My Dairy of Korea Travel continue… June 13, 2008
Posted by dodo in : Accommodation, Air Tickets, Cars, Destination, Hotels, New York, Round The World, Seoul , add a commentWe climb a steep hill that affords a stunning panorama of the harbor and, except for an absurdly heroic statue of General MacArthur, an attractive esplanade. Concrete fortifications and artillery and radar installations are only half hidden by thick shrubbery and blankets of flowers. On the edge of the lookout is an eleven-story wooden dovecote built more than a century ago. The entrance to each apartment is a different shade of red, blue, green, and yellow, only slightly faded, and the center panel displays the Buddhist vortex, a pinwheel of colors.
In the wine-growing region near Chilbo, the roofs of most houses are blue and pagoda-shaped, and the vines are garlanded, woven together to screen the wind. The turnoff to the temple is a dirt track with a 90° slope. (more…)
My Dairy of Korea Travel June 13, 2008
Posted by dodo in : Aquarium, France, Hotels, Japan, New York, Restaurant, Seoul, USA , add a commentNo sooner does midnight flight 007 take off for Seoul than the stewardesses change from military uniforms and New York-style indifference to flower-patterned kimonos and oriental manners: quick, short bows at every contact. A “heavy snack” is served: hors d’oeuvres (ginseng root), a “starch” course (”France fried potatoes”), bulgogi (marinated beef), and kimchi (fermented pickle of cabbage). The menu reproduces a Yi-dynasty (1392) embroidery of the mythical bird Bong Hwang, which “luckily foresaw coming catastrophe of the country.” The pilot’s English and Korean are indistinguishable, but the all-night TV advertising of duty-free products is mercifully silent. (more…)
