And in October . . .

Maybe because so much of my life in Korea unfurls in Seoul, I have amassed an extensive collection of experiences and memories structured around big-city living; remember, Seoul does rank as one of the planet’s largest cities.  For Columbus Day weekend, though, my friend Pam and I totally abandoned Seoul and its environs, traveling in a northeasterly direction to the coastal city of Sokcho and the nearby Seoraksan National Park.  This encounter with Korea beyond Seoul reminded me of all kinds of things I have known and understood in theory, as well as some things I know and understand in reality.

(1)  The Koreans have mastered functionality and efficiency.  Because Pam and I don’t drive much—Seoul traffic can be crazy, too many Seoul drivers are crazy, mass transit is awesome, taxis are relatively cheap, both of our cars are closing in on hooptie status, neither of us has a GPS, and neither of us has figured out how to escape Seoul while driving a car—we took an Express Bus.  Always leery of bus travel for distance, I was happily impressed with pretty much all of the transport circumstances:  comfortable seats, abundant personal space, lots of leg room, well-mannered passengers, timely departures, competent routing and driving.  I could even commit to do Express Bus travel again in Korea.

(2)  Korea is mountainous.  Only about thirty percent is classified as lowlands, and most of that is coastal.  Our bus journey across this mountainous peninsula included a lot of tunnels, many of them in sequence with only seconds of natural light to glimpse the narrow valley situated between mountains. And there were no switchbacks . . . ever; the highway stretched always onward with only gentle curves to bend the straight . . . which led Pam and me to conclude that probably the highway system in Korea is of fairly recent origin.

(3)  Korea holds some stunningly beautiful wilderness areas.  Seoraksan National Park is gorgeous.  The odd thing for Pam and me, though—and we giggled about this multiple times—is that in Korea you can be sharing the “wilderness experience” with truly thousands of people.  Granted, we visited the park on one of the busiest weekends—heading into the peak of autumn color—but we trekked some wilderness paths virtually shoulder to shoulder with the masses.  Still, I admired the obvious care the Koreans take with their wilderness areas, and I loved the joy expressed on their countenances as they hiked.  (Actually, Koreans are renowned for their hiking; it is considered a national pastime.  And we observed that many have invested in the clothing and accoutrements of true hikers as well!)

These first three are views of Seoraksan from our hotel room balcony.  Photo #3 is Pam taking in the view while breakfasting.  We ate breakfast on our balcony every morning.

Photos taken on two different hikes in Seoraksan National Park.  (I'm the one with the big camera!)

(4)  The Buddhists sure know how to pick a setting for a temple and/or monastery.  We visited two of the five or six Buddhist sites shown on an area map, one on the seacoast and the other in the mountains of Seoraksan.  Such handsome buildings, exquisitely painted in the Buddhist tradition, stood on both sites, but what made both sites especially memorable was location, location, location.

(5)  Small Korean cities possess their own unique charm, and Sokcho brilliantly affirmed such an assertion.  Certainly its coastal location factors in prominently here . . . and the fact that the sea mesmerizes me every time.  A rather cute city over all, Sokcho’s beaches, ports, harbors, and fishing village neighborhoods are its jewels.  We didn’t spend quite as much time here as we wanted, so if there is a second visit to this area of Korea, Sokcho rates more time and exploration.

(6)  Autumn is a beautiful season of the year anywhere on the planet.

Running--30 Years Later

Precisely speaking, I have not yet been a true runner—as in one who runs on a regular basis—for quite thirty years.  Loosely speaking, I have been a runner longer than thirty years, since my high school years, in fact, because I had these occasional short spurts of time when I would go running in the early morning with my father, one who really has been a runner—in its truest sense—for much of his life.  Not until I decamped from my homeland to dwell on other continents, however, did I become someone more worthy of the label runner.

Although recent years have compelled me to engage more consciously with the continuing depreciation of my running mechanism—my body—there is nothing like running a 10K with the niece and the nephews, runners perhaps more naturally gifted and definitely a full generation behind me in body depreciation—to force a full frontal confrontation between what was and what is!  

And the reality that my average minutes/mile time has increased!

The beginning . . . and I believe there is even a smile!

Near the finish line . . . sans smile . . . hmmmm.

Still, I so loved the chance to run that 10K with them.  (Okay, run that 10K WAY behind them!)

And still, I like to run.  I like that I can run.  I like the person I am when I’m running.  So I keep on running…as best as I can.

And to do so, I have learned to tweak and re-calibrate.  Let me elaborate:

• For two arthritic middle toes on the left foot:  Running socks with toes (brand Injinji).  Whether or not the socks effect a medical difference, my toes feel measurably better, and I haven’t had an arthritic flare up in over six months.

• For plantar fasciitis on the left foot:  One month’s worth of prescription pain killer from the doctor, foot roller, foot stretches, and change up running shoes.  (I have at least two pairs of running shoes in use and prefer to have three.)  No recurrence for almost a year now.

• For occasional twinges in the right knee:  Stretch and strengthening exercises suggested by the sports medicine doctor visited 25 years ago.  (Still the right fix even now!)

• For sporadic hip pain, usually on the right:  Be gentle but try to run through it—this usually works.  Also stretching.

• For sporadic pain in the right shoulder:  Be more conscious of the angle and swing of the arms.  Be gentle but run through it.

And to avoid pain, stiffness, and injury, I have learned these:

• Skip a day between runs and only three runs/week max when teaching school.  (Otherwise, I tend to get sick.)

• Pilates/Yoga.

• Butt kicks, skipping, and a bit of running backwards included at the end of some runs.

• Lunges.

• Walk to and from school on the days without a run.

• Stretch routine, especially after a run.

And I keep on running . . . with more joy in the moment than my face might ever express . . . because I still get to run!

My Summer Vacation: Ireland

About a year ago, my niece Julie, transiting from high school life into college life, sent me an email saying she would like to do a big trip with me.  My momentary astonishment promptly unfurled into enormous delight; for years I have been trying to infect sundry family members with enough of my wanderlust so that one might actually accompany me on a journey to somewhere else, but mostly to no avail.  Minus any hesitation on my part, this proposed adventure was on.

With the whole wide world before us--in theory, anyway--we ultimately selected Ireland.  It is no secret in my family that Ireland is one of my favorite places on the planet, right up there with Hawaii (yep!) and New Zealand, but I don't know whether that fact influenced Julie's interest in Ireland or not.  As for me, I am always ready to go to Ireland!  Once Julie and I decided on Ireland, Julie's mother Callie hopped on board, followed by my friend Beth.  Now we were four, and we had airfare and a rental car in place by March.

Finally, at the end of July, we flew into Shannon, Ireland, and then spent the next eight days tooling around mostly the west coast of Ireland, County Kerry and County Clare.  We also perused both Cashel and Blarney, spent about twenty-four hours on Inishmore (one of the Aran Islands), and concluded our Irish portion of the journey in Dublin. After Dublin we flew to London for almost a day (a bit shy of the full twenty-four hours, though) and culminated our travels that evening attending a glorious performance of Once, a beautifully unique musical set in Dublin and unfolding an engaging array of Irish characters--traditional ones and immigrant ones.

Such a cursory summary herewith in no way summons the resplendence of Ireland for me.  Ireland converses with my soul--the lay of the land, the people, the history, the stories, the music--each and every time I visit.  This summer my soul once again had the chance to revel in that conversation.

My Summer Vacation: Hawaii

For my summer vacation, I went to Hawaii.   Okay, not for my entire summer vacation, but for almost two weeks!  Its preeminent reputation notwithstanding, I love Hawaii.  I loved it the first time I set foot on those volcanic islands in 2007, and I loved it this second time, too.  Maybe I will just have to live there someday!

This summer in Hawaii, I island-hopped with my friend Tammy:  Maui, the Big Island, and Oahu.  Despite being a rather nervous flyer who is very much aware of the safety statistics for airlines and aircraft, I prefer flying in the smaller planes such as those employed by the discount island-hopping airlines.  Go figure, I know; it makes no rational sense, only emotional sense inside me. The flight from Maui to the Big Island in this plane, the smallest we flew in, was amazing. Tammy and I sat in row one, right behind the pilot--a woman, by the way, with a blonde ponytail!

In further recounting of my summer vacation in Hawaii, though, no chronological or geographically meaningful structure remains intact. So, listed below, in no particular order whatsoever, are the highlights, the moments that made memories:

• All, and I mean all, beaches are public.  It doesn't matter how snazzy the resort or upscale the home hugging the beach, the beach itself has public access.  And Hawaiian beaches do carry significant weight in the setting of planetary beach standards!

• There are chickens in the yard, even in suburbia!  There are also "feral" chickens Tammy and I concluded.  "Feral"--but not in an "ew" or scary way--only because chickens will emerge impromptu, so to speak, along a roadside far away from any yard or human habitation.

• Hawaii has the best fish tacos ever!  Fish taco connoisseurs, Tammy and I sampled pert near on a daily basis.  No fish taco remained un-devoured in any circumstance, but we ultimately ranked the ones at the Hard Rock Cafe--in both Lahaina (Maui) and Honolulu--as the best.

• Continuing with the subject of island cuisine, let me also mention banana bread...as in roadside fruit stand banana bread.  YUM!  Long-time family recipes play a role here and a few attain mythical status.

• Hawaii has lots of very cool churches, ones totally worthy of "in the dell."

• The Road to Hana:  On my first trip to Hawaii, we only made it half-way to Hana, via the renowned road to Hana, before our time frame necessitated that we turn back.  On this trip, though, we ultimately arrived in Hana, an atmospheric little town on the east coast of Maui.  The lay of the land along the road to Hana is indeed breathtaking for virtually the entire journey.

• Island volcanoes generally array themselves in clouds.  We saw nary a top of one during our visit, only abundant evidence of their powers of creation and distinctive designing of the landscape.

• For a Hawaiian city, I choose Hilo.

Other random details mingling in my Hawaii recollections include (1) the fact that my hair and nails perform at a much higher standard in Hawaii.  I believe my physiology embraces the Hawaiian climate--yes, even the humidity.  (2) I have become entangled in the TV drama NCIS.  Totally Tammy's fault and the multiple nights we spent watching NCIS marathons on a channel regularly incorporated into various hotels' TV repertoire.  (3) I am also now fettered to the series (books only at this point) Game of Thrones.  Totally my fault.  Curious about all the hoopla surrounding the series, I brought the first book to Hawaii in my stash for beach reading.  Alas, I have since purchased the second book, A Clash of Kings, and the third book, I suspect, resides in my immediate future.

Hawaii commenced my summer vacation in grand style.  The rest of it has unfolded rather gloriously as well.