Seoul'd.

What follows is my account of our (Tim's and my) trip to Seoul this past week for the Lunar New Year Holiday.  Various Asian countries, including Korea, celebrate this event which gives Koreans 3 days of national holiday off of work (the day of, as well as the days before and after).  Though I have tried to spell place names right and get history as correct as possible, I'm sure half of it is wrong, misspelled, or incomplete. Forgive my editorial and researching skills, just this once? 

A small warning: it's a long one, so put your feet up and enjoy the words.  

(thoughts, asides, and tangents have been italicized for no reason other than to italicize the word italicize)

Day 1 (Wednesday, February 1st, 2011)

We left Busan yesterday from the Gimhae airport on a 9o 'clock flight and got into Seoul just before 10pm.  Against the advice of the information desk girl at the airport (who suggested the subway), we decided to take a cab from the airport to our hotel which only cost about 15,000 won... not bad for the convenience it provided. 

I had really been hoping/expecting a hotel that did not resemble ‘The Shining’ in any way, as our last Korean hotel experiences had. This place did NOT let me down.  It was a huge relief to open the door and find a modern, CLEAN room complete with a kitchenette, new bathroom and spotless bed, floor and furniture- furniture that was not purchased in 1974. There was also a  fully functional rice cooker AND an electronic bidet - thank goodness.

so many options. the electric bidet.

On our first day in the capital city, we rose early enough to take advantage of the FREE breakfast in the lobby and while doing so, were fortunate to take in some excellent people watching during the meal.  There were lots of international flavours trickling through the restaurant, and I mean people, not food. (I like to play a little game called "who are they, and what are they doing here?" when placed in situations such as this.  Sometimes if I see a group of seemingly random people together, I decide that they must all be cast members of a play that is being performed in the city.)

the bustling streets of seoul.

 We left the hotel around noon to take in some sightseeing (buildings, instead of people this time) in the northern part of the metro area where the Gyeongbokgung Palace stands.  The subway system in Seoul is nearly identical to Busan, and both are extremely easy to use.  Seoul, however, has over 12 subway lines, many more than Busan.  

The Palace is located on huge grounds, with several buildings on it.  Most are pretty typical of what we’ve already seen at temples, but it is impressive that the palace is still there considering the many times it’s been ‘ravaged’ in the past.  

a bit scarier than the guards at Officer's square.

on the palace grounds. 

In the middle of the palace, we came across what first looked like a skating rink but turned out to be a frozen pond where two different traditional Korean games were being played.  The first was a sled on metal skate-like blades that was pulled around by a friend and a rope.

friend. rope. 

the games rink

The second involved a wooden top and a whip, the object being to whip the top and keep it spinning. Tim got slightly addicted to this one and worked up a little sweat. 

After crossing the grounds, we made it to the ‘Blue House’ - the president’s residence and were lucky to see 2 helicopters overhead, which we of course believe were carrying the Korean president to some very important meetings.

the 'blue house'. so creative.

can you spot the president?

After the palace, we walked along the Cheonggyecheon stream (a 6km stream with several bridges that runs through downtown Seoul). Where we paid a little ajashi (older Korean man) to take a picture and print it for us on his little portable photo printer.  When we were finished with the stream, we found ourselves in Insadong-gil, a Nampodong-like market with lots of souvenir and scarf stands.  

the Cheonggyecheon stream.

this crossing is as good as any.

scouting out the park for the next day's run. seems to be ample space.

In the midst of the market was a storespace that was filled with an exhibit on North Korea. Inside there were line drawings with small stories about prisoner camps in North Korea and also portraits of people who have ‘disappeared’ into North Korea as recently as a few years ago.  The one that stuck out to me was a story of the North Korean girls cheerleading team who came to South Korea for a competition and when they returned home to NK, broke the law by telling others about what they saw in the South.  The entire team was sent to prison camp where they remain today.  Propoganda? Maybe.

North Korea:  What IS this place? I am so amazed and interested in this ‘country’ where they are allowed to do things such as have cheerleading teams, make movies and compete in international sporting competitions, but are imprisoned for even speaking about what they saw on a trip to another country.  Going to North Korea is off-limits for anyone living in S. Korea right now, but it is definitely on my list if/when it becomes possible. 

Inspired by our trip to the gallery, I am now reading a book called 'Nothing to Envy' by Barbara Demick, and have purchased one called 'Eating with the Enemy', about an American restaurant owner who went to N. Korea and was drugged because they believed he was a spy.  

That night, we took the subway out to Itaewon, an area of Seoul common with foreigners, and dined at a Mexican restaurant called ‘Los Amigos’.  Most Mexican food is basically the same:  beans, chicken/beef, lettuce and cheese and this was not much different, but a nice change from ramyeon.  The atmosphere was a bit depressing in the restaurant: giant floor space with only a handful of people, and a sad, overdue Christmas tree in the corner. Food was medium and service was pretty good.  Prices were reasonable, but overall food is more pricey here than Busan. 

looks like it's already been eaten. but oh so good.

Day 2 (Thursday, February 3)

We woke up early and took the subway once again to a riverside park (called Yeouido park) on a small island near the south side of the Han river which runs through Seoul.  After reading about the paths along the river I wanted to try them out for a morning run.  The park was nearly empty - maybe due to it being Lunar New Years Day and the biggest holiday in Korea - and it was a peaceful, flat, albeit foggy/smoggy run. 

empty subway... bad sign?

In the afternoon, we set out for Namsan, a mountain with Seoul Tower at the top.  Though we figured we would only be gone an hour or so, we ended up taking the cable car to the top of the mountain, eating supper, and riding a virtual reality ride.   The smog was so thick that we almost forgot to look at the view of the city from the top of the mountain.  We could barely see the streets below, but once the sun set and the city lights lit up, it made for a much more pleasant view. 

on the way up by foot....

.... and crowded cable car.

We took part in a third traditional Korean game, a fairly simple one that was pretty much throwing giant rubber darts into a metal canister with a 4 inch wide mouth.  Though Tim tried 3 times to walk away from it, he kept going back for more.

Seoul tower. 

smoggy seeeeoul.

Tim's new hobby.

We also got to see the famous lock wall at the top of the mountain, which is a fence that is covered in padlocks with Korean writing.  Locks are put up by couples who want ‘everlasting love’ and are symbolically locking themselves together with the padlock.  There is fair warning to ‘not throw away your key’, however.  

love lockdown.

x 6 more of these.

don't say you weren't warned.

After eating at a restaurant which was also at the top of the mountain ( Italian food this time), we opted against the kilometer long line for the cable car, and took the 15 minute walk down the mountain. 

italian mountain top meal. 

Though we had planned to cab back to our hotel, we ended up walking around and were lured into a bustling street by the giant H&M clothing store sign.  Open stores were kind of hit or miss, with some areas of the city packed with people,  and some looking like deserted ghost towns.  

not so ghost-towny Myeongdong. 

Day 3 (Friday, February 4)

Day 3 began with a workout in the hotel gym and free hotel breakfast and continued with a walk to Myeongdong where I spent a good 3 hours trying and buying at good ol’ H&M.  Many monies later we walked back to our ‘hood and stopped in for some Samgetang, a bowl of broth with a small rice-stuffed chicken in it.  

rice in a chicken in a soup in a bowl.

In the early evening we ventured back to Itaewon to check out the shops and grabbed some food at ‘Ali Baba’, a middle-eastern restaurant on the main strip.  Feeling nostalgic for Ottawa, Tim and I both had shawarma sandwiches which were ‘tasty’, but staggeringly overpriced at 8,000won (about 7.50$ CDN) for a small sized pita. 

most expensive SHA warma SHA eva. 

On a customer service note, I found Seoul to be kind of lacking in the majority of places we went. Although it was very convenient and much more comfortable to have so many people speak English ( many more than what I’ve experience in Busan ), I felt slightly resented and a little unwelcome in the city.  Maybe it’s just a big, big city thing.  

Day 4 (Saturday, February 5)

Today I once again woke up earlier than I wanted to so that I could run and be back in time for the buffet.  This time there were many more people out on the riverside path, but I was the only whitey, once again.  It was a beautiful morning, probably about 5 degrees, and I could easily have run in shorts and a t-shirt.  I had the pleasure of breezing by a group of Korean runners who gave me some inevitable shocked/awed looks and ‘gahhhahheahhh!!!’ s - which I thoroughly enjoyed. 

NY day run.

After checking out of the hotel, Tim and I ventured down to Dongdaemun market just to kill some time before our flight.  We didn’t find much besides some dirty pigeons (which Tim maintains were ‘not’ dirty) but did come across a couple of streets of the market that happened to be open.  I assume that the Lunar NY holiday had a lot of people taking the weekend off as well as the 3 days of national holiday last week.

seeds for sale. 

dirty pigeon.

On our walk back to the hotel, we stumbled into a ‘culture park’ where there was a very interesting sculpture of a Haechi (a ‘mythical beast that once guarded the palaces of Seoul’) made entirely of recycled plastic.  I thought he was pretty cute.  

Hiiii Haechi!

On the other side of the park, I spotted the first Mizuno store that I had seen in Seoul and had to go in to check for a pair of shoes I’d been looking for.  Of course, they had them in my size and I ended up paying a small fortune for a pair of socks with laces.  Having a pair of ‘racing flats’ this expensive means I better start having some amazing times to back them up..... PRESSURE!

We got to the airport a couple of hours early and were lucky to be bumped up to an earlier flight, getting us back to Busan by late afternoon.  

seems appropriate for a cab-time snack.

And now we are home again, home again jiggety jig.  It’s good to be back in the Bu, our Korean hometown, where the air feels cleaner, the mountains more numerous and there is almost always a waterway within view.  

Our dirty little secret.

Or should I say our 'Dobby' little secret?

dobby the house-dog.

We have been harbouring a little visitor for the past couple of weeks and since she will be leaving us tomorrow, I think it is time to let the dog out of the bag.

dog in the bag. self-inflicted.

At our little dinner in early January, we met Ian and Kylene's foster dog who they had been taking care of for a few weeks.  The dog needed to be out of the shelter  while she was on some heartworm medication as she needed to be away from other dogs for the medicine to be effective (from what I understand).  Our friends generously sheltered her but unsurprisingly, did not want to send her back to the shelter.  

seji attacks.

When we met 'Seji' on that fateful Saturday afternoon, it was soon decided that we would care for her while our friends went home to Canada for a few weeks on their vacation. 


Seji (Seji is short for 'sauseg-ey' the korean word for sausage, which is fitting as she is clearly some portion weiner dog) came to us about 2 weeks ago and she has cast her little spell over us in a way that only pups can do.  

We weren't 100% sure about being 'allowed' to have a pet in our apartment, so we have kept it pretty quiet, but we have really enjoyed having Seji the Wedgie here with us for the past  couple of weeks. She has been the perfect guest: no barking, a late riser, and hates to go out in the cold. 

Tim took her on several trips to the mountain where she got to run free a la 'off leash'.

  

We also got her a little costume just in case she was feeling particularly fierce....

roar.

We will miss little Seji!!

double roar.

Updates...

And, somehow it's January 25th... the month is almost over and tomorrow will mark five months for us in Korea.  This is the longest I have ever worked continuously at a full-time job and also the longest I have been away from home.  The latter point is just one of those things where, once you pass a certain point, it all kind of feels the same (ie. 4 months feels the same as 3 months or 5 months).  

photo credit: T.Hemmerick

I enjoy the freedom and flexibility that I have in my future. I also feel lucky to be able to wonder where I will be a year from now.  My mind changes every day as to where I 'want to' or 'should' be when September rolls around... and it usually depends on who I'm with, and what life has thrown at me that day.  Things like running races with our new group of friends, getting up into the mountains, watching mini Koreans learn to speak English and being part of something 'different' make me want to extend our time here. 


Other things, of course, like family and friends at home, sour patch kids, and cheese make me count the days until we arrive at Pearson airport next Fall.  


One day at a time is the only way to do it, I think. 






As for updates on past entries:


1)  Ajumma smackdown '11:
-No further negative encounters with 'garbage ajumma', as we have dubbed her.  We awkwardly passed her on the steps the other day, but did not exchange words. Exactly which words we would/could have exchanged, I'm not sure. 


1 a) Recycling/garbage pick-up.
- one medium sized bag of recycling was deposited at the 'correct spot' and successfully disappeared. One point for us.
- 4 large sized bags of recycling were deposited, disappeared, but not without a male version of the yelling match from a couple of weeks ago. ( Tim was scolded in Korean this morning from an ajashi - older Korean man, supposedly because of the recycling we left outside yesterday).  Negative 3 points for us. 


After some research, all we can find out about garbage/recycling is the following:
-Garbage must be put in special bags which must be purchased at stores for 1-5 dollars. Garbage collection is not a service provided through taxation, so it is paid for by the proceeds from these bags. I agree with this approach because it means you pay more for making more garbage.
-Recycling is supposedly supposed to be put in ' clear' bags, which do not seem to be for sale at any sort of store. Maybe the Koreans know how to make them by hand.

the kids with their snowmen crafts (from CanAaaada)- thanks to big Deb

2.  School/ice rink
-The school was not closed last Wednesday, as hoped.  When I returned, it was as if nothing had happened. The hole that had been dug in front of the school was covered up in a wool blanket (common practice for Korean construction sites) and the bathrooms were up and running once again.  The windows were all still open however, with heaters blasting  to 30 degrees and every teacher wearing their winter coats and scarves all day, for the hallway transitions. 


3.  rrrrrRUNning.
-Still on track for the 10km in Daegu, April 10th. I've been getting a bit distracted by other races that have cropped up, and it will be hard to hold off until April, but I am set on saving it all up for then.  Ironically, racing more usually means running less for me, and I don't like giving up the mileage. I also find my racing suffers if I commit to too many in too short of a time.  It's so hard to say 'no' though, when they really are one of my top 3 things to do in Korea.  I'm pumped for spring when it will be lighter earlier in the day and I don't have to wait for the sun to come up before I can head out the door in the morning.  


I have been following Jack Daniel's training plan from his book ( thanks Ian!) which I am now able to read with my new toy, the KINDLE.  Training is going well so far, and it is really reminding me how much I miss the track and my girls in Ottawa.  


I can feel myself getting onto a running rant, so I will cut myself off here and bid adieu to you, my friends.  


This was a wordy one, I know. Thanks for stopping in.

Education must prevail.

Just another little mini-junior-midday entry:


I am currently home on my lunch break from work where, when I left, the situation was slightly chaotic.


Due to very cold temperatures (-13 being 'very' cold, for Korea) many buildings have recently lost their access to water as the pipes have frozen.  Some of our co-workers, who live in apartments above the school, in the same building, have not had water for over 24 hours.  
The school, which has about 70 kindergarten children attending each morning and many more students in the afternoon, is running with ONE bathroom ( that's one toilet, one sink, one room) for all students and staff.  The water filtration system (most people do not drink tap water, including us) is also frozen, meaning there is no drinking water. 


Just to make it an 'eventful' day, this morning, the pipes must have burst because the front stairway at the school (4 flights) is covered and dripping with water.  Combine this with the fact that all windows and doors are left open to the cold outside and I fear that the school may be the sight of a Home Alone frozen staircase scene. 


And the school is still.......open. Education must prevail. Even if you are 5. 


I usually am pretty pleased with the nature of Korea as not being overly cautious when compared to Canada (for example, peanut butter is allowed EVERY WHERE) but I think today was a bit too far on the other end of the spectrum of caution.  


Though I'm praying for an afternoon off due to unhygienic, unsafe building conditions... I won't hold my breath. 

can't stop. won't stop.

post script:  In running news, I have registered for the Daegu International Marathon 10km event on April 10th.  11.5 weeks to get in breaking 40:00 shape..... yikes.

Ramyeon callouses.

The second week of the new year has been non-significantly eventful, with the following happenings:


a) Dinner with a group of running friends
b) The cancellation of my next goal race
c) A run-in with an ajumma who made me cry
d) work work work. Work.




a) Dinner with a group of running friends. 
My fellow maritimers, Ian and Kylene had a few of us over for dinner the other night.  With an average of one bottle of red wine per person, it was an enjoyable evening with an average of 1.5 red wine spills per person.  

note the runner's world/cdn running tablecloth.

We followed the delicious meal with a game of ' Catch Phrase' which got more than a little heatedly competitive - something that can probably be expected at a table of runners. 
This game somehow morphed into a challenge of "Asian Squat-off 2011" , which in turn became "Who can pick up the small naked Santa Claus with only one leg on the ground?''. 
Both games were difficult but provided  a good hour of simple entertainment. 

a contender for asian squat champ.

He may seem harmless, but try picking him up with your teeth, and both hands behind your back.

b) Cancellation of my next race. 

Sad news came on Saturday when I came home and Tim told me he had 'bad news' which he couldn't even bear to tell me.  

After checking facebook, I found out that the next scheduled race, February 20th, where I had planned to run the half marathon, is 'indefinitely post-poned'.  We all know what that means. 

When I searched for a reason, the translation of the race website gave me the following extremely clear explanation:  

"Marathon mania everybody! of the entire country

The 8th Milyang Arirang Marathon last year the foot and mouth disease which was generated the hesitation of truth, to be diffused with national, not to reveal Indefinite postponement, decided.

At the Milyang Arirang Marathon propulsion briefing room in order protection the chaos of friend of same taste everybody's consequently, few"

Enough said.  

c) Run in with ajumma.

One morning this week, as I was on my way home from my run, I was stopped by an ajumma blocking by path and yelling in Korean.  This is not an overly rare occurrence and I would usually have brushed past her, except that she was holding a bag of garbage in one hand, and in the other hand she had some small, familiar looking pieces of paper.  

When I looked closer ( because she shoved her hand in my face), I saw that what she was holding were:  a post-it note with our friend's phone number, Tim's boarding pass from our Jeju trip, and an old grocery list.  She also had an empty popcorn bag. 

I, for the life of me, could not figure out what these 4 things had in common, or why they were so incriminating. She refused to give them back to me and would not stop yelling until I picked up the bag of garbage and took it back to our apartment.

As I collected my thoughts, I realised that the crafty ajumma had disgustingly searched through our garbage, looking for evidence of the culprit who had left the bag.  The papers she had shoved in my face were proof that it was MY garbage

(the only foreigner/english person in the  vicinity).  

Realising this didn't make it any easier for me to accept that a total stranger had just yelled at me for five minutes. Tim came home and, upon seeing my red eyes, busted outside to give the woman a piece of his mind.  

After all was said and done, 2.5 confrontations later, we finally understood that our garbage needs to be put in a certain area (between a concrete wall and 2 parked cars, of course... how could we not know that?) and must be in a specifically labelled garbage bag.  

Fwef! Never thought garbage disposal would be a thing I'd miss from home.

d) work work work.

Tim and I are both doing extra projects for our school, in addition to working overtime every week for the entire month of January.  There are extra classes this month for the kids because they are on vacation from regular school and couldn't possibly be allowed to have any free, non-studying time on their hands.  

I'm also still doing a class on Saturdays, so the weeks are busy, busy busy but are flying by for sure. 

That is all for today, as the aforementioned work is calling.... but there will, inevitably be more to come. 

 a break from work to make some creepy chili.

Happy Sunday!

The heat is on in Saigon, but NOT Korea... or is it?

One of the things that took getting used to when we arrived in the 'dong was the heating/electrical situation in our apartment.  

For instance, in order to have hot water ( for a shower, doing dishes, laundry, or even washing hands ), the hot water must be turned 'on' and you need to wait, for about 15 minutes while it is heated by oil.  This is an all or nothing thing, meaning that if the hot water is not 'on', the water is COLD.  It's obviously not worth turning hot water on for washing your hands, or doing 8 dishes, so we have learned to plan our heated water use and do things like  shower, dishes, and laundry within 2 hours of each other so as not to waste energy ( and money ). 


Besides the hot water for cleaning, the apartment's heating system is also linked to the hot water tank/oil tank.  Like most homes in Korea, our apartment has 'ondol' heating which is a series of pipes in the floor that radiate heat.  This means no radiators, and of course the hot water needs to be 'on' for it to work. It's another thing that takes consideration before just switching it on as you would at home.


About 3 weeks ago, our oil tank ran out.  Translation: no oil means no hot water and no heat. 
With our next pay cheque 3 weeks away, we debated putting more oil in the tank before leaving for Christmas vacation, and then kind of forgot about it and took for granted that we would just make do with cold water. 


Aside-----> getting the oil tank filled is not just a phone call away either:  Korean oil companies speak Korean, so it is up to us to ask our boss to call for us and arrange the appointment.


Showering was not a big problem.  Our apartment's bathroom is more like a giant tiled icebox with no contained shower. The room has a toilet, a washing machine, and a showerhead that is fixed to the wall. The shower and washing machine both drain into a drain in the middle of the bathroom floor (which sucks when you forget to wear flip flops after a wash has been done). 
Due to this less than stellar bathroom situation, both Tim and I usually shower at the gym where water is ' free' and hot all the time.  


As for laundry, dishes and hand washing....
Laundry and dishes were done in cold water, until last week when we really started living like campers and boiling water on the stove to wash hands and dishes.  I think at one point  Tim even boiled a pot of water to clean the floor with.  Hello, 1800's living.  


Heating, on the other hand was a different story.  Having no floor-heating, our only source of hotness was a small space heater that I feared might blow up at any second.  Busan is definitely not the coldest place in the world, by any means, but I suspect that the insulation in our apartment is made of concrete which makes for a chilly home.  
Going to bed became a process of layering 3 blankets in the warmest way possible, wearing just enough clothes - but not too many socks, and eventually incorporating sleeping bags over the clothes and under the blankets.  


I woke up every morning with a red nose and cold pillow, and for the first few seconds I was awake I fully believed I was sleeping in a tent at Fundy National Park in late May.  


Why the hour-long blog on heating and water, you ask? 


Well, dear reader, today being pay day, Tim and I made the decision to 'splurge' on 100$ of oil (a full tank costs 400$).  A year ago I never would have guessed that buying oil to have heat and hot water would bring me such joy. 


The appropriate people were called, and when I arrived home last night, we turned the thermostat to a luxurious 19 degrees, did a load of laundry with WARM water, and washed the dishes with hot water.
Also, we had a 'floor party' just to soak up the warmth of the ondol.  


The point? You ask again.  
The point is very simple:
Hot running water is a blessing. I'm glad to be happy to have it.  

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

On another short, heat-related note...
I can't wrap my head around the heating of public buildings in this country.  Our school for instance, has space heaters mounted to the wall in each classroom.  These heaters are turned to 30 degrees with the fans blasting hot air all day.  Must be hot eh? No!  Every single window in every hallway, and most in the classrooms are wide open, making this the most inefficient and largely ineffective system I have seen before.  


This situation isn't limited to our school.  Most stores have space heaters scattered throughout the floorspace, but keep the entrance doors wide open with cold air blowing in.  


Just another Korean question mark. 

where the magic happens.

See... Jeju? Part 2

Oh my God I'm back again...

( a BSB reference for those who care)

Seogwipo

When I left off last time, we had just departed for Seogwipo, an area on the south of the island of Jeju, with many waterfalls and natural sightseeing spots. 

some new friends on the way to the 'fall

We walked from the bus stop for about 30 minutes to a spot on the side of the ocean where the Cheonjiyeon waterfalls fell. A waterfall is a waterfall, but this one is special because it is said to be the only one in Asia which falls directly into the ocean. 

It was a peaceful spot, with perfect weather, about 12 degrees and sunny, and after doing the pose in front of the waterfall ( and Tim stepping into the ocean twice by mistake ), we decided to grab a small shot of soju from the ajummas who were perched on the rocky beach. 

Since it was apparently unacceptable to have a shot of soju, we ended up with a place of fresh, raw octopus and a bottle of soju with 3 shot glasses.  Though it wasn't the best thing I've ever tasted, it was not the worst either, and the setting made for a very refreshing afternoon.  

Following this, we made our way back to the bus station and then back to our digs at the 'New Crown' for Christmas Eve. 

Christmas Eve dinner found us at the Jeju Brewery, eaten some overpriced 'western-style' meals which were a big disappointment after being so spoiled with Indian food the night before. However, we were fed, and then went back to the Factory in Jeju si for some Christmas celebrations.  

Though I made an early exit on the night, Tim and Christine stayed out and managed to win a couple of prizes at another bar called 'The Island Stone', while playing darts, and in a dance competition (?)

Christmas morning arrived, and my biggest wish came true.... SNOW!

There had been a few flakes the day before, yes, but this was real, covering the ground, wake-up and feel like school is cancelled snow.  Ok, maybe not school-cancelled snow, but close enough.  It made my Christmas complete. 

We opened presents with Christine, who spoiled us with lots of warm fuzzy things like socks and bathrobes, and I got maybe my favorite gift ever, a custom made t-shirt from Tim. I love it so much, I can't wear it. 

We didn't accomplish much on Christmas day , just had a big nap, and I pulled myself out of the hotel room for a short run to see the other side of the city.  

For supper we ate at a Mexican restaurant called Zapata's ALSO in Jeju Si, and it was extremely delicious. Chimichangas, and tacos with a Korean twist ( cabbage instead of lettuce? ) really hit the spot. 

We all talked to our families on Skype, just to get a glimpse of Christmas back west, and wish our loved ones a Merry Christmas. Not the best internet connection, but once again, I am pretty thankful for Skype. 

We capped our night off at the 'Roo Bar', and spent our final night in Jeju sleeping soundly before making our way back to the Bu on Boxing Day morning.