Goodbye Mom & Dad

Eventually my mom and dad had to leave.

Sejin's mom drove everyone to the airport. Sejin was there, as was Sejin's sister. (I was at work.)

Bye, bye. Hope you had a nice time.

Bu'dae'chi'gae

We had Bu'dae'chi'gae today. Bu'dae'chi'gae has somewhat unappetizing origins, but nowadays is a quite satisfying meal.

(I think Sejin enjoyed it.)

Here's a before and after shot.

Bulguksa Temple

Sejin, Sejin's mom, and my mom visited Bulguksa Temple.

Here's mom with some tall things.

Sejin attacked a seal. (That's better than her attacking me. See here and here.

Busan Fish Market

We visited a fish market in Busan (Jagalchi market). During our visit, an octopus attacked me.

(What a summer. I've been attacked by lobsters. See here. And Sejin. See here and here. And now an octopus.)

Later that day we went hiking in a nice place. Here's one picture, and here's another.

After that, we ate at a traditional-style restaurant.

(After that, dad and I returned to Seoul via KTX, a high-speed train.)

Gwanganri Beach

While in Busan, we visited Gwanganri beach.

The city at night looks nice.

After that, we had Dwe'gi guk'bap (steamed pork stew). One of the specialities of Busan, and a very delightful dish. (It's nice to enjoy it with soju, a Korean alcohol.)

Mom and Dad seemed to enjoy it, and here's some more pictures.

Busan

We decided to visit Busan. This is where Sejin's family is originally from, and where I taught English for a year and a half. Before getting to Busan, we visited Sejin's grandparents. They were very nice. They gave my parents a lot of red peppers (which we turned into red pepper powder).

Busan has more nature than Seoul, which is nice.

After walking around for the day, we were smelly really bad (especially Sejin). We decided to visit a sauna. It was quite nice. It had a restaurant, numerous TVs, and various hot pools.

Here's some pictures.

War Memorial

Sejin, Sejin's mom, and my parents went to a war memorial.

Picture 1; Picture 2; Picture 3.

Later in the night (for reasons I don't remember) we were on the side of a highway.

Picture 1; Picture 2; Picture 3.

Seoul Tower

Sejin, Sejin's mom, and my parents ventured to Seoul Tower in Namsam Park.

here's a shot from within the tower.

Later that night, we played Go-Stop.

View image 1; View image 2.

Namdaemun

Sejin along my parents when to Namdaemun market.

Here's another picture, and here's one more.

After all that shopping, they took the subway.

Sejin joined me for dinner, but my parents (with Sejin's mom) went to a baseball game. The game was between the Unicorns and the Bears. (The Bears won.)

Yangpyeong

We took a trip to Yangpyeong, which is a temple (I think).

First, we had to stop for a nice photo near some water.

We saw a temple and another thing.

We did some hiking, but soon we had to go.

Before heading back to Seoul, we had some alcohol. We also had a nice meal outside.

Gwanghwamun

Sejin, and my parents visited my office at Kim & Chang.

Sejin and my parents saw a pagoda in a glass box and a big gate.

After work, we went to my favorite restaurant in Korea... something something Garden.

What a great meal. Well, it's late... time to go home.

Insadong

Sejin and I (along with Sejin's mother and sister) went done to Insadong. Our first stop was a nice sam'gyeop'sal restaurant. The food was great--although the portions were a little small, and the price was a bit high.

After that we walked around Insadong. Among other things, we saw the Starbucks that's reputed to be the only one in the world not to have English on its main sign.

After all the walking, it was beer time!

Another Attack

Sejin attacks again! Will she show any mercy?

Sejin Attacks Dexter

Here's proof:

An Elevator Review

Cleary New York:
A speedy elevator. During business owners the 45th floor had access to an elevator that had as it's first stop the 45th floor. Very convenient.

Cleary Hong Kong:
Pretty slow. Interestingly the door would stay open until the 'close door' button was pressed. Unlike North American elevators, the 'close door' button actually had a purpose and was connected to something.

Kim & Chang, Seoul:
Only need to get to the fourth floor, so speed is not much of a concern. The door does close without having to use the 'close door' button. A unique function of this elevator is that if you press the floor button again, it 'unselects' that floor. I surprised someone in the elevator with me, when I turned off the floor we were headed to.

Conclusion:
I like when the doors close automatically, as I would sometimes forget to press the close button. Additionally, the cancel the floor feature is neat, but it's utility is limited. The winner is, therefore, Cleary New York (especially if one is stationed on the 45th floor.)

Ganghwa Island

Sejin, Sejin's mom, and I visited Ganghwa Island yesterday.

We looked at a historical site that had a museum, a number of cannons, etc. The day was really nice and Sejin was as pretty as a flower.

After walking around, we had a big meal at a traditional-style restaurant.

Thursday

On Thursday, Sejin met a friend she hadn't seen in a while. They mostly shopped and ate.

First, they sushi, and next they had Turkish icecream. After that, they ate at a place called Jackie's Restaurant. (I think it is Jackie Chan's restaurant.)

After work, I joined Sejin and her sister at Dong'dae'mun market. It was pretty interesting... although they shopped a lot.

Mandu Making

Sejin and I made mandu (a Korean food similar to certain kinds of dim sum or dumplings) at Sejin's parent's apartment.

Here's some cooked mandu. (Don't worry we made lots more.) Here's me giving the mandu the thumbs up!

(We made them much bigger than regular mandu.)

First Day at Work

Monday was my first day at work. I will be spending four weeks with the Korean law firm Kim & Chang.

Thanks for the support, God.

Paris Park

On Sunday, Sejin, Sejin's mother and I (along with friends of Sejin's mom) went for a nice meal (Barley with sidedishes, and Sam'Gyop'Sal [similiar to uncured bacon). After dinner with walked around Paris Park. (Apparently there's a park in Paris, called Seoul Park.)

Arrived in Korea

We're now in Korea.

We had a little trouble at the airport (they thought we had too much luggage.) We had to give them cash, before they'd let us board.

Here's a shot of Sejin in the airport.