Yeosu-Expo

Expo grounds map

The Yeosu-Expo, located in the southwestern part of Korea, has been on my to do list for a while now. It's overarching theme was "The Living Ocean and Coast", so most exhibits had a water topic. The Expo grounds were quite large, and we did not see all of it in the two days we spent there. We had a third day planned, but by the end of the second day we were all so tired we really didn't feel like seeing anymore. We managed to cover quite a lot of ground in those two days. Most of our time was spent in the International Pavilion, which was the most interesting part to us.

I took the girls down by train on a Tuesday morning and we spent the rest of that day in the Expo looking around the International Pavilion. It contained booths representing over 100 countries, some bigger than others. I think we made around to about 60 of them. As mentioned, the water theme prevailed. For example, in the Egypt booth, there was an iPad movie to watch in which a cartoon man tells you about Egypt's dependence on the Nile River. All of the country booths had signs about that country's relationship with water, while some were more high-tech and had interactive computer displays. They all mentioned eco-friendly things they were doing to help conserve or keep water clean. It was a good bit of hype and tourism promotion. A few of the booths deviated and did not have anything about water, but really, that was quite alright with me! (Particularly Lithuania, where a representative explained in excellent English the amber collection they were displaying.) Many of the booths had cultural displays as well, which were fun for the girls. They got to play different drums and a xylophone, and try on masks and a Yemeni veil, among other things. There were English speaking staff around to answer questions and explain things to you, and they were very friendly and informative. 

a type of instrument

Lithuania; the tubes contain amber you can view by
looking through the lens at the top.

Qatar

Cambodia 

singing bowls

My husband joined us the next day and we went back to the International Pavilion for a while. Then we walked over to the aquarium, which was supposed to be something special, but I don't know what was so special about it. It was a standard aquarium. I would say it was worth a look, but Koreans have a really hard time understanding the line concept and waiting their turn, so if you don't like pushing and shoving, you might skip this part if you've ever been to an aquarium before. It did have Beluga whales, which are pretty rare, and that was fun to see. The best part for us was the big observation tank where they had a sea turtle. Our oldest carries around a sea turtle purse (creatively named "Turt") and she was so excited when the turtle came close to her so Turt could see the real sea turtle. The things that make a parent's day!

Turt, meet sea turtle.

We browsed through the UN pavilion and went into the Kids Place, where the girls got to make a clay bowl as part of a display about celadon, Korea's pottery. They also had a flour play center, which we did once upon a time in Daegu. I wanted to go up to the observation Sky Tower, but the wait time was one hour plus, and it wasn't that special to me. We skipped many of the independent pavilions simply because of the wait time, and from what we could ascertain about the contents, they weren't worth the wait. We stuck around for the much publicized Big-O Show, and it was entertaining, though I can't say it was worth the wait or dealing with the crazy, harassing ajummas. Prior to that there was another show, "the girl from the ocean", which was all in Korean of course and I couldn't quite follow what was going on. The most entertaining part was the synchronized swimmers.  

The Big-O show

I wish we had seen more of the other pavilions, but I know Koreans and I know myself, and I know it would have been wretched trying to push and shove with them just to see the attraction. The Expo, however, was worth the visit.

Inwangsan Hillside Walk

Several weeks ago I hired a housekeeper/nanny for the sole purpose of being able to freely explore parts unknown without having to worry about the little ones. Some days I simply hide in a coffee shop and read, but usually I try to see something new. Last week I did something I have always wanted to do: I got on the subway and chose some random stop I've never been to and just meandered. I ate at a random restaurant that served only two choices, both in Korean, so that made that decision fairly simple. Then I just walked. It wasn't a particularly exciting or noteworthy place in Seoul, but it was fun to just explore. You never know what's around the corner! 

Today I made a more deliberate choice. On Mondays almost all attractions in Korea are closed, so my choices are limited. (I am switching the nanny schedule to Friday for this very reason.) So I chose a walking tour outlined in my Seoul guidebook. There was nothing especially intriguing about this tour, but it got me outside, it wasn't too far, and it said that there would be terrific views of Seoul. I never get tired of the city views! The walk from the subway exit was considerably more challenging than I anticipated, and I began to wonder if the sights would be worth it. Inwangsan is supposed to be a very spiritual mountain because of the clustering Buddhist temples and Shamanist shrines. I don't know about any of that. The shrines and temples in this area are not with mentioning; I didn't even take any pictures. The walk was steep, but the view from the top was awesome. 

The trail back down was easy, quiet, and peaceful. You could easily forget you were in the city. The walking tour ends near Seodaemun Prison, now a museum. It was built to house dissenters against the Japanese occupation, then later used by the Korean government for the same purpose. It was closed today so I could only view the outside perimeter. Just down the street is Dongnimmun, or Indepedence Gate, built as a memorial (or declaration? not quite sure) of Korea's independence from Japan. There are also several memorial statues close by.

freedom fighters memorial

Independence Gate

Seodaemun Entrance

All of the places above are in a park like setting, Seodaemun Independence Park, which was being well-used that day by the area's senior citizens, and is easily accessible by subway. I'll be coming back at some point to tour the prison museum.

All in all it was a day well spent!

The Philippines: Cebu

We decided we wanted a beach vacation, and what better place to go than a tropical island? Cebu had been spoken of rather highly, so we made our choice and went. We flew in on an overnight flight and were picked up by our resort service for the two hour ride to the resort. This was my first look at the Philippines, and it was interesting. It's 2 AM, and there are people, young and old, all over the place. And not just hanging out in bars or something like that. They are walking and sitting on the edge of the road (and I don't mean side of the road, I mean the edge), playing basketball, hopping on and off the tricycle taxis. It's 24/7 here! I'm somewhat used to this in Seoul, but Seoul is a huge city, Cebu Island is not. I'm really not sure why I found this so surprising, maybe because there is nothing for them to be out doing like there is in a city, but I was really surprised.

tricycle taxi

We arrived at our resort after all this gawking, and Alegre Beach Resort was awesome! It was gorgeous with excellent service and I was glad we made a good choice. Of course we opted for an ocean view room and I loved sitting on our patio listening to waves.

our cabana

the view

On our second day in country we took a Cebu City tour, and it can best be described with pictures. A thousand words, you know.

Magellan's cross, planted by his crew in 1521. The original
is purported to be encased inside this one.

Basilica Minore Del Sto. Nino, 16th century. A "miraculous" religious relic 
was said to have been discovered at this site the church was
built on. 

inside the church

Fort San Pedro, date uncertain. Interesting history.

Heritage of Cebu monument. It's very large inside a 
small fenced area; difficult to take an all encompassing
picture of. It shows major scenes from the island's history.
Completed in 2000.

Chinese Taoist temple

Overview of Cebu City from the temple site.

During the two hour drive to the city, I was able to see quite a bit of the island. I can't speak as to all of the Philippines, but this part seemed very poor. I cannot describe how it made me feel. It was very humbling to see how little they had and think about how blessed my family is. I saw people bathing in a ditch, little children running around naked, a girl at a hand pump pumping water presumably to take back to her house, open air school houses, and in Cebu City we were accosted by this little girl begging who refused to let us close the van door until a policeman came for her. It was heartbreaking. After all this, we went to a big, American style mall for lunch and shopping. It was quite a contrast.

random roadside pictures

Most of our time in Cebu was spent at the pool or on the resort's private beach, so we didn't get a real feel for the community of Cebu, which I do regret. I did meet a family who lives in Cebu City and had come to the resort for the weekend and she told me a little bit of information. She spoke of how English was so prevalent in the Philippines now that many of the children barely speak the native language anymore, including her own, and how everything was becoming so Americanized and she felt like they were losing their traditional heritage. It was sad. I did get to try to some traditional Filipino dishes from the excellent hotel restaurant, one of them being kaldereta kambing, or goat stew. First time I've ever eaten goat meat. I think this may be popular in Cebu as I saw many goats during our riding time. My favorite was pancit sotanghon guisado, which is a noodle dish.

I immensely enjoyed our vacation here, although the heat is intense and I was glad to get away from it! We did some snorkeling around the resort's fabulous house reef where we saw giant clams and electric blue starfish, among many other tropical creatures. We visited a nearby sulfur hot springs and also took a boat ride and were able to see some amazing flying fish. And we relaxed, which is, after all, what vacations are for!

Times Square

Times Square is a very Western style shopping mall located in what looks to be an older section (Yeongdeungpo) of Seoul. Most shopping areas in Korea are still street market style, and underneath this mall there is also a massive underground shopping market. Street markets can be fun, but sometimes, at least as an American female, you just want to meander through the mall. This is a very wide open mall, and wide open anything is unusual in Korea. It contains several very upscale stores, such as Cartier and Louis Vuitton, but it also has an E-Mart in the basement level (like a Wal-Mart), and everything in between. It is also attached to a Shinsegae department store, which is a dominant name in Korea. I went with a friend one day just to check it out, and we had a great time. My favorite store, UniQlo, is in here, along with my favorite dessert place: Krispy Kreme! Later in the week I took the girls back to the playplace they have in the lower level. 

Main atrium of Times Square Mall.

There are tons of restaurants in the mall. The girls and I ate in the food court. I don't think I've ever explained in this blog how Korean food courts work. There is one line that has the menus for all the restaurants located inside the food court. This line is where you order and pay, then receive a number that will be displayed on a large central screen and also on a screen at the restaurant where your food is ready to be picked up. This particular food court gave me a pager for each restaurant I had an order from; they are upscale here! This may be done somewhere in America, but I've never seen it before.

"I like Dalki" playplace.

Play place game center. Notice the boy in the fountain.
This pose is quite popular in Korea.

A bouncy rabbit.

Sign for the bathroom. He's a poo-poo head.

Sky park. A nice area to relax, view a bit of the city. There was no
one else up here, and it was a bit odd to see the city skyline
(not so much in this shot),  yet still feel alone in Seoul.

Sorry for the blurry picture. I love these little coffee shops they have everywhere in Korea. This is one example that I thought was absolutely adorable! 

Anseong Farmland

The most grass I've seen in one place since we moved to Korea! Anseong Farmland is basically a big petting zoo in wide open spaces. The place is divided into four main sections: Deutsch Ville, Horse Ville, MooMoo Ville, and Food Ville. We spent several hours strolling through the countryside, enjoying the fresh air and greenery!

Our first stop was in Deutsch Ville, where we ate a delicious lunch at a German restaurant. Deutsch Ville also contains the souvenir shop and "Storyhouse", which was just a play zone/photo center for kids with cartoon characters. It also cost extra and I couldn't see anything special in there worth paying for, so we skipped it. 

Broad view of Deutsch Ville

The biggest part of Farmland is MooMoo Ville, which is the petting zoo area. You pay admission based on which 'course' or combination there-of you choose, but as there was no English description, we just went with the full deal, which was only 20,000 won (roughly $19) for all of us. Inside the MooMoo Ville area there is also an old style Korean farm house with traditional games available to play and a small museum displaying old Korean farming implements. We fed the sheep and goats, crowed with the roosters, petted a cow, fed a horse, and I even managed to coax a shy foal into letting me briefly pet its muzzle. It was a beautiful, wide open space to relax and enjoy nature.

 The Horse Ville area is obviously all about horses. I think there was a display of horsemanship that we missed, and they also give horse rides for a fee. The stables are open to visit the horses, and I found out (too late, sadly) that you can also purchase carrots to feed them.

We had a wonderful time. It wasn't a long distance from Seoul, only about 45 miles (72 km), but with the traffic it took almost two hours, so unfortunately I don't think it will be something we repeat anytime soon!

Subway Bugs

Who knew subway stations could provide amusement as well as transportation? I have been seeing commercials for this bug place on the subway televisions every time I was in the subway, and finally one day I was able to make out the Korean words "Sindang Station". I turned to 'google' and discovered this place is, in fact, inside the Sindang subway station. They are only open to the public on weekends and holidays, and today being a Korean holiday (buddha's birthday) as well as an American one (Memorial Day), it was ideal!

The bug place is divided into insects, amphibians, reptiles, and also a mammal section. You are able to touch/hold many of the creatures inside. My husband was the only one of us brave enough to pick up the insects, although I did work up the nerve to touch their exoskeletons. The girls simply shrieked and backed away quickly.

Scooping up frogs. You couldn't hold them because they
were 'poison'. Not sure why you were allowed
to scoop them?

The snake section was by far the most popular. There was a worker holding two snakes that anyone could also hold. Most people actually were brave enough to hold the snakes long enough for a picture. I have handled snakes before but just couldn't work up the nerve to do it this time. Our daughters were terrified at first and wouldn't even go near them, but eventually my oldest touched one, then held its tail, then was brave enough to hold the whole thing by herself. She enjoyed it so much she cried when she had to give it back! When we left, they had four large snakes out to cuddle with. Family picture, anyone?

The mammal section was quite sad. There is no staff supervising the animal / human interaction, and since children are pretty much allowed free roam to do whatever they wish, these animals have obviously been tormented. They cower when you come near. The hedgehogs I've handled in the past have been very friendly, but these jumped every time I tried to brush them with my hand.

This poor dog was hiding in a back corner. There were no other people in the area so we were able to coax him out and he was obviously eager for some kind affection.