After breakfast on Sunday morning, we started walking in what I thought was the direction of the Cherry Blossom Festival. We started walking up the Korea Scenic Road. It was beautiful, the road was lined on both sides with Cherry Trees all in full flower. The road was on the side of a hill, below the road were fields of green tea and then a small river.
Also, lining the road were many food stands including plastic restaurants, all serving some sort of shellfish and soju. I actually think we could have had soju at 8:30 in the morning at one of these establishments.
Song-Hoon and his friend bought us a couple cups of bongdiggy (total guess at spelling), which is just boiled silk worms. You have to eat them with a tooth pick. They smell absolutely heinous but actually rather tasty, but I don’t really like eating them. I had my first encountered at Halloween when I didn’t wear to a costume to Amber’s party and they made eat some cold. The boiled worms were much better, but I think that fried would be best. There were also many people selling rice pop from the back of trucks. A lot of nougat stands and many waffle dots (similar to the waffle fish but in bite sized pieces). After we had been walking for a while, the friend bought us some rice pops, basically rice cakes, but a little more delicious and easier to eat.
We walked for a few hours, gradually up hill. There were many people walking with us. Lots of families and lots of couples. In Korea it is cool for couples to wear matching clothing. The matching couples were out in abundance. Some just wore the same t-shirt, but many couples had shirts that were his and hers, like a girl cut and boy cut. Lots of couples also wear matching shoes. We tried to count the number of people in couples shirts, but quickly lost count. There were also many matching families.
At the end of the walk, we ended up on a hill at a Buddhist temple. This temple and many buildings to explore and some cool sculptures. This was mostly a tourist temple.
After the temple, we stopped at a roadside restaurant close to the temple. We sat on the patio behind the restaurant. We couldn’t see the people walking by, it was very secluded and peaceful. Behind the restaurant was just a forest with a stream running through it. It was a perfect place for seafood pancakes and dongdongju, a creamy rice wine served chilled. Because we got up so early and ate breakfast so early, this lunch like pit stop was at about 11:00, on a Sunday morning. Dongdongju is my favourite Korean alcohol so far. This was the second time I have had it. Apparently if you over do it, the hangover is worst thing ever, I am curious.
After the restaurant, we stumbled into what appeared to be a Green Tea Festival at the Tea Cultural Museum (I’m not kidding). We sat down for a sort of traditional green tea ceremony. The lady who served us, had to go through a number of different things before she actually pored the tea. First, she pored hot water into all the cups. Then she pored the water back into her bowl, then she put the tea leaves into a pot, then she pored the water into the tea pot then she held the pot for a long time. Then she pored the tea back into the bowl through a strainer. Finally she pored the tea into our cups. After well finished she put more water into the bowl, which she then pored into the pot, and held it again for awhile. This round was much stronger than the first. We drank about five cups of tea (they were very tiny cups). The lady who was poring the tea spoke a little bit of English. She had been to India to study yoga and she talked about that a bit. She was really cool and her green tea was delicious.
After the tea ceremony, we headed to the bar that set up at the Green Tea Festival. We didn’t drink, alas, but we sure tried. The bar had dart game, for a small fee, you could pay for free drinks. The friend made all of us girls try. None of us were successful. I suppose that was a good thing, both Sarah and Amber gave up alcohol for lent. Then we started the long walk down the hill. We walked for many hours on Sunday. At the bottom of the hill, the Cherry Blossom festivities were underway. There was a traditional market set up, all sorts of things were being sold. Amber pointed out some serving trays and some figurines that were beyond phallic. They were actually penises. I didn’t think to take a picture.
We left the Cherry Blossom Festival and started driving to a different place. At least I am pretty sure that we had one more destination, perhaps a Taoist community? I’m not sure. When we got there, if we got there, I’m not sure if we got there, it was closed or we couldn’t go inside, I’m not sure. However, what I am sure of is that we stopped driving and took a short driving break and then the car staled. Sarah, Amber, and I all had to pee and as there were no restrooms around, we headed over the road and down a hill into a bamboo forest to relieve our bladders. As we hiked down a little ways, we stumbled upon burial mounds on the side of the hill. They were obviously maintained because the grass was cut around them, but you couldn’t see them from the road. It was pretty cool. We hoped that we couldn’t be cursed for peeing on ancient emperors or something.
We got back to the car, got in and it wouldn’t start. Good thing we were in the middle of nowhere.
The boys popped the hood (as if they new something about cars, not likely) and peered into the nether regions. Fortunately, a couple drove by and stopped to help. The man, had a whole tool kit in the back of his SUV, including gloves and arm protectors (so you don’t get your shirt dirty). He had the car running pretty soon. I don’t know what had been the problem but we were driving again.
And we drove and drove and drove some more and then kept driving. We had car troubles at about 5:00 and didn’t get back home until after midnight. We only had one stop between then and home: a rest stop for supper.
I guess that is end of the Cherry Blossom Adventure.
A couple weeks ago, I was at a Greek Restaurant that had Canadian coffee on the menu. I had no idea what that could possibly mean. What is Canadian coffee? As I was thinking about this, absently starring into the kitchen at the Tim Hortons cans, I suddenly struck me. They serve Tim Hortons coffee. The Tim Hortons logo is apparently such a familiar site in my life (in Canada), I didn’t even notice that the cans were out of place in Korea. Canadian coffee, too bad Tim Hortons coffee sucks so much.
Later that same night...
Taking a taxi home from Hongdae, after seeing Pillow Fighter, Sarah, Amber, and I had a most interesting driver. We were discussing if we had enough cash to get home and the driver told us he also took credit cards and he seemed really proud that he could accept cards. Apparently, he knew English. Later, after he dropped off Sarah and Amber, he started talking to me. He wanted to know where I was from and if I was a student (oddly, I get asked that quite a bit, “are you a student?” A student of what? I thought that I was obviously an English teacher, especially living in Ssangmun, I guess I look too young) and if I liked Korea. He was surprised when I said that I like Korea a lot. He told me that his parents-in-law live in Quebec and his wife is always begging to go to Canada. He told me he had a two-year-old son, a 14-year-old daughter, and 13-year-old daughter (notice he started with the son). I said “wow, 14, 13 and 2?!”, he said “yeah, he was a mistake! I asked my wife why we need a son, she is 42! We are old!” And I think he charged me less than normal because the whole ride was only about 15,000 won and usually it is closer to 20,000 won. He was kind and funny and not creepy. That is my favourite kind of taxi driver.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment