Geumo San Park

Geumosan Provincial Park, 976 meters (or 3200 feet) high with a waterfall and cave to enhance the natural beauty already inherent in any mountain. Wow! I love the view from the top of a mountain, and I enjoy walking the path up as well. This place was beautiful, the weather was perfect, and the crowds were absent. We went with the intent to ride the cable car up to the top, but when we got there Matt thought it was closed. So we started to walk up. After about 200 yards here comes the cable car humming along overhead. But I am so glad we didn't take it. We would have missed so much! The waterfall at top continues in a small stream all the way to the bottom, creating numerous small waterfalls along the way. The path to the top runs parallel to the stream, and with winter's lack of foliage we were able to see it clearly the entire time. It's also wonderful to listen to while you're walking up!

Besides the wonderful waterfalls, there were a few other things on the way up that were interesting to see.

These are Chinese characters carved into the rock. There are several that you walk by as you ascend. These were the best preserved. I'm not sure when they were engraved; there's no date. It says they were written during the Chosun dynasty, which lasted from 1392 to 1910. The others we saw looked fairly old.

These are monuments created in the '70s (I think) as a commemoration of something that I've forgotten now. They're large piles of stacked rock, nothing holds them together that I could see.


This is the rebuilt gate for Geumosanseong Fortress. It is believed to have originally been built at some point before 918, the beginning of the Goryeo Dynasty.

An aerial shot from the cable car coming down. Most of the wall looked like it could be part of the original, or at least not renovated/repaired any time recently.

After much stair climbing and picture taking we arrived at the top, or at least the top of where we were going! There was the Daehye Falls and Doseongul cave. Actually there were two waterfalls, but the other was not accessible, only visible. The water flow was very low so it was a teensy disappointing, but still nice. Then there was the cave. Oh my. We started to climb up to it (literally) and I refused to let Carrie continue. The path was slick, steep rock with only a few chains between you and the plunge to death. I took her back down and Matt went up with Emily on his back. I was terrified the entire time that he was going to fall with my baby! Then he came back and made me go. Total honesty: I am terrified of heights! At some points I was literally crawling on the rock. If I hadn't been so petrified I would have taken a photo of the path, but all I could let myself think about was my next step. Going back down wasn't any better either!

zoom picture of the cave & another waterfall; cave on left

Daehye Falls

Inside Doseongul Cave. It's a very small cave, more like a 'cleft of the rock'. The incense they were burning in here was so strong!

view from the cave

Daegu Play

The weather has been so cold and rainy (and snowy today!) that we haven't been out much. Not much to blog about, so I thought I'd share what we do when we can't go to the playground. Here in Waegwan there's nothing. We have to take the train (20 mins) or post shuttle bus (45 mins) to Daegu and then taxi or subway to an indoor playplace. They have several different ones in Daegu. We have been going to one named YuKids Island. I was introduced to this place by another army spouse who heard of it word of mouth and had her son's birthday there. Then I told a friend here who happens to be Korean about YuKids and she found it on the internet, then mapped a train to subway to building route and we went together. We've been back several times. YuKids motto (according to the equipment website) is 'movement'. Everything in there moves in some way. I like it because almost anywhere in there that your children are, you can see them. And everything is padded, so if they fall it's not so bad!

Those little things she is sitting on slowly spin constantly, as does the large blue & yellow thing in the back left. The short yellow square in the back right is a blue gel like substance to look like water that you can walk/jump on.

This is a small little 'room' with a fan in each ceiling corner to constantly blow the balloons around. There is another one in YuKids that has giant (think 3 foot) balloons that is set up the same way, just not as many balloons!

just a typical ball pit

There's also a jumping balloon section, a slide and several other things. It's really neat. I enjoy taking them there because it's fun, safe even for the little one, and I can drink a cappuccino (relatively) uninterrupted. On weekends there are staff members inside the play area that actively supervise and play with the kids. On weekdays it's a sometime thing.

Another place we've been too is called Kampu's Mystery Island. It's great for older kids but I was nervous about my girls in there, especially the youngest. It is spread out over 4 separate areas so I can't watch both girls at the same time and both times I've been it has packed with kids running amok! The 'snow' area was really neat though. It's heavy Styrofoam shapes about 2 feet deep and the kids will just throw it at anyone who comes near! The little one had fun with me dropping her in! She would laugh and try to get up and sink in completely over her head.

snow pit

This is one of those step on pianos. Both times we went she spent a long time in here just walking back and forth. You can see the reflection of all the tiny lights strung on the ceiling in the foreground on the keys.

This is a bouncy thing. I thought it was kind of weird because it is the character Kampu laying down, so they are jumping on his stomach.
At certain intervals different characters from the show will come out and all the kids will crowd around. The oldest would have nothing to do with them, but here is our youngest waving like crazy! She hugged him too, but I couldn't get a picture of that.

Today we went to a new place called Mini House. It was really neat. They had foot powered cars, sit-on scooters, drums, and a kid sized 'gym' with foam barbells, bench press, and treadmill, plus more! I liked it because the lady working was very active in supervising the kids and playing with them. Here is why it is called Mini House:
This is only part of the entire set-up, but this is the oldest's favorite part. Everything is kid size of course. There was an armoire in here with dress up clothes, a vanity with pretend make-up, and a full length mirror to view herself in. There was also a full kitchen in here. She drove the little car up and parked outside!

zip line

Here they are putting on 'make-up'. The little girl in front in pink is her friend that we went with. The girl in the back was so funny! She spent more time cleaning up after the other kids then she did playing! She helped my girl put on and take off her dress up clothes, and brushed her hair and they 'cooked' together.

These places are genius! The kids always have a great time and it's good for moms too! All of these have a little 'cafe' area where you can order coffee or whatever and a snack to eat. I enjoy taking them almost as much as they enjoy playing.

Again with the Andong!

Plans, plans, plans. Why do I make them? I think I will buy a ouija board and let it guide my travels. We drove up to Andong to see the mask museum, the same reason we drove there the first time, and to see two other folk villages. Instead, we ended up at a place called Dosan Seowon, a Confucian Acadamy established in 1574. This happened because the other place we were looking for had one name on the internet, and another name on the signs. We figured this out as we were leaving, of course. But now we know, and we learned that 'maeul' is the Korean transliteration for 'village', although I'm sure I don't know how to pronounce it correctly.
So after a couple of scenic photo stops, we stopped at Dosan Seowon to check it out. A former Confucian Acamdemy, Matt couldn't help but quote some "Confucious say" jokes. It had snowed here recently and the path was muddy and slushy. Mud + 4 year old = mess. We stoically trudged on and threw a few snowballs in the outside grounds. Then we went in the gate to the academy grounds. The whole 'complex' would probably fit inside an over sized American suburban lot, so it wasn't too big. Nothing exciting to talk about. The most notable thing to say about it is it used to be on the back of the 1000 won bill, but was replaced in 2007 by a picture of some beach cliffs, I don't know where they are. I'm pretty sure most of the buildings in Dosan Seowon have been repaired so much that few, if any, of the original structure remains. There is a sign hanging from the lecture hall that is supposed to be the original sign, but its condition looked too good to me to believe that. The most interesting things to me were some ancient trees that I thought were beautiful and a neat little building set apart across the river called Cheongwangunyeongdae in English. The sign says it was "the place of nature experience which was constructed to awake the profound meaning of nature and to also speculate on the mysterious truth of nature."

Dosan Seowon

overlooking the roofs

aerial view; it's not as big as it looks

ancient tree; notice how they have the branches supported

Cheongwangunyeongdae

Nothing special really. But the drive there was amazing. I saw a frozen lake for the first time in my life. I thought it was cool. We also saw a frozen waterfall which was amazing.



I'm always disappointed when I post the pictures because the real thing is so much more impressive.

We did do at least one thing I had planned, which was the Andong Folk Museum. It was a history of what life used to be like in the Andong area showing customs related to marriage, coming of age, children, typical daily life, and death. They used to mannequins to depict most things. There was one scene depicting childbirth (the new mother was covered) but they had a sickle lying there, which is rather frightening when related to birth. According to the sign, scissors were used to cut the cord for a girl and the sickle for a boy. There was a reason, but I don't remember. I also learned that when a woman got married, she moved to her husband's house, of course, where the mother-in-law then moved to a different part and the new wife became the new 'manager'. Then when she had children, the mother-in-law/grandmother cared for the children while the wife/mother continued the household duties. Men and women lived in separate quarters, which begs the question where did the babies come from? Traditional Korean homes are built with a gate around them (we would call it a wall) that the women were not allowed to leave, which is why one of the words for wife, anae, means "inside person". Sounds like a fun life, huh? They were allowed to leave twice a year for a ladies picnic, no men allowed. Probably the highlight of their life!

The above is a traditional wedding ceremony. It is composed of two parts, the first, called sorye is simply the groom presenting a wooden duck to the brides father and pledging to be faithful to his bride all his life. The above part, taerye, is conducted in the bride's parents yard. On the far left behind the 'person' in red is the wedding sedan, which is a little tiny box the bride rode in to the ceremony. The table in the center is set in a special way which differs from region to region, and sometimes family to family.

Andong Folk Village

Busan continued...

How could I forget the whole last day!! Really though there's not much to say, just to look at. We went to Yongdusan Park where Busan Tower is located. There's not much to it parkwise but the tower gives quite a view of the city, port & ocean. After that we went to Jungang Memorial Park. This used to be a refugee shantytown after the war. I don't know what happened to change all that and turn it into what it is today. The memorial is quite immense and very solemn. It's set high up on the hill and it is so quiet up there. There was something written about how the memorialized souls continue to stand watch over the city and sea.
I want to be sure that I don't leave anyone with the impression that this is just a simple port city. There is much more to it. This and my previous post only scratch the surface of "Dynamic Busan"! (They give these labels to cities here. For instance we live near "Colorful Daegu", although it is certainly not colorful. I wonder if they rhyme in the Korean translation?)
You can enjoy the view from the tower also!

The large building in the foreground on the waterfront with the 'folded' roof is Jagalchi Market. It is supposed to look like a seagull.

The building in the center of this photo is the beginning of Lotte Super Tower, slated to be completed in 2013, which will then be the third tallest in the world. (You can click this link to see what it will look like when complete. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotte_Super_Tower )

Jungang Memorial. It's much taller than this picture makes it look. You can only see about half of it from this perspective.

This sign was at Yongdusan Park. I thought the bottom rule of what not to do was so funny!

Dynamic Busan!

Busan, South Korea. What a beautiful place! It's the second largest city in South Korea with a population of 3.6 million. Also known as Pusan. The correct pronunciation sounds like a cross between a 'B' and 'P', hence the multiple spellings. It is also the fifth largest port in the world, and after seeing that port I can't imagine what the largest looks like! There were hundreds of ships in port and waiting to come in to port. It also has the world's largest department store, Shinsegae, which we went to and I don't quite fully understand how it was different from a mall. There is a Sky Park on the top, with some awesome night views of the city. We spent 3 days there & I don't know where to start. I suppose I'll follow logic and start at the beginning.

Here we are on the train. It's pretty comfortable. The seats swivel around so we can all face each other. There is a refreshment car but it was closed on this train ride for some reason. It takes a little longer to get somewhere by train than car because of all the station stops, but it's convenient and cheap. Four tickets cost about 25 USD. We don't have to buy tickets for the girls but we do anyway so we can be sure to have the space! Otherwise they have to sit in our lap if the seat is taken.
Here are a couple random pictures from the train ride of the countryside.

South Korea is one long mountain range. They're not towering peaks, more like graceful rolling hills. I will miss the view when we leave. It makes driving anywhere a sightseeing adventure in itself.

So we made it to Busan, and the train station was overwhelming! It was larger than many regional airports in the US. There were many restaurants & little shops/kiosks inside to while away your time before your train. We spent a fair amount in a Dunkin Donuts before we left! We took a taxi to the hotel I had picked out, until they told us the price. So I had to call a friend from Busan who was able to recommend a well priced hotel. It was great, and they gave us a military discount. Yeah, shocked me too. Here is the view from our room. (It was better in person!) We were on the 19th floor and the window would only open about 5 inches, so I had to wedge the camera lens out the crack to get a clear picture; hence the odd angle of the picture.


After checking in the hotel we got on a hop on/off bus tour & saw a few tourist attractions around the city. The Modern Art Museum, where they had a Picasso sketch & also one from Renoir, and an interesting exhibit titled "Water Drops". I found it shocking that they had a large humidifier in the center of the gallery. At first I thought maybe it was part of the exhibit, but then determined it wasn't. My oldest really enjoyed the art museum, which I found surprising. We also saw some beautiful views from Yeongdo 75 Square. I've been trying to find out why it has that name, but so far no luck. We also walked along the beach a bit and brought back a sizable portion that I'm sure the maid enjoyed the next day. To complete our day we had dinner at TGIFriday's & it was fabulous. Finding a restaurant you know the menu of brings new meaning to the phrase 'comfort food'. I'm all for trying new things but after so many months the novelty wears off and you just want something recognizable! Although of course they have their cultural variations on the menu as well. For example: kimchi fried rice.

both from Yeongdo 75 Square

The next day we met the aforementioned friend from Busan with her husband and daughter and went to the aquarium. Afterwards they took us to one her favorite restaurants in Busan called VIPs, which is a smorgasbord buffet style place and a Korean chain. Then we all went on walk on a path that goes around Haeundae Beach and past the Nurimaru APEC House, a conference hall. It was a beautiful walk and I could have lingered there all day. It's also a very popular exercise spot with the locals so it was pretty crowded. I got a lot of looks due to my never ending picture taking.

APEC House

Haeundae Beach Lighthouse

I should mention that there is a large, fresh seafood market here as well, Jagalchi Market, which is supposed to be quite the thing to do and they pass out samples of their wares. Yes, still fresh. But honestly I couldn't stomach the thought of walking through row after row of raw fish and the accompanying smell and subsequent shoe mess. So we neglected the cultural aspect in favor of the glitz of tourist attractions. And I don't regret it one bit!

The day we left we went to Chinatown and shopping area for foreigners. It mostly caters to Russians as there is a large Russian population in Busan. We ate lunch at a Chinese restaurant where I had seafood fried rice with real crab meat for 5 bucks. Can't get those prices in good ol' USA!