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.

Jeonju road trip (Saturday, August 2)

I went on a road trip to the city of Jeonju.  The drive was about 3 hours south of Seoul.  One of my colleagues arranged for us to travel there on a free shuttle for foreigners.

This is the Hanok village (village of traditional houses) that is now an area with many restaurants, coffee shops, souvenir shops and museums.

This building housed the archives at the Gyeonggi Palace.

Be prepared! Rain is always a possibility!

The view from inside Ediya Coffee shop.

We arrived back in Seoul about 900pm when the Koreans are just coming alive.

A view of Cheonggyecheon which runs nearly 6km through the centre of Seoul.

A view from North Korea (Friday, August 2)

Today I went on an all-day tour to the DMZ (demilitarized zone).

This was our first look at North Korea from the Dora Observatory.  You had to take photos at a distance behind a yellow line plus it was very foggy.

We also visited the 3rd tunnel that the North Koreans had made for infiltrating South Korea.  It was discovered in 1978.  I have no pictures of this as we were not allowed to take a single thing with us on the underground monorail (descending 73m) or on the walk through the underground tunnel.


As a joint venture North and South Korea agreed to build a railway line connecting the counties in 2004.

I am at Dorosan train station where trains ran empty (testing purposes) to Pyongyang for 1 year; none have run since.

Our last stop was the Joint Security Area (JSA).  While the above attractions are quite heavily patronized by tourists, the JSA is not.  The JSA is the most forward location in the DMZ.  In order to visit the JSA I had to sign a Declaration of my understanding that death was a possible result of my visit.

The blue buildings are all United Nations Command (UNC) buildings.  The Military Demarcation LIne (MDL; border) runs through the middle of the buildings, left to right.  So the building you see in the distance is in North Korea.

This is the MDL as seen by me while I am standing in North Korea.

Insadong tea house (Thursday, August 1)

Earlier in the trip a group of us went to a traditional Korean tea house in the area of Insadong.

I would never have found the tea house on my own as the area was a maze of narrow streets.

Because it was so hot outside, we were treated to a cold/iced tea of roasted grains.
(It tasted like Ryvita flatbreads to me!)

Two of my fellow professors at DKU, both from the United States.

Stay hydrated part 2 (Wednesday, July 31)

I have not had to purchase a single bottle of water since I arrived in South Korea.  Filtered water is available and/or served everywhere.  You never have to ask.

Filtered water machines delivering boiling hot and chilled water in the dormitory.

Available water at a coffee shop.

Shake it baby! (Tuesday, July 30)

Me and my new best friend.

This delightful little treat is a frozen vanilla milkshake that you squeeze through the top as it is melting.
Icy goodness!

Keys please (Monday, July 29)

Within walking distance of DKU (35 minutes) is the Shinsegae shopping mall.  These are very high end Korean malls found throughout the country.

You know you are high end when you offer valet parking.

Since my budget does not include Gucci or Prada, I shop at the adjacent E-Mart for all my needs, including groceries.

This is the beautiful bakery in the E-mart.

It is self-serve for your goods and then it is packaged for you.

There is a steamed bun shop within the E-mart.  These are Chinese-style steamed buns;
the fillings have been Korean-ized.

Please pass the street meat (Sunday, July 28)

Today I took the bus from DKU to the Myeongdong area of Seoul (1 hour bus ride) and visited the Namdaemun market.

The market is a labyrinth of streets and stalls selling everything, but with a focus on cheap clothes, cameras, socks,  underwear and food.

My lunch!  Each piece consists of a fish/rice paste wrapped around something (fish, sausage or unidentifiables) and then deep fried. Yum!

This side street featured restaurants where all the food was cooked outside and then you ate inside.  All the dishes that you can order are displayed outside so you know exactly what you are getting, or at least what it is going to look like!

Get your Changdeokgung on!

This is part two of my trip to Seoul yesterday.

The Gwanghwamun Square provides the approach to Changdeokgung (palace).

Here sits a large statue of King Sejong; he is responsible for the Hangul, the Korean script.

The changing of the guard at the gate of the palace.

I am just in front to the King's quarters; the queen's are behind.

Just a quick peek inside!

And just in case you needed a reminder...

Sign on the inside of bathroom stall.

Buddha-licious! (Friday, July 26)

Today a group of us from DKU went on a 14 hour round trip to Seoul, lead by one of the visiting faculty from California.  Our first stop was the National Museum of Korea.

The museum is built on the former golf course of the US military base next door.  It is the 6th largest museum in the world

Goryeo dynasty ten-story pagoda carved in marble.

One of several iron Buddhas on display.

Pensive Bodhisattva from the 7th century.

Korean buzz (Thursday, July 25)

I am into a daily routine.  Even the staff at the coffee shop and Korean BBQ recognize me!

Hum drum of getting breakfast in the dormitory.  This place has the cadillac of air conditioners!

There is never an excuse to not have a coffee buzz in this country.

My student bought me this delicious, chilled, sweet coffee today during our class break.