Been here for a week; time for minutiae--like doing laundry and getting a haircut...

No 'famous' tourist things today...

This morning, while having my coffee (alas, instant), I sat on the floor amidst a week's worth of dirty laundry,  a dictionary in hand, staring at this control panel:

I can 'read' everything--phonetically, that is...but knowing the vocabulary? I didn't want to bother my mother, uncle, or aunt...so I figured it out eventually. Nothing got torn, nothing shrunk, and I'll be presentable again, in freshly laundered clothing, smelling of the sea, perhaps. (Almost no one has dryers here...clothes racks are on every balcony/patio.)

I finally went for a run today!--along the beach, through some back streets, through a small stretch of pine forest--trees that look like giant bonsai--up a hillside with small farm plots--until I hit a military fence in the woods; being so close to the border with North Korea, large sections of the coastline remain off-limits to the general public--guards constantly patrol the coast, on the lookout for infiltrators from The North...

After a run, you gotta eat...

So we went to a restaurant in a beautiful rice-paddy-filled-vale--we sat on the floor along long tables made of giant slabs of pine, to enjoy one of the local specialties that does not involve seafood: buckwheat noodles and tofu made from black soybeans: 

In the small cup on the right is a uniquely Korean condiment-pickle-beverage. Yeah, I know--sounds weird--it is...but it's refreshing and full of probiotics! So, it takes five months to make--it involves a giant radish which is pickled with Asian pear juice...it's kept ice cold, and you eat the radish slice like a pickle, but you drink the cold salty/sweet liquid as a beverage--it's even slightly 'carbonated'!! Amazing, eh?--what's considered normal in different parts of the world...

Later, we went to the grocery store--what a contrast to the seafood market downtown--this place would give any grocery stoe in America a run for its monehy--super clean, friendly service, free samples everywhere--and it's 4-stories tall: Levels 3 and 4 are parking...Level 2 is like going to a fancy Target, and Level 1 is the grocery store...AND it has a food court. (Anyone familiar with the Monoprix chain in France? C'est ça.)

At any rate, with iPhone in hand (I really don't care if the local employees think I'm a crazed foreigner with a photo-addiction)--I just had to get a shot of these juices: 

 Really? Are you for real? You're not just an optical illusion?
100% natural produce...

Upstairs, in the stationery section--tons of cutesy examples of Engrish, including this little notepad:

Oh, little mister "DoReMi" doggie (trust me, that's his name),

why, oh why do you love watermelon so much?

And why does this belong on a "Check List?"

Allow me to paraphrase:

Decide what you gotta do. Do it. Only you will make you do it.

Globalization in the form of fried chicken:

...although you will find NO biscuits here--

just the cajun-spiced fried chicken

AND--look at the ad under the counter--

a local addition:

'paht bing-soo,'

a dessert made from shaved ice,

cream, red beans (sweet, though),

and some other toppings as well...

I know, sounds weird, but on a summer day, so nice...

Don't knock it til you've tried it.

If you'd rather not, there are plenty of

"Mochaccinos" available...

Later on, after stocking up on sundries, I went out to get a haircut, and saw this: 

 There is some truly horrific hotel-architecture in Sokcho.

(The green box on the back of the scooter reads "Pelicano"--it's a local chicken-restaurant-chain, and they deliver! Pizza Hut and even McDonald's also have these little delivery scooters here...)

More 'whimsical' motel architecture--this just up the street from my Uncle's...

(I do like the blue tile roof on the more traditional building in the foreground, though...)

But not all the lodging options are so gaudy;

check out these little casitas--a few doors down from my Uncle's,

on the way to the seawall:

...and Sokcho is full of roses right now--the marine climate must be good for them...

The sea is quite clear here: 

Ahh, young love--typical graffitti by the seashore--in any language,

"I love you" will always be found.

Language lesson for today--to say "I love you" in Korean:

"Sah-rahng-heh."

The coast is clear enough for locals to forage for edibles; at certain times of the year, my Aunt will gather little anchovies that swarm close to shore...Today, a neighborhood 'halmoni' ('grandmother') was gathering 'mi-yeok,'--edible kelp:

 ...very enterprising; she sold some to a man who was on a bike ride with his daughter...

 I love how he's in a dress shirt and slacks, with his pig-tailed daughter on his bike, riding one-handed:

Why bring home the bacon, when you can bring home the kelp, right?

=====================

No kelp for dinner tonight (I do like it, though--great in soup!)...

But the simplicity of local fresh ingredients is a delight--

so many fresh vegetables:

Here's the inside scoop on this wrap:

Fresh red-leaf lettuce from the backyard,

a 'gae-nip' (perilla, or ''wild sesame") leaf,

some sticky white rice,

'dwehn-jahng' (a kind of red-pepper-laced miso paste),

and a couple of mellow (really! ) pickled garlic cloves...

The 'slow food' movement' is right at home, here in the provincial parts of South Korea...

Arrival in Sokcho. Mountains and Squid...and a neighborhood of 'temporary' houses...

We are here by the sea, on the opposite side of the country from Seoul.

Eighteen years ago, the journey took about 5 hours, on curving mountain roads...Today it only took about two-and-a-half--we must've gone through 20 or 30 tunnels; I lost count...As soon as one leaves Seoul, the mountainous reality is unavoidable; the oft-cited figure of the country being 80% mountainous is no exaggeration...Some people call Korea the 'Switzerland of NE Asia' due to its rugged terrain--I would agree...and going through all the tunnels on smooth wide highways, I thought of Switzerland, not just because of the mountains, but also because of the engineering--both societies have responded to their challenging terrain and small political boundaries by means of infrastucture.

A few bus-window views, then, on the way...over the river and through the woods:

The slopes are all thickly wooded; my mother talked about how, when she was a little girl in school right after the war, there was such emphasis placed on reforestation--so many of the country's mountains had become denuded during the Japanese occupation and the Korean War (especially in the north--napalm was first widely used here)...

Until 2005, in fact, Arbor Day was a public holiday here. My mom remembers going out into the countryside with her classmates--planting seedlings, and hiking around with little cans to capture 'greedy' caterpillars and grasshoppers that would otherwise thwart the nation's efforts to reforest its slopes!

But not all the forests are second-growth; some are old-growth, especially in the mountains along the East Coast, whose terrain is so steep that there weren't any major battles fought in the mountains here, near Seoraksan National Park:

 ...The rice paddies still reflect nicely; the seedlings are too new to cover the water from view...

by late summer these paddies will be a lush, dark green:

Sokcho:

     Although there are many seaside vacation-rentals, it is still very much a working fishing port with a certain grittiness. It ain't quaint...but the setting is lovely, between the mountains and the sea...Great efforts are being made to convert it to a seaside-vacation-town--note the cranes...but it's definitely a work-in-progress.

From the top of that bridge, looking down:

Colorful roofs, but claustrophobic quarters, eh? This neighborhood is a relic of the Korean War. It's nicknamed "Ah-bah-ee Village." In the dialect of neighboring Hamgyong-province, now isolated in North Korea, 'ah-bah-ee' is the equivalent of 'ah-bo-jee' ("father") in standard Korean...

When the war broke out, scores of families from what would become North Korea fled to this area--building what they thought would be temporary--so therefore small and close together--housing. But when the DMZ was fixed, they found themselves stranded on this peninsula between a lagoon and the sea...nowhere to go...And so their 'Ah-bah-ee village' remains as a working-class neighborhood. It's now popular with tourists for seafood restaurants...

So, while it may not be the most charming, 'postcard pretty' place, it's a real piece of human history and architecture--picturesque in its poignant way...

My uncle lives on the southern edge of this historical area; so this--the constructed legacy of refugees--will be the scenery for 'my neighborhood run' for mid-June...

The sea-air is a nice change from Seoul...

(although, the traffic and the smog aren't as bad as I remember...)

Coming here from Seoul is like going back in time; it's a far cry from the polished cosmopolitan-ness of central Seoul...the rusticity and the construction-rubble--it's an 'invigorating' contrast from the Capital.

Such a small country, (South Korea is the size of Utah...but with 48 million people!) with such diferent regions.

 No land to spare--so no land goes to waste--

truly 'postage stamp' gardens

for growing vegetables to go with dinner...

...and speaking of dinner:

Scary? or appetizing?

It's 'oh-jing-eo soon-dae,'

a local specialty--a 'sausage' made of

a whole squid ('calamari' just sounds prettier...)

stuffed with rice and vegetables--

when sliced, quite pretty...

We didn't eat in this restaurant; we bought it to go...

So. Squid. Lots and lots of the fishing boats here go out into the sea at night;

they use lights--squid swarm in the way that moths are attracted to light bulbs...

You can see them swim at the local market in the middle of town!

A vast indoor (underground) space of tanks full of continuously flowing seawater,

with the day's specimens--it's like SeaWorld, except that it's all for dinner!

Sokcho.

'Home-base' for the next couple of weeks...

==========================

I happened upon this website tonight:

"12 rules for expat life in Korea"

http://www.cnngo.com/seoul/life/12-rules-expat-life-south-korea-067384

Flippant, but fun.

Mom's last day in Seoul...Insadong...Jongno Tower...learning to use my new camera at night in Kwanghwamun Plaza

Tomorrow we're off to Sokcho, to my uncle's...

Today, then, was my mother's last day here in the Capital. Mom's been a low-pressure traveler, and with her still-recovering knee, she's not wanted to run all over town. So, after a leisurely morning, we walked several blocks (her therapy) to the Insa-dong district; known for its arts and antiques.

During the Joseon (Yi dynasty) period, the area was the headquarters for the royal government agency for arts and paintings. (Scholarly calligraphy was a highly prized skill, even among bureaucrats! Can you imagine if politics included that today?) And since that time period, the paper, scrolls, and brush-supplying neighborhood has mushroomed into a vibrant arts district...along with the kitsch that international tourists demand, but still, one of the most interesting neighborhoods in Seoul...

The district is so different from the last time either my mother or I were here--much more commercial, and much more crowded--but still, tree-lined and mostly pedestrian...I love the windows:

...and some of the side-alleys still have a few traditional buildings--nothing like the concentration in Bukchon, but the 'old soul of Seoul' can still be seen:

(A vendor taking a well-deserved rest in the shade after a long day of carting around popped-rice-snacks...cellphones allow much more discreet people-photography...I've always shied away from taking pictures of strangers...)

This couple demonstrated the traditional way of steaming and pounding glutinous rice to make "tteok," a kind of 'rice-cake'...

     ...back near our hotel, I happened to look up and noticed the wording on this building that I've passed half a dozen times in the past couple of days:

Somebody takes their coffee WAY too seriously, no?

 As in, blasphemously so...

After a full day of walking, browsing, shopping and snacking, my mother had had enough 'therapy,' so I took her back to the hotel for her to get off her feet...and then I headed back out to finally get up close to the Jongno Tower, which I've seen from almost every angle from different parts of the city since I got here last Wednesday:

"Jongno," the name of the building and the avenue on which it is located, means "Bell Street;" during the Yi dynasty, the bronze bell that hangs in the pavilion beneath the Tower (in the photo above) was rung twice daily, to signal the opening and closing of the city gates...it's still rung for special occasions, such as New Year's...

From the top floor, you can look east and see one of those city gates--Dongdaemun, at the head of 'Jongno:'

Alas, there is no public observation deck at the top--just a posh restaurant...but the 'landing' area in front of the elevators is open to the public...as are the restrooms:

Firstly, a cool circular sink...secondly--that's one of the more scenic backdrops for handwashing, eh?

Looking towards Namsan:

 ...and then, looking down, through the hollow part of the building over which the top floor is 'suspended:'

It's not a particularly tall building--33 floors is, well, rather short compared to some skyscrapers...but I just love the quirkiness of the daring structure.

And nearby is Chongye-gye-cheon,

 the 'daylighted stream' I mentioned the other day.

It's truly a treasure in the middle of the city.

And when the workers were 'unearthing' it

 after demolishing the elevated freeway,

they also rediscovered a 600-yr-old stone bridge:

Green space in the middle of a city--perfect for strolling...

...and back to Kwanghwamun Plaza, just in time to see kids playing in the lighted fountain around the statue of Admiral Yi Sun-Shin:

 (Perhaps Korea's most famous military hero, Yi Sun-shin invented the world's first iron-clad warships in order to defeat the more numerous Japanese in the wars of the 1590's; the Japanese were attempting to overtake Korea in order to invade China...they were defeated, although they took scores of Korean potters back to Japan as captives. In fact, the war is sometimes called the Pottery war! A bit over 300 years later, Japan would finally succeed, as Korea and Manchuria were absorbed into the Japanese empire until the end of WWII...)

As it got dark, I decided that I needed to put away my iPhone and learn the manual settings on my 'real' camera for nighttime photography. Without a tripod, I couldn't get the truly crisp images, but I had fun experimenting, and I'm not unpleased with the 'student-results:'

Time to call it a night.

Tomorrow--across the peninsula, across mountain ranges to seaside Sokcho...

From medieval market to cosmopolitan comestibles; chic and rustic (scary) rub shoulders in my mother's old stomping grounds, and French connections, in Seoul...

To begin--Getting on the subway this morning, I saw this ad:

Ahh, phonetics...So crose, yet so far away...

Shevoray is just not quite Sheverlay, is it?

(There are sub-compacts being driven on Korean streets that

Chevrolet is not marketing in the U.S., at least not yet...)

My mother and I thought it would be fun to go back to her old stomping grounds in Seoul, from before she met my father: Namdaemun market and the intersection near the old Bank of Korea and the Shinsegae department stores--venerable institutions housed in stone buildings from the Japanese colonial building (1910-1935).

Namdaemun market has been around as long as "Namdaemun," the old south gate of the city, built in the 1390's...Today the market is a multi-block area of multistory buildings and chaotic alleyways where EVERYTHING can be found--socks, hats, cellphones, blankets, stationery, underwear, plastic dishes, ceramics, straw baskets, silk flowers, and of course--street food:

On the griddle are traditional 'hoht-dohk'--brown sugar, sesame, and cinnamon-filled 'pancakes',

and then in the foreground, those scary things on chopsticks are ingenious, if not 'native' to Korea--

they are hot-dogs covered in French-fries!

Why don't we have these in America?!

The chaos is invigorating... 

 ...and there are plenty of colorful characters,

like this vendor who wants to make sure he's seen AND heard:

...out of the alleyways and onto the main avenue--

some of the market activity spills out onto the sidewalks;

below you can see buckwheat-hull-filled pillows...

and in the background, the stately old Bank of Korea building,

built in 1912; my mother worked here for over seven years,

up until a few months before I was born:

 She would get off work and wait on the street, right here,

for my father to come pick her up in his Ford--

quite the sight in 1970's Korea...

And here's the view from the second-floor of the building;

...looking toward the slopes of Namsan mountain, topped with its landmark tower; the top is over 1500 ft. above sea level--the highest observation deck in the city. When my parents got married, the cable-car to the top had just been built...The top of the observation tower, as well as the secondary tower, are for broadcasting radio and television signals; my father used to work up on the top of the mountain (U.S. military signal) in the 1970's, and up there is where my mother had her first American-style 'barbecue;' she ate hamburger and baked beans along with the mountain-radio-staff--a far cry from the Korean food down below...

Across the street from the old Bank building is the Shinsegae Department Store, Seoul's oldest Western-style department store, in business since 1930; it's the "Harrod's" or "Printemps" of Seoul...and from the roof-garden there's this view of the new twin-towers of the National Post Office:

Inside the store, behind the electronic rice cookers,

are some of the new ultra-thin HD televisions that Samsung

is coming out with--this one was showing "Avatar;"

the half-inch-thick screen is a '3-d' tv that does NOT require special goggles.

I'm not really into TVs, but....this one would be way cool to have...

So, I mention "French connections;" here's an example, from around the corner from Shinsegae:

"Paris Baguette" is a darn-good chain of bakeries all around Seoul...

A few doors down is "Tous les Jours," another French-bakery chain in Seoul...

 ...and then, down in the amazing food halls of the basement of Shinsegae:

NEUHAUS!!!!! from Bruxelles, Belgique--

BEST

CHOCOLATE

IN

THE

WORLD.

And available in Seoul!

They used to have a little boutique in Seattle...which, alas, closed...

But Seoul?! Wow.

Okay.

So, now, not-so-French: 

The Food Halls of Shinsegae are a delight, because everything is so

tidy and beautifully presented--very posh--and the juxtaposition between

Western foods and 'scary' Korean foods: fun.

Also, the store is generous with samples--

it's a great place for a tourist to get free snacks in air-conditioned comfort in downtown Seoul. (Be decently dressed, though...)

 Back to something French, now: macarons...

When I lived in Paris, I was introduced to these--they're addictive.

Now they're common enough in big city bakeries in the States,

but ten years ago, most Americans had never had a French macaron...

Here in Seoul--they're EVERYWHERE--a costly item;

a chic treat--to be given as gifts...

and they've been adapted to local taste--if you can see in the

photo above, there's a ginseng-flavored-macaron.

Nice.

Back to Asian food-esthetic: Be-ribboned fruit--suitable for gifting--but, really?--25 dollars for a 'perfect specimen' of watermelon or canteloupe? Over a hundred bucks for a fruit-basket!? Wow. Shinsegae
is definitely for the deep-of-pocket:

Back to French-things......
DALLOYAU! An outlet of the super-chic Parisian bakery/pâtisserie...here in Korea!

I couldn't believe it...This city has become so cosmopolitan in the past twenty years...When my mother was a little girl, the city was still in rubble, isolated from most things international...and now it's got Dalloyau down in the basement. Man... 

From France back to Korea--just a few yards away in the store; check out these furiously red, garlicky banchan ('side-dishes') selections in one of the deli-cases:

 ==========================================

We went up to the roof deck of the newer 'annex' to Shinsegae--and were pleasantly surprised by a live Jazz concert:

My mother thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere...it was also good to rest her feet and legs...
Just month-and-a-half ago, she had knee surgery...the walking around the city here is part of her therapy.

And, then, as evening approached, we took the cable car up the mountain:

I didn't go up the observation tower, but the view from the tower's base on the mountain's summit is impressive enough...but I don't have those photos tonight; I've yet to download them from the camera.

(All of these are from the iPhone...)

But here's a quick videoclip of the ride down the mountain,

to give you an idea of the terrain of Seoul:

Finally, I convinced mom that we should take a taxi back to our hotel, instead of taking the subway, which would involve a transfer and lots of stairs...(her legs were done for the day)...
and around the corner from the hotel, a hole-in-the-wall eatery, where we had this:

spicy marinated pork, wrapped in lettuce and perilla leaves

with rice and various spicy sauces and vegetable 'pickles.'

That's a wrap.

...on in the background, hotel TV: "Korea's Got Talent."