China, day 5

Saturday we took the overnight train back to Beijing. Although we only had seats (as opposed to beds), considering our journey to Xi'an they were the best seats ever.

We met our taxi driver John, who we hired for the whole day, when we got to the station. First, we went to the Summer Palace - it was very pretty, and full of tourists.

These water lilies were as big as my head!

The covered walkways

The boat made of stone - so useful!

After the Summer Palace, we went to the Great Wall. Most people go to Badaling, which is the closest site to Beijing. John took us out to Mutianyu, which is farther away and therefore has fewer tourists. Plus, since we went in the afternoon, most of the people had already left, which meant there were times when I had the whole thing to myself.








Our last day was definitely the highlight. Before we left, everyone talked about how wonderful Beijing was. Until that last day, I had no idea how it was possible for people to enjoy the city.

Anyway, now there's fewer than three weeks remaining, and I'm deep into planning for my upcoming trips. Very exciting!

China, days 3 and 4

Day three (which really felt like day two) was the day we set aside for seeing pandas. Pandas were one of the main reasons my friend decided to go to China with me, so this was an important activity.

Needless to say, just like everything else we did in China, this trip did not go as planned. It was so hot outside that the pandas were hiding inside in the shade. We did get to see a few, but my friend though she would get to touch one (no such luck). Additionally, the treatment of animals isn't exactly to the same standards as it in the U.S.




That afternoon we went to the Muslim Quarter of Xi'an. It was busy (like everywhere else), but it was a really interesting area.



On our last day in Xi'an, we went to see the Terra Cotta Warriors. Even though it was boiling outside, it was a really interesting trip. We went to the three different pits that were open to the public (the recently discovered fourth isn't open to visitors). All of the pits are oriented toward the east, to face the rising sun. The emperor who commissioned the army is buried to the west, protected by the warriors.

The second pit is still mostly untouched, so there isn't much for visitors to see. It does have great examples of the four classes of warriors.



The third pit is almost completely finished, but it's the smallest. This is considered the "command center."


Our guide took us to the first pit at the end of the tour in order to save the best for last. Pit one is the largest and most recognizable.





Only one more day to cover, but it was a big one - the last day in Beijing!

China, days 1 and 2

China was a very... different vacation. First off, it wasn't particulary vacation-like. We got very little rest or relaxation. Secondly, I have never been anywhere quite like it. It's huge and busy, there's a huge air pollution problem, it's just hectic and crazy.

We started the trip on just a couple hours of sleep, and upon arriving in Beijing we went directly to the bus station. Before we left, we tried to get train tickets but it always fell through and I thought that we would still be okay. It turns out that buying in advance is really important, and we ended up with standing only tickets (much more on this later).

Of course, this put a terrible damper on the mood, but we decided to forge ahead and we went to Tiananmen Square. Tiananmen is HUGE, and wasn't really what I had been expecting. I knew it would be big, but I though that it would be an open area. Instead, there are streets and buildings scattered around. It also didn't help that it was 100* outside, and the air was filled with smog.






Afterwards, we headed back to the train station to wait for the train. A lot was going on while we waited, but long story short, we ended up not being able to seats. We spent the twelve-hour overnight trip to Xi'an standing up. It was one of the most horrible trips I've ever had, made even worse by how excruciatingly slow the time passed.By the time we got to Xi'an, we were exhausted.

In the middle of the night, the standing room passengers try to sleep in squatting positions. There was absolutely no empty floor space in the entire train.

The first thing we tried to do was get train tickets for the trip back to Beijing. We did eventually get seats through the hostel, but that day was still tough to get through. I was barely able to walk and I my equilibrium was totally thrown off for the rest of the day.

After a short rest, we realized that we could do a bit of sightseeing in Xi'an because we had one more day than planned in the city. First we went to the bell tower in the center of the city.




We finished the day walking along the wall that surrounds the city. It was very nice, though it might have been nicer if the air wasn't so polluted.





Next up, days three and four in China!

One more month to go!

I've been so busy with classes - reports, testing, the start of intensives - and travel planning the last few weeks that I've neglected the updates, even though quite a bit has been going on.

Two weekends my friend in Seoul (the one I lived with in Argentina) came to Chuncheon for her last visit. It was really rainy, so we spent Saturday at two of the biggest museums in the city - the National Museum and the Museum of Animation. I wasn't expecting much, since Chuncheon isn't Seoul, but it was all pretty interesting.

Rainy day view from the Animation Museum

That Sunday, we went to what is considered by most people to be the "prettiest place in Chuncheon" - Nami Island. Though it takes a train out of town, followed by a taxi and a ferry boat, Nami is pretty. It's kind of like a folk village, with less "folk" and more nature. It was the setting for the one television drama that Chuncheon is known for, Winter Sonata.






Last weekend, the first of the Chuncheon goodbyes began. Chuncheon sees the biggest turnover of teachers in August, so when I arrived a lot of other people were also in the process of doing the same thing. It was really nice because we were all starting something strange together, but now it means that this month will be full of going-away parties.

In a few hours I'm off to China. The trip is very loosely planned, so we're hoping for a bit of luck. We plan on spending a few days in Beijing and two in Xi'an (where the terra cotta soldiers and a panda rescue are). I probably won't be able to access email most of the time, so it's a bit scary, but I'm really looking forward to the trip.

So far, July has been filled with preparations.

The most pressing upcoming event is my summer break in Beijing. There is a definite plan, but we encountered our first roadblock when we found out that the visa application for China had changed. For two days there was panic as we tried to sort out a way to get around the new rules. As it stands, we think it's taken care of, even if it's not the most honest thing I've ever done.

There's also the issue of the final day of work. We still don't know when the last day of work is, so we haven't been able to make any plans for the Southeast Asia trip (which is, in itself another huge obstacle to work through).

I've spent most of the last month consumed with the World Cup. For a while it was fun because all of the kids were so excited about it, but since Korea was eliminated the WC is no longer spoken of. I'm excited because Spain is still in. Spain is the only reason I care about soccer, since it was forced on me while I lived there. This weekend will be very exciting, though I will not miss going to bed at 5:30 in the morning when the games end!

Only about a month and a half left!

Jeju

This has been a bit of a hectic last few days, as I took my last few vacation days to visit Jeju Island. Jeju is the southern-most part of Korea, and is known as a sort of tropical paradise. However, for me, the combination of weather and the work I had to do to get around, it was more like normal Korea + volcanic rock and a few palm trees.

While it was nice to be away from classes, the weather for most of the time was cloudy. I didn't even get to see the largest mountain in Korea, the volcano Hallasan, because it was so overcast most of the time. Anyway, here's a bit of a recap :

I arrived Saturday afternoon, and after checking in to the hotel in Jeju city, I went to Samseonghyeol shrine. This shrine is where the legendary brothers who founded the island were "born" when they emerged from three holes in the ground.

There is a bit of a dip in the ground, and the three holes are here.

After that I went to the Folklore and Natural History Museum next to the shrine.

The next day I went to the eastern part of the island, to the Manjanggul lava-tube cave. Manjanggul is supposedly the longest lava-tube cave in the world. It was pretty interesting, and a nice reprieve from the heat. Unfortunately most of my pictures didn't turn out because of the darkness, but here's the highlight of the cave - a 7 m. tall lava pillar :


Monday morning, I went to the southern coast, to the city of Seogwipo. Seogwipo is more laid back than the typically Korean Jeju-si. First I went to Jeongbang waterfall, which is supposed to be the only waterfall in Asia that falls directly into the sea.


After that I made a trip to see Oedolgae, which is basically just a large rock off the shore that has a legend attached.

My next stop was Jungmun city, which was probably the highlight of the trip. The sun finally came out, so I went to Cheonjeyeon waterfall. Cheonjeyeon is a three-tiered waterfall where (quoting my LP guide) "the seven nymphs of who served the Emperor of Heaven used to slide down moonbeams to bathe every night." It's all beautiful, and there's even a huge bridge crossing it all which allows you to see for miles.




Then I was off to Jusangjeolli. Jusangjeolli is like a miniature version of Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. When the hot lava reached the sea, the rapid cooling and contraction created distinct formations along the coast.



Tuesday morning I went back to Jeju-si. I did some roaming around the city before finding a motel to drop off my backpack, then took a bus along the east coast to Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak). Seongsan is another extinct volcano, and one of the most popular hikes aside from Halla mountain. While it looks huge, it only took twenty minutes to get to the top where there are some pretty great views (when it isn't foggy) and a big grass-filled crater.




I'm glad I got to Jeju, since it is supposed to be one of the not-to-be-missed highlights of Korea. I guess I was just assuming I'd be doing more relaxing and less hiking up and down stairs!