Seoul Botanic Garden

I saw this advert on the subway a few days ago, and noticing it was quite near me--four or five stops away on line 9 here in Gangseo-gu--I wondered why I had never heard of it before.

Now I know: it just opened. Today was a glorious day for hitting a botanic(al) garden, so hit it I did. I only went as far as the conservatory, but there is a huge expanse beyond that. I'll go back later this year, as quite a lot of it has hardly grown in. You approach through a mezzanine from the subway and explode into a wide vista unusual for the overgrown city of Seoul:



Some views approaching the conservatory:



The inside is pretty well organized by habitats, and has a cool overhead walkway.



There are several stall scattered around with some educational info about various topics, including coffee and poppies:



And, of course, the flowers:



Finally, a couple of shots from the gift shop, and a view across the lake as I made my way back to the subway. Bring your own water, as the prices are ridiculous--and now that the place is officially open, adult admission is 5,000 W.

Sports Day 2019

Today was characterized by perfect early May weather, mild with clear blue skies, just right for Sports Day. At this school, grades only compete against themselves, and the sixth grade has five classes. There were three events: sprints, in heats; an interminable relay race wherein everyone ran about twenty times; and Korean dodgeball, where catching a thrown ball doesn't put the thrower out!


I complimented this one girl on her top-knot and she said it was 똥, ddong, a Korean word meaning, um, dung. Naturally, I pulled up my camera to get a picture, and within about eight seconds, this happened:


Sports Day usually involves a special festive meal, and the menu promised "Washington hot dog"--no, I've never heard of it either. Turns out, chili dog, and not as bad as it looks. And the cream broccoli soup was particularly good, if incongruous.

Heroes vs Tigers, Baseball in Seoul

I've been to a half-dozen FC Seoul games this spring, and finally made it a baseball game on Friday night, along with friend Adam and new friend Ian. This is the Heroes third season in Gocheok Sky Dome and their first season under the corporate sponsorship of Kiwoom, a financial services company. Most Korean baseball teams are outright owned by a company, such as Hanhwa Eagles or Samsung Lions, but the Heroes are owned by a syndicate which sells the naming rights (though they remain Heroes). This game was against the KIA Tigers, from Gwangju, who are the most successful franchise with 11 titles.


The closest subway stop is Guil station on line 1, exit 2, but the pre- and post-game action is on the other side of the stadium, which in the last year has started to lay claim to the baseball fans:


This is where you'll find the hofs and restaurants.


The game was a barn-burner, with a final score putting the Heroes up 8 to 4, with an epic fifth inning of five runs capped by that most exciting of things in baseball, a slider at home called safe!

But not all the action is on the field at a Korean baseball game! The fans truly deserve the moniker "fanatics" and they are led by actual cheerleaders.


The Heroes mascot is 턱돌이, Mr. Stone Jaw, who is by turns funny and formidable. Here is a picture from last night, and below it one from around 2015 when they were still in Mok-dong stadium. I am wearing a rare Heroes "h" cap, only available back when they were between sponsors and known as the "Seoul Heroes". The only other head you ever see one on is 턱돌이's.


Heroes win!

Tuttle Roundup

Life here in the Land of the Morning Calm continues apace.

A couple Fridays ago I was roped into being a judge for the Annual Fifth Grade K-Pop Dance Battle. I tried to beg off, but the teacher in charge (my first coT when I came to this school, so I felt I kind of owed her) assured me it was not big deal. This, it turned out, was a bald-faced lie, as the winning teams got a fried chicken party! Not a big deal, my shiny white butt! Anyway, I know what you want--pictures:


I'm not going to complain too much, though, as the judges got to have a fried chicken party, too.

On the chilly, drizzly Sunday following, I went to the Seoul Museum of Art, which is behind Deoksugung in the city center, and popped 15K for the David Hockney exhibition, which is the first major installation of his work in Asia.


That was the best shot I could get; they had a great photo-op replicating a life-size portrait he did of his parents, where guests would sit in chairs on opposite side of the table, but because of the weather, it--or at least the chairs--was unavailable:


EDIT: I found this ad in a subway station:


This Sunday (Easter) I went to the FC Seoul match at Sangam World Cup Stadium vs Incheon United. The less said about the scoreless game, the better, but they've added a couple of nice fan inducements: this terrific poster, and this cardboard hat which replicates the 도깨비 (goblin) mascot. At bottom is a new subway graphic of the stadium.


More subway shots:


Flowers I took in the last week around my school:

2019 Yeouido Flower Festival

Winter has passed and spring has come, and with it the annual Yeouido Flower Festival, featuring the cherry blossoms, and my annual post about it. The weather has been slow to recognize that spring has sprung, and I was worried the flowers would be slow, too. Judge for yourself:


So, they were there in profusion, and so were the flower-lovers. And I was happy to see the Yeongdeungpo-gu officials have upgraded the trash receptacles--until a few years ago there were virtually none to be found. They also added a photo-op focused on the flowers.


There were the usual street performers and artists, but I did not see a single mascot offering photo-ops, and instead there was a display of children's books--I'm all about books, but I like a photo with a dragon or Lego samurai as well ...


A couple more flowers, these from my neighborhood when I got home, and a selfie.