Working 50 hours a week in one of the most demanding and tiring jobs I've had so far is taking it's toll emotionally and mentally, and I tell myself to not let it get to me. Don't let it affect you, don't let it ruin your experience, leave work at work and free yourself once you walk out that door. It's not the teaching that gets to me, it's dealing with the work environment for all those hours. Every week keeps feeling longer, tougher, and Friday never seems to come soon enough. But the beauty of it is that it eventually comes.
Since I do work hard, I feel like I have to play hard to create some balance. I have been doing good so far: got a plan for every weekend and the list of places to see keeps getting longer and longer.
This past weekend we decided to take a day trip outside of Seoul. So we got on the subway for about an hour and half, and then a bus for another 20 minutes or so to the Gyeonggi Province, which in part, borders North Korea.
This past weekend we decided to take a day trip outside of Seoul. So we got on the subway for about an hour and half, and then a bus for another 20 minutes or so to the Gyeonggi Province, which in part, borders North Korea.
DUM DUM DUUUUUUM
It has been really interesting to hear what the locals have had to say about North Korea. They almost deal with it as the annoying little cousin that you know will always be there, and although there's really not much you can do about him, you just let him be, throw his tantrums and ignore him completely. They really don't seem insanely bothered by it, which is a relief but also a bit confusing. I mean, back in the west, it is considered one of the most dangerous countries in the world.
Fun fact though: A student of mine once brought a little piece of paper to school to show it to everybody. It had bold Korean written all over it and I didn't really paid that much attention. Later, my students explained me that sometimes North Korean helicopters spread anti-west propaganda, mainly through the elementary and junior public schools. The kids have been told that if they happen to find one of these North Korean flyers, to take them to the police and they will give them a little gift in exchange: a pencil case, a cool pen, maybe some candy. When I asked one of my co-teachers to translate she told me not to worry about it, that it was all rubbish. But that seems to be the genuine and honest opinion of every person I have come across: it's there and it means nothing.
Now, I've never had much interest regarding North Korea. We had thought about going to go check the DMZ, more than anything for the story and for the fact that it's the most talked about border in the world, possibly the most dangerous. However, we came across a cheaper option of getting to see this famous border, and that's where we found ourselves last weekend.
Odusan Unification Observatory
This was about one hour and a half to two hours trip by bus and subway from Seoul. We got there on an unfortunately cloudy and smoggy day, but it was quiet and less than two dollars to get it. The observatory is about five stories high, with one room with a theater showing a movie about the North and South Korean history, another room showing possibly the same movie (it was in Korean, so honestly I've no idea) and a timeline with some English in it. On the fifth floor there was a model of the Korean border and another empty theater room. The observatory itself wasn't stellar, and I had read previously to getting there that it included a shop where you could by North Korean goodies, such as soju. This shop was nowhere to be found but we met a nice vending lady who offered us some good old South Korean Soju.
The Observatory had three different viewing points from which you could use the binoculars to get a clear view of North Korea, just 2,100 meters across the river. I had also read that you had to pay a small - insignificant, really - fee to use the binoculars, but on this day (unsure if it was because of the weather) it was free. So, we sat for a couple of minutes looking into that land, that famous land of danger and mystery.
It was really unfortunate about the weather conditions, but we were able to see a watch tower on the Hermit Kingdom, as well as some movement. We could make out some buildings here and there, and a faint illusion of mountains at the back. Without really blaming it on the weather, the place looks desolate, empty, absolutely empty of anything. All of the buildings looked the same, square, white blocks with the black little windows. It was an eerie moment: it's just land, but with everything that we have been told, the idea that this land is so close can be a little bit jarring at times.
We spent about an hour, maybe a little more, looking through the binoculars and walking through the observatory before we headed back down into something that sounded more cheery, more lighthearted.
Heyri Art Valley
I had also done some additional research about this place before going there. It's a place for artists to go and get inspired, or vendors to go and sell their hand-made goodies, a place with good (and expensive) restaurants, museums and galleries. The valley itself is quite pretty, filled with shops and restaurants and some pretty green areas and a little pond. I bet the museums would have been interesting, but on this particular day, most seemed to be closed, or they were too expensive to pay (by this point you should be gathering that I'm very careful with my money).
This place reminded me a little bit of the 798 art district back in Beijing, although maybe a bit smaller and with less to see. It had it's fair share of weird little statues and whatnot, but not as impressive as the ones back in Beijing.
The best part about this excursion was simply walking around the valley and enjoying the day outside of the big city. It was rather quiet. I had read about a couple of must-go-to restaurants to try, since such and such drama had been filmed there. There was this particular restaurant/book store that was covered with books - literally, wall to wall and walls behind walls covered with books. Most of them seemed to be Korean, but it definitely added to the atmosphere. There were also a bunch of ducks bathing by one of the ponds! And a couple of artist playing in the open spaces around the park!
Overall, it was a well deserved trip, a good escape. I can't wait to get more of those.
Now, I've never had much interest regarding North Korea. We had thought about going to go check the DMZ, more than anything for the story and for the fact that it's the most talked about border in the world, possibly the most dangerous. However, we came across a cheaper option of getting to see this famous border, and that's where we found ourselves last weekend.
Odusan Unification Observatory
This was about one hour and a half to two hours trip by bus and subway from Seoul. We got there on an unfortunately cloudy and smoggy day, but it was quiet and less than two dollars to get it. The observatory is about five stories high, with one room with a theater showing a movie about the North and South Korean history, another room showing possibly the same movie (it was in Korean, so honestly I've no idea) and a timeline with some English in it. On the fifth floor there was a model of the Korean border and another empty theater room. The observatory itself wasn't stellar, and I had read previously to getting there that it included a shop where you could by North Korean goodies, such as soju. This shop was nowhere to be found but we met a nice vending lady who offered us some good old South Korean Soju.The Observatory had three different viewing points from which you could use the binoculars to get a clear view of North Korea, just 2,100 meters across the river. I had also read that you had to pay a small - insignificant, really - fee to use the binoculars, but on this day (unsure if it was because of the weather) it was free. So, we sat for a couple of minutes looking into that land, that famous land of danger and mystery.
We spent about an hour, maybe a little more, looking through the binoculars and walking through the observatory before we headed back down into something that sounded more cheery, more lighthearted.
Heyri Art Valley
I had also done some additional research about this place before going there. It's a place for artists to go and get inspired, or vendors to go and sell their hand-made goodies, a place with good (and expensive) restaurants, museums and galleries. The valley itself is quite pretty, filled with shops and restaurants and some pretty green areas and a little pond. I bet the museums would have been interesting, but on this particular day, most seemed to be closed, or they were too expensive to pay (by this point you should be gathering that I'm very careful with my money).This place reminded me a little bit of the 798 art district back in Beijing, although maybe a bit smaller and with less to see. It had it's fair share of weird little statues and whatnot, but not as impressive as the ones back in Beijing.
The best part about this excursion was simply walking around the valley and enjoying the day outside of the big city. It was rather quiet. I had read about a couple of must-go-to restaurants to try, since such and such drama had been filmed there. There was this particular restaurant/book store that was covered with books - literally, wall to wall and walls behind walls covered with books. Most of them seemed to be Korean, but it definitely added to the atmosphere. There were also a bunch of ducks bathing by one of the ponds! And a couple of artist playing in the open spaces around the park!Overall, it was a well deserved trip, a good escape. I can't wait to get more of those.
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