"What I Love About Sunday"

After a hectic start to the weekend, and several late night parties the past few weeks, all I wanted to do was relax. Originally, Hwayoung and I planned to hike up Surisan (aka Suri Mountain - yes, san means mountain). But we were both too tired to attempt it this week, and Hwayounga had just got back from a company retreat on Jeju Island where they hiked for 10 hours.

Instead, we got some fruit and veggies and headed out for a relaxing picnic near her apartment at Sindaebang Park. (신대방역) I was so happy she brought me there as I have been looking for a decent park since I arrived. In Seoul there are few places that you can lay out on the grass and be surrounded by nature to relax without getting trampled by other people. Sindaebang Park is HUGE compared to the other parks I've seen here, so we camped out on the large green and just enjoyed a quiet afternoon together.

A view above - all that brown is the park. 

Not a bad size considering there are millions of people around.

 Here is a panoramic view of the main green

click the photos to enlarge

The leaves are slowly starting to change. Come on Autumn!

They have a large pond in the middle of the park, half of it is covered with these ginormous "mutated lilipads" I don't know what else to call them.

I suppose Surisan can wait for us another day, as the leaves are only now just starting to change. I want to hike to the top of the mountain and see the vast array of colors that I love seeing back in New England.

As a side note: Some people have inquired to my camera, so I think I'll post some info on it. (I might have done this already though). I'm shooting with a Canon Powershot G10. Thanks to the recommendation of my friend Rob (an amazing wedding photographer along with his wife Kathleen who you can find at robertandkathleen.com), Also thanks to Rob's advice, I bought the G10 from B&H right before I left for Korea. I admit, it wasn't cheap - but it's worth it compared to most of those crappier models, especially if you're traveling and want to cherish memories.

I couldn't be happier with the outcome. It shoots 6.1-30.55mm, 14.7 Mega-pixels, the zoom is incredible and image stabilization is phenomenal. Video is pretty decent too, and I love the panoramic stitch function as well as the software that Canon provides. I highly recommend this to people who want a decent camera that gives high quality photos but isn't a huge burden to carry around. Even though it's bigger and heavier than I would like to carry, it's worth it compared to strapping a big SLR around my neck.

Here's a rundown of the highlights:

• 14.7 Megapixels
• 5x Optical Zoom Lens (28-140mm)
• 3.0" LCD
• Manual Exposure Control
• High Sensitivity (ISO 1600)
• RAW File Capture
• Optical Image Stabilization
• Advanced Face Detection
• E-TTL Flash Hot Shoe

The only negatives I can think of off the top of my head, is that the shooting speed can be a little slow. I miss a lot of good shots because of speed. Also, when switching to the stitch mode, it recognizes the manual setting - not the automatic, so if my last manual setting shot was over or under exposed, so too will be the panoramic shot I'm trying to take unless I change the manual setting back to normal. (Which I have yet to figure out how to get it back to the default setting).

Anyways, I hope you are all enjoying life back at home! I know I am having a blast here!

"Heart and Seoul"

With the Chuseok holiday finally coming to a close, I can look back on the past few days with amazement of how awesome Seoul can really be and how many things there really are to see and do.

On Saturday, Hwayoung brought me to Myeongdong, a popular neighborhood in the city full of shopping. According to her, it was not crowded as it usually is, so it was a good day to go. Seeing as I thought it was very crowded, I would hate to see what it is like when it really is busy!

Later, we headed over to Chungmuro where we visited a Chuseok festival going on near Korea House at Namsan Hanok Village. It was such a beautiful day, and getting to see the traditional events going on while being surrounded by the culture, architecture, music, games, and families brought a huge smile to my face the entire time.

My friend Alan and a couple of his friends met up with us for dinner. Alan has taught in Japan and has been teaching in China for the past 2 years. We used to work together at a summer program stateside and haven't seen each other in years! It was awesome to see him again, and share some laughs and our experiences (which are not all that dissimilar, besides taking into account how strict the Chinese government can be!)

Later that night, we got cheap movie tickets at CGV (thanks to Hwayoung's connections in her business as an event planner). We saw Fame, which was pretty good - but I liked the original better. This one was a lot more child friendly, and not as dark and pessimistic. They did keep the "Out Here On My Own" solo from the original though, but threw in a new "Hot Lunch Jam" that got my toe tapping and wasn't as corny as the original. I recommend you watch both and decide for yourself.

Some clips from the original

On Sunday, Hwayoung wanted to take me out for a picnic at the park near City Hall, however our plans changed quickly, and instead she took me to a traditional market near her house in Sindaebang. She introduced me to a few fruits such as Korean pears which are the size of grapefruits and have an almost honey sweetness to them, as well as Korean plums and apricots, which were pretty yummy!

Those are pears on the right...crazy...

We headed up to City Hall and did some sight seeing nearby, and walked along a popular waterway that cuts down to City Hall. She showed me one of Korea's National Treasures (one of 4 old forts that used to guard the city). We got tickets to see Deoksu Palace, and wandered around checking out the amazing architecture and landscape.

One thing that is so unique to Korea is the blend of new and old world. You can see a one thousand year old palace right next to a skyscraper. For me, seeing that takes a little of the charm and exoticism out of the picture, but you start to get used to it enough not to really notice.

That night, we sat for a free concert on City Hall's park, where we were treated to a acoustic band, followed by traditional Korean folk songs, dancing and story telling for Chuseok - and it was followed up by a underground rap group called SupremeTeam. It was something for everybody, and truly shows that new world and old world being mixed can be found in more than simply the landscape, but in the people as well.

As usual, you can find all my photos here (part 1) and here (part 2).