Interesting Pictures

Here's an interesting insert from inside a huge jar of protein powder.  Nolan brought this home after he found it inside.  I always knew they really liked Obama here.  Even my students were happy when he got elected! But this is admiration on a whole new level. Yupp that's President Obama's head on what I'm guessing is not an accurate representation of his real body. Well ya know,  whatever it takes to sell the protein powder!

If that wasn't shock and trauma enough for one day, I was hit with one more thing. Nolan and I discovered a hidden gem yesterday as we were walking past one of the giant marts.  We stumbled upon a grocery store that was tucked away in a corner.  I wanted to explore more of this place.  I was pleased with the different things they had.  It reminded me of a mini Whole Foods store.  We picked up some sunflower seeds.  As we munched on them, I glanced over the packet.  And on the corner in not so big letters it states, "Yes! -Recall".  I'm hoping that doesn't mean what I think it does. So much for our gem of a grocery store.  Maybe all the cool products they sell there are recalled somewhere from the states. 

Seoul Part 2

Our next day in Seoul was spent having lunch with Nolan's friend from back home. He teaches in Seoul and was nice enough to show us around his hood. After grabbing lunch we started hiking up to his apartment. On the way we got a nice view of the surrounding area. Of course, with all the snow on the ground we had to start a snow ball fight. We spent a few minutes attacking each other with the white fluffy stuff.Here's a view of Severance Hospital from the top of the area. Not exactly a welcoming name for those who have been recently injured.
As we continued our hike we were greeted by a few kids. They just started saying "hi" to us so we greeted them back. After some teasing and laughing snow balls started to be formed. I'm not sure who threw the first one but it quickly became clear it was every man for himself.When it was all done and over with we drove them out of their territory. It was clear who had won the battle.

Once we proved our power and might to the kids, and refreshed our parched throats with coffee, we decided to hit up an art museum and then do some shopping.This was a funny cafe we spotted on our way to the museum. No need to elaborate.
We went to a midnight market. It was jam packed with people. The streets were lined with people selling food. Here's a good before and after picture of a Korean staple, Tteok-Bokki. It's basically rice cakes soaked in spicy red pepper flakes and other veggies.
This is inside one of the markets. There wasn't much room to move around. Also, we ran into a slight snafu, because of the big holiday all the banks were closed. And for some reason the doors to the ATMs were also locked. It was at this point where my money for buying unnecessary junk was running out. I didn't actually get any shopping done. Bummer!
Another shot of people packed in like sardines inside the shopping area.
One of my favorite things about visiting Seoul is the selection of restaurants there. It's really hard to find good non-Korean eateries in our cities. So entering Seoul is like a foodie's mecca. Here's the four of us enjoying a nice dinner at a Thai place in Itaewon.

Seoul - the second time around

We had a couple days off from work because of the Chinese Lunar New Year. My friends and I decided to take another trip up to the heart of it all. We were more confident about maneuvering through the streets of Seoul this time around.

We met up with our friends Alex and Jill. The first day our destination was Lotte World! Now keep in mind it was freeeeezing cold in Seoul. We even had some snow. Most normal people would think it would be insane to hit up an amusement park in freezing temperatures and ride rollers coasters at high speeds while high up in the air. Well somehow Nolan got word that this was an "indoor amusement park". Too bad we didn't find the indoor part until well after our hair froze, our extremities had gone numb, and we could no longer stop trembling.
On a side note, before we even reached Lotte World, Jill and I got a little side tracked at the underground shopping center underneath the subway line. There were just tons of shops filled with clothes, shoes, accessories, and everything else a girl doesn't need. Here's a small shop with usually hand made factory bags.
Before the bitter cold seeped into our bones, we were insanely excited about reaching our destination and riding the coasters.
Look, here's Lotte's mascot -- The Racoon! I smell a mouse rip off! We never actually spotted the mascot anywhere inside the park. It was too cold for him to come out.
This is the entrance to the park. The castle looks mighty familiar with the blue cones and all. Here's one of the rides. The round thing rotates as it swings from one side to the other. If things go awry you might either fall into a frozen lake and die instantly, or hit another roller coaster on the other side. Pleasant! Makes you want to go on it with even more vigor!

That was the ride that did me in. And it was the first real scary one we went on. I think I'm a pretty big fan of roller coasters. But riding them in the cold is just crazy. The seats had a shield over each person to sort of protect them from the cold and windy ride. That didn't do much. My hands were so cold after that ride. It felt like someone could chop them and I wouldn't notice or feel any pain. Well, I guess I would notice from all the blood. Ew! After our bitter cold ride we needed to get inside somewhere. We stood in line for some haunted house thing which would bring us inside.
I was so cold that I ended up wrapping myself up with two scarves. This is funny to look at now, but I definitely wasn't laughing as I was standing there freezing. While standing in line I was amazed at how busy the park still was in the winter. There were girls walking around in shorts! Yes shorts! Jill and I gawked in wonderment at girls strolling around the park as if it were summer. We decided maybe they just don't feel it.

After making it inside to the haunted house, we decided we needed to get some food before we could hit up another ride. We went on one more roller coaster before calling it quits for being outside. We were treated to funny signs of no drunken rides as we waited in line.

We strolled to another part of Lotte World. We got inside and realized OH MY GOD! It is an indoor amusement park! There was a whole other world to be explored. It was basically a 4 or 5 story building packed with rides, even some roller coasters -- all indoors!
We rode on the big hot air balloons that circled the building from high up.
Then before we knew it it was time to ride the coaster that weaved in and out of the walls of Lotte World. It was a little scary to be honest. It's not like the ride was out in the open. It was somehow cramped into a space amongst all the other rides. The line was pretty short so we rode it twice. The day ended on a high note! It was a good day once we got ourselves out of the freezing cold. There's more to this Seoul trip though. I'll post the second part next time.