Addie Frankenstein
Friday, April 24, 2009
South Korea Trip
You can try it and you should... the eel that is (I did not)
We flew to South Korea to see Brittany on March 5, 2009, and what a flight it was. The trip started out fine enough, with quite an amazing array of seatmates. We were joined on the plane by several dozen Brazilians and their families who’d made the overnight air jaunt from Sao Paulo to Atlanta, then transferred to the Atlanta to Tokyo flight at 9:30 that morning. As can be expected, there were numerous Japanese-Americans, not to mention Japanese-Brazilians, and Koreans and Chinese. Many times over recent years, we’ve set out for a new adventure in another country. We usually arm ourselves with a couple of good tour books, but rely more upon the experience and advice of friends and family. And since our professional and family circles have always included world travelers, we’ve been lucky to have had that first-hand advice on where we were headed from folks who’d been there before us. And now, we were off to South Korea, where Brittany has been working as a teacher of English as a second language to school children at a private academy. (She also teaches members of the Busan, SK, city council, but more on that shortly.)
What better way to get acquainted to a country than having someone waiting there when you land. Brittany certainly was the experienced tour guide. We were feted first, as sort of an initiation, to Korean food. Saturday evening, after our arrival late Friday night, we went with Brittany and 10 to 12 of her friends to a Busan seafood restaurant. This was a rather homey establishment, with plastic tables and chairs in a two-story building with concrete and dirt floors and tarp roofs. We sat upstairs in the “open air,” but with the tarps and huge gas heaters against the chilly night we were comfortable… until the food arrived. I have to say my self-determination in trying different foods has never been tested more than when the newly deceased eel was set before me. This delicacy, according to the oohs and aahs of Brittany’s friends, was rather intriguing and an adventure unto itself. But on this night, blame it on the jet lag, I was observer more than adventurer, and declined to partake in the culinary delight of the eel, wriggling as it did upon being placed on the hot brazier (see video). The shrimp, however, were quite tasty.
Here’s a rundown of our Asian itinerary. It doesn’t include China on this trip, but it is a very comfortable itinerary, except for one with a sprained ankle, which Lynn suffered through the entire journey. On train and off, up hill and down, and countless miles trodding the pavement of Pusan, Seoul, Kyoto and Fukuoka. First, settling into life in Busan. Resting from the rather extended flight, we got to see some other sights in Busan, including a seaside Buddhist temple and rock outcroppings at the entrance of the bay. On these gigantic rocks were fishermen with poles that must have been 35 to 40 feet long. The only strange thing about this, other than the fact no one seemed to be catching fish, was how they got to the rocks, and back, was not evident… no boats or rafts, nothing to indicate their transport to and from the outcroppings. We also visited various markets in the city, where an unusual and broad selection of sea creatures, most living, were available for sale. Early in the week after we arrived, we set out by train to Seoul. This was an enjoyable ride in a first class cabin, were it not for the young mother who was made to leave the car by a businessman because of her crying baby.
Seoul was wonderful, once the first-day smog lifted. We stayed at the W on Walkerhill, high above the city and over the river. Lovely site. We were among only a few guests in this hotel and were treated like royalty. The food was excellent, but Britt was a bit disconcerted with the smoked glass enclosing the bathroom and tub. From Seoul we flew to Kyoto, for several days in slightly chilly weather. We toured several temples and saw black plum trees popping into bloom. A lovely city. Perhaps moreso later in spring, however.
From Kyoto to Fukuoka by train and then we returned to Busan by hydrofoil, a rough ride in 6-foot seas. But we endured, and luckily didn’t run over a whale. Ah, Busan. We were pampered to extreme on our first leg of the journey, largely because we stayed on the executive floor of the Westin Chosun Hotel, on Hundai beach. On our second stay, however, something got lost in the translation because the accommodations, while quite nice, were a few floors down.
For me, the highlight of our trip was the morning before we returned to the States. We spent it with Brittany and members of the city council who are in her English class. It was a lovely time meeting these civic leaders, all of whom are very proud of their city and the huge new port they are building. (The old port is enormous and possibly the largest one I’ve seen other than those in Rodderdam, The Netherlands, and Nitteroi, Brazil.)
We had tea in the associate council chairman’s office and among those there was a world champion Go player. He informed us of this by displaying his official Go Champion Card, declaring him among the mighty few to achieve Nirvana of this Korean stone game. These are wonderful people, and they rank among my Brazilian friends and my friends in Leeds as among people who make the Planet a very special place in which to live… and travel.
We flew to South Korea to see Brittany on March 5, 2009, and what a flight it was. The trip started out fine enough, with quite an amazing array of seatmates. We were joined on the plane by several dozen Brazilians and their families who’d made the overnight air jaunt from Sao Paulo to Atlanta, then transferred to the Atlanta to Tokyo flight at 9:30 that morning. As can be expected, there were numerous Japanese-Americans, not to mention Japanese-Brazilians, and Koreans and Chinese. Many times over recent years, we’ve set out for a new adventure in another country. We usually arm ourselves with a couple of good tour books, but rely more upon the experience and advice of friends and family. And since our professional and family circles have always included world travelers, we’ve been lucky to have had that first-hand advice on where we were headed from folks who’d been there before us. And now, we were off to South Korea, where Brittany has been working as a teacher of English as a second language to school children at a private academy. (She also teaches members of the Busan, SK, city council, but more on that shortly.)
What better way to get acquainted to a country than having someone waiting there when you land. Brittany certainly was the experienced tour guide. We were feted first, as sort of an initiation, to Korean food. Saturday evening, after our arrival late Friday night, we went with Brittany and 10 to 12 of her friends to a Busan seafood restaurant. This was a rather homey establishment, with plastic tables and chairs in a two-story building with concrete and dirt floors and tarp roofs. We sat upstairs in the “open air,” but with the tarps and huge gas heaters against the chilly night we were comfortable… until the food arrived. I have to say my self-determination in trying different foods has never been tested more than when the newly deceased eel was set before me. This delicacy, according to the oohs and aahs of Brittany’s friends, was rather intriguing and an adventure unto itself. But on this night, blame it on the jet lag, I was observer more than adventurer, and declined to partake in the culinary delight of the eel, wriggling as it did upon being placed on the hot brazier (see video). The shrimp, however, were quite tasty.
Here’s a rundown of our Asian itinerary. It doesn’t include China on this trip, but it is a very comfortable itinerary, except for one with a sprained ankle, which Lynn suffered through the entire journey. On train and off, up hill and down, and countless miles trodding the pavement of Pusan, Seoul, Kyoto and Fukuoka. First, settling into life in Busan. Resting from the rather extended flight, we got to see some other sights in Busan, including a seaside Buddhist temple and rock outcroppings at the entrance of the bay. On these gigantic rocks were fishermen with poles that must have been 35 to 40 feet long. The only strange thing about this, other than the fact no one seemed to be catching fish, was how they got to the rocks, and back, was not evident… no boats or rafts, nothing to indicate their transport to and from the outcroppings. We also visited various markets in the city, where an unusual and broad selection of sea creatures, most living, were available for sale. Early in the week after we arrived, we set out by train to Seoul. This was an enjoyable ride in a first class cabin, were it not for the young mother who was made to leave the car by a businessman because of her crying baby.
Seoul was wonderful, once the first-day smog lifted. We stayed at the W on Walkerhill, high above the city and over the river. Lovely site. We were among only a few guests in this hotel and were treated like royalty. The food was excellent, but Britt was a bit disconcerted with the smoked glass enclosing the bathroom and tub. From Seoul we flew to Kyoto, for several days in slightly chilly weather. We toured several temples and saw black plum trees popping into bloom. A lovely city. Perhaps moreso later in spring, however.
From Kyoto to Fukuoka by train and then we returned to Busan by hydrofoil, a rough ride in 6-foot seas. But we endured, and luckily didn’t run over a whale. Ah, Busan. We were pampered to extreme on our first leg of the journey, largely because we stayed on the executive floor of the Westin Chosun Hotel, on Hundai beach. On our second stay, however, something got lost in the translation because the accommodations, while quite nice, were a few floors down.
For me, the highlight of our trip was the morning before we returned to the States. We spent it with Brittany and members of the city council who are in her English class. It was a lovely time meeting these civic leaders, all of whom are very proud of their city and the huge new port they are building. (The old port is enormous and possibly the largest one I’ve seen other than those in Rodderdam, The Netherlands, and Nitteroi, Brazil.)
We had tea in the associate council chairman’s office and among those there was a world champion Go player. He informed us of this by displaying his official Go Champion Card, declaring him among the mighty few to achieve Nirvana of this Korean stone game. These are wonderful people, and they rank among my Brazilian friends and my friends in Leeds as among people who make the Planet a very special place in which to live… and travel.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Funny twins
Here, please meet, the Starratt Twins, Nora and Cha-Cha. OK, just to be clear, that's Laughing Nora on the left and 
Smiling Cha-Cha on the right. Got it? More pix will be posted later, and on those you will have to name the twins yourself. So pay attention. Of course, this photo was made on April 1, so there is a slight chance they are playing tricks on all of us.
Smiling Cha-Cha on the right. Got it? More pix will be posted later, and on those you will have to name the twins yourself. So pay attention. Of course, this photo was made on April 1, so there is a slight chance they are playing tricks on all of us.
Addie's self-portrait, April 1, 2009
This is, perhaps, Addie's first self-portrait. But as much as she loves a camera and taking pictures, I doubt it will be her last.
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