Saturday, October 15, 2011

Gyeongbok Palace and the Korean Folk Museum

Last weekend, Scott and I went up to Seoul.  We had dual purposes: shopping for winter jackets and visiting a palace.  We weren't successful in finding clothes that would fit either of us, but we did have a nice time at Gyeongbok Palace and the neighboring Korea Folk Musuem.  Enjoy the pictures!
Gyeongbok Palace Gate with Seoul Skyscrapers in Back

Pond at Gyeongbok

Waterlilies facing toward Korean Folk Museum

Taking a Rest From Walking

Cushions are for sitting
Royal Chamber

Imagine putting a new roof on that

In one of the big courtyards

Palace Building in Back

Onlookers Watch Historical Reenactment of Soldiers Marching

Korean Folk Museum in Back

Scott's Zodiac Symbol is Dragon

I'm a Rat

Painted Ceiling in Palace Building

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Another Sunday in Seoul

We visited Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul today. It was pretty cool, as is the Korea Folk Museum. Pictures to come. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyeongbokgung

Saturday, October 1, 2011

The Gym

Finally, it's starting to cool down here.  I wore a sweater for the first time tonight.

Scott and I have been enjoying going to the gym.  We go to the university gym.  It is almost empty during the day which works very well for me since I teach in the evening when it gets busier there.  There are some differences between American gyms and Korean gyms.  One difference is that you have to remove your shoes to go into the locker room.  People remove shoes before entering houses and going into traditional Korean restaurants.  There is a special lower part of the floor by the entrance where you can leave your shoes.  The locker room floor is kept pretty clean, so socks are fine for it.  Unfortunately, out in the gym, some young men spit on the floor between the treadmills, so I would avoid stepping there.  Spitting is very common among men of all ages.  It is not everyone though, and Scott and I have met some Korean people who find the spitting gross.  One final thing about our Korean gym is that the cardio equipment goes largely unused.  That is because everyone there is already very skinny.  Koreans make the French seem like fatties :)

Friday, September 30, 2011

Monday, September 26, 2011

Cantina and Dunsandong

Scott and I have gotten used to traveling to other parts of Daejeon now by subway and/or bus.  On the weekend, we like to go out to eat in Dunsandong,a busier, richer, and less pungent neighborhood than our own.  There are tall commercial building in that neighborhood with multi-story shopping centers and various western-style places to eat.  On Saturday,  Alex joined us for dinner there at Mexican restaurant called Cantina.  We've been craving Mexican for a while; we had a neighborhood place back in Minnesota that we frequented.  Our expectations were unrealistically high.  The food was expensive and very mediocre.  But it was nice to dine somewhere different.  Honestly, neither Scott nor I have really gotten into Korean food.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Peppers, Mountains, and Buildings

Typically little building, housing on top, business on the bottom

Construction everywhere!  Beware, construction workers are definitely not concerned with pedestrians safety
No, that's not what you're thinking.  That sign indicates Buddhist monks
Businesses are found at all levels of buildings.  You need to look up a lot to find where you need to go

The building where I teach some of my classes.  The rest of the university looks a lot like an American university.
skyscrapers are found throughout Daejeon

work of culinary arts students I think

Daejeon from above.  The city is very, very big and surrounding by mountains
Korea has some of the most unusual and cute translations of English of anywhere I've been.

Scott works out outside along the mountain trail some times, as do some senior citizens :)

Temple in Seoul.  Most of this trip was dedicated to shopping.  Seoul has endless shopping, indoors and outside in the open air
One of the wonderful illustrations in the culinary arts area of Woosong University.  Scott and I frequently have coffee and lunch in the cafe.

Used in many dishes.  Lots of things can be found lying in Korean streets and sidewalk

Sherry

Stink Bug

Stairs.  This trail, I've heard, was constructed by hand.

See Scott?

Start of the Mountain Trail

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Chuseok

추석 잘 보내세요. Happy Korean Thanksgiving! No school today and tomorrow :)