2007: January 1 - June 30 (Golden Pond Guesthouse Era)

March 9, 2007 -- Live Octopus Night

Some guests came to the guesthouse -- Margaret (spelling uncertain) and Ngaire. They're from America, but they go to university in Japan. Here are some photos.

Jeongho, Ngaire, Margaret, and Me Hanging Out in the Kitchen

Margaret Unintentionally Impersonating the Chamiseul Soju Babe

February 17, 2007 (Namsan Village, Tourist Center, Deoksugung)

Korean traditional Yeon kites at Namsan Village

This is the biggest set of Yut sticks I've ever seen. You can see a child for comparison. Basically, yut is a game that used to be a form of divination for finding out how the crops would do, etc. Now it's just a game (well, for most people), and is played by tossing those sticks, counting the number of flat and round sides that are facing upwards, and moving pieces around a board accordingly. This is at Namsan Village.

This is a model of a Turtle Ship (at the Tourist Center), an allegedly iron-clad warship (this has fallen under debate) that was part of Admiral Yi Sun-shin's fleet (significant for defeating the Japanese fleet that attacked Korea, several hundred years ago).

This is me at Deoksugung.

Another Shot of Deoksugung

Pictures from Mani-san (Mountain)

Me in Front of an Oriental Tree
This picture was taken high on Mani-san, but not at the peak.

REMOVED AT MIJUNG'S REQUEST.

Mijung in Climbing Gear (near the peak of Mani-san)

View from the Peak of Mani-san (near the alleged 5,000-year-old building)

Supposedly, this building was built 5,000 years ago by Dangun. I am not Korean, though, so I take this with a grain of salt. As you can see, it's protected from intrusion by barbed wire, though, as I learned, this is no deterrent to a hardcore Korean.

Pictures Taken at Ewha Women's University

Right across the street from the Yonsei Korean Language Institute, there's Ewha Women's University, which Koreans call "Idae" for short. My current language exchange partner goes there. There are some good views there. For example:

Kimchi Pots in Nature

Kimchi Pots in Captivity (overcrowding is evident)

This is a cafe near Idae. You'll never guess what they sell.

Samgyeopsal Party (January 11, 2007)

This is 90-kilogram Jeongho looking like an abused child.

Me, looking especially mighty.

In this picture, we're eating samgyeopsal with lettuce, garlic, kimchi, rice, etc.

Korea in the Winter

Here's a picture of the main gate of Sungkyunkwan University. The university was founded in 1398, so it's one of the oldest universities in Asia.

Here's another picture of the main gate of Sungkyunkwan University.

This building is just inside the Sungkyunkwan main gate.

Here's another picture taken inside the Sungkyunkwan University main gate.

I don't know what this picture is of, it just seemed appropriate to take it.

This forest is in the mountains near Hyehwa.

I have no idea what this building is (probably some kind of temple, but it's in the mountains near Hyehwa, and it looks pretty beautiful when it's covered in snow, doesn't it?

Signage that I Made

I made these signs for Golden Pond Guesthouse (we needed some witty signage to ensure people didn't flush TP down the toilet (to prevent overflows).

Other

Mijung's gel-filled desk frog, Gaeguri Wangjanim, is shacking up with a steamy loaf of bread.

This is me on Golden Pond's public computer.

This is me standing in Mijung's office.

This drawing illustrates what a "hippie" is to Koreans. I drew it for Mijung because she appeared not to know.