weekday wanderings

One of the best things about our life in Korea is all the time we spend together as a family. When Matthew was working a 9-5 job in the States (salary, which means it's never just 9-5), Liam was usually still asleep when he left for work in the morning. By the time he came home, it was time for dinner, then bath, etc. in the downward spiral towards bedtime. Here, Matthew doesn't start work until after lunch, so we have the mornings (usually Liam's best time of day) together.

We try to get out most mornings, so we've built a repertoire of usual spots. On average, once each week we visit downtown (usually including the traditional market), Sokcho Beach, and Expo Park. We also squeeze in errands like haircuts, quick shopping, banking, etc.

Once or twice per month, we also visit Daepo-hong (a harbor just north of Sokcho with many fresh fish restaurants) and Mt. Seorak National Park (a 20 minute bus ride). Both are nice on weekdays because they're not so crowded. Below are a few pictures from a weekday trip to Seorak earlier this month.

Matthew & Liam waiting for the bus.


Liam & Rowan -- I love that baby bear has his jet sticking out and daddy bear is halfway covered by the carrier.


Matthew & Liam strolling through the woods. "If you go out in the woods today, you'd better be in disguise..."


Matthew & Rowan sitting down for lunch at one of the trailside eateries. Rowan looks awfully interested in the sanchae (wild mountain vegetable) bibimbap.


Besides the aforementioned wild mountain vegetables (such as mushrooms and assorted greens), bibimbap also includes rice (bap), a freshly fried egg, and gochujang (fermented red pepper paste), which is served separately here, so that the customer may add the desired amount. It's delicious! Also appearing are the requisite kimchi, doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew, with tofu and vegetables), and a (cut-up) potato pancake that she brought service-uh for Liam. He was more interested in his goldfish crackers, though. (Don't worry, I ate it!)


These cats belong to the restaurant owner. The mama's name is Nabi (Butterfly). Her kitten was a bit skitish, but she is friendly. I remember seeing her last summer when we went through. Her kitten from last year is now much larger than she is, but still very, very wary of Liam.


Monks walking down the trail ahead of us. I don't usually take pictures of monks. In fact, I think this is the first time I've ever taken pictures of them, but they were RIGHT THERE. If one has the right temperment, being a Buddhist monk in Korea seems like a pretty good gig. The temples are located in some gorgeous areas, perfect for zen hiking.