Korea

The Republic of South Korea

Sub-locations

268 photos

On our first morning in Seoul, Monica and I were up...
Monica, outside a spice store on the main pedestrian...
Breakfast! Finally, around 9am we found a place serving...
Our $5 breakfast: omelet, soup with seafood, green...
Calligraphy brushes for sale in a store in Insadong, Seoul.
Our swank hotel room for the first night.
Jacuzzi bathtub with a TV!
Our toilet. I have no idea how it works.
Automatic toothpaste dispenser! This place had every...
After a brief nap to fight jet lag, Monica and I headed...
A rock that is supposed to look like a seated Buddha. ...
Another view of the N'Seoul Tower, through the tree branches.
These welded metal "backpacks" were very popular, often...
I don't know who this fellow was, but his picture was...
Another shot of hazy Seoul from the temple.
An old wall used to protect the temple from invaders. ...
View of the Buddha rock from further away.
Gate to the temple. Not really all that impressive.
Your guess is as good as mine. This was an...
Monica in front of Jongno Tower, one of the more...
Ok, this is going to need a back-story to explain. ...
The Grand Prix. A pizza. Which contains all of the...
The story needs further elaboration that the Mr. Pizza...
Oh, I forgot, it also came with pickles and a garlic...
After our pizza, we walked at least 100 feet before...
This is what 7 USD of froyo looks like. It was actually...
A close up view: red bean, kiwi, banana, green tea,...
Korean shave ice, post-mixing, ready for eating.
That's about the best we could do after 25 minutes of...
Nighttime lights in Insadong. This neighborhood...
Once again, your guess is as good as mine.
Probably not exactly what they meant.
A lot of construction in downtown Seoul. Everywhere you...
Their construction techniques look a bit more advanced...
Again, nothing seemed to be open for breakfast in the...
Wow, I would love to be invited to their after-party.
Some $500 decorative tchotchke in the Lotte Department...
A chef making hand pulled noodles in a Chinese...
Nice work, Mr. Hand-pulled Noodle Chef Guy!
A fully automated Korean walnut cake machine! I learned...
Next stop: lunch, again in Insadong at a restaurant that...
Here's our simple monk's lunch: at least 21 distinct...
Tempura mushroom. Also pictured, tempura lotus root.
Victory! This would unfortunately become a theme on this trip.
Puffed rice cake for dessert.
I have no idea what they were up to or where they were going.
In Korea, the supermarket comes to you. In Insadong, Seoul.
Dried cuttlefish and other dried fish for sale.
Apparently the last time Monica was in Korea this was...
Koreans seemed to be into this bizarre English world...
Monica in front of the Catholic cathedral in Seoul.
Statue in front of the Catholic cathedral in Seoul.
Young women hauling dismembered manekins down a street...
If only I needed some duct tape!!
Namdaemun market in Seoul. The biggest, busiest market...
Food on a stick vendor.
Woman selling spices and specialty grains on the sidewalk.
Close up of her wares.
In case you need a Davy Crockett coonskin cap.
Yep, that´s a bra on his head. The rest of the outfit...
Chickens and veggies for sale.
Motobikes in this city were outrageous. To say they...
I totally forget what this is, but it looks cool. Must...
The next day, Monica and I woke up, had dinner with her...
The KTX (Korea Train Express) employees had funny hats.
A typical view out the window while crossing the "rural"...
Monica, waiting for her step mom to pick us up at the...
About half way to Monica´s dad´s condo, there was an air...
View from the Diamond Bridge (lower deck) in Haeundae,...
Plastic food to choose from at the Chinese restaurant we...
Kind of like a cow drinking a milkshake or eating a...
On our first afternoon in Busan, Monica´s dad and step...
Monica´s step mom insisted in taking dozens of pictures...
The view from the promenade outside the APEC pavillion.
I had no idea you could see Japan from Korea!
Fishing boat taking tourists out to catch the big one.
Fisherman on the coast of Busan.
My bad camera´s attempt to photograph Ji-Young, Monica´s...
Pretty awesome self-portrait.
Monica´s relatives chastise her for having freckles.
Hard to see, but they made this harbor buoy look like a...
The beach in Haeundae, Busan. Apparently they have set...
We arrived in Busan coincident with the finally of the...
Sand scuptures in connection with the film festival.
Cute sand sculpture. I think in Korean it just says...
A tall building with windows that open! If only the...
Sunset over Haeundae beach in Busan. Time to head back...
Pretty great MINI ad. As far as I can tell, that´s a...
Sunset on the Diamond Bridge in Busan.
Construction is booming, about a block from Monica´s dad´s place.
Some overpriced (around $3,000 US per month) store...
Apparently the largest department store in the world. ...
A toll booth with flair: on our second afternoon in...
I loved these engraved river rocks that were used as...
At the entrance gate to Bulguksa temple. The Chinese...
Guards of the temple.
Close up of one of the guards.
I miss leaves that change color.
A lot of the temples we saw had natural springs where...
Pretty leaves. I think they might have been a Japanese...
Pretty sweet looking fish, or as they say in Korea, sang-sen.
I liked this door handle too. It´s like a lion with...
Monica at Bulguksa temple.
Monica pointing out some detail in the ornately carved...
Detail of the carved and painted pine tree roofs. Pines...
Ajashi checking out a rather serious drum being carried...
Detail of a dragon painted on the drum in the last...
A corner of the roof.
The clay tiles that cover the wooden roof.
Detail of the clay tiles that cover the wooden roof.
Another temple building. The swastika is a Buddhist...
Sorry to include so many shots of the Bulguksa temple, I...
Bulguksa Temple with the mountains in the background. ...
Monica, wandering the northern part of the temple...
Fly on the Caution Of Stairs stairs.
A shot of the roofs from above.
This picture should be rotated but I like it like this.
One of the pagodas. The other was being restored.
Some history, in case you are interested. It should be...
Tbe temple complext at the top of the mountain. The...
Some history for you.
View from the mountain temple complex back down into a...
The sand walkways and squares were very carefully...
Inspecting the wares at the Jagalchi Fish Market in Busan.
Monica and I wandered this market for several hours...
Lines of vendors selling everything from wriggling sea...
Octopi for sale. Nakji in Korean. Big ones. Not the...
Some sort of fish, pre-gutted, and held open like a kite...
Rays for sale. I think this is what is eaten in a...
Hardware store, in the middle of the Jagalchi Fish Market.
Making fish pancakes or pajeon at the Jagalchi fish market.
Whale sale! Yeah, that is not really legal and...
Hagfish swimming around in a bloody mess.
Snail sale!
That´s a lot of dried sardines.
Hello says Mr. Shark. Head at left, other parts at...
Spices and such. At far right are cinnamon sticks,...
Enormous cinnamon sticks for sale.
Another busy street filled with stalls.
This squash ended up in our breakfast soups a lot of...
A lot of something for sale. I should really really do...
Some sort of bivalve for sale.
Monica and I were pretty sure this was blowfish, i.e....
Chili peppers drying in the sun.
Lots of chili peppers drying in the sun at the Jagalchi...
Busan Harbor viewed from the Jagalchi Fish Market.
Long-line fish hooks. These ocean "drag nets" are the...
Fishing ships docked in Busan Harbor.
Eating lunch on dry land.
A squid-catching boat. The large incandescent bulbs are...
Black garlic. This has become a craze in SF restaurants...
Pears the size of my head for sale.
It´s like an ice cream truck that sells bananas.
A pet kennel called "I Love Dog" which carries an...
Yep, the Shinsegae department store, self-proclaimed...
Monica outside Shinsegae: HAPPY SALE. Whatever,...
As promised, an ice ring, complete with mascot in a...
If I had Lightroom with me, I´d touch this up. No one...
As close as you´ll get to an Apple Store in Korea (I...
Diesel jeans for a 5 year old. Don´t bother with a...
Street vendor at the fireworks celebration. Apparently...
Weird picture but I sort of like it. Waiting for the...
I need to crop this picture. Watching fireworks in Busan.
Time exposure at night. Waiting for the Busan fireworks...
Monica´s dad´s wife, Ji-Young at the fireworks display.
Ji-Young, Monica and John watching the fireworks. I...
The firework display included remote control planes with...
Fireworks over the Diamond Bridge in Busan.
They also launched synchronized fireworks from the upper...
Another type of firework I had never seen before: series...
More fireworks during the finale, I think.
After the fireworks were over, we started to walk back...
And about 5 seconds later, this was our view of the...
Hey, look at my shoes! Ji-Young is one of those little...
Back up at the top again. I like Monica´s new haircut. ...
Which way shall we go? Perhaps you´d like to ride the...
My favorite ride of the evening: the Ferris wheel that...
Picture of the Busan bridge from the top of the Ferris wheel.
John riding the Ferris wheel.
John and Monica on the Ferris wheel.
After going to church (60,000 member Presbyterian) with...
Monica´s dad´s apartment building on the far right. His...
Apartment houses built by LG. Everything, even -...
Heh, I just couldn´t resist, and apparently neither...
Monica´s dad says he is suspicious of people who do not...
At the beginning of this trip, this was one of my...
More fun automated food making machines at a truck stop:...
Monica eating one of the red bean popsicles her dad bought us.
Monica (center) with her red bean popsicle. This is at...
I guess the videos on Monica´s Flickr account will have...
That night, we slept at Monica´s aunt´s house in...
Persimmons growing on Monica´s uncle´s farm.
Monica´s aunt peeling a persimmon.
Monica in the persimmon orchard.
Monica holding a persimmon and the husband of her aunt.
Some flag on a bamboo pole in the persimmon orchard. I...
Piling back into the family Samsung to head to another...
On Monica´s aunt´s farm, they have many animals: cows,...
Here´s a pretty looking rooster strutting its stuff on...
Monica waves at some furry cows feeding from a trough.
My new ride: it has 40 horsepower, goes 12 miles an hour...
Next we decided to take a road trip to see the village...
Stage 2 of sleeping in a car.
Stage 3.
Stage 4
Stage 5
Driving down the road to Monica´s dad´s home village.
In Monica´s dad´s home village, something was being...
Apparently in recent years bee keeping has become a...
Ajashi wandering through the village.
Old woman sitting outside the house where Monica´s dad...
A really cool spider on the house that Monica´s dad grew up in.
In Monica´s dad´s village, we were given bowls of honey...
Beehives and persimmon trees in Monica´s dad´s village.
Rice paddy near Monica´s dad´s village, back out on the...
Next stop was the Wolchulsan National Park, with the...
Fields of tea being grown near Wolchulsan National Park.
More tea fields, in perfect rows. They were so perfect;...
Guard to the next temple we went to see. I forget the name.
Close up of guard to Buddhist temple near Gwangju and...
Temple whose name I forget.
Temple whose name I forget.
Monica at the temple whose name I forget. From here we...
A turtle/dragon thing holding up a monolith with Chinese...
Close up of the writing on the monolith.
Wandering around in the bamboo forest.
Monica in the bamboo forest. Neither of us were really...
Ground cover in the bamboo forest was very bright green....
The Korean version of Smokey the Bear, with his...
At this point we had put up with days of non-stop eating...
That night, we went to a Korean barbecue restaurant. ...
Hanging out at Monica´s aunt´s farm, watching the Korean...
Eventually, we had to leave as Monica´s dad had to drive...
View from the bedroom window where we slept at Monica´s...
Sometimes the choices are just too hard to make!
I still had a runny nose, so Monica bought me basically...
Monica´s truck stop breakfast on the way to Seoul. Not...
Also in the cute packaging department. Monica´s aunt...
We are driving somewhere so Monica must be sleeping.
Approaching Seoul from the south. N'Seoul Tower (short...
On our last full day in Seoul, Monica and I debated...
Baby hedgehogs for sale.
Baby rabbits for sale.
Frogs for sale that look like plastic toys but are real,...
One of the 26 malls in the area, this one closed at the...
Apparently you can get fast food "burgers" in Korea that...
For our last night, we stayed in a neighborhood called...
On our last morning, we took the subway to Gyeongbok...
Note the awesome beards!
The procession leaving the front of the palace.
A lion or cat inside the main palace complex.
A contrast between the 14th century Palace and modern Seoul.
Another cool statue in the palace. Probably a dragon of...
Monica about to be eaten by a gargoyle or something.
Monica, posing as a 14th century Korean palace guard.
Monica, while we were wandering the enormous palace...
Moat/reflection pond surrounding one palace building.
A view of the palace grounds. Perhaps we should have...
Pretty tree changing to fall colors. This seems so...
More buildings in the sprawling temple complex. By the...
Monica posing in some gateway or another.
Cool Korean wooden roof eaves, beautifully restored. ...
Still wandering the complex. This place was really...
A beautiful fall day in Seoul at the Gyeongbok Palace complex.
Monica was born in the year of the rooster. I was born...
Out of place fashion show in the Gyeongbok temple...
Wooden poles carved in days of yore to ward off evil...
Final parting shot of Seoul. After this, we got Chinese...