Blogs from Insadong, Seoul, South Korea, Asia - page 3

Incheon, Korea has a most unique entry. Outside of the Panama Canal it has the only sea locks we pass through around the world. Because there is such an extreme tide and strong currents in this part of Korea, it was necessary to build the floodgates to protect the ships in the inner harbor. At 30 feet, Incheon has the second greatest tidal fluctuation in the world just behind the Bay of Fundy in Canada. One notable difference between Korea and Panama is about 60 degrees of warmth. Brrrrrrrrrr! It seems that we have been following in General MacArthur's footsteps most of this trip. The "American Caesar” was in Darwin, Australia, Manila and Corregidor during WWII. Incheon is where he launched an amphibious attack during the Korean War to recapture this strategic port and retake Seoul ... read more

01/24- Mon. This day takes me back to memories of the high and lows of camping away from the amenities that we grow so accustomed to in our homes. Do ever recall being away from home and becoming very ill without the comforts of familiar medicines? Today I was reminded of one time in particular. As a kid my family was camping and waterskiing at Crawford Lake. I became extremely ill and soon an outhouse became my closest friend. At the time I just wanted to die. A memory that lies quietly until times like today. My day was planned to have lunch with a new acquaintance. This was to be a great opportunity to get to know one another better. My body, however, decided a completely unexpected agenda. Yes, I became very ill. My day ... read more

On Saturday morning, I asked Shauna, "would you accompany me today to Unhyeonggung Palace and Jogyesa Temple? They are both in Insadong then we can do a bit of shopping and grab dinner before heading home. How does that sound?" "It sounds like I should bring my camera and be prepared for a day outside. Thanks for inviting me along," she replied with a smile breaking out on her face. Before leaving the apartment I read two small passages in the LP guidebook starting with Unhyeongung; The modest and plain natural-wood design of this minor palace reflects the austere tastes of Hungseon Daewongun (1820-1898), King Gojong's stern and conservative father whose policies included massacring Korean Catholics, excluding foreigners from Korea and closing Confusion schools. Gojong was born and raised here until 1863 when he ascended the ... read more

English below. Hallo, Soweit habe ich Seoul wirklich genossen. Nachts ist es am schoensten. Es sieht aus wie Chinatown in London ist jedoch viel bunter und größer. Es war eine gute Idee meine Reise in Südkorea anzufangen. Hier ist es sicher, Internet-Verbindung ist fantastisch, alle Leute sind sehr freundlich, die englische Sprache findet man hier ueberall, der Standard von Jugenherbergen ist um einiges besser als in London......usw. Es had endlos viele Pluspunkte fuer den 'First time traveller'. Die Jugendherberge befindet sich zentral 'Downtown' Seoul (im Norden vom Fluss) in der Nähe von allen Haupt-Attraktionen. Soweit habe ich die folgenden Attraktionen besucht: Gyeongbokgung und Changdeokgung Palast, Biwon Garten, Insa-Pimmel-Bezirk, Myeong-Pimmel-Bezirk, Seoul Turm, Olympischer Park, Bukhansan Nationaler Park, DMZ und viele andere Bezirke. Höhepunkte bis ... read more

Last weekend was probably one of the best weekend’s I’ve had in Korea so far. It started out as a typical Friday where I was exhausted from having taught my 2nd grade and Kindergarten classes, plus the two extra afterschool lessons that I was told about ten minutes beforehand. It seems to be the Korean way for bosses to tell employees of things right at the last possible moment. For the life of me I won’t ever understand this. That evening after taking a short nap I went to my Korean language class, which has basically become the Friday night social gathering for the 'Yongin Crew' that I've started to associate myself with. After Korean class around 8:30 we decided to go and eat before we would head out to the bar. A favorite restaurant of ... read more