Today was a blast, but difficult as I didn't get enough sleep last night and we actually spent the majority of the day in the car.
The weather here (Jecheon) sucks right now, but it was partly sunny and much less humid in Gangneung-si, where we went to Gyeongpo Beach. The day was much more laid back than our usual sight-seeing tours with them. I wish we would have had more time to spend at the actual beach, but it took about three hours to get there, so the short stay was understandable.
On the way, we stopped by Yi I's (the scholar who is on the Korean 5000 won bill) birthplace. His mother (Korea's premier female artist) is on the 50000 won bill.
Black bamboo.
Yi I.
Pomegranate tree.
Shin Saimdang, Yi I's mother.
Gyeongpo Beach. It was a bit gray, but the air was wonderful.
Spicy fish soup delivered to the beach! It's called 매운탕 (maeuntang) or, simply, "spicy soup." Of course, Ian and I did not partake. We had packed a picnic lunch of onigiri (rice balls) for ourselves.
매운탕 sees you coming to eat it.
Ian is a pirate.
I'm not so talented when it comes to drawing with my foot.
Bathing suits (or, at least, exposed bathing suits) are not common place in Korea yet. Instead, people go to the beach, and into the water, fully or mostly clothed.
Four girls had Superman shirts (the dark blue).
Since 99% of people were fully dressed, the lifeguards really stood out.
See the Speedo? There were five or six lifeguards all in Speedos. They were terrible swimmers, too, I don't think they would have been very effective if someone needed them.
Rain on the beach. Luckily, it was clear while we were actually hanging out.
On the way back, we stopped at the Morae Shigae (Hourglass) Park. It's the largest hourglass in the world and it counts one year at a time. They rotate it at midnight every January 1st.
They took us out to dinner back in Jecheon at an acorn themed restaurant. All the food had something to do with acorns. Who knew they were so versatile?
This salad was made with acorn noodles, veggies, pears, and a spicy sauce.
We mixed them by hand. It was delicious. It, and the acorn flour pa jeon (veggie pancake) were my favorites.
Now it's time for bed as we've got to scrub down our apartment tomorrow morning! Oh, joy!
Good night!
I love the fact that they bring soup to the beach. Because I eat fish, I would have enjoyed that soup, aside from the eyes looking at me. You have to give me the directions for your rice balls again. Yes, I know you have given it to me many times before, my bad. I am so glad you got to spend one last time together with Chun Wah and her husband. Who was the other woman? Acorns, who new! The hour glass was quite spectacular looking, looks like you guys had a good time.
ReplyDeleteI think Korea is mostly Buddhist, correct. That would explain the not showing shoulders and much above the knee. When you go to Vietnam and Cambodia you will see the same thing. In fact all the the tourist information asked visitors to please dress "respectfully" when swimming in the lakes and rivers.
Happy apartment scrubbing!