Hilary Meets the Land of the Morning Calm

It was the brightly coloured costumes that caught my eye at first, but the dancing was absolutely breath taking as well. I've never seen so many skilled dancers in one place. I took a lot of pictures, but my camera really couldn't capture the talent in a satisfying way.



Sunday was very eventful. I met up with a fellow university acquaintance, Lorne. Although I never got to know him very well back at Bishop's, I quickly learned not to take anything he says (or does too seriously...


We hit up the Portuguese Sunday market, and sampled some food, including fried banana on a stick. This is a good place to visit for a cheap Sunday brunch. Also it may be a place to find elusive cooking ingredients, depending on your cooking background. After, we headed off to Hanok Village in Namsangol. This is a traditional village with cultural activites taking place all weekend. While we were there we watched a traditional drumming,

                                                  

a youth taekwando performance,

and a traditional marriage. (It took us a bit to realize we were actually crashing a wedding.)



Much of Seoul was destroyed and rebuilt in the past two centuries as the result of several devastating wars, so nearly all of Seoul is comprised of bland 21st century concrete buildings. Hanok village however was built with traditional houses to give an idea of what life was like centuries ago. This is a cultural center, where you take learn about life in the Joseon-era for royalty and commoners alike.














Then we hit the hills behind the village, following one of the many paths, and ended up walking all the way up to the top to Seoul tower, or Namsan Tower as it's now called. It was a muggy day, and we were both soaked with sweat when we got to the top. It provides a great view of the city, but unfortunately for us, the haze of the afternoon made us hard pressed to make out the entire sprawl of the city.








There was the Teddy Bear museum up there, as well as the ritzy restaurant at the top of the tower, which rotates as you eat, so you can view all around you. Melissa and I have decided to go eat there after we get our first paycheck next month. Seoul tower is actually one of The Top Romantic places of Seoul, so there was A LOT of couples, doing the odd things couples do here: matching outfits, the guy carrying the girl's purse, and putting locks on the fences with "love forever"-type messages scribbled all over them. Lorne explained to me a lot of proposals are made here.
Caught that couple up there in action putting their lock on the fence.


Afterwards, we traveled by bus back to Lorne's area Northwest of Seoul called Ilsan, and met up with some of his friends. First we went to a shooting "range" (it was indoors) and three of us had a go.

I think my farming family will be proud to know I got 5/10 dead center- and there were no bullets outside the innermost black ring. (Smith Wesson 22)
Then we went for Korean BBQ. The center of the table is a BBQ and you get to grill the meet yourself. And as with all meals, they bring a million little side dishes. It was pretty yummy, and for those who know my vegetarian tendencies and need some hard evidence, here you have it: