walking the dog

Walking a dog in Haebangchon can be quite the task. Not only is it all steep hills, which are icy in the winter and sometimes strangely oily the rest of the year, there is salt and chemicals on the roads, there are no sidewalks, and there are bits of garbage everywhere. Little pieces of bone keep popping up everywhere. It's making me crazy!!

I have certainly been getting a lot of exercise lately, though. There are a few ways I usually walk through the area. The paths through Namsan park are great, some paved/boardwalk style, some dirt paths (too muddy right now). There's also the maze of streets and pathways through the residential area on the side of the mountain. One of my favorite walks is going up to the ridge and down the other side where there are ways too narrow for any cars and so are usually quite quiet. I think in any other country that type of area might be a bit more dangerous? Here are some pics to show some parts of my walk.Going down.That's a little house on the right. It looks short because it is lower on the hill.Turn the corner and you get to...Looking down.Looking back up at the stairs.Go to the left. Looking down over a more traditional style home below.A view of Seoul.Going down again.And around a corner.And around another corner:More stairs. Around the corner:Here is another picture that I took at this point.
Down a ways to more stairs:And so on...
A couple more pics from walking around Haebangchon.

PETS

This is from an email that I received. Not sure who wrote it but I think it's great. :)

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE PETS, THIS IS A TRUE STORY. FOR THOSE THAT DON'T, IT'S STILL A TRUE STORY.
The following was found posted very low on a refrigerator door.
Dear Dogs and Cats: the dishes with the paw prints are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food or dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.
The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Racing me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.
I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort, however. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other, stretched out t the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out on the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.
for the last time, there is no secret exit from the bathroom! If, by some miracle, I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the know or get your paw under the edge in an attempt to open the bathroom door. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years - canine/feline attendance is not required.
The proper order for kissing is: kiss me first, then go smell the other dog's or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough.
Finally, in fairness, dear pets, I have posted the following message on the front door: TO ALL NON-PET OWNERS WHO VISIT AND LIKE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT OUR PETS:
1. They live here. You don't.
2. If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. That's why they call it 'fur'-niture.
3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
4. To you, they are animals. To me, they are adopted sons/daughters who are short, hairy, walk on all fours and don't speak clearly.
REMEMBER, dogs and cats are "better" than kids because they: 1. eat less, 2. don't ask for money all the time, 3. are easier to train, 4. normally come when called, 5. never ask to drive the car, 6. don't hang out with assholes, 7. don't smoke or drink, 8. don't want to wear your clothes, or buy the latest fashions, 9. don't criticize with the "eye roll" or muttered remarks, 10, don't need a gazillion dollars for college, and 11. if they get pregnant, you can sell their children. :)

Runa

I'm trying to find a new home for Runa. She is such a sweet dog and if I had more time and energy I would try to convince the landlord to let me keep her. Also, I wish I could afford to send her home to Canada but it's quite a bit more than I can afford at the time (I was given a quote of 2,000,000 won, or a bit under $2000 Canadian). Very sad.
I am making posting for Runa on Animal Rescue Korea . If you don't want a big dog, they have plenty of other dogs listed that need homes, most of whom are in dog shelters. I don't want her to end up chained up all the time or stuck in a tiny apartment all the time.

If you are interested or know anyone interested, let me know.

[After her first bath at the vet. They put a cutesy little ribbon on her for some silly reason. Only in Korea?]

Moved.

My winter vacation wasn't much of a vacation. Instead of relaxing and enjoying myself I spent all of it packing and moving and unpacking (which I haven't yet finished). I wanted to move and Christmas day the landlord made the decision easier by saying I either had to get rid of the dog or move. I still have to find a new home for the dog (that makes me so sad but it's hard to find a good home here that will allow dogs) but at least I'm out of the horrible home I was in before. The old home was good in the summer and fall because of the little outside rooftop area, but once it started to get colder the bigger problems started to show up. The landlord didn't get the heating floor mat that was promised, the living room (and sometimes kitchen) ceiling rained and water ran down the walls and behind the book shelves and sofa. [Black spots are mold - it was all over along this part of the wall/ceiling, and all along the floor and wall behind the sofa and book shelf.]The landlord's explanation - it's because of the difference in temperature. Her solution - open the door or windows for an hour or so every day. Ummmm... so I should make the inside the same as the outside in the winter???? When she decided that she didn't agree to provide heating for the living room??? Also, the water pipes froze so quickly that the hot water had to be running a little bit at all times when it was freezing out. That wouldn't be a bad thing if it were dryer or if the bathroom had a vent but it didn't so in order to use the bathroom I'd either need an umbrella or the bathroom ceiling had to be mopped from the dripping water. Ugh.
So I was told Christmas Day that I had to move. The next day I found a new home to move to, with Thursday being the moving day. Then Wednesday the new landlord decided she wanted to renovate the home instead and so changed her mind. Ack!!! So I found a new home on Wednesday and moved on Thursday. The new home is great except for the tiny bedroom. It's got a nice living room [still a tad disorganized] with a little balcony-ish outside space through large sliding windows, a decent kitchen , a wonderful bathroom - bathtubs in small apartments here are rare (although once again, no vents so the window has to be opened a little to let the steam out), and a nice back storage/utility area where the washing machine is.
It's been a stressful week but at least I'm in a much nicer home. :)
But... Now I need a vacation!!!!

Coca Cola Christmas

Gangnam Christmas brought to you by Coca Cola.

more randoms in Apgujeong

A random building with a board game cafe on the 2nd floor.I forget what kind of shop this was. Cars were coming so I had to move (there aren't sidewalks on the side streets).Not sure what this place is on the 2nd floor of this building. The drawings are backwards, so they're obviously meant to be seen from inside. The one with the guitar says things about dance and music: 'Dance Sports', 'Jazz' and 'Rock Music'. The one with the bottle says stuff about 'Tomato and (Sp?) Salad', 'Rhbarb Wine' and 'About a Soju'.The Barbie store opened a couple of years ago. It advertises cosmetics and shoes (not for kids). Went inside to see what it was all about. All I saw were some cute shoes and some very strange shoes. Not many shoes and no cosmetics. I wonder if they actually make any money.In front of Zoo Coffee.

Moroccan ? restaurant

There is a little restaurant in Apgujeong called Rabat. The writing on the outside is only in Korean. The decor inside is very cool with each table being in a little tent-like area, some with bench seating, some floor seating. The food isn't very Moroccan but the decor sort of is. We tried a 'couple' meal. Salad, pasta, pizza and wine. The salad was fantastic and perfect for our hungry stomachs. The pasta great. The pizza was a bit too much. It tasted good but the bread was a bit on the sweet side and I could only handle a couple of pieces. I think if the pizza bread weren't so sweet I would have really liked it.

galbi

This is how you eat galbi, or barbecued meat. It is cooked on a little grill in the middle of the table and cut up with scissors (you cook it yourself, obviously). You take a nice piece of lettuce, add rice, meat (dipped in a salt/sesame oil mixture or other type of sauce) and what ever else you like (onion, garlic, kimchi, etc), hen wrap it all up and pop it into your mouth. It's a bit of a mouthful, but definitely delicious.

randoms in Apgujeong

Walking from the Coffee Bean where I sometimes meet a friend (which is very close to being across the street from the Coffee Bean near my work) to Apgujeong there are so many interesting things and buildings to see. I'll try to take some more pictures another time.The wall around Samwon Garden, the biggest and most famous (first class) galbi restaurant in Seoul.A new bar/cafe in Apgujeong: Che (since 2010).

Interesting.

Gyeongju part 1

For summer vacation I decided I should try to see more of Korea while I'm still here. After the mud festival we headed down to Gyeongju. Gyeongju was capital of Korea, during the Silla Kingdom in the 7th to 9th centuries. Though a lot has been destroyed, there is still much to see. The most prominent being the tombs that are scattered within and around the city. Some are small, but some are quite large. According to a poster near the tombs, Tumuli numbers 90-114, and 151-155 (numbered during Japanese occupation) are earthen mounds. Larger ones have wooden chambers covered in stone and then earth while smaller tombs don't have mounds. One of the tombs that has been excavated, the Cheonmachong, (Heavenly Horse Tomb, named after ) is open to the public. The parks containing the tombs are quite large. Near the tombs there is a small forest. Inside used to be Banwolseong (Castle of the Crescent Moon). The only thing left is the Seokbinggo (a stone ice house) which has been rebuilt. Nearby is Cheomseongdae, which is the oldest astrological observatory in East Asia. Across from the main road we went to Anapji pond. It was made in 674 by King Munmu. The buildings burnt down in 935. The pond and 3 of the buildings were repaired and rebuilt in 1975 and many relics were found buried in the pond. From there we headed over to the Gyeongju National Museum. I love museums. I hated studying modern history in high school but I do love ancient and archaeological history.I think I started to make Zak crazy as every time I saw lotus flower pondseverywhere (lotus crops?) I would have to stop to take pictures. ESPECIALLY when a crane (the national animal of Korea) landed in one.Once back in the downtown area it was already well past lunch time and we were starving. We found an excessively cute (just my style) sandwich shop just off the main shopping street. It wasn't too expensive and the food and drinks were great. :) Definitely a possibility for another lunch. For dinner we found a nice little (sort of) Italian restaurant (also excessively cutesy) near the main shopping street near our hotel. Not too bad. The food was good but the house wine was one that I would probably use in cooking rather than drinking if I ever opened it at home.