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My arrival in South Korea/ visit to Japan

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I arrived in the city of Gang neung (also pronounced Kang neung since Koreans don’t differentiate between G and K) December 31st 2007 at around 11 30 pm. Don’t ask me why I chose to leave Africa the day before new year’s eve and decided to spent it alone in a strange city?? Anyways, I was bored with my first impression of the city. Everything in Gang neung is new, extremely clean, ordered and quiet. I desperately missed the African chaos. I had never realised that when in a strange place, you immediately long for the last thing that was familiar, instead of home. I guess Uganda is what now seems the most familiar. A wise friend recently warned me that once I return home, what used to be familiar will no longer be. He went on to say that I will then be left with a strange unsettling feeling. I am now starting to see what he means. The days went by and I wasn’t warming up to this city at all. The reality of that is…I wasn’t giving Gang neung a chance. I was still very bitter that I had to leave Uganda so soon. I wasn’t ready. And I missed it very much.

About a week after my arrival, I had to go to Japan in order to get my working visa (you cant get a working visa while you are in the country you will be working in) so, the closest embassy was in Fukuoka Japan. I love Japan. I was only there for 2 days but I saw a shit load of things and I absolutely loved it. When I arrived, from the airport I hopped on a metro and went straight to the embassy. Afterwards, I found my hotel and slept for about 7 hours. (I had stayed up the entire night before, catching up with an old friend named Louis from St-Catharines that has been living in Seoul for 10months teaching) After resting, I ventured out…I went back on the metro and just got off at random stops…I really had no idea where I was going, and I wasn’t really looking for anything in particular. I was satisfied with the warm weather, the people riding their bikes (everyone was on bicycles…grandmas, kids, girls in miniskirts, business men…) there were more bikes then cars…I love that. The neighbourhoods I visited were quite nice, new and clean. However, through the new, I could see the old. I came across so many beautiful old Japanese buildings. They made me very happy. Also, being winter, many of the trees had lost their leaves, but just as many were lush and green. I would see kinds of trees I had only ever seen in pictures…they were so tropical and exotic looking. On this trip, I did not feel like taking pictures, so I don’t have any to show. I just wanted to fully enjoy every moment without feeling I had to reproduce it for anyone else. It also forced me to really observe and pay attention to detail…so that I can have photographs of everything, in my head.

Once I came across a tourist info booth I picked up a bunch of flyers and embarked on a journey in search of several different things I wanted to see. I went to the ruins of the Fukuoka castle ( and fell asleep in the courtyard, on a bench, hiding from the rain), Maizuru Park, the Fukuoka art museum, Rakusuein Park, (which has a Japanese garden and tea room with a beautiful pond and waterfall), and also visited Ohori park. This park reminded me of central park in New York, except it was much smaller. It encircled a lake and had lots of beautiful greenery…but at the same time you could see the big city buildings surrounding the outskirts of the area. People go there to relax, fish, bird watch, run….or just admire the beauty. After walking though it, I came face to face with a Noh theatre. In university I had studied theatre for a few years, and I remember writing a paper on Kabuki theatre (Kabuki is the same as Noh), I became really fascinated by it. The characters on stage wear a lot of makeup emphasising their facial features as well as their emotions, and they wear very outrageous costumes. If I remember correctly, the plays are all done either quietly or with songs, and only men can perform (even if there are women roles, men play them). I was so excited to have found this without searching for it. However, the theatre was closed until after I had to catch my plane back to South Korea, so I didn’t have the chance to see a play.

Upon my return to South Korea, I was suppose to take a bus to Anyang to spend the week-end with Louis, so he can show me around Seoul. But since my flight had been delayed, by the time it landed around midnight, the buses to Anyang had stopped running and the metros were closed. A taxi to his town would have cost over $100. Obviously that wasn’t an option I was willing to consider. The airport guy suggested I take this last running shuttle bus to the other near by airport. I agreed, assuming it meant there were buses running from there. To my surprise, the bus did not stop at the other airport, and continued on…to finally stop at its final destination in a strange city I don’t know the name of. What to do??? (Its funny, being abroad and stranded, you never actually feel lost…u are so far from home, everything you see is so unfamiliar regardless of where you are, u never really know where u are, and you’re always so far from home….that you just never actually feel lost. So it becomes fun.)The city itself was pretty alive, places were opened, and there were people everywhere. But I still didnt have enough money to just do anything. I befriended a young boy, age about 19, whom looked just as lost as I did. I asked him if he spoke any english…he said he did only a little (seems to be all of Korean’s answers) His english name is Jessy. He had just gotten back from China…and was also wondering what to do since the metros were closed. We decided to take a taxi to his town (which I dont know the name) because he said id be able to find a cheap motel to sleep in near his place. Once we got there, we met up with his sister, and they directed me to the nearest motel. It was $20, the bed was heated, and the sheets were not clean. At this point, I did not care. In the morning, Jessy and his sister met me at the motel to direct me to the metro station. Once at the Cheongnyangni station I thanked Jessy for his kindness and we went our separate ways. I asked the metro guy to direct me towards Anyang (the metro maps are huge, and I couldn’t position myself on it, so I asked for help…knowing Anyang was about 1 hour away from Cheongnyangni.) It wasn’t until I had made it 1 ½ hours in the wrong direction did I realise I locate myself on the map and came to the conclusion I was going the wrong way. At this point, I was tired of being on the metro so I called Louis to ask him to meet me at Seoul station which was actually about 4 stops away from where I had originally gotten on. Finally, Louis and I reunited!

Seoul was amazing. There are so many underground markets, street vendors, and really tempting shopping boutiques. We visited many different areas…I had a great time. We stayed at one of his friend’s place in Iteawon. I really like that area. It reminds me of what my idea of San Francisco is like with all the hills throughout the city. From the top, you would have a wonderful view of the big city buildings... (That’s one point during my journey I wish I had brought my camera) It was really great.

I am now getting settled in Gang neung just fine. I’m on the coast of the ocean in the province of Gang won Do surrounded by a breath taking view of beautiful mountains. I live near rice paddies and several hiking trails. My first impression of the city was right…however, I never took the time to really look at what’s around me. There is a lot to do and a lot to see. Last week-end I went to Ju mun Jin, its near Gang neung, its an older city and I really enjoyed my time there. The city seems to have a lot to tell, a lot of character and some charm. I mostly enjoyed seeing the old Korean ladies setting up shop on the street corners and sidewalks selling anything from socks, to fruits and vegetables, to fresh fish. It reminds me of being in Uganda, which makes me happy. A bit past Ju mun jin, I visited a temple with some friends. Personally, I hate the way they turn sacred places like that into tourist attractions. It really takes away the beauty of it. Its situated right along the ocean but the selling of crafts and souvenirs ruined it for me. However, inside this one tunnel, where I believe is where Buddhists go as a ritual and walk around the middle and then enter to pray…there were hand painted figures surrounding the entire tunnel…on the walls and on the ceilings. It was really amazing. But of course, instead of having a spiritual feeling walking through it, I came face to face with people taking pictures of the paintings. My goal is to find the most beautiful, serene, and deserted temple in South Korea.

Posted by synthesizer on 2008-02-09 08:44:40 | Rating: