How are your things? Mine are going well.
It's been a few weeks since my last one, and I've had some good times since. I just got back from taking Leo to the airport and he should be boarding the plane as I type. We had a good week. I am currently finishing my second of 2 consecutive long weekends. Last Monday was children's day and they all get the day off school. The kids seem to work harder than anyone else here, with their various academies and lessons. Sometimes elementary school-aged kids will go til 11-12am and get up before school to do homework. I don't think one day off a year is enough, partially because I would get the day off too.... Today (Monday the 12th) is Buddha's birthday so I have the day off as well. Although Korea seems to be more of a Christian country now, it's roots are in Buddhism. I'm not sure what kind of holiday it is in terms of celebration, but everyone likes a holiday so there are few complaints from anyone I know.
Last weekend Leo and I decided to climb up Bukhansan mountain. It began as an adventure as I didn't really know how to get there. I was told that the best way to get there is to stay behind the guys with the hiking equipment. Hiking is a popular pass-time here because there are many different mountains in the Seoul area, but it seems people like to dress the part more than the actual hiking. It's not uncommon to see legions of hikers on the subway with carabiners, walking poles (sometimes 2), tin cups, full back-packs, large-brim hats, a team of Sherpas and string of pack horses. They appear to be ready for some serious climbing.
When we got there it was kind of busy but we decided to follow the main path up the hill (it was more hill than mountain at this point). Leo and I, in our flip-flops, thought that we were in need of a challenge. We found a set of dirt stairs to a path that led to a peak off the side of the main summit. We walked through the paths and found ourselves a walking stick each and forged onward to scale the rock-face. We must have been on a path used during the Korean war because there were several little pill-boxes just off the path that would have been used for guarding the hill from the North. You could go into them, but the view was pretty grown-over and it was a little creepy inside.
As we advanced, we kept getting looks from hikers coming the other way. They would point at our flip-flops and wag their finger. Like true Westerners, we thought that we could do it barefoot--if we wanted...
We got to the rockier bits and realized that barefoot was actually a preferable option. *Side-note: flip-flops are a stupid thing to wear when climbing a mountain*. So we decided to keep going despite the warnings of other climbers. We actually made it pretty close to the top but had to stop at a rock wall that required us to climb up with a rope. We conceded and decided to head back down.
It was a good day and as Leo and I crab-walked down the mildly steep rocks, fellow climbers were trotting down like mountain goats playing tag. In retrospect, proper shoes would have been a wise choice.
anyways it was fun and we got some great photos and a video which I will now post.
It was a fun week. Other stories include calling the police and learning that theft (albeit-- theft under $5) is not a police matter when dealing with cabbies; going to the aquarium as 18 year-old students (which is actually 16 years in western age) to save a few thousand Won; and being celebrities at the Ilsan flower show.
but I shan't get into that -- you should probably be working.
hope all is well and summer has began warmly.
keep it real
