Brennan Visitors

FAMILY

Two blog posts in two weeks?.. WHAT IS HAPPENING?!

I'm sick, that's what's happening. I was told to “take a rest” which is all that's possible really because even though I think I might have tonsillitis, in the 7 months I've been here I haven't worked out where the doctor is or what I need to take with me if I needed to visit.. So I guess I’m just going to have to ride it out. *cough, splutter, sneeze*

Mum at School

One week after returning from Shanghai I made my way to Incheon airport once again but this time I wasn't leaving the country. I went to meet my mum and sister who were on their way to Korea for a 10 day visit! It was a Tuesday evening when they finally appeared out of the arrival gate. We made our way back to my apartment, talked and ate, and those two quickly passed out. Mum can deny it all she wants but jet lag exists and she was feeling it!

At the Palace

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday I had to be at school as normal but my schedule was light as it was the very last week of the school year – mostly watching movies and rehearsing the Graduation Ceremony where I was due to play the hand bells to Edelweiss and a Korean song. Naomi and mum spent Wednesday and Thursday recovering from jet lag and hitting the sites at the top of every Seoul visitor’s to-do list – Gyeongbokgung Palace and a couple of big city museums. In the evenings I showed them around some of my favourite areas, Hongdae where we ate Korean BBQ and found a little jazz bar, Itaewon where I got interviewed for a radio show (these things tend to happen to foreigners here), and Namsan Tower where we took in the sights over nighttime Seoul.

On Friday, the last day of the school year, mum and Naomi came to Yongdu Elementary School and met some of my colleagues. I took them on a little tour of the school and showed them my classroom. They were able to sit in the back of the assembly hall during the Graduation Ceremony and watch me absolutely NAIL the hand bell playing! I went for leaving lunch with the teachers and mum and Naomi braved a Korean restaurant all on their own…with huge success!

Temple Prayer Beads

Buddha

I had planned lots of things to do with my week off – starting with an overnight visit to a nearby temple, Myogaksa. On Saturday morning we made our way to the temple and met our monk. She was with us for each session over the next 24 hours. We learned a lot about Korean Buddhism, practiced meditation and chanting at 5am, and did 108 prostrations (with hilarious consequences which I can tell you about in person some day). The next morning we left in a hurry, desperate for a nap after our 4.30am wake-up. Later on Sunday afternoon we explored Myeongdong before going to watch a performance of Nanta - it was brilliant!

On Monday we headed out of Seoul to Yongpyong Ski Resort in Pyeongchang for a day of skiing. Pyeongchang is where the 2018 Winter Olympic Games will be held and the resorts in the area look like they’re almost set to host it! I was really impressed with the facilities – Korea does good skiing! It was mum’s first time on the slopes so we started with the basics on the nursery slope and before I knew it we were on the chair lift to the top of the blue slope! Only a minor chair lift exit incident later and mum was snowploughing her way down the mountain. GO MUM!

Climb to Suwon Fortress

Tuesday saw us journey to Suwon. Whilst Suwon is on the same subway line as the nearest stop to my apartment, it is still an 80 minute ride away. We explored Suwon Hwaseong Fortress and rode the Suwon City Tourist Trolley around for a while. Afterwards we caught the subway up to Gangnam for some dinner and to try and find Psy. We failed on the Psy front but the 삼겹살 was delicious.

JSA

On Wednesday, we WENT TO NORTH KOREA. Well, the demilitarized zone (DMZ) at least. We got to see one of the tunnels that the North Koreans were digging 250 feet below ground towards Seoul before it was discovered in October 1978 and the famous Joint Security Area (JSA). We were also taken to Dorasan train station – the last station on the South Korean side of the boarder. The station opened in 2002 and not a single train has gone through the station so far. The whole station is completely weird and a little pointless but the guide was oddly proud of it. The whole day was creepy really but interesting to hear the timeline of events and how everyone still seems confident of a reunion one day.

Barbed Wire Border

On the last full day of their visit, I took mum and Naomi to Insadong. Insadong has lots of shops selling traditional Korean things. They were able to get a few souvenirs and I was able to introduce them to Korea’s fascination with poo. It’s weird and disgusting and I don’t understand it but this whole country is obsessed with poo. This café was called 똥카페 (Google Translate it.......) and everything was poo/toilet themed. Weird. Korea.

Sadly the time had come for airport goodbyes. 10 days flew by way too quickly. I was so pleased that they were able to come see what I’ve been doing here and where I’ve been living. They got to meet some of my friends and now they know what I’m talking about while I’m rambling away about whatever via Skype.

After they left I had one week of Spring English Camp (playing games and eating snacks) before the new school year started again on 3^rd March. It’s now 3 weeks into the school year and everyone has settled into their new routines.

And that’s it; you’re pretty much up to date.

Until next time (which most definitely wont be next week, don’t get used to this)

Bren

Shanghai

So I went to China for the weekend.

More specifically, I went to China for the Chinese New Year holiday weekend. At the end of January (2 months ago, I KNOW) everyone had a Thursday and Friday off work so up I got at 5am to head to Incheon airport. What should have been a 90 minute flight turned into 5 and a half hour journey! We took off from Incheon on time and as the plane was circling above what I had assumed was Shanghai I was told we’d flown on an extra hour and were landing at a small airport where we’d have to wait for the "fog" (it was definitely smog - check this out) to leave Shanghai. I peered out of the window once we’d landed and managed to Google Map where we were from the name of the airport (thankfully written in English and not Chinese). We were in Fuzhou just a little less than 400 miles south west of Shanghai. OK. No big deal, but what now?... We wait. And we wait. And we wait and we wait and we waited two hours before we started trundling back to the runway to take off again.

Gang Around Town

Four hours later than expected I made it to my Hosteling International hostel. I was just in time to shower and change and head out for a walk and dinner with the other 7 people in my dorm room that night. It was a great mix of people. Two Aussies, two Germans, a Dutch guy, a Mexican, a Canadian, and me! We walked through the old town and saw the Lantern Festival then headed for food. We found a small noodle place and sat on plastic stool on the side of the road – it was delicious and I was really full for just £1.20! Afterwards we walked towards the riverfront and the area known as The Bund. As it was NYE we’d expected to see lots of fireworks and from about 7pm onwards we could hear short burst all around us but the “fog” that had prevented my plane from landing earlier in the day had descended again making it tricky to spot them. We left the Bund area and went to a couple of bars. This turned out to be a great decision because one of the guys who’d been in Shanghai for a few days suggested a bar on the 11^th floor of a nearby building where we played darts and pool, and as the clock struck midnight we were treated to an excellent fireworks display.

Financial District

I heard that my roommates were surprised to see me gone when they eventually woke up the next day but I had a lot to see in only a short trip so I spared no time in heading to the financial district. The Shanghai World Financial Centre, Jin Mao Tower and the new Shanghai Centre form just the beginning of an impressive skyline. The Lujiazui financial area is filled with dozens of skyscrapers and is fascinating to wander around. One of the most popular photo spots is in front of the Oriental Pearl Tower. By lunch time I’d made my way to the French Concession where I sat people-watching in the sunshine. I carried on my walk and was headed for TianZiFang. The area took a long while to find and I was about to give up when suddenly I turned a corner and saw what I was looking for... a small passageway in between two larger buildings. This was the main entrance to the maze of alleyways and secret paths lined with stalls and shops selling all things Chinese from hand carved decorative chop sticks to postcards and travel patches for the souvenir hunters. I really enjoyed the sounds and smells and sights of the area – I stayed for almost 2 hours, after which I slumped into a subway seat and took my weary self back to the hostel. I had a few beers in the bar and went out with a couple of the guys to get a quick dinner and called that a night.

Qibao

Jade Buddha (above)
Jing'An (below)

On the Saturday morning I got the subway out of the city a little to find a small water town, Qibao. There was a river and some nice bridges but mostly what I saw was people. PEOPLE EVERYWHERE. At one point as I attempted to stroll around, I was convinced that if I lifted both feet up I would have been carried along with the flow of people. I cut my losses and left the area pretty sharpish. I caught the subway to the north side of the city to visit some temples. I started at the Jade Buddha temple. It was crowded with people there for New Years prayers but it was far more tranquil than the water village. I walked around breathing in the air think from burning incense and stopped by the carp pool to sit in the sunshine. Afterwards, I visited the Jing’an temple closer to the centre of town. This temple was much larger with a central staircase leading up to one of the main prayer halls. It was beautifully decorated and the clear blue skies and sunshine made me decide it was time to go back to the financial district to see the view from the top of those skyscrapers!

SWFC

I was able to see for miles and miles from the 100th floor of the SWFC building and the highest observation deck in the world. It was clear enough to get some fantastic photographs and to really be able to say that I saw all of Shanghai during my short stay! I’m not one for heights whatsoever but I’m really glad I went up there. There’s a café a couple of floors below the main observation deck where I watch the sun fade. I was absolutely exhausted but chuffed with my full day. I headed back to the hostel after getting some steamed dumplings and black bean something for dinner.

Yayoi Kusama

The next morning I was up and packed by 9:30am but enjoyed a long breakfast in the hostel bar before checking out but leaving my bag in the store room for a couple of hours. There was just one last thing I wanted to tick off my list before leaving for the journey back to Korea and that was the Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai (MoCAS) – conveniently just a 10 minute walk from the hostel. The Yayoi Kusama solo exhibition, I Dreamed A Dream was excellent and I’m glad I made time to see it. I got there around 11am and spent a couple of hours exploring the various rooms. It was a lot of fun – especially the “Obliteration Room” – and I would urge anyone who has the chance to see any of her work to go see it.

The flight back was straight forward and I arrived back at my apartment around midnight. Shanghai is a great city. It has everything you might want from a short city-break... museums, temples, monuments, theatres, beautiful parks and gardens, riverside activities, a good nightlife… the list goes on.

Highly recommended!

Until next time,

Bren.