A big first week!

Times have changed here in Korea. Where you used to see villagers towing rice carts, you now see...

the whole look

CRAZY HATS!

'windy city' is a popular one

Yep it's about time for a hat craze! All the kids are wearing these adorable hats.

Chicago hats

Oakland is pretty popular too for some reason

bragging rights

They hardly even know what they mean! It's fun for the whole family.

the wearer of this shirt wins

Speaking of fashion, it's always fun to see what sort of topics clothes will take on. This one provides a fine example of how a cutltural divide can cause strife and still encompass something you want to wear (on a t shirt). It's also nicely ironic.

Smile for the police cameras!

We started our trip this time in Seoul, making our way through the streets looking for deals and delights. There are so many attractions in Seoul - you can even use the police stations as a photo op.

big 5

This is a sheet music store, which highlights 5 great composers in the window. I think that's the proprietor of the shop on the left - he's in good company.

hello shoppers

I was almost too scared to walk across this window on the floor, but I tried it and lived. It was sort of a let down.

Elevator warning

Something I haen't yet commented on here. Walking, driving, commuting, everywhere in Korea, it seems there are so many signs. Signs instructing you not to touch, not to sit, to stand, watch your head, wait in line, push or pull (most of the doors swing both ways but they still feel the need to put a push or pull sign on them).

Revolving door warning

They can also have some really funny graphics on them, which display the disastrous consequence if you don't obey. I present some priceless illustrations of what can happen if you try to touch this revolving door while it's moving.

say what

Along with the overwhelming amount of instructional signs, of course there are tons of advertisements. Ads that sing and dance and generally tend to annoy me. Most of the ads include strange english phrases that make little to no sense. Apparently even US companies are guilty of this - Dunkin' created this gem. That dude's scarf and charm bracelet are totally cool.

want some spray soup with that burger, Mr. Prez?

There are also some artsy ads too, like this storefront for a burger joint. It's good to know that while the president can't get anything done with domestic legislation, at least he can sell some burgers abroad.

McRon's scooter

And speaking of burgers, what if you're stuck somewhere and crave some food folks and fun? No problem here in the delivery capitol of the world. Everything can be delivered including... well everything - all via little "auto bai" like this one. Your big mac is safe inside the McDelivery box. Also, don't touch that back part of the scooter!

lovely desserts

Pat bing soo! This is maybe the one thing you wouldn't want delivered, because it's a medley of crushed ice other sweet things. The typical mix-ins include azuki beans (the "pat"), ice cream / milk, fruit, nuts, and dduk (rice cake). Then there are the gross toppings like cereal and this powder that tastes like sugary sawdust to me. Here we have a lovely cocktail umbrella and breadsticks. Also, the blueberry smoothie in a jar is served on a handmade doily, supercute!

advertising!

The next leg of our tour took us to Janghyeon, a suburb of Seoul. It's a little rural out here, and you get some of the coutry folk's charming display of gruesome sights at the butcher shop. Inside there were other unmentionables, but I guess it's nice to know where your beef came from. Yep, that cow had a head too, and here it is for your inspection.

veggies!

For less gruesome sights, head over to the market on market day. It's like the whole town shows up to buy and sell on the sidewalks, which are barely wide enough to walk on without tents and racks. I really love these mobile markets, they often have great deals. But even more important, they're tons of fun. You haven't lived until you've been repeatedly shoved in the back by an old lady trying to get her ingredients before dinner.

stack o' fish

This market was even more special than most because this was the last one before the big harvest holiday of Chuseok. As I've mentioned, everybody goes back to their mom's place to share in traditions of gluttony. There were a bunch of gift pack displays like this set of 5 fish. Nothing says "I love you" more than fish you're too stuffed to eat!

bibim mook

We got hungry and stopped for some icy cold bibim mook. This is a local favorite that's become quite famous at this market. Mook is a jelly made from acorns, which sounds a little gross, and it often is. Not the case here. This mook had a really nice firm texture, and the "bibim" part mixed in a whole lot of fun veggies. I don't always eat mook, but when I do, I prefer it iced with kimchi.

BOOR + beer and makgeolri

We wrapped up in Janghyeon with a classic combo: fried chicken and beer. Korean beer is pretty close to the major American beers - watery lager. It goes well with spicy food. We also added some makgeolri to the mix for an extra kick. That's the Korean rice wine that gives a nice headache in the morning. It's worth it. This "Boor Chicken" place's logo looks familiar...

rockin out

Finally, it was time to hit the road and head out to Buseok for Chuseok the sequel. I've commented on the traffic ordeal it is to get away from Seoul at this time of year, so we headed out at 4:30am. That wasn't fun. But this guy at the rest stop made it all worth while. The rest stops in Korea, as I've mentioned, are totally unlike any rest stop you've been to in the US. We actually stopped at one old rest stop by mistake, and my brother in law joked that it was an American rest stop. We then made it over to this real Korean one. Funny story - we then had to wait in a long line at 7am to get coffee and snacks at the real rest stop because there were so many people there. While they waited in line, I got to take some great photos of this guy.

can't let that branch go to waste

Also, great photo op number 2. I've also commented on how much Koreans love the conspicuous display of phallus with their folk art. This was an amusing reminder. All in all a great rest stop experience. It was puncuated at the end when my brother in law threw his coins at the kids working the snack counter. They were too busy and lazy to sell him the fish cake he wanted. Definitely the most exciting morning I've ever had before 7am.

the new deck in Buseok

And finally we made it back to mom's place in Buseok! It's changed a bit since the last time I was here. There are some cute new grape vines growing above the porch.

Buseok's traffic circle

There are some new traffic circles at previously death trap intersections.

Buseok's coffee shop

And there's even a proper coffee shop! Not sure if I'll have time to try it this trip since I'm too stuffed.

Buseok's new park

Also, there's a new park that opened up at the entrance to town, partly in an effort to redirect traffic away from the temple for which Buseok is known. It's long been a complaint of the townspeople that the buses taking tourists to the temple skip the town entirely, and just drop them at the little cottage market that's grown around the temple's parking lot. The town has missed out on a lot of tourism because of this. Well finally, they've changed the bus routes and the town has some new life in it!

rock in the park of Buseok

Not to end on a down note, but this rock is a somewhat literal reminder of the scars left by the Japanese occupation. This huge slab of granite marks the entrance to the park, and is emblazoned with a Japanese territorial marking. The cut marks were an attempt to break the rock apart and remove it, but eventually this was given up due to the size of the rock. it's been here since as a historical marker.

Seoul-full day and night

retro! at the 7-Eleven along the Han river

Seoul is a high energy place. It's filled with all kinds of markets and food, and the people never seem to rest. Fortunately, there are some relaxing things to do in and around Seoul. When people work this hard, they need serious outlets for their relaxation. Take this 7-Eleven for example - it's not just a convenience store. Sure, they have all the stuff you'd expect from a 7-Eleven. They also sell freshly made fried chicken and beer. There are a bunch of tables outside, so you can sit by the river and enjoy some food and drink. And of course, they also have whack-a-dooduhji.

Han Gang at night

The Han River runs all through the middle of Seoul. Founded six hundred years ago, it was the main water source and an important mode of transportation. Now the river is used mostly for pleasure craft, and there are bridges that crisscross the river at every major intersection. It's beautiful at night - all of the bridges have different light arrangements.

dos tacos!

The city really comes alive at night. Since most people work all day and socialization is a major part of the culture - combined with small living spaces - everyone goes out at night. All ages and even the most conservative can enjoy what the city has to offer. It's something that's really struck me about Korean people - they really know how to have fun. Some say that Korea is both a heaven and hell - people work themselves to pieces, then party all night long.

grilling the meat

One of my favorite things to do here (sorry vegans) is get some grilled meat and soju. It's a simple pleasure you can find on every street, and every place has a slightly unique take on the food that goes with it. We ordered the Chadolbaegi (thin sliced beef brisket) which came with marinated onions and other side dishes.

Mr. Pizza has a thing for women

There are of course many other options for late night eating. Seoul is becoming more and more cosmopolitan every time I visit. Mr. Pizza has long been a staple of kids' diets. I haven't eaten here in years, mostly because the first experience left a nasty impression. I'd imagine there must be a decent pizza place around somewhere, but I haven't sought it. There's too much other food that's a sure bet on awesome.

flower tea

Tea is everywhere, but older sis always finds the best stuff. She's very health conscious about what she eats and all, so we typically get to try weird herb concoctions thanks to her. Most of them are a little gross, but hey it's good for you. This tea is actually quite nice.

the mud caves

Koreans love saunas. It's like they're a necessary part of bathing or relaxation. I can't count how many times the virtues of continuously sweating have been extolled to me. There are many places with saunas called chim chil bahngs which offer bathing areas and sweat lodges. Older sis and her husband insisted that we come here. The description wasn't very appealing: they burn wood in a mud cave which gets really hot, then you sit around and sweat in it. As you may have guessed, this is usually not my thing.

a burning fire in the cave

This place is really special (so they say) because they use this mountain wood and special mud to make these little huts. The place actually started as a charcoal factory, but they realized that the the furnaces they used for burning the wood stayed hot for so long that they could use them as a sauna afterward. I think they get more business out of the spa thing than the charcoal at this point, but they still sell it (in the gift shop too).

loading the wood

This guy loads up a cave full of wood in preparation for a burn. They have 6 or so caves that they heat in alternate orders. The most recently heated cave is the hottest, and so forth. They seem to stay hot for days after a burn due to the thick mortar and mud.

stacking the wood in the cave

In case you want to try this at home, you have to stack the wood up vertically. I didn't stick around long enough to see how they start this fire. The guy has to build a temporary wall in the entrance with just enough space to let some air in. Then they bust through it when the cave is ready for you to jump in and burn your face off. I literally had to run out of the hottest room because my eyes were burning, much to the chagrin of the other people that were tough enough to take it. I joked with older sis (she's a church lady) that it felt like hell. She retorted that the old joke is that when Koreans go to hell they ask the devil to turn up the heat. It's almost ironic the way Koreans use the word "shiwonhae" which means "how refreshing!". They use it to describe eating extremely spicy food on a blistering hot day, or in this case, hanging out in the oven.

ajuma train

Speaking of shiwonhae, these ladies were intermittently exclaiming this during their choo-choo massage. Ajumas (older women) love to travel together. The running joke is that when their husbands get cranky and useless in the bedroom, they get stronger and more sociable, leaving the hapless husbands to reminisce about the good old days when their wives waited around for them. Koreans describe these groups of ajumas as somewhat frightening - and I can see why. I've almost been knocked over several times when a group of these ladies are on their way through a crowd. Once I got into a very minor accident with bro's car (oops, sorry bro) at a rest stop. I was alone in the car at that point without my translator, but I already knew what was coming when mother-in-law stepped out of the car. A procession of beratement, followed by "I don't speak Korean, please wait a moment", followed by more beratement, repeated until she finally calmed down to enraged muttering. Her son-in-law came back from the restroom along with my Korean family, and the matter was settled calmly with a little cash for the scrape. I'm fairly confident the ajuma kept muttering in the car the whole drive home.

getting ready to hike!

Ajumas love to hike too - and so do I. Suk Ja and sis look like total ajumas with these visors (they all have to wear them).

hazy western Seoul

The hike was rewarding; the view of this part of Seoul is unique. This area is somewhat more recently developed, but still has a fair amount of smaller buildings nestled among the hulking apartments.

apartments from the mountain

Apartments pretty much dominate any skyline in Korea. They're not just built in the cities like this - they even have developments that are remarkably similar in smaller towns. There's a common format to the whole arrangement - they even have a public address system built into each apartment unit. Every morning, some announcer comes on the speaker and updates the residents on the goings on of the community. As an American, it's funny to compare this to an Orwellian propaganda delivery mechanism. Then I remember that Americans watch a lot of television.

anyong, anyong

These Korean street artists need to study their English a bit more before taking it to the stairs. 'Til next time, ya hoodlums...

Nore in Hongdae

Young Sun sings!

I've elaborated on the Korean norebang a bit in this post previously. I love to sing, and so do Koreans even though most of them can just barely cut it. They get plenty of practice, so everyone is expected to sing at least once if you go to the norebang. You're among friends, so usually it's no big deal if you sound terrible. It's only been on rare occasions that I've been able to witness someone sing with real talent, so this was a treat. Young Sun used to be a professional singer touring throughout Korea and Japan. Her expertise is a hybrid of Korean "Bong Tchak" music and Japanese "Anka" music - these songs have a traditional eastern pop arrangement and a folk style of singing that lends well to minor key ballads. We had to select most of the songs for her since she was modest about showing off, but her voice was fantastic.

in front of Young Sun's bar

Young Sun owns a bar now that she's retired from singing professionally. Word is that her late husband used to be quite a gangster. This is probably true - an older guy stopped by while we were there who couldn't stop playing with a couple of walnuts in his hand. It was awkward talking to him (he spoke English quite well) as the noise from the nuts was distracting. He really seemed like a character out of a bad gangster movie. He even told me he used to be in the "Import/Export" business. I'm not sure that "clothing" really was his top margin product.

star beer


Hongdae is filled with cute little shops and restaurants. It's mostly a university village type place, so it's also pretty well priced for what you get. We didn't check out the star beer. Sadly, most Korean beer joints don't really offer much in the way of beer. There are 3 main Korean beers that are a cut above the big 3 American beers. They've traded ownership among the international beverage corporations several times in the past few years. I don't think craft brewing has really caught on here, though you never know what the next big fad will bring.

streets of Hongdae

I love the name of this lingerie store



for her pleasure, of course

Mr. Special City of Seoul

this spam gift pack costs about $45

Seoul is a sort of confusing marketplace for Americans. On one hand, most of the delicious food is just dirt cheap. Yet these cans above would retail in America for like $12 (+ tax). You can buy amazing clothes for half of what you'd pay in America, although (real) brand name stuff tends to be more expensive. But fake Gucci here can be almost indistinguishable upon closest inspection. I feel like there are lots of little tricks around every corner; signs in distorted English that set my expectations low and then the place blows me away. Half the time I can't tell if I'm being ripped off, or if I'm ripping off the guy I'm dealing with. I think that I could always find something cheaper if I just walked a little farther into the marketplace, but the markets just go on forever. Everything is negotiable. There is no sales tax; it's included in the price. There are no tips whatsoever, and the service is usually superior. The people can be whimsical bordering on silly, polite and friendly yet they make New Yorkers look laid back. There are a lot of do or die types, which is pretty intense.

Mr. bad dude

I was pretty surprised to stumble upon a motorcycle gang with their harleys all chromed out parked in front of a bike shop. Might be the owner's weekend warrior buddies. They were probably surprised to see me too. Peace bro.


the wholesome family restaurant chain comes to Korea

I was equally surprised to stumble upon a Hooters restaurant. The place actually seems somewhat popular with Koreans despite the fact that the Korean version doesn't quite have the... um, curb appeal. Like maybe they just think it's a normal American restaurant and that American waitresses always dress this way. The Korean waitresses didn't seem to wear the same outfit. Koreans probably realized it's trashy to wear orange shorts with nylons and a tank top. I'd bet that no one in the place had a clue what the English name references.

this place wasn't all it was cracked up to be

Nyuk nyuk.


freshly steamed mandu

Mandu are Korean style dumplings that contain lots of diced veggies and meat or kimchi usually. You can put pretty much anything in them, and they always are awesome to me - I've never met a mandu I didn't like.


awesome breakfast

The fresh ones are best, of course, which is why this breakfast was particularly awesome. This place in Hong Dae (artsy college district) makes these guys almost to order. They have a pretty elaborate machine behind the counter that constantly cranks these guys out, and then they go right into the steamer when you place an order. Plus, they're cheap; each of these two orders cost about $3.25.

Mr. campbell's soft ice cream, you don't make any sense in a weird way

I wasn't at all inclined to try this ice cream. We went to Baskin Robbins instead, which I'll admit is a sellout move. But K-BR is actually much better than the USA-BR - less sugar, more flavor. Same price though. At least the employees are way friendlier.

Mr. Big, you're too old to keep bilking East Asians for their adoration of your crappy music

Maybe it's just because they've got a Mr. prefix, but this band has an inexplicable stranglehold on the hearts and minds of East Asian concert-goers. They don't dare bring their "super concert" to the US; they only have a few dates in Europe and the rest are India and other East Asian countries. I guess if you're looking for a puppet show version of an American rock concert, you can go see Mr. Big. This ad really made me livid, and I had to pause and think about why for a moment. It's not only because Mr. Big really sucks and yet still gets to make money off "reunion" tours over and over again, but also because they can bring their circus to a place without the proper context of rock music and make a killing. I have to say with some sadness that I've found Korean musical taste uniformly analogous to a kid that grew up listening to nothing but stale Billboard Top 40 tapes. This ad was flying in the arts college district for crying out loud! Just take a deep breath and keep walking...


sexypig serves sexy pig guts too

I don't think I'm into this advertisement either, and I definitely don't think pig guts are sexy.


the subway between cars

The Korean subway system is like Star Trek compared to Chicago's CTA. There are an extra set of doors that close off the station from the tracks, which allows them to actually heat the station to a comfortable temperature. It's very quiet when in motion, and the doors between cars even open automatically. Most futuristic of all, it doesn't smell like urine anywhere in the station. The drawback to all this future world traveling is that you have to buy a transit card for each person before you even put any money on it. The cards each cost roughly the price of 2.5 rides alone, which seems a little wack to me. We even had to ask some kids for help to use the complicated computer machine. The cost of a ride is around $.80, so it's pretty sweet all in all. The subway goes everywhere; looking at a map gives me a headache. There are usually like 4 different trains you can transfer to at any station. I felt like a rat in a maze, but at least it's a clean maze.


art museums are great for photo ops

I'm an art snob, so the Seoul Art Museum was just ok. It was interesting to see an art museum that really focused on non-western contemporary art, but from previous experience and what I saw here, non-western art tends toward conservative and design oriented work. I suppose this is a nifty staircase. There were some good works too; so I shouldn't be such a whiner.


time to make the donuts

I'm also a coffee and donut snob, so Mister Donut (of course) was a stop I couldn't resist. These guys work on display in the clean room all day making about 15 kinds of fresh donuts for your enjoyment anytime, unlike stupid dunkin (which also has many locations in Seoul) that only fries a few times per day, if that.


awesome lunch

You can see from the above pic that there is one non-western donut here - the one that kind of looks like a baby's teething ring. It's a donut that's more like Korean duk, so it's not as sweet and is more chewy. It's not duk all the way though, so it's still bready like pizza dough. They have different variations of filling too - this one has a red bean and cream filling. I think these were actually my favorite. The other donuts were nice too, not too sweet or oily.


Mr. Donut, your coffee and donuts are great, but your face needs work

I'll take another pause to raise the point that I made in the boonshik post. It's the quality and efficiency of this operation that really makes it work. The idea was nothing special - coffee and donuts served in a place decorated like an American donut shop. The prices aren't cheap - I spent about $8.50 for everything in the photo above. But you get quite obviously fresh donuts served on ceramic dishes with a very clean presentation all around. Even the coffee was good. This was the only "real" coffee I've had, unlike all the other Koffee. I wish I had a Mr. Donut near where I live - if for no other reason than I have no idea what Mr. Dunkin is up to in that back room.


Ms. Fortune Teller

Wandering through the markets, we stumbled upon a little booth with a gaunt little lady sitting inside. This mystical lady has the power to tell you your life's entire forecast based only on your birthdate and time. She's not really mystical - the Korean art of saju (fortune) is an interpretation of all the data that come from a tome based on your lunar birth time. You also don't get to hear the whole story unless you pay for it, but you can pick the areas of your saju that you'd like to hear. I chose career and relationships, and watched the saju lady draw all kinds of symbols from the book with lines around them. In the end, I didn't really hear anything I didn't already know. But I was told that my saju was pretty good, and that things would get better for me in the next few years. My wife messed up and gave her wrong birthdate, so she was bummed to hear that her saju was kinda lousy. Hey, wrong birthdate, wrong saju right? I'd really hate to be the guy that walks in and gets told that you've got nothing to live for. You still have to pay for that one! Some light entertainment for roughly $18.50; makes a great date activity if you're willing to grin and bear it.

Mr. Pizza, your toppings are gross

Mr. Pizza is one of the top pizza chains in Korea, along with Pizza Hut, Papa Johns, etc. All of them offer pizza with wacky toppings you don't see in the US. Most of the "supreme" pizzas involve corn, spam, potatoes, and other nasties. Pizza Hut is now offering a coconut shrimp pizza, bleh. Part of me feels like Koreans are mocking American pizza, which is really a bastardization of Italian pizza anyway. It's kind of funny to see what a second generation spin off looks like. But I guess that Koreans have their own palate, and need to explore the boundaries of pizza toppings that Americans are too scared to confront. CPK won't even touch this stuff. Neither will I; I just took a photo to gag on.


Mr. sad rodeo clown, is this what you do all day?

Every Korean drag that has a bunch of shops is called a "rodeo". This is probably a reference to Rodeo Drive in LA, but I'm only guessing. This guy's job is to get people off the street into the store. I much preferred the stores that employed girls that would dance in unison while a speaker blasted K-pop. At least I had a clear idea of what these girls were selling.

someone had a good time setting up this mannequin display

Since Koreans think male genitalia is a cute symbol of good health, it follows that mannequins with stuffed underwear makes for an acceptable store display. This may even fool one into thinking that this underwear will increase your stamina. Or maybe I just thought it was funny because I have an adolescent's sense of humor.


truckload of drums

This truck was loading up the drums that were played previously in the afternoon near the old Seoul palace. Sadly, I didn't get to see a performance using them. Koreans have a few different styles of traditional music, but the most popular one domestically and internationally is based on samulnori. The word samulnori means four players, but modern samulnori performances can involve more than four players. Pure samulnori is based on four different percussion instruments, two of which are the drums you can see in the photo. The other two are a small and large gong-type cymbals. The performance that used these drums was likely more of a large ensemble or parade that I spotted earlier (but couldn't get any good pictures of).


the line for Mr. Wow is pretty long

I heard about Mr. Wow's awesome sausages from Mr. Seoulfoodyo so when I passed a stand I had to get one. As Mr. Seoulfoodyo says, there are two options: with or without the bun. I went without, since I wasn't terribly hungry at that point.


Mr. Wow, your sausage is incredible

Mr. Wow is a bit expensive compared to other Korean food. You pay about $2.25 for the sausage on a stick, and it's $.45 more for the bun with some cabbage. Still, it's like half a meal, so you could reasonably fill up on junk food for under $5. Easily beats McDonalds or even Portillo's. I liked that the sausages are grilled freshly and have large chunks of gochu (peppers) in them. Yum.


Mr. King Sejong, supreme scholar

King Sejong ruled from 1418-1450 and was personally involved in the creation of the modern Korean alphabet. Before he mandated its use, Koreans had to use the complicated Chinese writing system. Thanks to Sejong, learning Korean is actually possible for me. The Korean government just unveiled this statue with a lot of fanfare a few days ago. It's symbolically (but perhaps anachronistically) located about 300m behind the statue of Yi Soon Shin- who I'll discuss in a bit. There are lots of statues of this guy around Korea, but this one is right where all the action is. To me, it's also a contemporary symbol to keep Korean government in Seoul, as opposed to a recent plan to move the capital further south in order to avoid all the traffic and complexities of Seoul. This plan was launched by the last president, Noh Moo Hyun, whose policies are now out of favor with the current conservative president, Lee Myun Bak.


the Korean alphabet is way easier than Chinese

This is very close to the modern Korean alphabet that was created under Sejong's supervision. It's rightfully placed on the side of his statue since it's his greatest accomplishment. He wasn't exactly popular with the ruling class when he mandated this alphabet, since it obviously would give far more power to common classes. This alphabet is studied by linguists around the world for its elegant simplicity. It's really quite easy to learn; see http://www.lifeinkorea.com/language/Graphics/hangul.gif for a pronunciation guide.

Mr. Admiral Yi Soon Shin, supreme badass

Yi Soon Shin was a naval commander later in the Joseon dynasty, about 100 years after SeJong's death. He was successfully able to repel one of many Japanese invasions using a ship he designed called the Turtle Ship. It had a spiked roof that prevented Japanese soldiers from easily boarding it, plus a bunch of cannons.

It's a worthwhile pause here to point out that the Koreans and Japanese have historically not gotten along so well due to the fact that the Japanese have repeatedly invaded Korea with ambition to conquer its people and other areas of East Asia. This culminated in 1910 when the Japanese defeated the last of the Korean Joseon dynasty and officially added Korea to the Empire of Japan. Korea wasn't really an independent country again until the end of World War II, and even then it was on the brink of civil war against communist North Korea during the Korean War. As I've mentioned previously, South Korean men have been subject to mandatory conscription since the end of the Korean War due to the threats that exist on all sides. Historians have marveled at how Korea has kept its language and culture from being completely overrun throughout the ages. Understandably, Korean culture is infused with a great sense of nationalism and pride in this achievement. It's also interesting to note that recorded history shows Korea has never launched an invasion of any kind into another people's territory.


look, tourists!

These tourists are near a Korean wartime photography exhibit sponsored by the conservative Chosun newspaper. Nationalism at its best. Lots of pictures of MacArthur and whatnot.


Mr. Prez's house has a nice blue roof

At the end of this row of statues lies the the seat of power for South Korea. The Blue House is right in the heart of old downtown, near all the western style but Korean hotels and old school Korean offices like Chosun-Ilbo, LG, and a bunch of other places that look like office megaplexes. The mountain that the Blue House sits on is supposed to have tons of chi (life energy) according to feng shui. When the Japanese took over Korea in 1910, one of the first things they set out to do was block that chi from the mountain so it wouldn't rouse up the conquered masses. They drove hundreds of large iron rods into the mountain around this site which, according to feng shui, blocked the chi. Seems silly enough to me, but the Koreans took it seriously. When they won back their independence, the first thing that they did was dig up all those darn iron rods. The story should continue with somebody getting their powers back and finishing off the evil emperor, restoring peace and prosperity to the land.


Mr. toasted dried squid man, you're like a folk hero

After conferring with all these political superheroes, it was time for a snack. As I've mentioned, East Asians love squid. It seems like it's really easy to harvest these guys en masse, so they're everywhere. You can get squid chips and squid soup and raw squid, but the street food favorite is undoubtedly roasted dried squid. The vendor will buy dried squid like the ones I showed in my Sokcho post, then run them through a shredder and sauce them up with some spicy and slightly sweet marinade. Then they get roasted in a mini steam roller when you buy one. It's very tender because of the spicy marinade, and I find them pretty tasty. Sometimes it's a bit too sweet for me. It costs like $.90 for a whole lot of squid. Love it.

awesome dinner

We went for a traditional Korean dinner with a friend and got an obscene amount of banchan (side dishes). The restaurant is somewhat fancy, but these banchan come with the meal. So it's pretty inexpensive to eat here if you order some cheap main dishes. We went with some simple roasted fish, and it was great.


Shincheon at night

This is included to show a typical Seoul street at night. There is always a lot of bright light signage and people walk mostly within these marketplaces. There are tons of places to eat and drink in each market, and there are probably thousands of these markets around the city. So there's a lot of activity, especially on a weekend.


"Blue Chicago"; of course we had to go here

We hung out at this bar after meeting up with a friend. He commented that he thought the people who ran the place had never been to Chicago. I think he was right- they didn't even have PBR.


grand re-opening as "Le Nuit Blanche"

Our friend knew a promoter here, so he was able to get us in for free. He told us that the place was previously shut down, and it was re-opening tonight for the first time as a new club. I asked why it had been shut down, and he said that some lewd pictures had circulated the internet from the previous place. He said it was never really like that, but those photos got the place busted. Of course, the rep stuck and we ended up with the hottest ticket in town.


Mr. Paul Van Dyk rocks the club

Paul Van Dyk is a world famous trance DJ from Germany. I didn't know he was DJing until we got in, but it was a pleasant surprise to see a familiar name. His set was pretty good, we didn't stay for all of it. Korean bars and clubs still allow smoking inside, which set my tolerance for these places pretty low. I read in a news article that Korean superstar, Bi (Rain), was there too. Too bad we didn't get to dance with him; he just chilled in the VIP room the whole time.