Exercising & being healthy is very important to Koreans. The picture of the exercise stations in the park – these seem to be in all parks, and not just one section but in many areas. I decided since I am in Korea, I might as well be like Koreans and make my exercises (not that this is a stretch, but I wanted to do it Korean style!) I got off work early and since the sun had finally made an appearance, I made the trek over to a “mountain” in the middle of the city where I walked around. Not only did they have exercise stations along the path, but they had a full fledge outdoor gym complete with equipment, weights and hula hoops! After having supper and heading back to my hotel, CH picked me up and took me to his fitness club. First we went into the sauna (which was just basically this big steam room where you lie down using a slab of wood as a pillow – awesome!), then he went swimming while I went to use the cardio equipment. When on the treadmills, you can look in on the fitness classes that are happening. I started to see women wandering in looking like they were dressed to go clubbing – sheer tops, glittery leg warmers, fishnet stockings. Looks like it was some kind of hip hop dance class. At one point they had lights flashing and a disco ball going. It was totally rad!!
As for dining for the day, I can’t remember the name of what we had for lunch, but it is some kind of concoction that was put together by American soldiers during the Korean war, and then Koreans basically Koreanized it. Check out the picture . . . . . can you tell that is originally an American concoction? For supper, there was a bit of a mix-up with CH as he thought we would eat after the gym, but he wasn’t picking me up until 7:30, so I assumed we’d be eating on our own before the gym. So, I ended up having round 1 on my own and then round 2 & 3 with CH. I didn’t bring my camera for the later portion, but if you are interested (I know that’s you B, and maybe Todd) CH will be emailing me pictures later. One of these dishes was a cold noodle soup which was super yummy. Apparently it is famous North Korean food. I guess if you can’t live beside them and get along, at least you can eat their food!
 |
| bacon, hot dogs, beans, macaroni . . . . are you sure the Americans came up with that? |
 |
| At least it was still delicious! |
 |
| Yeah! The cherry blossoms are out |
 |
| Scenery along the “mountain” hike |
 |
| Don’t ask me. I have no idea. CH couldn’t even tell me what that’s about! |
 |
| The ojima’s (older women) in the park really like their visors & face masks! |
 |
| Exercise facility part way through the trail. |
 |
| This is what I’m going to do next time! |
 |
| Supper . . . . . round 1. |
How is it possible that that big-ass pot of hodgepodge looks so tasty???