Friday, May 26, 2006
A couple of trips 2:
Sokcho.
Sokcho is on the north east coast of Korea fairly near the North Korean border, it is a small town that is supposed to get really busy in the summer because of its beaches. I went for a long weekend with Julie to relax and enjoy the weather. We stayed at this neat hotel overlooking the beach that was equiped with a sea water Jim Jil Bong, which is a sort of bath house.
Well the trip did not start well with our bus ride into town taking 5 hours instead of 3 because of traffic. Seoulites all try to leave the city on long weekends. The weather was also bad, as apart from the Friday night, it rained the entire time. But we still managed to have a good time, the Friday night we chilled and drank on the beach, the Saturday we visited a very cool Buddhist temple overlooking the sea, and we ate some awesome seafood. I also got to have my first Jim Jil Bong bath with a bunch of old Korean men. Fun fun! The Sunday was chill as we spent 6 hours on the bus trying to get through traffic to get back into Seoul. The real kick in the pants was that once we drove over the mountains, the weather cleared right up and we had sunny, hot skies all the way home... Such is life!
The bus ride out of Seoul. The one small thing that throws me off about Korea is how they like everything organized. Every bus I've ever taken in Canada or anywhere else is first come, first serve. In Korea, each bus seat is numbered and everyone has to sit in their assigned seat. Its not a big deal or anything, but it confused the heck out of me the first time I took a bus like this, Koreans kept on kicking me out of my seat and I didn't know why...
Beautiful wet view. The beach was actually pretty nice, just needed the weather to go with it.
Want to drink? Just buy your booze at the corner store, bring your bottles and cans on the beach and drink freely.
In Canada, fireworks are only legal on certain days, and they have specific ways that they have to be used. I know when I was a kid, my parents would have murdered me if they saw me shooting a roman candle stick from my hand, but here, parents give them to their 8 year old kids to shoot freely. I've always wanted to do it and my parents are too far away to stop me! Pew Pew!
The Buddhist temple was really interesting. It was a large complex with many buildings that we got to tour around and visit. It was raining and windy which actually made the experience more enjoyable. The temple was on a cliff overlooking the sea and having the salt water blowing around made it more potent.
The fish and seafood was excellent here and very.... fresh. We had some live squid and really fresh sushi. We had a bit of an incident after I took that first picture. Apparently the fish that the sushi was placed on was still alive and the moving eyes and fins really grossed Julie out. We had to get the fish removed for Julie to eat anything else. The staff was really nice and after seeing her horrified expression, removed the offending fish quickly. It didn't bother me at all.
Oh my god... Ok I was told about this fad in Korea where couples like to walk around in matching T-shirts. Well I had to see it to believe it and sure enough there it is! I've seen many couples since then sporting couples T-shirts happily and I just don't get it. Not only is is terribly cheesy to wear the same T-shirt, but they are always incredibly UGLY shirts as well! If my girlfriend ever asked me to wear matching T-shirts, I would probably break up with her just for the principle of it.
One of the rest stops on the way home, of course it's nice and sunny.
A few things to expand on from this trip. Jim Jil Bongs rock! I wanted to try the Korean style bathhouse since I've heard good things about them, but I had no idea what to expect or what to do. Finally I worked up the courage to go and really enjoyed it. You walk into the change room and leave your clothes in a locker, then its off to the public bathhouse where there are showers, hot tubs, saunas, and a giant sea water tub. Once you get used to all the naked Korean men, its actually really enjoyable. Shave, wash and just relax for an hour. It really is the ultimate way for a guy to pamper himself. They even have a barber in there who can cut your hair or give you a shave. It is definately something that I want to continue doing, its a great way to relax.
The other thing that I noticed that made me really understand that I'm not in Canada anymore happened while on the bus to the hotel. All the beaches had large spotlights facing the water and barbed wire fences spreading all along the beachfront. At first I thought that maybe the beaches were closed or something but then I started noticing the camo bunkers and army patrols. That was when I understood that the fences and lights and bunkers were there to stop North Korean spies and refugees from sneaking into South Korea. I found it so interesting because it made me realize how sheltered I really am. Barbed wire fences and army bunkers are not things that I am used to seeing in Canada, I sometimes forget that I am only a few hundred kilometers from one of the 'Axis of Evil'.
Speaking of which, my next trip will be a tour to the DMZ. I will be stepping into North Korea to see what's up. Anyone want me to give Kim Jong Il a message?
Sokcho.
Sokcho is on the north east coast of Korea fairly near the North Korean border, it is a small town that is supposed to get really busy in the summer because of its beaches. I went for a long weekend with Julie to relax and enjoy the weather. We stayed at this neat hotel overlooking the beach that was equiped with a sea water Jim Jil Bong, which is a sort of bath house.
Well the trip did not start well with our bus ride into town taking 5 hours instead of 3 because of traffic. Seoulites all try to leave the city on long weekends. The weather was also bad, as apart from the Friday night, it rained the entire time. But we still managed to have a good time, the Friday night we chilled and drank on the beach, the Saturday we visited a very cool Buddhist temple overlooking the sea, and we ate some awesome seafood. I also got to have my first Jim Jil Bong bath with a bunch of old Korean men. Fun fun! The Sunday was chill as we spent 6 hours on the bus trying to get through traffic to get back into Seoul. The real kick in the pants was that once we drove over the mountains, the weather cleared right up and we had sunny, hot skies all the way home... Such is life!
The bus ride out of Seoul. The one small thing that throws me off about Korea is how they like everything organized. Every bus I've ever taken in Canada or anywhere else is first come, first serve. In Korea, each bus seat is numbered and everyone has to sit in their assigned seat. Its not a big deal or anything, but it confused the heck out of me the first time I took a bus like this, Koreans kept on kicking me out of my seat and I didn't know why...
Beautiful wet view. The beach was actually pretty nice, just needed the weather to go with it.
Want to drink? Just buy your booze at the corner store, bring your bottles and cans on the beach and drink freely.
In Canada, fireworks are only legal on certain days, and they have specific ways that they have to be used. I know when I was a kid, my parents would have murdered me if they saw me shooting a roman candle stick from my hand, but here, parents give them to their 8 year old kids to shoot freely. I've always wanted to do it and my parents are too far away to stop me! Pew Pew!
The Buddhist temple was really interesting. It was a large complex with many buildings that we got to tour around and visit. It was raining and windy which actually made the experience more enjoyable. The temple was on a cliff overlooking the sea and having the salt water blowing around made it more potent.
The fish and seafood was excellent here and very.... fresh. We had some live squid and really fresh sushi. We had a bit of an incident after I took that first picture. Apparently the fish that the sushi was placed on was still alive and the moving eyes and fins really grossed Julie out. We had to get the fish removed for Julie to eat anything else. The staff was really nice and after seeing her horrified expression, removed the offending fish quickly. It didn't bother me at all.
Oh my god... Ok I was told about this fad in Korea where couples like to walk around in matching T-shirts. Well I had to see it to believe it and sure enough there it is! I've seen many couples since then sporting couples T-shirts happily and I just don't get it. Not only is is terribly cheesy to wear the same T-shirt, but they are always incredibly UGLY shirts as well! If my girlfriend ever asked me to wear matching T-shirts, I would probably break up with her just for the principle of it.
One of the rest stops on the way home, of course it's nice and sunny.
A few things to expand on from this trip. Jim Jil Bongs rock! I wanted to try the Korean style bathhouse since I've heard good things about them, but I had no idea what to expect or what to do. Finally I worked up the courage to go and really enjoyed it. You walk into the change room and leave your clothes in a locker, then its off to the public bathhouse where there are showers, hot tubs, saunas, and a giant sea water tub. Once you get used to all the naked Korean men, its actually really enjoyable. Shave, wash and just relax for an hour. It really is the ultimate way for a guy to pamper himself. They even have a barber in there who can cut your hair or give you a shave. It is definately something that I want to continue doing, its a great way to relax.
The other thing that I noticed that made me really understand that I'm not in Canada anymore happened while on the bus to the hotel. All the beaches had large spotlights facing the water and barbed wire fences spreading all along the beachfront. At first I thought that maybe the beaches were closed or something but then I started noticing the camo bunkers and army patrols. That was when I understood that the fences and lights and bunkers were there to stop North Korean spies and refugees from sneaking into South Korea. I found it so interesting because it made me realize how sheltered I really am. Barbed wire fences and army bunkers are not things that I am used to seeing in Canada, I sometimes forget that I am only a few hundred kilometers from one of the 'Axis of Evil'.
Speaking of which, my next trip will be a tour to the DMZ. I will be stepping into North Korea to see what's up. Anyone want me to give Kim Jong Il a message?
