SEOUL, KOREA - October 7, 2001
Last day in Korea once again. I spent the last week seeing friends. One of the definte highlights was to see Saraksan Mountain. It is the most famous place to go to in Korea, and definetely worth the trip. Along the highway, there were many cool scarecrows in the korean fields, very colorful and mystical to see with the rice paddied-shaped mountains. Korea is such a beautiful country, its hard to believe I've spent two years of my life here and feel like I'm really only now appreciating right before I leave the place. I also love Korean houses with their brightly covered tiled roofs - usually a bright orange or bright blue or bright red. There are images on this highway that I'll be taking with me in my mind as the way Korea was long after I've left it now, and no matter how it will someday become.
I've also found the few towns I've seen, Chonnan and Seokjo (both I went to because of friends who are living in them), also to be quite refreshing and friendly. I'd always been a little hesitant to visit small towns because I always remember when I lived in the southern city of Pusan, and constantly being stared at and receiving constant attention. I had expected the same on this small town travels, and found the people to treat me much like the people in Seoul - as a human being - and not as a zoo animal freak (like what Pusan seemed to me in 1996-97).
The mountains of Saraksan were very beautiful, with traditional houses and temples and a giant Buddha statue, all interesting to see. But I always enjoy watching the local people and the real houses people live in as we approached the mountain. Lots of the same traditional bright roofed Korean houses, and Koreans always dress a certain way before hiking in the mountains - usually with a stick, a certain kind of pants that are loose with socks pulled up over them reaching almost to the knees, and usually a bright vest and hat to go along with it. Hiking attire in Korea is very specific, and its quite obvious the person is going into or coming from the mountains if you see a person dressed a certain particular way. Maybe someday I will try to post a picture of this 'uniform' so you see exactly what I mean.
back to America:
October 9, 2001
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