Weekend Update

On saturday, Younggyun took us around to see some of the sights in Seoul. It wasn't too long of a day as it was very cold outside (maybe in the 20's or so). The first place we went to was Jong-Myo, the ancestral shrine of the royal family of the Joseon Dynasty. It was originally constructed in 1395, but was rebuilt in 1608 after it burnt down (Japanese invasion) in 1592. The shrines house the "spirit tables" of the kings (and others).



After that, we took a cab over to Insadong, which is a cool little street that is filled with shopping, restaurants and street food vendors (see the food page for a full account). We had lunch at a Buddhist restaurant, which had an amazing variety of food. The picture below doesn't really do justice to just how crowded our table was.



Next, we took a cab up to Seoul Tower, which is up on a "mountain" (more like a really big hill) from which you can get some fantastic views of the city. Looking out at miles and miles of houses, high-rises and skyscrapers really gives you an incredible feeling for just how many people live in this city.




On Sunday I played ice hockey again (8am game, which meant I woke up at 6am to go catch a subway). We played a friendly game against the Seoul Maple Leafs (we even had refs), which was initially a close game, but then I think the other team was just getting tired and then things opened up quite a bit. I also went out on a hunt for a set of hair clippers (apparently the only people in Korea that keep their hair short like I do are gangsters! ha ha!), which was a little hard to find but I eventually found a set in a department store. I get do laundry tonight, and perhaps work on my Korean a little more (and boy, does it need work!).