Christmas was upon us. Everyone was so cheery, the music was spirity, the weather was nippy, the lights were shiny. It was awesome!
My friend and I were actually struck by how people were more focused on Jesus. There were lots of crosses used as decorations around town (including atop the tree at city hall). The Christmas music was mostly all Christian Christmas music (some of it was even just Christian and not Christmas).
We were actually almost like celebrities. Everywhere we walked, people were waving at us, wishing us a merry Christmas, and even wanted to take pictures with us. I guess being white, wearing a big white cap, and wearing matching reindeer antlers probably helped some. They probably all thought we were a couple considering Christmas is usually spent with a boyfriend or girlfriend; we saw couples everywhere, especially couples with matching attire.
After that, I had to go home a little early to meet up with a friend that had ordered a Christmas gift for me. I also thought another friend would come over so I bought a cake at a bakery near my house; it even came with a nice elfish hat. Unfortunately, my other friend didn't come so I had a lot of cake left over. Actually, that is what most Koreans do to celebrate Christmas - they buy a Christmasy looking cake.
After finishing my gift wrapping, my magical Christmas Eve finally came to an end. It was time for Santa to arrive!
More pictures:
After skating, we walked around downtown Seoul and looked at all of the Christmas displays. We came up on Lotte Department Store, where we found an awesome display. The trees were covered in lights with icicle lights. The building was covered with snowflakes, ornaments, and icicles. There was even an Alice in Wonderland display. The best part was the snow! They had many snow machines (that produced soapy snow) on top of the building so the snow fell down on the sidewalks and streets...so awesome! We then went inside to find the Krispy Kreme, where we were greeted with free original glaze doughnuts. Oh, so yummy!
We then headed over to the Cheonggyecheon Stream, where a crowd met us. There was a huge wall of lights around the stream that was synchronized to pumping Christmas music. There were also huge snowflakes that hung above the stream. Although there were fewer lights than I expected, it was still pretty amazing. It really felt like Christmas was upon us. Everyone was so cheery, the music was spirity, the weather was nippy, the lights were shiny. It was awesome!
My friend and I were actually struck by how people were more focused on Jesus. There were lots of crosses used as decorations around town (including atop the tree at city hall). The Christmas music was mostly all Christian Christmas music (some of it was even just Christian and not Christmas).
We were actually almost like celebrities. Everywhere we walked, people were waving at us, wishing us a merry Christmas, and even wanted to take pictures with us. I guess being white, wearing a big white cap, and wearing matching reindeer antlers probably helped some. They probably all thought we were a couple considering Christmas is usually spent with a boyfriend or girlfriend; we saw couples everywhere, especially couples with matching attire.
After that, I had to go home a little early to meet up with a friend that had ordered a Christmas gift for me. I also thought another friend would come over so I bought a cake at a bakery near my house; it even came with a nice elfish hat. Unfortunately, my other friend didn't come so I had a lot of cake left over. Actually, that is what most Koreans do to celebrate Christmas - they buy a Christmasy looking cake.
After finishing my gift wrapping, my magical Christmas Eve finally came to an end. It was time for Santa to arrive!
More pictures:
 |
| 2008.12.24 Christmas Eve in Seoul |
Friday, November 28, 2008
Friday, November 14, 2008
Painfully Hiking Up Bukhansan
A couple of weeks ago, I went hiking at Bukhansan National Park, which is a little north of Seoul. My sole motivation for doing this hike was to do something outside of town. Unfortunately, no one I knew was in proper condition to go hiking or was busy so I had to head up the mountain by myself or do nothing at all. Of course, the adventurous/independent side of me took over and sent me outside of town.
It took me a little under a hour and a half to get there, but it was rather strange getting there. I actually took the subway to the base of the mountain; there is a station basically at the start of the trail. Can you imagine riding the metro to the Smoky Mountains? I did have to get on a bus for a few minutes, but it wasn't hard figuring out which bus to get on considering I had to push myself on since it was literally packed with hikers. Once I got to the base, a friendly English-speaking Korean helped me out and sent me up the trail that I was looking for. I decided to head up to the highest peak in the park since I read that it offered an amazing 360 view.
I'm not sure if I can really call it hiking; it was more like climbing. After the initial general incline, it was basically straight up. I had to hoist myself up all the way. At certain points, there were cables cemented in the rock, and the only way up was to pull yourself up. It was a struggle, and I had to take many short breaks, but it was certainly worth it when I reached the top. It was such an amazing view! The peak was as small as my living room with hundreds of Korean trying to crowd on it; I was a little worried about being knocked off. It was also a little sad not being able to share a moment like that with someone, but it was still great. I was at the very top, and I could see for hundreds of miles all around me. I thought I even saw my home back in Tennessee. It was also incredibly windy up there; I wasn't wearing my jacket because of the hike up, but I promptly put that back on once I reached the top.
After spending some time at top, I finally headed down. It took me about 2 hours and 15 minutes to get up and right at an hour to go down if that tells you anything about the climb. The effects of the day lasted for a couple of days afterward. I could barely walk around from the excruciating pain in my calves. The pain eventually went away, though, after lots of Tylenol.
Luckily, trumpets are allowed while hiking:
The entrance to the hike:
People normally eat cucumbers when hiking here; they say it helps prevent you from getting thirsty:
A little village at the beginning of the trail that had all kinds of food and, of course, alcohol:
The last part of the hike:
Looking down:
Part of Seoul:
The scenery:
After many takes, I finally got a picture:
The mountains from behind as I was leaving:
It took me a little under a hour and a half to get there, but it was rather strange getting there. I actually took the subway to the base of the mountain; there is a station basically at the start of the trail. Can you imagine riding the metro to the Smoky Mountains? I did have to get on a bus for a few minutes, but it wasn't hard figuring out which bus to get on considering I had to push myself on since it was literally packed with hikers. Once I got to the base, a friendly English-speaking Korean helped me out and sent me up the trail that I was looking for. I decided to head up to the highest peak in the park since I read that it offered an amazing 360 view.
I'm not sure if I can really call it hiking; it was more like climbing. After the initial general incline, it was basically straight up. I had to hoist myself up all the way. At certain points, there were cables cemented in the rock, and the only way up was to pull yourself up. It was a struggle, and I had to take many short breaks, but it was certainly worth it when I reached the top. It was such an amazing view! The peak was as small as my living room with hundreds of Korean trying to crowd on it; I was a little worried about being knocked off. It was also a little sad not being able to share a moment like that with someone, but it was still great. I was at the very top, and I could see for hundreds of miles all around me. I thought I even saw my home back in Tennessee. It was also incredibly windy up there; I wasn't wearing my jacket because of the hike up, but I promptly put that back on once I reached the top.
After spending some time at top, I finally headed down. It took me about 2 hours and 15 minutes to get up and right at an hour to go down if that tells you anything about the climb. The effects of the day lasted for a couple of days afterward. I could barely walk around from the excruciating pain in my calves. The pain eventually went away, though, after lots of Tylenol.
Luckily, trumpets are allowed while hiking:
The entrance to the hike:
People normally eat cucumbers when hiking here; they say it helps prevent you from getting thirsty:
A little village at the beginning of the trail that had all kinds of food and, of course, alcohol:
The last part of the hike:
Looking down:
Part of Seoul:
The scenery:
After many takes, I finally got a picture:
The mountains from behind as I was leaving:
Friday, October 17, 2008
Hiking Mt. Inwangsan
Last Sunday, I had the chance to go hiking in Seoul; I went up Inwangsan Mountain, which lies North of the city. Seoul is surrounded by mountains, and this creates a nice mix of urbanization and nature. Actually, it is common to see people in the subway wearing hiking equipment or having camping gear; most of the mountains have a subway station right at their base so access is extremely easy for those without cars. The hike itself was very short, but it was pretty intense.
There were a lot of steps along the way, but most of it was straight up. My friend and I huffed and puffed along the way. This mountain is sacred for Buddhists for some reason. Along the way, there were many signs of Buddhism. There were people on mats giving prayers, giving offerings (including a pig head with money in its mouth), banging gongs, and singing.
Also along the way were these tents that acted as convenience stores in the sky; it is amazing that people would tote so much stuff up the mountain to sell to hikers. Once we got near the peak, we encountered some barbed wire that surrounded the peak. Apparently, the very top of the mountain is a forbidden area.
The Korean military have a presence on top to protect the city and the nearby presidential house. Near the top, we did get some excellent views of the city. I've never had such a good view of Seoul before, and it was awesome being in the middle of nature while at the same time being in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world. We rested at the top where we had a good view and had some food (Korean sushi, Kimbap, and some cookies).
After enjoying our time relaxing at the top, we finally headed back down the mountain as it was getting dark. We got on the subway and headed home to have a dinner of noodles and dried squid. Yum, yum!
There were a lot of steps along the way, but most of it was straight up. My friend and I huffed and puffed along the way. This mountain is sacred for Buddhists for some reason. Along the way, there were many signs of Buddhism. There were people on mats giving prayers, giving offerings (including a pig head with money in its mouth), banging gongs, and singing.
Also along the way were these tents that acted as convenience stores in the sky; it is amazing that people would tote so much stuff up the mountain to sell to hikers. Once we got near the peak, we encountered some barbed wire that surrounded the peak. Apparently, the very top of the mountain is a forbidden area.
The Korean military have a presence on top to protect the city and the nearby presidential house. Near the top, we did get some excellent views of the city. I've never had such a good view of Seoul before, and it was awesome being in the middle of nature while at the same time being in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world. We rested at the top where we had a good view and had some food (Korean sushi, Kimbap, and some cookies).
After enjoying our time relaxing at the top, we finally headed back down the mountain as it was getting dark. We got on the subway and headed home to have a dinner of noodles and dried squid. Yum, yum!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Chuseok Vids
Here are some videos of the Chuseok celebrations at Seoul City Hall. The first one is of the traditional farmer dance, and the second one is the modern/traditional fused concert later that night.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Chuseok in Seoul
Yesterday was such an awesome day. It was the first day of Chuseok, somewhat like Thanksgiving except a little bigger. Chuseok is supposed to be the best time to view the moon and everyone is suppoed to make a wish as they view the moon. I started out by taking a 
hour and half train ride to the northern tip of Seoul to Chang Dong. The city was having a free concert. I thought it would be something exciting and fun, but it turned out a little different. It was basically a dance show mixed in some singing. The outfits were elaborate, but that was about the only thing interesting about the show. It was almost like a Dollywood show except in Korea.
After the show, I was headed back to Bucheon. I had read that there were going to be some Chuseok activities at Seoul City Hall. I thought about passing it up and going home due to the disappointment in Chang Dong, and then I thought that I should check it out since I would be passing by. Once I got there, there were a bunch of people in the plaza. There were a lot of booths set up so people could make traditional crafts, play traditional games, try on Korea's traditional dress hanbok, and even take part in a tea ceremony. I also noticed there were to be performances later that night. So, I decided to hang around and check it out.
The evening started out with a traditional farmer's dance. I had been wanting to see this since I came to Korea last summer. Each community used to
have a band that played at community events to celebrate the planting and harvesting of crops. They play hourglass-shaped drums, gongs, and horns; they also were a long ribbon on the top of their hats. As the dance and march, they twirl the ribbons to create a mass of circles. They also do many acrobatic tricks. One of the old men playing was really funny. He would take water from the audience, and he kept trying to pose for a photographer standing near by. They were also a couple of cute kids that jumped around with them.
After the farmer dance, everyone gathered around the main stage for the big show. Remember that none of this is in English. The MC came out and tried to warm up the crowd. He handed out prizes to people wearing hanbok and spoke a lot of Korean gibberish. He must have been funny because everyone laughed. I just pretended like I knew what was going on. A Korean guy sitting next to me randomly started talking to me. He was very friendly and warned me that I might be called on since I was a foreigner. It was nice to have someone to talk to. Anyways, the MC guy starts
walking through the audience and has everyone make a "ha ha ha" sound. Then he stops to a Korean guy sitting on the other side of me and has him stand up to make the "ha ha ha" sound. He said it wasn't good enough so he looks at me and says, "stand up, please." I was a little taken aback. My friend was right. Suddenly, my face was plastered on the jumbotron in front of the audience of thousands, including the mayor of Seoul. He asked me where I was from and then asked me if I knew English. As a joke, I said "a little." Suddenly, he starts speaking in Korea, and I thought, "oh crap, he thinks I can speak Korean." Luckily, he was just translating because that was when people laughed. He had me do the "ha ha ha" thing and must have liked it because he had me do it numerous times. He then thanked me and gave me a free studio portrait session. That was my moment in the spotlight.
The rest of the evening was filled with some great performances. The B-Boys did some beat boxing and break dancing. Some other performers played traditional Korean music but fused it with modern beats. A guy named Choi So Ri played traditional drums but really mixed it up with modern music, fire, and water. It was an amazing performance! He played the traditional Korean folk song "Arirang" but it felt more like
something played in a techno club rather than hundreds of years ago. Sadly, my Korea friend had to leave because of his restless daughter. The old woman sitting next to him then befriended me and talked to me about the young performer who is just 11 years old and has the deep voice of an adult. She then swayed hands with me as the more subdued Arirang was played. Her husband would want to tell me something so she just translated for me. As they left early also, the old man with a NY Yankees hat shook hands with me and patted me on the back. I think he appreciated the fact that I was there trying to experience Korean culture.
The end of the night's events was pretty fantastic. It is traditional for women to do a "Soo Wal Rae" circle dance under the moonlight on Chuseok. It was such an inspiring dance with bubble machines blowing full speed, the girls in white hanbok circling
around on stage, and the drummers on the side. After they finished, they formed somewhat of a "Soo Wal Rae" tango line and came marching through the audience with the drummers. They stopped right in front of me, and they started dancing with the audience. One of the girls even grabbed my hand and started swirling with me. Everyone was up, clapping, and dancing. Imagine a major city like Seoul doing this traditional dance all together. One woman brought her little kid in a hanbok up to me and had me do the dance with him. We then formed a circle with a bunch of people around us and did our own So Wal Rae. Words cannot describe the awesomeness. That concluded the evening.
The woman and her kid started talking to me and told me many times, "I love you," and would then hug me. Some other Koreans then came up to me and did the same. The little kid even handed me his traditional Korean fan. He had bought the fan
earlier that night and wanted to give it to me as a gift. They all said that they had seen me on the screen earlier that night and thought I was funny with my "ha ha ha." One guy even came up to me and started asking me about American Thanksgiving and American music; he was a fan of American jazz. It was so great to meet so many strangers last night; you could certainly feel the Chuseok spirit. After I greeted a few people, I then headed for the subway and got on the train home. Such a great and memorable night!
(video is forthcoming)
hour and half train ride to the northern tip of Seoul to Chang Dong. The city was having a free concert. I thought it would be something exciting and fun, but it turned out a little different. It was basically a dance show mixed in some singing. The outfits were elaborate, but that was about the only thing interesting about the show. It was almost like a Dollywood show except in Korea.After the show, I was headed back to Bucheon. I had read that there were going to be some Chuseok activities at Seoul City Hall. I thought about passing it up and going home due to the disappointment in Chang Dong, and then I thought that I should check it out since I would be passing by. Once I got there, there were a bunch of people in the plaza. There were a lot of booths set up so people could make traditional crafts, play traditional games, try on Korea's traditional dress hanbok, and even take part in a tea ceremony. I also noticed there were to be performances later that night. So, I decided to hang around and check it out.
The evening started out with a traditional farmer's dance. I had been wanting to see this since I came to Korea last summer. Each community used to
have a band that played at community events to celebrate the planting and harvesting of crops. They play hourglass-shaped drums, gongs, and horns; they also were a long ribbon on the top of their hats. As the dance and march, they twirl the ribbons to create a mass of circles. They also do many acrobatic tricks. One of the old men playing was really funny. He would take water from the audience, and he kept trying to pose for a photographer standing near by. They were also a couple of cute kids that jumped around with them.After the farmer dance, everyone gathered around the main stage for the big show. Remember that none of this is in English. The MC came out and tried to warm up the crowd. He handed out prizes to people wearing hanbok and spoke a lot of Korean gibberish. He must have been funny because everyone laughed. I just pretended like I knew what was going on. A Korean guy sitting next to me randomly started talking to me. He was very friendly and warned me that I might be called on since I was a foreigner. It was nice to have someone to talk to. Anyways, the MC guy starts
walking through the audience and has everyone make a "ha ha ha" sound. Then he stops to a Korean guy sitting on the other side of me and has him stand up to make the "ha ha ha" sound. He said it wasn't good enough so he looks at me and says, "stand up, please." I was a little taken aback. My friend was right. Suddenly, my face was plastered on the jumbotron in front of the audience of thousands, including the mayor of Seoul. He asked me where I was from and then asked me if I knew English. As a joke, I said "a little." Suddenly, he starts speaking in Korea, and I thought, "oh crap, he thinks I can speak Korean." Luckily, he was just translating because that was when people laughed. He had me do the "ha ha ha" thing and must have liked it because he had me do it numerous times. He then thanked me and gave me a free studio portrait session. That was my moment in the spotlight.The rest of the evening was filled with some great performances. The B-Boys did some beat boxing and break dancing. Some other performers played traditional Korean music but fused it with modern beats. A guy named Choi So Ri played traditional drums but really mixed it up with modern music, fire, and water. It was an amazing performance! He played the traditional Korean folk song "Arirang" but it felt more like
something played in a techno club rather than hundreds of years ago. Sadly, my Korea friend had to leave because of his restless daughter. The old woman sitting next to him then befriended me and talked to me about the young performer who is just 11 years old and has the deep voice of an adult. She then swayed hands with me as the more subdued Arirang was played. Her husband would want to tell me something so she just translated for me. As they left early also, the old man with a NY Yankees hat shook hands with me and patted me on the back. I think he appreciated the fact that I was there trying to experience Korean culture.The end of the night's events was pretty fantastic. It is traditional for women to do a "Soo Wal Rae" circle dance under the moonlight on Chuseok. It was such an inspiring dance with bubble machines blowing full speed, the girls in white hanbok circling
around on stage, and the drummers on the side. After they finished, they formed somewhat of a "Soo Wal Rae" tango line and came marching through the audience with the drummers. They stopped right in front of me, and they started dancing with the audience. One of the girls even grabbed my hand and started swirling with me. Everyone was up, clapping, and dancing. Imagine a major city like Seoul doing this traditional dance all together. One woman brought her little kid in a hanbok up to me and had me do the dance with him. We then formed a circle with a bunch of people around us and did our own So Wal Rae. Words cannot describe the awesomeness. That concluded the evening.The woman and her kid started talking to me and told me many times, "I love you," and would then hug me. Some other Koreans then came up to me and did the same. The little kid even handed me his traditional Korean fan. He had bought the fan
earlier that night and wanted to give it to me as a gift. They all said that they had seen me on the screen earlier that night and thought I was funny with my "ha ha ha." One guy even came up to me and started asking me about American Thanksgiving and American music; he was a fan of American jazz. It was so great to meet so many strangers last night; you could certainly feel the Chuseok spirit. After I greeted a few people, I then headed for the subway and got on the train home. Such a great and memorable night!(video is forthcoming)
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