These boots were made for walking (Saturday, August 10)

One last trip into Seoul and I covered some serious ground today.  Some last snapshots of the city centre.

City Hall.

Hammering Man.

Presidential meal (Friday, August 9)

Today I did the unthinkable and ate at McDonalds.  The President of Dankook gave the international students and professors a meal coupon.  This still was not enough incentive for me to dine there.

But then the lure of the double bulgogi burger was too much for me to resist.

The McDonalds is located just off campus at the bottom of the mountain.

These delivery scooters are often seen outside the dormitory at night.

Last day of classes (Thursday, August 8)

Many classes in the Summer Program had presentations today, including mine.  We joined forces with a Services Marketing class to give my student (and me!) a better experience.

My student, Victoria, and I with the backdrop of an antibody response to trypanosomes. 

I also sat in on the "Seoul Among World Cities" class in the afternoon to hear student presentations
on the Gangnam area of Seoul.

Tonight was the Farewell Party which included a B-boy group.

Check out the moves of S-Flava.

And lastly today I discovered the best convenience store snack.

Gimbap (like Japanese maki roll) in a convenient-to-eat package. And it is only about $1.50!

Can you get my back? (Wednesday, August 8)

Today I went to a jimjilbang (steam room) in my neighbourhood.  I don't have any pictures, of course, because what you would see is a room full of naked females of all ages moving between hot and dry saunas and the various baths: warm bath, hot bath, cold bath, very cold bath (2°C), and massage bath.  You would also see all the stations where you scrub yourself down or, better yet, have someone else scrub you down.  And yes, that would be ALL of you down.


Instead, I will leave you with another body image to think about.

An ad for plastic surgery on the side of a bus.

Knock knock (Tuesday, August 6)

Yesterday I also went on an organized outing to Bukchon Village, an area of traditional (hanok) homes in Seoul.  I was fascinated by the doors.

Bathroom nuances (Monday, August 5)

Today was a regular work day so I thought I would share some of my observations from various bathrooms I have visited.

Stationary blue bar soap provided next to the sink.

Unique individual pictures on each bathroom stall door that light up when the stall is occupied.

Lost in translation on the toilet paper dispenser.

Random shots (Sunday, August 4)

Today I went back to Namdaemun Market to get a few last deals.

Artword featured in the downtown area.

From my observations, South Korea is a very homogenous society, in everything from food to car colours (featured July 16).

Buses at one of the huge road-side travel stop centres which feature food kiosks, restaurants, toilets and convenience stores.  These buses highlight the two vehicle makers that dominate the road, Hyundai and Kia.