Day 2: Seoul
I DID find a bookstore, by asking the PC nook clerk to load up google maps - so I could see which direction to search, even if I couldn't read a thing on the page. Seoul is about as bi-lingual as a US border town, even tho it isn't. The subways repeat information in English, most traffic and shop signs have English in finer print, and most people speak enough to mime me directions. I'm told not to expect any of this outside of Seoul, tho. I have a Survival Korean book for the specifics (thanks, dad!) - pointing to the word in the book works great. =) PLUS M had provided me with everything a green and sleepy tourist could possibly need to navigate this city, handed to me on a college-lined platter! I <3 that girl.
1 mile south of the internet nook was one of the larger bookstores I've ever patronized. Their foreign languages section alone was huge! Full price is still full price tho, even if most things here are super-cheap. The stationary and random crap section took up an entire floor. I found the cheapest, silliest notebook they had, and began my spree of 'WTF?!' gift shopping. You have been warned.
Next up: Where Would I Like to Go Today? Answer: walking in a trendy section of the city, following a Lonely Planet walking tour thru some (incomprehensible) galleries and (impossible to find) shops. I stopped for lunch in a recommended eatery so traditional that they did not mention the seafood that is part of everything on the menu. I picked out the fishy and spicy bits as best I could, and ate it anyway. And ordered Dongdongju, a "traditional Korean drink" which turned out to be cloudy-white and carbonated, and tasting a lot like beer. ...ew.
After failing to find the one-room "Owl Museum" that Lonely planet insisted was there 4 years ago, I decided the green spaces on the OTHER side of the walls I was passing looked far more interesting. Sometimes the grass really is greener! It was the grounds of a palace - not the largest (or oldest?) in the city but quite large (and old) enough for me. I wandered under traditionally painted (read: bright) eaves and peered into ancient corridors with extravagant furniture and wooden floors showing the traffic of centuries gone by. And I did NOT imagine it as the setting for scenes from Mulan, not even a little, because I am not that ignorant foreigner who can't see the difference! Much. Expect photo series soon, to the tunes of "Old Things Are Pretty" and also "Koreans Are Short". Highlights: walking into a special program courtyard, and being offered tea instead of being chased out. Also the 750-year old juniper tree. Hot damn, that thing was decrepit.
I meandered south thru the city to reach the proper subway line, passing many a fine sight, and ensuring that my feet would be far too miserable to dance later. "But Gabe!" (you say) "You have been hiking for a living! How can 5 leisurely miles make you that sore?" Sadly, I have been sitting still for nearly 2 months, and brought shoes that are more comfortable than supportive. Ow.
I met M after work at a subway stop on the other end of the line, this time after only 10 minutes of looking in the wrong places! More mysterious-yet-tasty foods, and then we limped to the next dance. I liked what I saw there too! Excellent dancers, lots of fun to watch. What is it with Koreans and line dancing tho? The Shim-Sham and the Big Apple I recognize, but there were other, stranger songs that had half the room out there kicking and flapping their arms in unison. Again the largest person in the room (no, that is not getting old yet), eventually I took off my shoes and let my feet throb from the sidelines, lest the fabulous dancers M kept sending to dance with me decide that big girls just can't dance fast. =P She took me home and did her best to tuck me into bed, tho by then I was waking up again.
Seoul turned out to be rather spiffy. And I get to come back here before I leave! Also, my first "Lady, you very pretty. Take picture?" which I am told I should get used to. Maybe I can get the next one to use my camera too. =)
1 mile south of the internet nook was one of the larger bookstores I've ever patronized. Their foreign languages section alone was huge! Full price is still full price tho, even if most things here are super-cheap. The stationary and random crap section took up an entire floor. I found the cheapest, silliest notebook they had, and began my spree of 'WTF?!' gift shopping. You have been warned.
Next up: Where Would I Like to Go Today? Answer: walking in a trendy section of the city, following a Lonely Planet walking tour thru some (incomprehensible) galleries and (impossible to find) shops. I stopped for lunch in a recommended eatery so traditional that they did not mention the seafood that is part of everything on the menu. I picked out the fishy and spicy bits as best I could, and ate it anyway. And ordered Dongdongju, a "traditional Korean drink" which turned out to be cloudy-white and carbonated, and tasting a lot like beer. ...ew.
After failing to find the one-room "Owl Museum" that Lonely planet insisted was there 4 years ago, I decided the green spaces on the OTHER side of the walls I was passing looked far more interesting. Sometimes the grass really is greener! It was the grounds of a palace - not the largest (or oldest?) in the city but quite large (and old) enough for me. I wandered under traditionally painted (read: bright) eaves and peered into ancient corridors with extravagant furniture and wooden floors showing the traffic of centuries gone by. And I did NOT imagine it as the setting for scenes from Mulan, not even a little, because I am not that ignorant foreigner who can't see the difference! Much. Expect photo series soon, to the tunes of "Old Things Are Pretty" and also "Koreans Are Short". Highlights: walking into a special program courtyard, and being offered tea instead of being chased out. Also the 750-year old juniper tree. Hot damn, that thing was decrepit.
I meandered south thru the city to reach the proper subway line, passing many a fine sight, and ensuring that my feet would be far too miserable to dance later. "But Gabe!" (you say) "You have been hiking for a living! How can 5 leisurely miles make you that sore?" Sadly, I have been sitting still for nearly 2 months, and brought shoes that are more comfortable than supportive. Ow.
I met M after work at a subway stop on the other end of the line, this time after only 10 minutes of looking in the wrong places! More mysterious-yet-tasty foods, and then we limped to the next dance. I liked what I saw there too! Excellent dancers, lots of fun to watch. What is it with Koreans and line dancing tho? The Shim-Sham and the Big Apple I recognize, but there were other, stranger songs that had half the room out there kicking and flapping their arms in unison. Again the largest person in the room (no, that is not getting old yet), eventually I took off my shoes and let my feet throb from the sidelines, lest the fabulous dancers M kept sending to dance with me decide that big girls just can't dance fast. =P She took me home and did her best to tuck me into bed, tho by then I was waking up again.
Seoul turned out to be rather spiffy. And I get to come back here before I leave! Also, my first "Lady, you very pretty. Take picture?" which I am told I should get used to. Maybe I can get the next one to use my camera too. =)