farthest east

When Ruthie and I went down to Pohang we took a trip to the farthest east point in South Korea, way out on the far end of Yong-il bay. The drive out on to the peninsula was really pretty, going through lush stands of trees and winding its way along the sea all the way out to the lighthouse museum where we stopped and had some raw snails and mussels.

1. I have no idea
2. While at the lighthouse museum they had a monument to famous lighthouses around the world. Much to Ruthies dismay there was not one from Pennsylvania but there was one from little old Minnesota!
3. Raw snails, mussels, and beer next to the ocean, nothing beats it.

kirstins trip

When I went to Lao this Christmas I sat next to this cool girl on the plane to Taipai. Kirstin works down in Gywanju, a ways south of me, and expressed a desire to come up and see the wilds of Gangwon-do, so last weekend for Buddhas birthday she came on up and hung out with the Sokcho crew for a weekend of raw fish, karoke, temples and general mayhem.

1. Kirstin trying to decide between the chocolate, strawberry, and green tea coated corn dogs.
2. Ruthie and I bought a temple slate to give a donation to the temple on this holy day. Gallo is the name she is taking when we get married.
3. Mountains and temples, typical Korea
4. The three amigos chowing down on some silk worm larvae
5. The temple all gussied up for the big day with some rain on the horizon.

raw fish

These are some pictures of Ruthie and Ara's little raw fish extravaganza in Pohang.
1. These are all of the side dishes before the arrival of the main course, sliced pumpkin, sea urchin, roe, cold octopus and shrimp, sea cucumber paste, dishes of garlic and chillies and piles of gochojong, spiced Korean paste that you dip the raw fish in after you wrap it in either sesame leaves or lettuce.
2. The main course.
3. Before they are chosen the fish live a fairly idyllic life in there basket.


For some strange reason I really cant stand cooked fish. I love shellfish, squid, octopus, and almost every other sea creature that there is but I cannot for the life of me stand cooked fish, unless it is either tuna, mahi mahi, or fish and chips.
On the flip side however I absolutely love raw fish. The whole process here is amazing. You pick the fish, which is alive, that you want to eat out of a tank, the man, or woman, clubs it to death with an aluminum bat and then proceeds to slice and dice it into many pieces, finally presenting it on a plate as piles of cold slivers of slimy sea creatures, awesome.

farthest north

Just a few pictures of the farthest north temple in South Korea, just a few miles from the DMZ.

the cave

The biggest limestone cave in South Korea, just down the road from Sokcho in Samchoek. 1.6 Kilometers long, it winds its way into a mountain.
1. Prayer rocks stacked in the river that flows out of the cave.
2. Babbie and Peter at the entrance.
3. Stalagtites forming.
4. Looking down into the cave.
5. There are lots of fun signs in the cave like this one.

random sokcho

Just some random shots of the country side around Sokcho.

cherry trees

Spring in Sokcho and all the cherry trees are in bloom.