Springtime in Seoul

Spring has finally come to Korea! No more winter jackets, no more slipping on the ice covered marble side walks (whoever decided to pave the sidewalks with marble should be shot). Hello cherry blossoms and beautiful weather! To celebrate, let's sum up the springtime festivities so far. The flurry of spring time activities began with a trip to the DMZ (De-Militarized Zone), which is the strip of no-man's land between North and South Korea. I went with a group of seven other friends (all English teachers) with an organization called Adventure Korea. There were a couple interesting things, such as the Infiltration Tunnel (No. 3); That was one of the tunnels the North Koreans were digging to attack the South unawares. Apparently this one was discovered by a farmer on the south's side, and taken over. It's a little narrow, and little steep, and a little wet...the funnest part was taking illegal pictures inside...and posing for pictures with the bored South Korean soldiers stationed there. Then we went to the actual observation area of the DMZ, which was pretty underwhelming. This particular trip didn't take you to the DMZ area that you can see all the buildings of each side, and see the North Korean soldiers. This one was out in the middle of nowhere. We stayed the night in a guest house near the border, and slept ondol-style (which is on the floor-my back still hasn't recovered). The next day, however, I went bungee jumping!! Off a bridge!! Apparently its one of the only places to do bungee jumping, and I have to say, it was definitely enjoyable. Except, after jumping, you are hanging upside down, spinning on the end of the rope; then lowered into a boat below. That was not enjoyable; the combination of the blood rush to the head and the spinning created a massive headache...But, I would definitely do it again.
The second springtime event was the cherry blossom festival. Every spring the cherry blossoms bloom in Korea for about two weeks, then they're gone. They are absolutely beautiful. My favorite part, though, is when they are on their way out. It turns out they don't turn pink until they're almost dead, but then the least breath of wind results in a sprightly cloud of petals that dance about on the breeze.
And the third event, that brings us up to date, was hosting a movie night in my apartment. Few of my friends have visited my place, as it is located out of the way for most of them. We went out for good ole fashioned burgers and garlic fries (yum! apart from the sweet potato bun, they tasted like home), then, just as the name says, we adjorned to my apartment for movies (and an ungodly amount of snacks...). I can proudly say that my apartment can comfortably (or semi comfortably) sleep six people! (hint hint...anyone want to come visit, I'm here till October...). The sunday after, me and a friend decided to take advantage of the most beautiful day yet and walk around the Anyang Art Park. We did, however, decide on the spur of the moment to take a scenic shortcut...which turned out not to be a shortcut at all, and found ourselves on the way to hiking up a moutain. Thinking that, at some point, the trail would curve and make its way to the art park, we continued...and continued. We never found the park, but did have a lovely picnic-y lunch on a large sun-warmed rock in a little mountain stream. Definitely worth it. And I got some excercise.

The Vacation- Hanna, Dul, Set! Done!

To quickly sum up the last of my jan. vacation, after laying on the beach in Sikhanoukville, Cambodia, for two days, enduring cries of "Hey lady, you want manicure?" we headed to Vietnam. The border crossing was a little intimidating, as our van stopped several yards away from the first checkpoint and made everyone get out. We then had to wait in the scorching sun for the second van, that had our guide inside. We collected our bags and walked to the checkpoint, then walked through the no-man's land that lies between Cambodia and Vietnam. At the Vietnam side, we had to get inspected again, and our visas checked and stamped. And, to welcome us to Vietnam, there was a giant bust of Ho Chi Minh presiding over the waiting area...After the gruff formality of the border guards, though, I found Vietnamese people to be quite friendly and easy going. Because of a malicious stomach bug I caught somewhere in Cambodia, there is really only one more event to impart, and that is a motorcycle ride up a small mountain to watch the sun set on the Mekong River. The ride was amazing; riding on the back of a motorcycle taxi in the land of motorbikes is a must. Especially when you have a competetive Austrailian woman in your group, who engages your motorcycle driver in a race...through Vietnamese traffic, then up a sometimes steep and winding mountain road. Which I won, by the way...We then travelled to Ho Chi Minh City (which the locals still call Saigon), and I made friends with the hotel room's bathroom.
There! Winter vacation successfully retold, only three months later! Just in time to start thinking about Summer vacation!
*And, Hanna, Dul, Set is 1, 2, 3, in Korean