Signs of Winter

Since I arrived at the end of September, the weather has been delightful, even balmy on some days, with temperatures reaching into the high 70's.

One reason why I've extended my stay is the weather. But perhaps this decision was a bit premature. This weekend there was an unmistakable chill in the air, an unwelcome reminder that winter is on the way.

The trees felt it too.

Changdeok-gung

My sister, Juliette, was visiting for the whole week of Thanksgiving. While she was here, we didn't take many pictures, but here are some that we took at one of the royal palaces.













Foreground - Old Seoul
Background - New Seoul

The Slums of Seoul

You wouldn't think it. But despite the meteoric rise of the Korean economy in the last 50 years, there are those who have been left behind. Today, Jaepil took me to visit one of the poorest neighborhoods in Seoul, which is ironically only a 5 minute drive from one of the richest neighborhoods in Seoul.





Foreground - a slum on the outskirts of Gangnam-gu, one of the most affluent districts in Seoul

Background - the towers in the distance represent some of the most expensive real estate in Seoul

Shop Til You Drop!

This is the anthem of many during the holiday shopping season, though less likely this year with the weakened economy. But Koreans take this to a whole new level.

I went shopping for a light coat this week. It took me a few days to explore the multiple mall towers of Dongdaenum and a variety of department stores, including Shinsegae, Lotte, Hyundai and Galleria, where I finally made the purchase. I swear, these malls are designed like Las Vegas casinos. There are no clocks, no maps, no store directory, and their labyrinthine design make them nearly impossible to escape without a compass and an uncanny sense of direction.

I took some pictures inside the mall, but the pit boss took my camera and erased the pictures. Oh, sorry, that was Vegas.





I took this picture of the store hours at one of the mall towers in Dongdaemun. That's no joke. Those aren't the Christmas shopping hours. Migliore is open later than the 7-Eleven in my Berkeley neighborhood (Telegraph & Parker).

DMZ

Today, Alex, a friend from SF, and I took a tour of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), a 2 kilometer-wide zone that runs east-west across the Korean peninsula separating North from South. Technically, it's not an actual border because the two Koreas never signed a peace treaty officially marking the end of the Korean War and creating two separate countries.

The tour included a stop at the Third Infiltration Tunnel, a mile-long tunnel that extends southward from North Korea under the DMZ into South Korea. It is assumed that this tunnel, along with three others that have been found (there are probably more), was built to facilitate a North Korean sneak attack.

But the highlight of the tour was the visit to the Joint Security Area (JSA). In this area, there are a series of blue buildings which have hosted face-to-face meetings between delegates from North and South Korea. During this part of the tour, we were allowed to enter North Korean territory under US and Republic of Korea (ROK) Army escort.





Before Alex and I went on the tour, we stopped by the War Memorial of Korea near Camp Kim. This was one of the statues outside the museum.





The main building





This is NOT the Third Infiltration Tunnel (we're not allowed to take pictures inside it). Rather, this is the tunnel that leads to the Third Infiltration Tunnel.





We were briefed at Camp Bonifas on the history and status of the JSA by the US Army serving on behalf of the United Nations Command.





































Inside one of the blue buildings. On the left of the table is South Korea. On the right is North Korea.





In North Korea. Do I look a little nervous?






Looking at a faux North Korean city (like a Hollywood set)





War is hell

Opening Night

Tonight was opening night for the SK Knights, the professional basketball team owned by the SK conglomerate. Melissa hooked us up again with free tickets. I like to call her Red from The Shawshank Redemption, because like Red, she's someone who knows how to get things! Unfortunately, the SK Knights aren't nearly as good as the SK Wyverns. The highlight of the game was the dancing Krispy Kreme donut and the appearance of Park Taehwan, the gold-medal winning Korean swimmer, during the halftime show.





Pre-game show





Player introductions





Park Taehwan: national hero. Apparently, he used to live in the building next to Eunice's parents.





Where can I get those pants??