Week XXXXII
Sunday, February 21, 2010
The winter has affected me worse than I imagined. Lately, I've turned into a bear, hibernating the days away in my apartment. I usually sleep an average 4-5 hours each night and another 3-4 hours in the afternoon. The notorious split schedule is a bitch. Every day I awake at 530am. Classes are scattered throughout the morning hours, starting at 630am and finishing up around 1230pm. If I am lucky, students will be late or will not show for my early class, giving me extra time to fully wake. After lunch, I retire to my apartment to read and settle in for the day's nap.
Evening classes commence at 630pm and conclude around 10pm, though I was fortunate and had no Tuesday/Thursday evening classes during the month of February. After dinner, a glass of wine helps me to relax while I read the "morning" news (remember ~ 10pm in Korea means it's now after 8am in the U.S.) and then its off to bed sometime between 12-1am. And again the next day... And again... And again...
But on the bright side, the weeks pass by fast. And it helps to save money. So I'm unsure if I'm longing for home at this point or if I'm sick of winter? Perhaps both. Either way, only 10 weeks to go...
Recent happenings in my so called Korean life:
Gemma and I visited Pyeongchang, YongPyong Ski Resort in Gangwon Province in early February. YongPyong is one of the largest and most famous ski resorts in Asia and is a contender for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Actually, YongPyong was in competition for both the 2010 and 2014 games, but lost to other cities. So many are hopeful third times a charm and the Olympic games will once again return to Korea.
There are a total 28 slopes and 15 lifts, however, YongPyong's biggest feature is the 3 kilometer long gondola ride to the 1,458 meter summit, also known as Dragon Peak. Their best run is Rainbow Run, a 6 kilometer long winding slope which takes you from the highest summit to the ski lodge at the base of the mountain. It's where Birdman and Stormshadow spent most of their day battling the icy winds.
Transportation from Seoul is just two hours. There is a 6am shuttle from Jamsil Station, located in Eastern Seoul, which returns in the evening at around 8pm. Cost for the day's lift tickets including the gondola, snowboard rental, and round trip transportation from Seoul was 70,000 Won. Not bad.
Recently I met my good friend and former student, B.H., for dinner near his family's new home in Suji. It's a 40 minute drive from Sanbon, but well worth it to visit with my good friend. B.H. started his new job back in December and has since been working in Hwasung, a two hour commute from Seoul. Because of this, he spends most weekday nights in a separate apartment away from his family and returns on the weekends. Obviously, this has been a tough adjustment for him. He also admits, his English has suffered without practice these past few months and he misses our time together. Me too.
In late January, Gemma and I visited the Chuncheon region of Western Gangwon Province with Korean friends Mr. Gu and his wife Sunhae. Sunhae is an old friend of Gemma, and through their friendship, her husband Mr. Gu, has become a friend of mine. Included in this trip was Yumyeong Mountain and National Forest, the Bukhan River, Cheongpyeong Lake, and the Naminara Republic/Nami Island. Chuncheon is some 60 kilometers East of Seoul, and it's beautiful countryside surrounded by mountains with rich forests and the BukhanGang or Northern Han River carving it's way through it.
Cheongpyeong Lake was formed after construction of the Cheongpyeong Dam back in 1944. The dam controls the flood waters of the Northern Han River and apparently was opened to the public in 1984. Since then it has become one of Korea's biggest marine sports destinations in the summer months and an ice fishing favorite during the frozen winter months.
Nami Island/Naminara Republic has a circumference of 5 kilometers and is located in the middle of the lake near the town of Gapyeong. As far as I can tell, they only call it Naminara Republic for marketing purposes, a sort of fairy tale country with their own flag and currency. Only a 5 minute ferry boat ride from the shores of Gapyeong for a mere 8,000 Won, it's named after General Nami of the Joseon Dynasty (1441-1468). Once on the island there are numerous gardens, and several different species of trees including chest-nut, maple, ginko, white birch, and white pine. It's a beautiful little island, a great tourist destination, and I'd recommend it to any traveler.
All of Chuncheon, including the tiny tourist town of Gapyeong, is famous for dakgalbi, a spicy chicken dish served with sweet cabbage, scallions, sweet potatoes, and Korean rice cakes or ddok. The dish is actually prepared by the server at each individual table, cooked for 10-15 minutes in a large skillet over an open flame in the center of the table. It's definitely one of my favorite Korean dishes, best enjoyed family style with friends such as Mr. Gu and his wife or a large group of people.
In addition to being a good friend, Mr. Gu has become an unofficial tour guide and expert on all things Korean. He is always good for directions or a restaurant suggestion. So it was not surprising that Mr. Gu would seek out Pampas Grill, Seoul's finest Brazilian steakhouse, for dinner two weeks ago. Typical of most Brazilian style steakhouses, Pampas Grill features an 11 course dinner filled with skewers of char grilled meats. All delicious, and finished off with a grilled pineapple on a skewer and rubbed with cinnamon. Cost is 27,000 Won per person plus sangria at 15,000 Won per pitcher (x2). Since typical Korean dining is so inexpensive, this was one of the more expensive meals I have eaten, but also one of the best.
Last weekend was Valentine's Day. More importantly, in Korean culture, last weekend was also the Lunar New Year or Seollal. It's probably the most important Korean holiday, and a time for family's to gather for a huge meal and honor their deceased relatives. All of this is relatively meaningless to me, except it meant a three day holiday, the first such event this year (2010) and a welcome break from school. I also learned, the hard way, that E-Mart and many restaurants are closed on such an occasion. Bummer.
Stay Warm. Think Spring.
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