tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40290739097805950442024-03-13T11:07:27.882-07:0010 Pictures in Pohangzthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.comBlogger145125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-47992803115665195062015-11-01T06:32:00.000-08:002015-11-01T06:32:39.804-08:00Paris!!!<span style="font-size: x-large;">I'm in a phase with my photography where I'm just lost. I no longer have the time or money (especially the money, but also the time, ok it's both, I have neither) to pour into this hobby of mine. I take pictures and then they sit on my hard drive for months. I'm sitting next to seven rolls of undeveloped film that just needs to be dropped into the mail. I find myself leaving my cameras at home more and more. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">There are a million reasons why I feel this way, why I feel lost. For one, I started a new, stable job. My last job was so unstable, so unpredictable, so frequently terrifying in its lack of security and potential to do very bad things to me and my family (I'll never directly tie my work to my housing again) that I had to have something else, an outlet that I could see growing into something more. I worked and I worked and I worked at becoming a better photographer in the hopes that I'd be able to make money doing it. It was a fantasy that I needed to keep pushing forward at work. But now the new job is stable, I could do this work for years, and my wife started a new job at a different school, so we've diversified our employment portfolio. If one of us loses our job, we're not homeless. Things are good. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">And it makes me lazy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Luckily, I get to work through these issues all over the world. This summer Sara and I went to Spain and France and I took pictures in Paris, in Barcelona, in Madrid, all over the place. It was awesome. Looking through them all, I still can't answer the question of why, but hey, it was Paris. It was the Louvre, and the Eiffel Tower, and the Champs Elysees, and there were millions of other people there with cameras, all taking pictures, all doing it for some...reason, I guess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">The goal in Paris was bravery. In a city where everyone is taking pictures, I wanted to get closer, get braver, and take advantage of my ability to hide in the packs of photographers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">As always, here's a few pictures.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Bwo8NNmWkB0/VhfSSosZEdI/AAAAAAAARO8/NvG_RI6LXv8/s1600/Paris-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="427" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Bwo8NNmWkB0/VhfSSosZEdI/AAAAAAAARO8/NvG_RI6LXv8/s640/Paris-3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">If I could live anywhere on Earth, it'd be Paris.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8LQmxFhBVNs/VhfSR-yhp4I/AAAAAAAAROw/VBQSYukYnP8/s1600/Paris-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8LQmxFhBVNs/VhfSR-yhp4I/AAAAAAAAROw/VBQSYukYnP8/s640/Paris-2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was August and it was busy. My goal was to simplify, simplify, simplify, cut out the distractions and the background noise. It's easy when the model stands still for hundreds of years.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--bJJqpRSmkM/VhfSSmaT2oI/AAAAAAAARO4/_VZLVkJqMn0/s1600/Paris-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--bJJqpRSmkM/VhfSSmaT2oI/AAAAAAAARO4/_VZLVkJqMn0/s640/Paris-5.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's the Louvre. Very busy, we did not go in.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KAeQU8319q0/VhfST5eASRI/AAAAAAAARPI/nYc5ho5YNnc/s1600/Paris-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KAeQU8319q0/VhfST5eASRI/AAAAAAAARPI/nYc5ho5YNnc/s640/Paris-6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Another one where I tried to simplify the shot, by showing a bit of the crowd, but tried not to let it overwhelm the shot.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--P-5z229bZI/VhfSVzmPhmI/AAAAAAAARPQ/mq0Z6T7w16w/s1600/Paris-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--P-5z229bZI/VhfSVzmPhmI/AAAAAAAARPQ/mq0Z6T7w16w/s640/Paris-7.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara and I did not deface any bridges on our trip.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mUpt5KDyiKg/VhfSW-VRjpI/AAAAAAAARPY/t4xFLLc0mV0/s1600/Paris-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mUpt5KDyiKg/VhfSW-VRjpI/AAAAAAAARPY/t4xFLLc0mV0/s640/Paris-8.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This was a cool scene, one afternoon we walked by this statue and it had a red blindfold tied around it's eyes.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CnMTD9HcDKM/VhfSXTv7MSI/AAAAAAAARPc/CcxPJCtpSO8/s1600/Paris-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="360" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CnMTD9HcDKM/VhfSXTv7MSI/AAAAAAAARPc/CcxPJCtpSO8/s640/Paris-9.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's very important to not get run over when trying to get one of these shots.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_z5NaB-vlG4/VhfSLLwPT0I/AAAAAAAAROE/G9Cj1AORWHs/s1600/Paris-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="360" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_z5NaB-vlG4/VhfSLLwPT0I/AAAAAAAAROE/G9Cj1AORWHs/s640/Paris-10.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Parisian version of an ice cream truck, complete with smoking dude giving zero fkcs.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AtlSsUs3-gw/VhfTlZCZnyI/AAAAAAAARP0/0s0LPMULr0w/s1600/Paris-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="360" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AtlSsUs3-gw/VhfTlZCZnyI/AAAAAAAARP0/0s0LPMULr0w/s640/Paris-16.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara and I walked a ton in Paris and we walked to a few neighborhoods we haven't been to before. We were just walking down the street and then we were like, "Hey, prostitutes, in the middle of the day, no big deal."</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9oN4-B58BgE/VhfSOTlGHiI/AAAAAAAAROY/j2NnmN_jbUs/s1600/Paris-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9oN4-B58BgE/VhfSOTlGHiI/AAAAAAAAROY/j2NnmN_jbUs/s640/Paris-13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Korea has a chain of "bakeries" called Paris Baguette. Not even close Paris Baguette, not even close to the real thing.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-54qIaOoCbPM/VhfSOliybXI/AAAAAAAAROg/-icyLXkpags/s1600/Paris-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="360" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-54qIaOoCbPM/VhfSOliybXI/AAAAAAAAROg/-icyLXkpags/s640/Paris-15.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I love Paris because usually all the chairs face the street. Cafes are designed for a person to sit and look out at the street, at the people, maybe at some absurdly famous monument.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--uveDj7Kp1k/VhfSOS-MkkI/AAAAAAAAROc/kg8hbAXseh4/s1600/Paris-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--uveDj7Kp1k/VhfSOS-MkkI/AAAAAAAAROc/kg8hbAXseh4/s640/Paris-14.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I always set myself the goal of copying some iconic shots. Just to do my version or my take. Here's my take on the Eiffel Tower.</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">So there it is, a few pictures from our trip to Paris three months ago. Hopefully it doesn't take me another three months to post again. </span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-60660749145211428332015-09-23T19:19:00.000-07:002015-09-23T19:19:04.891-07:00Daegu! International Body Festival<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The blog isn't dead! It's just moved to Daegu. After one of the most stressful years we've ever had, I've finally had time to get my camera out and start shooting. With the move to Daegu, I've also picked up a film camera, and so I'll be sharing some of those photos as well. The reason I want to re-start my blog is because I just don't know how to share my photos otherwise, but I feel like sharing them. I looked at Flickr and 500px and shared a few on Instagram, but none of that really works for me. So, back to the blog.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Daegu's great... I think. Even though we moved here in January, we've only been here for four months, with the rest of our time split between the States and Europe. So, what I know about Daegu (which is basically what I read on wikipedia) is great. A few million people, restaurants with hamburgers and pizza, a couple of great dog parks. It's perfect for Sara, Ziggy, and I.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Ok, so, what is there to do in Daegu? One of the biggest events of the year is the Daegu International Body Festival. People come from all over the world to paint and be painted, to compete, in an art competition focused on bodies and body art. Korean festivals are always great, and this one was fantastic. There's always a ton of cheap food, lots of people, and something to point a camera at. Honestly, this was more a photographer's festival than anything else. There were people with $10,000 lenses! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I also want to take a second to commend the models, and the artists. The models stood for hours, six, eight, ten, while they had their bodies painted and photographed. That guy down there with the massive camo lens? He set up camp ten feet from the model and stood photographing her for a good twenty minutes. This in a place where they arrest people at the beach every year for taking creep shots. But the body festival? Line-up and shoot the product. So, to the models, wow, tons of respect for your ability to stand around, basically nude for hours, while people took ridiculously high res, zoomed in pics of your bodies. Thank you!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I was of course just as guilty as any when it came to taking pictures, and so below, you'll find a few from the Daegu International Body Festival. Thanks again to the artists and models who let all of us watch these awesome transformations take place.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ltg3UhD24u4/VgNTmgeYPuI/AAAAAAAARK0/_U2tJGcqGJc/s1600/DSC_2756-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ltg3UhD24u4/VgNTmgeYPuI/AAAAAAAARK0/_U2tJGcqGJc/s640/DSC_2756-Edit.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know how cool these models are in real life, but they just seemed so cool. I'm sure they were stressed and nervous, but they didn't show it at all.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6ftknwwz2d4/VgNX6g4LEqI/AAAAAAAARMM/OQnxD2Yn3YI/s1600/IMG_3806.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="194" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6ftknwwz2d4/VgNX6g4LEqI/AAAAAAAARMM/OQnxD2Yn3YI/s640/IMG_3806.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here's a pano from my iPhone of a moment of the madness. The photographers were hilarious. They had been sitting in the sun drinking soju all day, and by the time the finished murals came out, they were fighting. One guy tried to throw a tripod at another guy, and somebody else walked up to one guy and ripped his shirt. It was great.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--wmkBszzYL4/VgNTlYQo7WI/AAAAAAAARKk/mTcHC4HLU6o/s1600/DSC_2558.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--wmkBszzYL4/VgNTlYQo7WI/AAAAAAAARKk/mTcHC4HLU6o/s640/DSC_2558.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A lot of the artists were pretty young, early twenties. Art students, I think.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ByKNdnF7YTQ/VgNTla2XYkI/AAAAAAAARKc/aBEkf14ALKE/s640/DSC_2596.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BVq66PZvwQ0/VgNVZ6pO_cI/AAAAAAAARME/R6NHBShTZBE/s1600/DSC_2989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Giant Camera Lens" border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BVq66PZvwQ0/VgNVZ6pO_cI/AAAAAAAARME/R6NHBShTZBE/s640/DSC_2989.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">If you had $5,000 worth of gear you were a pathetic amateur (me). If you had $20,000 then you fit right in.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R-5xZgkWulw/VgNTlUftt1I/AAAAAAAARKg/W_IZ2N9rOkI/s1600/DSC_2648.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R-5xZgkWulw/VgNTlUftt1I/AAAAAAAARKg/W_IZ2N9rOkI/s640/DSC_2648.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Six, eight, ten hours just didn't seem to phase these models. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-whdSlOVUm-M/VgNTmsgLImI/AAAAAAAARKo/ZUqu22tMT8I/s1600/DSC_2661%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-whdSlOVUm-M/VgNTmsgLImI/AAAAAAAARKo/ZUqu22tMT8I/s640/DSC_2661%2Bcopy.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The detail here is incredible. I can't paint at all, so I can't even imagine what it must be like to paint on a living breathing, moving, person. </span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oXO_NWhTn54/VgNTm57w4yI/AAAAAAAARKw/rvXcOqPo4C4/s1600/DSC_2780.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oXO_NWhTn54/VgNTm57w4yI/AAAAAAAARKw/rvXcOqPo4C4/s640/DSC_2780.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P3-HEBscuWw/VgNTnt9ydeI/AAAAAAAARK8/WZzAVYT8jro/s640/DSC_2794.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Lots of credit to the artists as well. Eight hours to create something this beautiful and this detailed doesn't seem like a whole lot of time. Tons of respect for their amazing work.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-n_4CU-euZYw/VgNToI1Z1XI/AAAAAAAARLQ/YAHeu8ktM58/s1600/DSC_2822.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-n_4CU-euZYw/VgNToI1Z1XI/AAAAAAAARLQ/YAHeu8ktM58/s640/DSC_2822.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The intricacy and attention to detail were so amazing to me. These paintings were going to live for what, 24 hours, maybe 48 at the most? And yet, so much detail, so much attention to the little things. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b7STMMn4TJo/VgNToMsj0VI/AAAAAAAARLM/AdviaLvPk6Q/s1600/DSC_2832.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b7STMMn4TJo/VgNToMsj0VI/AAAAAAAARLM/AdviaLvPk6Q/s640/DSC_2832.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The models spent most of the time on their phones, which was cool, considering they couldn't really move or talk or do anything else all day.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zgPad0lRrc/VgNTomWv7WI/AAAAAAAARLY/RIMDYfYh4dg/s1600/DSC_2956-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zgPad0lRrc/VgNTomWv7WI/AAAAAAAARLY/RIMDYfYh4dg/s640/DSC_2956-Edit.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The finished products were really stunning. True art.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5AiDv0IrD0/VgNTpWCTnqI/AAAAAAAARLk/YGi8dHUA7Xg/s1600/DSC_3091-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5AiDv0IrD0/VgNTpWCTnqI/AAAAAAAARLk/YGi8dHUA7Xg/s640/DSC_3091-Edit.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TJzXfujLluQ/VgNTpzEngPI/AAAAAAAARLo/P9w8FCB-deo/s1600/DSC_3203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Body Art" border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TJzXfujLluQ/VgNTpzEngPI/AAAAAAAARLo/P9w8FCB-deo/s640/DSC_3203.jpg" title="Daegu International Body Festival" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MIysqxPP0-E/VgNTqLGr7JI/AAAAAAAARL0/axPHZH9DQFg/s1600/DSC_3214-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MIysqxPP0-E/VgNTqLGr7JI/AAAAAAAARL0/axPHZH9DQFg/s640/DSC_3214-Edit.jpg" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is a big festival, with international coverage, but there were parts of it that felt small and local. When the models were finished being painted, they walked through the crowd to get to the stage. Despite how impressive the art is, the festival organizers have created an intimate little festival where kids can get up close.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Great festival, and if you're in Daegu during the summer, check it out. Here's the webpage for more information: http://www.dibf.co.kr/2014_eng/</span>zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-80070861277238451902015-09-20T21:23:00.000-07:002015-09-20T21:24:39.775-07:00Goodbye Pohang<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I hate coming across a blog that's died. Post, after post, after post for months and years, and then nothing. So now it's time to officially close this blog. To say goodbye to all the people who supported me, who read my posts, who looked at my pictures, who left comments, and who reached out to me to tell me that you liked what I was doing. It meant a lot and it kept me going. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Thanks. I hope this blog helped other people as much as it helped me. Through these posts and pages I grew as a photographer, a writer, and I grew into Korea. I let Korea in in a way I hadn't previously. I spent every weekend searching for the beautiful, the amazing, the photo-worthy. I found beaches and temples, I climbed mountains and discovered sunrise. I stood on sea-green rocks, slimy with algae, trying not to fall into the icy cold East Sea as I waited for the sun to rise, as I waited for the perfect moment. Sara and I drove down every little country road we could find, into rice paddies and up mountainsides. I saw Korea, I experienced Korea, I learned that Korea could be beautiful, could be amazing, could even be, after all these years, home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I learned how to take a picture and make a photo, to make something I wanted to share, something I wanted to see again. I learned how to use my camera so that the moments I want to have forever, the moments I never want to forget, the moments I want to share most came, I was ready. My wife, seven months pregnant, more beautiful than ever, Ziggy, only hours old, still so pink he was almost purple, his tiny hand wrapped around my thumb. The years I spent working on this blog meant that when those moments came, I didn't miss. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I want to end with a post about people. The people I've tried to photograph the last three years, the people who opened up when they saw the goofy foreign photographer with his big camera hunched down in a rice field, or bent over a fishing boat at four in the morning, or standing in a hospital overflowing with happiness and pride. These aren't the best pictures I've ever taken, but they're some of my favorite. Each one was a moment I shared with the person or people in the picture. Where I gestured that I wanted to take a picture and they smiled, or nodded, or laughed, and the fact that I'm a visitor, that I don't speak the language, that I can barely say a convincing hello in Korean, melted away. And then, the moment over, a quick thank you, a goodbye, we went our separate ways.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For the last time, 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eNU-RyF_18E/VKVf3w4UpeI/AAAAAAAAPnU/FCCe-nas5LQ/s1600/DSC_9703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eNU-RyF_18E/VKVf3w4UpeI/AAAAAAAAPnU/FCCe-nas5LQ/s1600/DSC_9703.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">In the land of Samsung and constant techno upgrades, curved TV's and phones with no edges, refrigerators that talk and use the internet, some things, a lot of things are still done by hand. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ktjC3MgpCqg/VKVe_fEB2wI/AAAAAAAAPmU/VlXTNGWlApw/s1600/DSC_1749.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ktjC3MgpCqg/VKVe_fEB2wI/AAAAAAAAPmU/VlXTNGWlApw/s1600/DSC_1749.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">One of my favorite sunrise shots. Living in in-land Daegu now, I do miss the water from time to time.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sTNx57NYd-E/VKVfDuXa31I/AAAAAAAAPmc/BmxTB0k8VDU/s1600/DSC_2036-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sTNx57NYd-E/VKVfDuXa31I/AAAAAAAAPmc/BmxTB0k8VDU/s1600/DSC_2036-2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The fisherman were completely unfazed by me creeping around at four in the morning. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CqsnYCDBhKU/VKVfJ5RnldI/AAAAAAAAPmk/iuNdyUBkUM0/s1600/DSC_5080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CqsnYCDBhKU/VKVfJ5RnldI/AAAAAAAAPmk/iuNdyUBkUM0/s1600/DSC_5080.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara says this is one of the most "Korea" pictures I've ever taken. The rice field juxtaposed with dozens of wires, the adjumma standing alone.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUfZojJ7XYc/VKVfMaF7m3I/AAAAAAAAPms/phqUXktBzks/s1600/DSC_5295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PUfZojJ7XYc/VKVfMaF7m3I/AAAAAAAAPms/phqUXktBzks/s1600/DSC_5295.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Truth, Sara took this picture from the car as we drove down a one lane road in a rice field. The pollution can give you some weird light. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XkMyygExjWA/VKVfNMo5QZI/AAAAAAAAPmw/xZuE8kBMZCM/s1600/DSC_5484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XkMyygExjWA/VKVfNMo5QZI/AAAAAAAAPmw/xZuE8kBMZCM/s1600/DSC_5484.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ziggy! And his nurse. One of the best moments of my life.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mOh0hstJ4xY/VKVfbqjGJTI/AAAAAAAAPm8/1i7KXfGUhBs/s1600/DSC_9696-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mOh0hstJ4xY/VKVfbqjGJTI/AAAAAAAAPm8/1i7KXfGUhBs/s1600/DSC_9696-2.jpg" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Like a gentle nightmare. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x_dmfybVIPE/VKVft5PHryI/AAAAAAAAPnM/6qfBeYDAe9U/s1600/DSC_9688.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x_dmfybVIPE/VKVft5PHryI/AAAAAAAAPnM/6qfBeYDAe9U/s1600/DSC_9688.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I'd gone 30 something years without seeing a scythe in action. Always something new/old in Korea.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-alhym-UlT48/VKVgG9bML4I/AAAAAAAAPnc/pBxUdMIjN7g/s1600/DSC_5043-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-alhym-UlT48/VKVgG9bML4I/AAAAAAAAPnc/pBxUdMIjN7g/s1600/DSC_5043-2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yay! Pesticides! I feel like this tool would be important after the zombie apocalypse, maybe turn it into a flamethrower or something.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bZ1PNq5j_B4/VKVgpQglehI/AAAAAAAAPnk/KOvWzbd-lY8/s1600/DSC_2852.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bZ1PNq5j_B4/VKVgpQglehI/AAAAAAAAPnk/KOvWzbd-lY8/s1600/DSC_2852.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">And of course, thanks to my wife and son, whose patience with my photography nonsense is a big part of this blog getting made.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-5579236117462165352014-11-02T07:23:00.000-08:002014-11-03T18:00:13.177-08:00Gyeongju Photo Walk 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">With the arrival of baby Ziggy I haven't had a ton of time to get out and take pictures, so I made it a point to get to the Gyeongju Photo Walk a couple of weeks ago. Last year the walk was in Ulsan and was a great time, so I figured I needed to be there again. It's a great chance to take some pictures and spend a few minutes talking with some of the best foreign photographers on the peninsula. There seriously are a ton of talented people here who push me to be more critical of my own work, to slow down and think more, and to just be better. It was a great chance to get out and see the gear that everybody works with and how they approach a particular scene. So, here's my approach.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">In general I don't like to photograph in Gyeongju, nor do I even like to go to Gyeongju. The sights are all really cramped, extremely popular, meaning tons of people, and the skyline is full of electrical wires and ugly streetlamps. The main attractions are bumps of grass and a stone observatory that's dirty, short, and you're not supposed to get close to. Every time I go to Gyeongju I think, Ok, I'm going to fight all this crap and make some good pictures. Then I get home and spend hours masking out electrical wires and people. Plus the traffic between Gyeongju and Pohang is always gnarly, which means the day starts and ends with me angry and frustrated behind the wheel. Sorry, Gyeongju, you are not for me. But I'm glad the photo walk was there. Taking pictures in a place with all those challenges makes you change your perspective and look for something different. Angles that get rid of the crowds of people and the wires criss-crossing through the viewfinder, scenes that are simple and free of clutter, shots that take all the madness and frustration and cut them out completely. I think with these pictures I accomplished what I set out to do. Fight everything, and make a few good shots.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-buAptyhizR0/VEilcEKgHZI/AAAAAAAAO-g/xIVlBpH_kW4/s1600/GyeongjuBridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Gyeongju" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-buAptyhizR0/VEilcEKgHZI/AAAAAAAAO-g/xIVlBpH_kW4/s1600/GyeongjuBridge.jpg" height="426" title="Gyeongju" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This bridge is actually the opposite of everything I just described. It's peaceful, quiet, and picturesque. This is a great spot to come and take pictures.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wvSeHXRL93s/VEeAvtZWrOI/AAAAAAAAO7g/uDnC4NhTzvk/s1600/DSC_8776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wvSeHXRL93s/VEeAvtZWrOI/AAAAAAAAO7g/uDnC4NhTzvk/s1600/DSC_8776.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Korea is full of metal statues like this one and I can't get enough of them. They just allow for some really simple shots.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vx5tthcIBGo/VEeB3hrQX9I/AAAAAAAAO8I/zMLy_6SIk4k/s1600/DSC_8892.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Gyeongju" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vx5tthcIBGo/VEeB3hrQX9I/AAAAAAAAO8I/zMLy_6SIk4k/s1600/DSC_8892.jpg" height="426" title="Gyeongju" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Green fields! Also, it's not fair to call Gyeongju's main attraction grass bumps. They're actually the tombs of some of the rulers of the Silla Kingdom and date back hundreds of years. They're an important part of Korean history and culture, but like the Cahokia Mounds in Cahokia, Illinois, they are green bumps.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kINyxF-imEs/VEeBy4uiadI/AAAAAAAAO8A/MkweNRk-A3I/s1600/DSC_8895.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kINyxF-imEs/VEeBy4uiadI/AAAAAAAAO8A/MkweNRk-A3I/s1600/DSC_8895.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was a weekend, so there was some major festival. This one involved kites and lanterns. Very beautiful, very cool.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hwzEk_Fabh0/VEeB6uayuOI/AAAAAAAAO8Q/Hf_VahuuqqA/s1600/DSC_8905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Gyeongju" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hwzEk_Fabh0/VEeB6uayuOI/AAAAAAAAO8Q/Hf_VahuuqqA/s1600/DSC_8905.jpg" height="640" title="Gyeongju" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">You're not allowed to be on the grass, so there were just dozens of kite flyers lined up along the edge flying their kites over the middle of the field. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ggruve7WTQY/VEeCN8dr5SI/AAAAAAAAO8g/dpVfEs05Xo8/s1600/DSC_8933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ggruve7WTQY/VEeCN8dr5SI/AAAAAAAAO8g/dpVfEs05Xo8/s1600/DSC_8933.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The sunset was spectacular, good colors and lots of light rays. A perfect day for a photowalk.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V3cgEUDjCRc/VEeCc-1lPCI/AAAAAAAAO8w/aq1IJqAiA00/s1600/DSC_8971.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V3cgEUDjCRc/VEeCc-1lPCI/AAAAAAAAO8w/aq1IJqAiA00/s1600/DSC_8971.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Two of Korea's finest at work. These guys are truly great, truly talented photographers, and the guy on the right, <a href="http://jasonteale.com/blog/">Jason Teale,</a> organized the whole day. Thanks, Jason!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--KIhB4gDpok/VEeCsMu8iNI/AAAAAAAAO9I/irc5tZeQ1AU/s1600/DSC_8983.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--KIhB4gDpok/VEeCsMu8iNI/AAAAAAAAO9I/irc5tZeQ1AU/s1600/DSC_8983.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">You have to have six dollar coffee drinks to walk in the park, otherwise what's the point?</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X1Dvpb0SIsA/VEeC95EjWsI/AAAAAAAAO9Y/P8s0R9Ah4oU/s1600/DSC_9030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Reflection" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X1Dvpb0SIsA/VEeC95EjWsI/AAAAAAAAO9Y/P8s0R9Ah4oU/s1600/DSC_9030.jpg" height="426" title="Gyeongju" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is one of the very first times I've found a real reflection that looked this good. To the left about ninety degrees is the bridge from the picture above. I took about a dozen pictures of the bridge, waiting for the light to get just right. Then I looked over my shoulder at a bird or something and went "Oh, shit," and caught this reflection.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Gr3Xhz-LLw/VEeDCMPMBmI/AAAAAAAAO9g/oG-9ko1_KBY/s1600/DSC_9100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Gr3Xhz-LLw/VEeDCMPMBmI/AAAAAAAAO9g/oG-9ko1_KBY/s1600/DSC_9100.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara and Ziggy go just about everywhere I go. He's just too cute to leave at home.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-90787405955785452602014-08-18T08:35:00.000-07:002014-08-18T08:36:30.525-07:00Homigot, Again<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Homigot might be my favorite place to photograph in Korea. It's such a weird place to find in Korea, what with the giant grounds it sits on (like a Wal-Mart parking lot), the bronze hand statues, the gift shop that sells actual Korean souvenirs. It's just a place not like a lot of others around Pohang. Couple that with the photographic oddities that are the two hands rising out of the sea and the land, and the place has got me hooked. I think I'm searching for the perfect photograph of Homigot. Something with the water, the birds, the sunset/sunrise, the groups of fascinated people stopping to take picture after picture, and of course the hands. I don't know if the perfect picture exists, but I think it's why I keep coming back to the place. I'm obsessed with catching that perfect moment that makes Homigot click for me. I can read the signs and understand the surface reasons for why the place exists, but somehow it feels that in making that perfect picture I'll get something more. I'll understand the need to build it, the need for people to see it, the need for me to photograph it. Was this it? Is the perfect shot in this set? Can I let Homigot go, move on to another obsession, maybe a temple tucked in the woods, maybe a set of rocks lining the coast, maybe my son's tiny toes and fingers. I don't think so. I like some of the pictures here, but I know I'll be back, looking for that perfect time of day, that perfect wave against the rocks, that perfect photograph.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N22gdBirI3Q/U_G2NMmAb9I/AAAAAAAAO2Y/CDMy922Wh_Q/s1600/Homigot-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N22gdBirI3Q/U_G2NMmAb9I/AAAAAAAAO2Y/CDMy922Wh_Q/s1600/Homigot-18.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These first three are probably my favorite of any I've taken here. </span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-__64nLuecSQ/U_IUvhNmHhI/AAAAAAAAO3Y/1hFpCjcBmhg/s1600/Homigot-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-__64nLuecSQ/U_IUvhNmHhI/AAAAAAAAO3Y/1hFpCjcBmhg/s1600/Homigot-15.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Summer in Korea means non-stop rain and clouds. The sunsets aren't great, but the clouds are dramatic.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-juBuSU9Y_q4/U_G2K-rBaqI/AAAAAAAAO2E/Ud2m-S8I_Ig/s1600/Homigot-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-juBuSU9Y_q4/U_G2K-rBaqI/AAAAAAAAO2E/Ud2m-S8I_Ig/s1600/Homigot-11.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OI2EN52gf9M/U_G2SDoBoCI/AAAAAAAAO3A/W3EMwUP9Dpc/s1600/Homigot-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OI2EN52gf9M/U_G2SDoBoCI/AAAAAAAAO3A/W3EMwUP9Dpc/s1600/Homigot-6.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">My goal is to one day take a pair of waders to Homigot, get in the water, and take this shot of the hand that's in the water. But I feel like I'd have to do it at four in the morning in the dark, so I'm not super motivated. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GjJkZ3eBsno/U_G2K9Y2woI/AAAAAAAAO2I/KfjZJeU73k0/s1600/Homigot-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GjJkZ3eBsno/U_G2K9Y2woI/AAAAAAAAO2I/KfjZJeU73k0/s1600/Homigot-17.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VGFQKlOUH_U/U_G2NvlmF8I/AAAAAAAAO2c/6mJcCTe2woc/s1600/Homigot-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VGFQKlOUH_U/U_G2NvlmF8I/AAAAAAAAO2c/6mJcCTe2woc/s1600/Homigot-21.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1x7DHKiynks/U_G2NV9HkEI/AAAAAAAAO20/9keOVldC-Ns/s1600/Homigot-23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1x7DHKiynks/U_G2NV9HkEI/AAAAAAAAO20/9keOVldC-Ns/s1600/Homigot-23.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There's also a lighthouse museum out here, but it always seems to be closed. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kid7FDnBojY/U_G2ScuLDQI/AAAAAAAAO3E/AX78a0pO_PE/s1600/Homigot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kid7FDnBojY/U_G2ScuLDQI/AAAAAAAAO3E/AX78a0pO_PE/s1600/Homigot.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">And one more, because the clouds were just crazy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I only waited for three days before Ziggy was born, but in those three days we did everything we could think of within two hours of Pohang. It was a great start to my vacation and a great way to pass the time while we waited for Ziggy.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-90038940910165610482014-08-16T06:03:00.000-07:002014-08-16T06:03:07.529-07:00Ziggy Dean<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">There are so many things I want to say about the last seventy-two hours, that I can't figure out where to start. Maybe with the fact that the anesthesiologist was on vacation and therefore Sara had to be completely sedated for her C-Section, something we didn't even know was still done? That not just the anesthesiologist, but our doctor, the lactation consultant, even the cafe in the hospital, were all on vacation at during parts of the three days we spent at the hospital? That everybody in town seemed to be having an August baby, so no private rooms were available after baby Ziggy was born, meaning we spent the night sleeping on rock hard cots, in a room with five other moms, their husbands, and our crying baby, nurses interrupting what little sleep we could steal every five, ten, fifteen minutes? How about the fire alarms that rattled the walls of the delivery room six hours after Sara's C-section, and popped off randomly through the afternoon?</span></div>
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That's no place to start. Not after experiencing something as amazing as becoming a father for the first time. The best place to start is with Ziggy Dean Thomas, our baby boy. Born at 7.6 lbs and 19 inches, at 2:55 in the morning on August 14th, he's already the best thing that's ever happened to me. I spent this morning with him in my lap, his head on my chest. No phone, no camera, no computer, just me and Ziggy. He slept while I stared out the window of the hospital and projected a million lives onto my son. He's only been here for two days, but I feel like I've known him for months. All the kicks, all the wiggles, all of the plans I dreamed for him while he slept in his mother's belly, he's all of those things and so many more. He's Ziggy, he's always been Ziggy. I'm already proud of him even though his accomplishments include burping, pooping, and eating. I get eighteen, twenty-five, fifty years to see what he does next, to watch him grow, to be proud.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rwT9pcJnxu8/U-85FqYJXZI/AAAAAAAAO1E/wT6jb1QlfjA/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-94.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rwT9pcJnxu8/U-85FqYJXZI/AAAAAAAAO1E/wT6jb1QlfjA/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-94.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">All the nurses thought he was pretty cute.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Ivep4cQfpM/U-844LnK_pI/AAAAAAAAOz8/jAfghv-bBDw/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Ivep4cQfpM/U-844LnK_pI/AAAAAAAAOz8/jAfghv-bBDw/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-13.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara's water broke around 12:30 and she spent the next hour or so in labor as the doctor prepped for surgery. We're so happy we were able to wait until the baby was ready.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8edIYdHNsz4/U-848wUVfAI/AAAAAAAAO0Q/MmPqOvLWIto/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8edIYdHNsz4/U-848wUVfAI/AAAAAAAAO0Q/MmPqOvLWIto/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-40.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sara went into surgery and about fifteen minutes later the nurse brought out baby Zig. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mu0lN5vFSlE/U-848aUMQdI/AAAAAAAAO0M/MvcG-Ad0XgU/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mu0lN5vFSlE/U-848aUMQdI/AAAAAAAAO0M/MvcG-Ad0XgU/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-47.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">What big feet!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XaucsHdpBZE/U-849KHeiZI/AAAAAAAAO0Y/WUepKzIXC0k/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XaucsHdpBZE/U-849KHeiZI/AAAAAAAAO0Y/WUepKzIXC0k/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-48.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Holding him for the first time.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YE6uoEog5zE/U-85ArTWd5I/AAAAAAAAO0k/OduyKSTi0D8/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YE6uoEog5zE/U-85ArTWd5I/AAAAAAAAO0k/OduyKSTi0D8/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-50.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Say "Hi" to Grandma Sofia. It's been amazing having her here, she's been an absolute rock through all the madness.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oaEy_gdIS3U/U-85BCxNWaI/AAAAAAAAO0o/hb5DLhPQE0c/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oaEy_gdIS3U/U-85BCxNWaI/AAAAAAAAO0o/hb5DLhPQE0c/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-52.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We had all sorts of adventures with the hospital staff, we speak almost no Korean, and they spoke only a little English, but overall we had an excellent experience.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WHJ5O9ZMrUU/U-843jR-MJI/AAAAAAAAOz4/EvJjYdQpZvs/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WHJ5O9ZMrUU/U-843jR-MJI/AAAAAAAAOz4/EvJjYdQpZvs/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-4.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's only been a day since I took this picture, but he already looks different.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SM5ab7Og9MU/U-85BSwu7yI/AAAAAAAAO0s/tG0_AS_z54U/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-69.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SM5ab7Og9MU/U-85BSwu7yI/AAAAAAAAO0s/tG0_AS_z54U/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-69.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Such a great moment went Sara met Ziggy for the first time.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-M9YiK3LeZ74/U-85FW8hgQI/AAAAAAAAO1A/XyAAzURsnMs/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-95.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-M9YiK3LeZ74/U-85FW8hgQI/AAAAAAAAO1A/XyAAzURsnMs/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-95.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4ORik5VOw6s/U-843miE1YI/AAAAAAAAOz0/lhaeJGxZBZ4/s1600/Ziggy%2BDean-101.jpg" height="426" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Mother and baby are healthy and doing great. We're already home with the little guy and despite her C-Section, Sara is doing awesome.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">That's it! What a couple of days. Everything sort of blended together while we were in the hospital, so it's great to be home. For now the dog is at a friends house, but I can't wait to have him home and have the whole family together.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-8064437091035734012014-08-13T02:59:00.000-07:002014-08-13T02:59:14.586-07:00Daewonsa - Pohang's Dragon Temple<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Tucked into a hillside overlooking a road I've ridden down dozens of times on my way to the beach, sits an unassuming temple like dozens of others here in Korea. The common colors, the green, red, and blue, the ordinary rectangle shape with wings of black tile flipping up from either side, something I've seen and thought, cool, a tiny, regular, normal temple. Yesterday, on a tip from <a href="http://korealantinga.blogspot.kr/">Sherri Lantinga's great blog</a>, my 10 month pregnant wife, her mother, and I took a short country road up a steep hill and ended up at Daewonsa, another in the collection of Pohang's awesome temples. </span></div><a href="#1" name="top1"><sup>1</sup></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">The unassuming main temple visible from the road hides an incredibly uncommon, one-of-a-kind attraction like nothing I've seen in Korea or anywhere else in the world. A concrete dragon curls its way through the temple grounds, it's head and mouth adorned with flaming eyebrows, pushed back ears, and cardboard teeth. Painted and decorated, it's an impressive site all on its own. But of course, this bad-boy isn't done with the surprises. The mouth of the dragon is a door, a gateway, into the belly of the temple. Walk past the red, hanging uvula, through the dragon's throat, take off your shoes and pass through an old steel door and enter the main shrine, the belly of the dragon and the heart of the temple, a room adorned with close to a thousand six-inch buddhas arranged in perfect rows. Keep walking up a few dozen stairs through a dark hallway lit intermittently by automatic lights, Buddhas sitting on your right, the concrete of the dragon's body closing in around you, all the way to the tail, where another shrine sits. Crouch down into the tiny cubby and offer your prayers, letting the quiet work it's way around you, and ask yourself, "Should I be here?"</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">We spent something like an hour on the grounds and didn't see a single person. No one came to tell us what to do or what not to do, so we wandered aimlessly, snapping pictures and leaving money in the boxes placed throughout the temple complexes. If you're at all into the temples in Korea, this is one I can't recommend enough. Weird, whimsical, and without peer here in Pohang.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">In order to find this hidden little spot, if you're coming from Pohang, follow the coastal road (the 20) north past Chilpo beach, up the hill, and down into the tiny town that follows. Right after you pass the three old ladies who are always sitting on the bridge, and just after you cross the concrete bridge, turn left. Follow the road along the river for a few hundred feet and you'll see the temple on your right. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xRnSOSQcrKE/U-sVCasfxqI/AAAAAAAAOyI/wCDx-RR1dyw/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xRnSOSQcrKE/U-sVCasfxqI/AAAAAAAAOyI/wCDx-RR1dyw/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-31.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A fierce looking dragon. It took us about twenty minutes to get up the courage to walk into the mouth of the dragon, but you should just push on in, I guess.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-evXSqlBhW2M/U-sVURdELtI/AAAAAAAAOyQ/6gI7iEbq3wM/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-evXSqlBhW2M/U-sVURdELtI/AAAAAAAAOyQ/6gI7iEbq3wM/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-32.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Great colors at this temple, really rich reds and greens and blues. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9OT7QJ6fWOU/U-sTEo2h0MI/AAAAAAAAOxo/b6xJdfE45z0/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9OT7QJ6fWOU/U-sTEo2h0MI/AAAAAAAAOxo/b6xJdfE45z0/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-30.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I took this from a couple hundred feet down the hill. It looks like a normal, run-of-the-mill deal, nothing special. Got to get close to see the dragon.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yFmXXU11b0Y/U-sTH3ck-hI/AAAAAAAAOx0/FBahIqkBWlY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yFmXXU11b0Y/U-sTH3ck-hI/AAAAAAAAOx0/FBahIqkBWlY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Hundreds, maybe thousands, of Buddhas decorate the grounds, including this big one.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EgKQSqTWyQA/U-sTFHNv5cI/AAAAAAAAOxk/OBpa4OfB-oY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EgKQSqTWyQA/U-sTFHNv5cI/AAAAAAAAOxk/OBpa4OfB-oY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-4.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">In front of the dragon mouth is a little pond, in which lived a group of frogs and tadpoles and other cute little things.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XXLSNPoKGFU/U-sS-h270iI/AAAAAAAAOw0/dTFQUyYmuqU/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XXLSNPoKGFU/U-sS-h270iI/AAAAAAAAOw0/dTFQUyYmuqU/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-11.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4hfsybiTvpg/U-sS-gYHDtI/AAAAAAAAOw4/SJYhpWjzIxY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4hfsybiTvpg/U-sS-gYHDtI/AAAAAAAAOw4/SJYhpWjzIxY/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-14.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">If you go to this temple, you will take this picture and it will look almost exactly like this.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E0C08Sczhs0/U-sS-blR8gI/AAAAAAAAOw8/pFdbLh5PvWQ/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E0C08Sczhs0/U-sS-blR8gI/AAAAAAAAOw8/pFdbLh5PvWQ/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-15.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rows and rows of these little buddhas. Very beautiful.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bxpP6s5B87c/U-sTCKFYFLI/AAAAAAAAOxM/BwqV264zog8/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bxpP6s5B87c/U-sTCKFYFLI/AAAAAAAAOxM/BwqV264zog8/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-18.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">In order to get into the tail, you have to crouch down and sit really low. If you're not into melting, I wouldn't recommend this temple during one of the hot summer days, as the concrete just seems to trap the heat and create an indoor sauna with three flights of stairs. Really beautiful, but really hot.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N9fk3t64E98/U-sXrwrp8ZI/AAAAAAAAOyY/62C_hRKfIPo/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N9fk3t64E98/U-sXrwrp8ZI/AAAAAAAAOyY/62C_hRKfIPo/s1600/Dragon%2BTemple-21.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">My favorite shot of the day. There were probably half-a-dozen of these Buddhas lining the stomach of the dragon, each with a pair of oil lamps on either side. I imagine that if they're ever lit, this would be a magical place.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">That's it! A great temple and a great end to a fantastic day. I'm on vacation and living with my camera in my hand. I've already taken two thousand photos in August. Also, I started a Facebook page, so if you're interested in keeping up with this blog, like it on the side. Thanks!</span></div><br />
<hr width="80%"><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br /><br />
<a name="1"><b>1 </b></a><a href="http://www.10picturesinpohang.com/2013/09/pohangs-hidden-temple.html">Here's another one of my favorites in Pohang: 왕룡사</a><a href="#top1"><sup>↩</sup></a><br /><br />
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</tbody></table>zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-62794263916673307502014-08-05T20:48:00.000-07:002014-08-05T20:51:03.142-07:00Busan at Night<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Two weeks ago I found myself wandering the streets of Marine City in Busan at two o'clock in the morning, camera in hand, tripod strapped to my back. The streets were nearly empty, the beach populated by a few teenagers and a small group of metal detector equipped treasure hunters scanning the beach for scraps of metal. I walked from the Park Hyatt to Haeundae and back again, a good four hours on the street hunting some of Busan's most famous photographic landmarks. It was a completely different side to a part of the city usually so crammed with cars and people it's hard to walk without either getting hit by a car or running into a pack of people stopping every three feet for a round of selfies. The city was quiet, the few signs of life an open chicken and beer joint, a man passed out in the gutter, a small team of police surrounding him, keeping him safe. I was exhausted after a day packed full of softball prior to my solo photowalk and headed home just before sunrise. I only ended up with five pictures, but all-in-all, I consider the night a success. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a9aUTXIwZJs/U-GdB8qps7I/AAAAAAAAOvk/HQcYvxBuatg/s1600/DSC_2793-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Haeundae Beach" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a9aUTXIwZJs/U-GdB8qps7I/AAAAAAAAOvk/HQcYvxBuatg/s1600/DSC_2793-Edit.jpg" height="426" title="Haeundae Beach" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I stood on these rocks for about thirty minutes waiting for the sun to rise behind the city. Yes, I did almost fall in and smash my face.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G4Xy-TZzmmY/U-Gc_-4VezI/AAAAAAAAOvU/5ww9UQ47uM4/s1600/Busan+Mermaid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Busan Mermaid Princess Hwangok" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-G4Xy-TZzmmY/U-Gc_-4VezI/AAAAAAAAOvU/5ww9UQ47uM4/s1600/Busan+Mermaid.jpg" height="426" title="Busan Mermaid" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Out on Dongbaek Island, around the bend walking away from Haeundae Beach, is this statue of Princess Hwangok, looking back to her home country. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HgDQ5v5hZSY/U-GdBPa64_I/AAAAAAAAOvg/mLmp3EpqBhI/s1600/Busan+Pano-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Busan Skyline" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HgDQ5v5hZSY/U-GdBPa64_I/AAAAAAAAOvg/mLmp3EpqBhI/s1600/Busan+Pano-3.jpg" height="466" title="Busan Skyline" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is one of the famous photography spots in Busan, a shot of Marine City across the water. I consider <a href="http://www.throughstrangelenses.com/2014/03/12/busan-city-skyline/">this shot by Jimmy McIntyr</a>e to be the definitive shot. It's been photographed to death, so I wanted to get something different. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PsxBFyYq_s0/U-GdBOEhVnI/AAAAAAAAOvc/H9Hy861RHIo/s1600/DSC_2768-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Gwangan Bridge" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PsxBFyYq_s0/U-GdBOEhVnI/AAAAAAAAOvc/H9Hy861RHIo/s1600/DSC_2768-Edit.jpg" height="426" title="Gwangan Bridge" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't love this picture, but it was just a really interesting scene. Right outside of one of Busan's largest luxury hotels, The Westin Chosun, this woman set up shop and started a mini fire right in the rocks. At first I thought she was homeless and cooking something, but after a closer look at the pictures I managed, I think she's performing a kind of religious ceremony, related to Korea's version of shamanism. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This was my first stop of the night, the Gwangan Bridge. It's a beautiful spot and a can't miss in Busan, almost literally, if you go to Busan you'll have a hard time not seeing it. I learned the hard way that the lights go out at 2 AM. </span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-33806560638767185362014-07-29T09:47:00.000-07:002014-07-29T09:47:23.675-07:00One More Maternity<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">It's week 38 and that means this baby could come at any minute. The baby's room is put together, the pack'n play is built, the clothes are sorted, stacked, and organized, twelve weeks of baby classes are in the books, and we're ready.... as ready as we can be. We decided to spend the weekend in Busan winning a softball tournament and eating hamburgers. We also managed to sneak in a few pictures as well. It's hard to believe Sara's actually only two weeks away from having a baby. She's as strong, as tough, and as beautiful as ever. I don't know what I was expecting, but I don't think it was this, she really hasn't missed a beat. I played almost five hours of softball on Saturday and Sara was on the sideline from the first pitch to the last, ninety degree heat and all. It's been a great nine months and I can't wait to see what comes our way in the next nine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">As always, here's 10 pictures.</span></div>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-53681288262814128252014-07-14T19:49:00.000-07:002014-07-25T08:51:27.077-07:00Songdo Sunrise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sunrises are new to me. I've seen probably eight in my whole life and three of those are in the last month. Despite the fact that there are no coffee or donut shops open before ten a.m., Korea is bustling as the sun rises. Fishermen line the docks, men and women wander the paths along the shore, some with the intensity of an early morning workout, some with the languor of a night they can't figure out how to end. I leave my house expecting to spend the morning alone, and I end up surrounded by people. While I generally have no business on a pier at five in the morning with a group of fisherman, my camera feels like an invitation to an experience I wouldn't normally have. The fishermen, the walkers and joggers, the stragglers, and the rest, are hyper-aware of my presence, yet have no problem ignoring me. I stood on a pier for twenty minutes shooting this group of fisherman and not a single one even made eye contact with me. I didn't exactly feel welcome, but I felt tolerated. That somehow made me feel a kinship; the fishermen were there to catch something, and so was I. Fish, the first rays of sunlight, we'd all gotten up at three, four in the morning, packed our gear, drug ourselves to our cars, driven the dark streets, and found this place. The sun rose, they caught their fish and I caught this. Or these. All of this is to say that sunrise is becoming something I look forward to, something I regret missing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For the first time in a long time, I'm not pushing out 10 pictures. I just couldn't get enough variety to make it to ten. Comments though, always comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pePGH43k55U/U8P9qtcmLdI/AAAAAAAAH5Q/UGxwaQDWWzo/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pePGH43k55U/U8P9qtcmLdI/AAAAAAAAH5Q/UGxwaQDWWzo/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-9.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I didn't plan on shooting from this dock, but I'm glad I did. I was standing on the concrete snapping pictures of the fisherman as the sky started to change colors, thinking, this'll be great, the sun will come up over those smoke stacks. And then the sun started to come up, seemingly from the end of the pier, so big and red it looked like I could reach out and touch it. I literally went "Haul," which is Korean for something like, "Shiiiiittttt."</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zgv6wQIciT8/U8P924UXKFI/AAAAAAAAH5Y/SGkwEiy0ogQ/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zgv6wQIciT8/U8P924UXKFI/AAAAAAAAH5Y/SGkwEiy0ogQ/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-18.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know about other places, but the sunrise here feels really short. Like, twenty, thirty minutes. The sky goes from a weird night-time purple, to the grey block of most days really fast. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cJiws43fsq8/U8P-kQXNSvI/AAAAAAAAH58/w8FrZPeYkGg/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cJiws43fsq8/U8P-kQXNSvI/AAAAAAAAH58/w8FrZPeYkGg/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These guys were also out on the pier taking pictures, though they did not have DSLR's and tripods, but camera phones. They did say hello to me, before they walked away giggling and shooting pictures of me shooting pictures of them.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2wBVgaBDeEU/U8P95nh3REI/AAAAAAAAH5w/JdvaCDlSFI4/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2wBVgaBDeEU/U8P95nh3REI/AAAAAAAAH5w/JdvaCDlSFI4/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-3.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is one of those pictures where I really just want to make a version of somebody else's cool picture. So, here's my version of rocks and water and sunrise.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-24BVBA-NJW4/U8P-kDurvXI/AAAAAAAAH54/WwWyO9Svk7k/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-24BVBA-NJW4/U8P-kDurvXI/AAAAAAAAH54/WwWyO9Svk7k/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-16.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There we go, the sun coming up right at the end of the dock. Crazy lucky.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y8j_o8JYzj0/U8P94IBomLI/AAAAAAAAH5o/K9qyW083IQ0/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y8j_o8JYzj0/U8P94IBomLI/AAAAAAAAH5o/K9qyW083IQ0/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-14.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This needs an inspirational quote to go on top of it. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HO_Z1zYsQ8M/U8P93X6c_rI/AAAAAAAAH5c/m6Mj-kwebbs/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HO_Z1zYsQ8M/U8P93X6c_rI/AAAAAAAAH5c/m6Mj-kwebbs/s1600/Pohang+Sunrise-11.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I didn't stick around to figure out why this guy looked so wrecked.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These guys were serious about the fishing. No shooting the shit, no messing around, just fishing. </span></td></tr>
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zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-76041018564447833872014-07-08T03:08:00.000-07:002014-07-25T08:50:04.599-07:00Yeongildae Sunrise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">My new camera has inspired me to push past my natural desire to sleep and watch TV, and get out into the world. Specifically for sunrise, a time of day I haven't seen since I was drinking soju outside of 7-11's. Two weeks ago it was <a href="http://www.10picturesinpohang.com/2014/06/homigot-sunris.html">Homigot</a>, and this week, I was out at Youngildae Beach with the teenagers and the adjusshi's. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Pohang's in-town-beach is not one of the nicest beaches in Korea, but it's not without it's charm. Lined with a neon strip of hotels, coffee shops, and raw fish restaurants, it's a great place to spend an afternoon if you're passing through. Do I want to swim in the water with the triple exhaust pipes of the factory behind it pouring steam into the air and who knows what into the sea? Not really. But the idea of the beach, the smell of the water, the seagulls, the families with tents and coolers and tons of beach shit, that's all there. Living so close to the water is definitely one of the top three things about living in Pohang. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">On to the pictures. I'm finding it harder and harder to get 10 pictures that I'm happy with. The more time I spend looking at other people's photography is refining my eye to the point where I can barely stand to look at my own pictures in comparison. But, after pushing and poking and twisting and editing the crap out of this set, I found 10. So as always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uXkdTBuRZhg/U7ly79fPuOI/AAAAAAAAH1k/19ZovQn8Khs/s1600/Yeongildae.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Yeongildae Beach" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uXkdTBuRZhg/U7ly79fPuOI/AAAAAAAAH1k/19ZovQn8Khs/s1600/Yeongildae.jpg" height="426" title="Yeongildae Beach" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's been rainy and cloudy for about a month and the sunrises haven't been anything special. But it's been good practice. This was probably my favorite shot of the morning.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-krs-Ahu7Zoc/U7ly6RTLJpI/AAAAAAAAH1Y/Na0RaSKbSEw/s1600/Yeongildae-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Pohang Beach" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-krs-Ahu7Zoc/U7ly6RTLJpI/AAAAAAAAH1Y/Na0RaSKbSEw/s1600/Yeongildae-8.jpg" height="426" title="Yeongildae" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">About two years ago construction on this started. Now it's a cool place to go and look out at POSCO and the surrounding sea. At five in the morning, it was mostly old men doing exercises.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There was a little bit of a sunrise. Some nice oranges and blues. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b7HC3mh_lYc/U7lySbTkhbI/AAAAAAAAH0s/sG7lT4pLbAw/s1600/Yeongildae-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bukbu Beach, Pohang" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b7HC3mh_lYc/U7lySbTkhbI/AAAAAAAAH0s/sG7lT4pLbAw/s1600/Yeongildae-11.jpg" height="426" title="Yeongildae" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is a 15 second exposure, I think, causing the sky and the water to just kind of blur away.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gqv3-yRyR6g/U7lyTBMLRyI/AAAAAAAAH00/mHasHs0iFQY/s1600/Yeongildae-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bukbu Beach, Pohang" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gqv3-yRyR6g/U7lyTBMLRyI/AAAAAAAAH00/mHasHs0iFQY/s1600/Yeongildae-14.jpg" height="426" title="Yeongildae Beach, Pohang" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The old guys were stretching, running circles, and just hanging out. I'm trying to be braver in my photography, so I took a bunch of pictures of them.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NIHImsVRXxA/U7lyVFuFcnI/AAAAAAAAH1E/MVuMNYiAJvk/s1600/Yeongildae-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NIHImsVRXxA/U7lyVFuFcnI/AAAAAAAAH1E/MVuMNYiAJvk/s1600/Yeongildae-16.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The sunrise in all its glory.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vL7IXUP4ElE/U7of3Fw3NJI/AAAAAAAAH2Y/OxpWKkQY1Zw/s1600/Yeongildae.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vL7IXUP4ElE/U7of3Fw3NJI/AAAAAAAAH2Y/OxpWKkQY1Zw/s1600/Yeongildae.jpg" height="426" title="Beach Long Exposure" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Another long exposure. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hG-jdV8ZGek/U7ly6L7VbZI/AAAAAAAAH1Q/EZDFB8AAvIE/s1600/Yeongildae-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hG-jdV8ZGek/U7ly6L7VbZI/AAAAAAAAH1Q/EZDFB8AAvIE/s1600/Yeongildae-17.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Greeting the day.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J0tvUI9jd-0/U7lzg41AhhI/AAAAAAAAH10/ouVCgqALaLY/s1600/Yeongildae-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J0tvUI9jd-0/U7lzg41AhhI/AAAAAAAAH10/ouVCgqALaLY/s1600/Yeongildae-18.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These guys were pretty ripped, and I was a little worried they wouldn't take kindly to my photographing and things would get violent. They would have won.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4HNZ2kg6EF4/U7lzUwMQMFI/AAAAAAAAH1s/nwy1zCJi61M/s1600/Yeongildae-22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4HNZ2kg6EF4/U7lzUwMQMFI/AAAAAAAAH1s/nwy1zCJi61M/s1600/Yeongildae-22.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I took this one as I walked away. I dig this statue.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">So that's it. Another sunrise set. I just picked up a new tripod, so I'll be back out there this weekend, looking for a colorful sky. Hopefully the weather cooperates. Also, it's about time for some more maternity pics. Sara's at 36 weeks and both baby and mama are doing great. I can't wait for August!</span></div>
zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-57368090083175381342014-06-23T21:08:00.000-07:002014-07-08T03:09:37.341-07:00Homigot Sunrise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">With the baby coming, and a bunch of overtime in the books at work, I decided to upgrade my camera. Living in Korea and not really understanding all of the internet shopping options available, I was basically at the mercy of my local camera shop, where I buy most of my gear. I headed to Kwan's Camera last Saturday hoping to trade-in my d7000 and a few lenses for a d610. A decent upgrade that would have been just what I wanted. But Kwan didn't have a d610. For a moment, I felt defeated, like I'd never upgrade, but then Kwan reached behind him and pulled out a Nikon d800. It's the camera I'd buy if I were made of money. It's the one I wanted but felt I couldn't afford. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I don't know if it's because I've spent so much money at Kwan's over the last three years, or if the camera is defective, or who knows what or why, but Kwan offered me the d800 for what I wanted to pay for the d610. It was used, but it took me about thirty seconds to say yes. And yeah, the 36 megapixels are probably too many for me, and yeah, the camera is probably just too much camera for an amateur like me, but I love all those megapixels, I love all the detail. I can take a picture of a room full of action, and then later use all those megapixels to crop way down and decide what it was I wanted to take a picture of in the first place. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">With the new camera in hand, I decided it was time to try something new. I decided to pull an all-nighter, drive up the coast just west of Pohang, and take pictures of the sunrise at Homigot. It's something I've always wanted to do, and buying the new camera finally pushed me to do it. Sadly, the rain never let up, and I couldn't have told you where the sun rose, and the sky never changed to the pinks, purples, oranges, and reds I set out to photograph, but it was great. I learned a lot. I learned a lot about the new camera and I learned a lot about how I have no idea how to use most of my gear. When the weather gets better, I'll be back out there for another sunrise. Until then, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g9Il8kHGCog/U6jvXSqpzTI/AAAAAAAAHr8/dI_pXV_fWws/s1600/Homigot-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g9Il8kHGCog/U6jvXSqpzTI/AAAAAAAAHr8/dI_pXV_fWws/s1600/Homigot-2.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is about an hour before the sun was supposed to rise. The camera really does well in low to no light and I really love all the colors in this shot.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y4Se9w1ofZY/U6jvfmOqRSI/AAAAAAAAHsc/rfRg37vyGC8/s1600/Homigot-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y4Se9w1ofZY/U6jvfmOqRSI/AAAAAAAAHsc/rfRg37vyGC8/s1600/Homigot-5.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is a picture where the file sizes really start to get massive. This is a composite of two photos and when I looked at the finished product, it was nearly 750 mb, or the size of a movie. I've already had to invest in new memory cards and a new hard drive.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WdadiOE7BCo/U6jvYzGTKnI/AAAAAAAAHsM/t2Ixn2QnLfU/s1600/Homigot-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WdadiOE7BCo/U6jvYzGTKnI/AAAAAAAAHsM/t2Ixn2QnLfU/s1600/Homigot-6.jpg" height="350" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I couldn't keep the rain off of my lens, so I tried to embrace it. The pictures get fuzzy, but I feel like the water flares give each picture something unique.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eRZ81TINeB8/U6jvhGuqcwI/AAAAAAAAHsk/4PLp0OBK_kI/s1600/Homigot-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eRZ81TINeB8/U6jvhGuqcwI/AAAAAAAAHsk/4PLp0OBK_kI/s1600/Homigot-8.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is another composite that relies heavily on the the water droplets messing up my shots.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GU1HB8lpHj4/U6jvaXF9srI/AAAAAAAAHsU/rvqGdHp1BQE/s1600/Homigot-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GU1HB8lpHj4/U6jvaXF9srI/AAAAAAAAHsU/rvqGdHp1BQE/s1600/Homigot-9.jpg" height="358" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This being Korea, there were quite a few people here by sunrise. Korea, where you're never alone.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UNinVR4S-04/U6jvWt_QilI/AAAAAAAAHrs/0emVz2M4Di4/s1600/Homigot-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UNinVR4S-04/U6jvWt_QilI/AAAAAAAAHrs/0emVz2M4Di4/s1600/Homigot-10.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Homigot is also home to the National Lighthouse Museum, so if you're into that kind of thing, check it out.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T2xu4PtantA/U6jvWlOUm5I/AAAAAAAAHro/3msYXcfWqZ8/s1600/Homigot-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T2xu4PtantA/U6jvWlOUm5I/AAAAAAAAHro/3msYXcfWqZ8/s1600/Homigot-16.jpg" height="358" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">You don't go anywhere near the water here without seeing somebody fishing.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wlm3shI5Gbo/U6jvX8dydXI/AAAAAAAAHsA/HIErmLPj2f0/s1600/Homigot-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wlm3shI5Gbo/U6jvX8dydXI/AAAAAAAAHsA/HIErmLPj2f0/s1600/Homigot-21.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Being outside for all these years has given the hand really cool color and texture and I wanted to try to show that here.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRXmjG2kc-Q/U6jvrgSvPWI/AAAAAAAAHss/dseEe9IkU-g/s1600/Homigot-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRXmjG2kc-Q/U6jvrgSvPWI/AAAAAAAAHss/dseEe9IkU-g/s1600/Homigot-15.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I suppose these waters are full of octopus. If you like octopus, Korea is a great place to eat them.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eh1HoC5zDFU/U6j5PWS1FFI/AAAAAAAAHtA/VCiPEoqggxs/s1600/Homigot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eh1HoC5zDFU/U6j5PWS1FFI/AAAAAAAAHtA/VCiPEoqggxs/s1600/Homigot.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: large;">In my mind the sun was going to rise between the fingers of the hand and I'd get this beautiful orange and blue picture with birds flying majestically through the shot. Instead, it just stayed gray.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">So there we go. My first trip with the d800. I've had the camera a little over a week and so far I love it. The file sizes are indeed insane, but they just make for some incredibly deep, rich, textured photos. The one thing the camera doesn't do though is make you an amazing photographer. Sadly, not every time I point my camera do I get a keeper. But when you get it right, you're rewarded. I'm feeling re-energized, ready to get back out into the world and take pictures again.</span></div>
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zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-64816553851512022082014-05-20T04:00:00.000-07:002014-05-20T04:01:09.735-07:00Buddha's Birthday 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I'm rarely handed a photo opportunity so easy as Buddha's Birthday. Every temple in the country is covered in multi-colored lanterns, lit as if to blot out the moon, and with the rhythmic chanting of monks and banging of drums, filled with a serenity that can't help but seep into whatever photographs I might come away with. Last year we took a road trip and ended up at <a href="http://www.10picturesinpohang.com/2013/05/haeinsa-temple-by-night.html">Haeinsa Temple</a>, a secluded country temple in the middle of nowhere. This year, after a weekend that included something like fourteen hours of softball, we decided to stay local. Down the hill from E-Mart, tucked behind the neighborhood elementary school, stands a temple taller, wider, and more imposing than any other I've seen in Korea. Nearly square, adorned with the wing-tipped corners of most Korean temples, this one hides a community center on the inside, and a hidden garden in the back. Fifty weeks a year it's a colorful building that stands out against the otherwise brown and grey fabric of our neighborhood. For the two weeks around Buddha's Birthday, it becomes even more inspiring, even more exotic, even more worth a visit. Lanterns strung and lit, the facade shines, lighting up the entire corner of the neighborhood the temple occupies. If you find yourself in Pohang in May, it's definitely worth a trip.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xVHM1yHvUSw/U2pkoZi-NfI/AAAAAAAAHNc/GdfYLbB0pII/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-28.jpg" height="424" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The sensor in my camera's dirty, I didn't have my tripod, but I managed this. By setting my camera down on the ground, propping it up on my external flash, shooting a ten second exposure, and making sure nobody hit the camera with a car. One of my favorite's of the night.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Before the sunset, it's still something worth seeing, especially with the warm light we've been having the last couple of weeks.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">From the years I've been in Korea I have hundreds of photos of these lanterns, and yet whenever I see them, I take a few more. There's some platonic form of 'Buddha Lantern Photo' that I'm searching for that I just can't find.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x3i2bdCIBt4/U2pj0Be9f9I/AAAAAAAAHMk/sgtzH7z4-I4/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x3i2bdCIBt4/U2pj0Be9f9I/AAAAAAAAHMk/sgtzH7z4-I4/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-9.jpg" height="422" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Behind the temple sits this statue. It's a quiet, beautiful spot where I assume people stop to reflect, though I never see them doing so.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Sk6IkASl7wY/U2pkEDIzcAI/AAAAAAAAHM4/loU0MJtCqug/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Sk6IkASl7wY/U2pkEDIzcAI/AAAAAAAAHM4/loU0MJtCqug/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-17.jpg" height="422" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">For the first time in three years, our local neighborhood temple had floats, like this one. A mechanical lotus flower rose and fell, covering and revealing the seated Buddha.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RXAZPEes2A0/U2pkEWcVEvI/AAAAAAAAHNE/0zms2sywVcA/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RXAZPEes2A0/U2pkEWcVEvI/AAAAAAAAHNE/0zms2sywVcA/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-20.jpg" height="422" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Another one of the floats. Buddha riding an elephant.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xOyJd8au1Rk/U2pkEC2dLcI/AAAAAAAAHM8/Qxp-ne1lYbY/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temples Pohang" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xOyJd8au1Rk/U2pkEC2dLcI/AAAAAAAAHM8/Qxp-ne1lYbY/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-21.jpg" height="424" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This dragon was the highlight of everybody's night as it had been rigged up to blow fire and breathe smoke. Yes, someone figured out how to put a torch inside a giant paper dragon and not burn the whole neighborhood down.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RVVABehOpvY/U2pkourJA8I/AAAAAAAAHNo/arwV-Cq-5Hk/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RVVABehOpvY/U2pkourJA8I/AAAAAAAAHNo/arwV-Cq-5Hk/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-25.jpg" height="422" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This temple is not a country temple and that meant there were a lot of people walking around checking things out. This little girl was fascinated with Sara. Following her around and saying hello and asking "What's your name?" and the usual stuff.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRnQEOyuVBM/U2pkn07RsfI/AAAAAAAAHNY/YKIt05yFDDE/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Temple Pohang" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRnQEOyuVBM/U2pkn07RsfI/AAAAAAAAHNY/YKIt05yFDDE/s1600/I-Dong+Temples-32.jpg" height="424" title="Buddha's Birthday" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The big temple down the street is one of a couple in the neighborhood. I found this one as I followed the sound of chanting and drum banging through a bamboo forest. I crept back over after the festivities were finished and set up this ten second exposure. The color's in this one might be my favorite for the whole night.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-66591483525509077672014-05-11T09:55:00.000-07:002014-05-11T09:55:05.607-07:00Happy Birthday/Mother's Day Sara<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sara's birthday's here again, I can't believe it's already been a year since <a href="http://www.10picturesinpohang.com/2013/05/its-saras-birthday-this-weekend-so.html">we were standing around in those yellow flowers in Gyeongju</a>. This year's got an extra little twist to it, as it's also Mother's Day, Sara's very first Mother's Day as a mother. We've still got three months until the baby boy arrives, but time is picking up speed and we'll be losing sleep, changing diapers, and loving our new lives in no time. Anyway, here's 10 pictures of my beautiful wife. Happy Birthday and Happy Mother's Day!</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DLsZRgWSKz4/U2-pJlPNEjI/AAAAAAAAHPU/n64IqqMWXTw/s1600/SaraMaternity-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DLsZRgWSKz4/U2-pJlPNEjI/AAAAAAAAHPU/n64IqqMWXTw/s1600/SaraMaternity-2.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gFuyMTXXcfg/U2-pJin0ckI/AAAAAAAAHPo/n-rEUdv-4EY/s1600/SaraMaternity-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gFuyMTXXcfg/U2-pJin0ckI/AAAAAAAAHPo/n-rEUdv-4EY/s1600/SaraMaternity-3.jpg" height="640" width="422" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lTkPoEryTwQ/U2-pI4Zua9I/AAAAAAAAHPQ/SquO2Fy-nWU/s1600/SaraMaternity-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lTkPoEryTwQ/U2-pI4Zua9I/AAAAAAAAHPQ/SquO2Fy-nWU/s1600/SaraMaternity-4.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vjsgj13hFog/U2-pNCT5C4I/AAAAAAAAHPs/61Q7KklDDeQ/s1600/SaraMaternity-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vjsgj13hFog/U2-pNCT5C4I/AAAAAAAAHPs/61Q7KklDDeQ/s1600/SaraMaternity-6.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XTeCTyIF58M/U2-pOou-kiI/AAAAAAAAHQQ/1OlCNqesNz4/s1600/SaraMaternity-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XTeCTyIF58M/U2-pOou-kiI/AAAAAAAAHQQ/1OlCNqesNz4/s1600/SaraMaternity-9.jpg" height="640" width="422" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wur9cXYRTTM/U2-pcZDBNHI/AAAAAAAAHQY/mwFmx6Vq5ww/s1600/SaraMaternity-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wur9cXYRTTM/U2-pcZDBNHI/AAAAAAAAHQY/mwFmx6Vq5ww/s1600/SaraMaternity-10.jpg" height="640" width="422" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ybLNCEB2hWc/U2-pcYrxaDI/AAAAAAAAHQc/C7w-Z-_6gq8/s1600/SaraMaternity-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ybLNCEB2hWc/U2-pcYrxaDI/AAAAAAAAHQc/C7w-Z-_6gq8/s1600/SaraMaternity-17.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-13948881845201644562014-04-11T02:38:00.000-07:002014-04-11T09:45:29.738-07:00Maternity Pics and Cherry Blossoms<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I haven't done a purely personal post in a while, but so much is happening with Sara and I that I feel like it's time. From the pictures below, it's pretty obvious that Sara's pregnant. Twenty-two weeks into the pregnancy and I already can't wait to be a dad. Nine months is a long time to wait for something so exciting. So far, Sara and the baby are both doing great. The awesome thing about being pregnant in Korea is the massive number of ultrasounds you get. We've already had five or six and get a new one every month. It's such a rush to hear that heartbeat and watch that strong yellow line bounce up and down as it counts off the beats per minute. I never expected to be in Korea this long, but it's turning out to be a great place to start a little family.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"> With the cherry blossoms in full bloom this weekend, we headed out to Jigok, a neighborhood adjacent to our own that fills up with the pretty white blossoms and never gets too crowded. If you're looking for info on Korea, you're not going to find it in this post. Today we've got nine cheesy maternity photos and at the bottom you'll find our gender reveal. This one's for the grandma's more than anything. Here's 10 pictures presented without foolish comments.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j-2LTuBExjA/U0eHPKmE2AI/AAAAAAAAHGo/jPGs2ac9Zdg/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j-2LTuBExjA/U0eHPKmE2AI/AAAAAAAAHGo/jPGs2ac9Zdg/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-6.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ylkYi4IKQKU/U0eHNDBv79I/AAAAAAAAHGY/X-s7KQeG8qU/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ylkYi4IKQKU/U0eHNDBv79I/AAAAAAAAHGY/X-s7KQeG8qU/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-5.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cT7bc0hUeX4/U0eHNIROMTI/AAAAAAAAHGQ/zNPbsmqeL4A/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cT7bc0hUeX4/U0eHNIROMTI/AAAAAAAAHGQ/zNPbsmqeL4A/s1600/Korea+Maternity+Photos-4.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f7EvPgndqZE/U0ZGD8B124I/AAAAAAAAHGA/FhODX_ruaJ8/s1600/baby+announce+finished.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f7EvPgndqZE/U0ZGD8B124I/AAAAAAAAHGA/FhODX_ruaJ8/s1600/baby+announce+finished.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">That's right! A baby boy. Watch out Arlo Dale, you've got some competition coming soon.</span></div>
zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-62065579184718831902014-04-09T21:38:00.003-07:002014-04-09T21:39:39.133-07:00A Trip to See Snow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Update:</b> I wrote this post a couple weeks ago and never got around to posting these. Right now, the cherry blossoms are in full bloom and the weather's been great. A month ago, not so much.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">My patience with winter is gone. It's been cold for four or five months now, and with snow last night, it looks like it'll never give up. Sara and I decided we had to get out of the house, cold or no, and do something. We've spent the last ten weekends cooped up watching TV and we just couldn't take it anymore. So we decided to jump in the car to find something, anything, interesting to look at. Korea's a real bummer in the winter. It's cold, it's windy, and everything is dead and brown. Sometime in April all of that will change and we'll get the color explosion of spring, but until then, we're stuck with brown, and where there's snow, white.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We decided to head up towards Juwangsan National Park, <a href="http://www.10picturesinpohang.com/2013/06/juwangsan-national-park.html">a mountain we've visited before</a>, and one that's a beautiful place to spend an afternoon. Halfway there I remembered something about an ice climbing wall and so our route was changed and we headed to what we hoped would be people scaling a sheet of ice fifty meters high. And while there were no people actively climbing, the ice was impressive. Thick sheets clung to the river bank and climbed the mountain face. Pockets bloomed like blue flowers. We stomped through knee deep snow and our feet got wet. Our dog ate snow and ended up covered in mud. It was a great afternoon drive. Just what we needed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Hopefully winter is over. I'm tired of this.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8TkpNvxmshE/UxisfKsQHJI/AAAAAAAAG9I/fi17HMk_TsY/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8TkpNvxmshE/UxisfKsQHJI/AAAAAAAAG9I/fi17HMk_TsY/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-6.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LnuJGGbJjRA/Uxissx05mTI/AAAAAAAAG9g/EmspdiaYjPc/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LnuJGGbJjRA/Uxissx05mTI/AAAAAAAAG9g/EmspdiaYjPc/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-22.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This picture originally appeared over at howweseekorea.com a really cool photo/blog with a different perspective on living in Korea.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFFl477-cfk/UxisrblK4II/AAAAAAAAG9Q/SpHqftyw81w/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFFl477-cfk/UxisrblK4II/AAAAAAAAG9Q/SpHqftyw81w/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-24.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">For some reason they don't climb the actual ice wall, and they build one instead. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Gus loved the snow.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2bLUrj0gQtI/UxisuHEfSfI/AAAAAAAAG9o/_MeNX1CTxs0/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2bLUrj0gQtI/UxisuHEfSfI/AAAAAAAAG9o/_MeNX1CTxs0/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-18.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oq_amVUpHZU/UxisxG6VLHI/AAAAAAAAG9w/jk0V781Dn8o/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oq_amVUpHZU/UxisxG6VLHI/AAAAAAAAG9w/jk0V781Dn8o/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-20.jpg" height="640" width="422" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oEJJg2u0zHM/UxitRGeZkYI/AAAAAAAAG-Y/-xHMnL2YTMI/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oEJJg2u0zHM/UxitRGeZkYI/AAAAAAAAG-Y/-xHMnL2YTMI/s1600/KoreanMountainSnow-11.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">That's it for now. The weekends are pretty much softball all the time now, so I'm not using my camera as much as I'd like. I did take some pictures of the cherry blossoms which I might post here, if I can find 10 that I like. </span></div>
zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-63549805306040074042014-03-03T08:53:00.001-08:002014-03-03T09:06:49.648-08:00Sri Lankan Tea Country<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">It's been two months since our vacation ended and we left the warmth of Singapore. I've barely touched my camera and I've hardly looked at my photos from the trip. Work's got me burnt to a crisp and trying to decide what to do with the next eighteen months of our lives has my wife and I mentally exhausted. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">But it's ok. I'm ready to get back on the blog/photography horse. The next six months are set up to be some of the most exciting of my life. My wife is pregnant! That's right, after this upcoming August this blog will be filled with nothing but baby pictures. I couldn't be more excited and I can't wait to meet the little guy or girl. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I'm still working, very slowly, through the Sri Lanka and Singapore pictures. The more times I look at them, the less impressed I am, and the less I want to post them on the internet for the world to see. I've been staring at these pictures of the tea plantation for months and they just don't excite me anymore. But I need some momentum to get back into the habit, so here we go.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sri Lanka is a photographer's dream. The light is beautiful, the scenery is amazing, the colors are deep and real, and there's an exoticness to Sri Lanka that you can't find in a lot of places. The light alone made it a better place for me and my camera than anywhere I've been since I bought my DSLR. Maybe it was the time of year or the time of day we were traveling, but the way the sun was hitting the leaves in the tea country reminded me about what the color green really was, what it could be. It sounds crazy to be in awe of one color, but that's the only way I can explain it, Sri Lanka had me in awe of the color green. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8tX6p89AeS0/Uu25SWQK4vI/AAAAAAAAG3s/pI74DuAcMbE/s1600/Sri+Lanka-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8tX6p89AeS0/Uu25SWQK4vI/AAAAAAAAG3s/pI74DuAcMbE/s1600/Sri+Lanka-11.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I think I mentioned this before, but these women make something like $6 a day. Absolutely nothing when you consider that I gave these women $2 to take photographs of them for about a minute. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DhM43DcTwn0/Uu25UKKCAPI/AAAAAAAAG34/P-H6KLsRNiQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DhM43DcTwn0/Uu25UKKCAPI/AAAAAAAAG34/P-H6KLsRNiQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka-14.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The tea fields just stretch and stretch and stretch, there's practically an army whose only job it is is to pick tea.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kVBXjpJcLxc/Uu26BVrGy5I/AAAAAAAAG4o/KlUYHpOUSBE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-47.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kVBXjpJcLxc/Uu26BVrGy5I/AAAAAAAAG4o/KlUYHpOUSBE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-47.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We went on a factory tour at Mackwoods Tea Plantation. It takes a massive amount of tea to make a single cup, which explains why so much of Sri Lanka is covered in fields just like these.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSY2-GO3kCM/Uu3AqcPzfnI/AAAAAAAAG5M/sdmhpxVmSLA/s1600/Sri+Lanka-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSY2-GO3kCM/Uu3AqcPzfnI/AAAAAAAAG5M/sdmhpxVmSLA/s1600/Sri+Lanka-16.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is the same woman as in the first picture. I felt like the black and white really helped bring her out. When I did it in color, she just kind of disappeared into the tea. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3SnjBq4KN3E/Uu25S6HLmzI/AAAAAAAAG3w/ETY1ALXInYw/s1600/Sri+Lanka-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3SnjBq4KN3E/Uu25S6HLmzI/AAAAAAAAG3w/ETY1ALXInYw/s1600/Sri+Lanka-15.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is one of my favorite shots of the whole trip. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Kduv1gxaWNs/Uu25Xr3wrWI/AAAAAAAAG4E/KT8QGHX-EKQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Kduv1gxaWNs/Uu25Xr3wrWI/AAAAAAAAG4E/KT8QGHX-EKQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka-17.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J1ChaM_zMfs/Uu26UYzBQ4I/AAAAAAAAG40/5ApiKIN5kvw/s1600/Sri+Lanka-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J1ChaM_zMfs/Uu26UYzBQ4I/AAAAAAAAG40/5ApiKIN5kvw/s1600/Sri+Lanka-21.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I really wanted a good shot of the hands. Hours and hours of picking every single day created some really interesting hands.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DEM1L2OZ3X4/Uu26G_76m3I/AAAAAAAAG4s/ktHjmqqDbE0/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DEM1L2OZ3X4/Uu26G_76m3I/AAAAAAAAG4s/ktHjmqqDbE0/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-5.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is what I'm talking about when I say Sri Lanka is a photographers dream. This spot was right on the side of the road, with an easy place to pull over and stop. I'm always looking for places like this in Korea, a nice place to pull over and take a picture, but they're rare. By the time you find a place to stop, you've already gone up the mountain and come back down the other side. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-luJJesda0Rg/Uu2_S-o73dI/AAAAAAAAG5E/0uyn-CE3txw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-luJJesda0Rg/Uu2_S-o73dI/AAAAAAAAG5E/0uyn-CE3txw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-8.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here's what I mean by those stunning greens. I look at this picture and I just want to go running around in this field.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3SK10bGjb7c/Uu25lfcwAzI/AAAAAAAAG4M/5YmB-UJzc-8/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3SK10bGjb7c/Uu25lfcwAzI/AAAAAAAAG4M/5YmB-UJzc-8/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Tea+Country-41.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">And here's what it's all for. A single cup of tea. The ironic thing is that we were told that if you wanted really good tea, you'ed have to go someplace else, like England. In Sri Lanka, most of the tea is just barely drinkable. The fancy stuff is all exported to places where people can afford it.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-24066442407696628872014-01-26T07:51:00.000-08:002014-01-26T07:52:17.785-08:00Sri Lankan Wildlife<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I like to think I'll never get used to walking down the street, or pulling off the side of the road, and seeing monkeys. Swinging from the trees, eating fruit, plucking bugs from each others fur, and one time even throwing a cup of ramen at me from a perch on an electrical wire, there are places in the world where monkeys just live, like squirrels in America or pigeons in Korea. Walk down the street, monkeys. Forget you've got some fruit in your backpack, monkeys are on that. Sri Lanka's one of those places, with monkeys just hanging out on the side of the road. But not just monkeys, big ass monitor lizards <i>everywhere</i>, elephants, water buffalo, birds of all sizes and colors, giant spiders, and in some places alligators and jaguars and other things that would eat you. So here's a post dedicated to all the furry and not so furry creatures I found with my camera in Sri Lanka. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lic_cqPEJjs/Uttaa2LyVfI/AAAAAAAAGwA/Zqjtx7Vyah8/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lic_cqPEJjs/Uttaa2LyVfI/AAAAAAAAGwA/Zqjtx7Vyah8/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We pulled over to catch a glimpse of a huge waterfall right off the edge of the road. In the trees were these little guys, waiting for tourists to drop food.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-USO-09XfqE8/UttacD1uxTI/AAAAAAAAGwM/GN7X0iB5bCc/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-USO-09XfqE8/UttacD1uxTI/AAAAAAAAGwM/GN7X0iB5bCc/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-9.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here's another one of the waterfall monkeys. These little guys were used to people and had no problem getting up close.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These are the fish the stilt fisherman catch. I think a kilo goes for a buck or two.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NCMqoCjZBn4/UttaXvMxKhI/AAAAAAAAGvo/1Gxot6BOdE0/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NCMqoCjZBn4/UttaXvMxKhI/AAAAAAAAGvo/1Gxot6BOdE0/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-4.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We went on safari in Yala National Park. The entire safari was awesome from the dusty dirt roads, to the water buffalo, to the elephants, monkeys, boar, and jaguar we saw, it was awesome. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ePN3Cc8Hhbg/UttaYuFl61I/AAAAAAAAGvs/YPmV4SMIdtw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ePN3Cc8Hhbg/UttaYuFl61I/AAAAAAAAGvs/YPmV4SMIdtw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-5.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Just laying out in the sun. We probably saw a half dozen of these guys and they were big. A couple meters easy, probably three. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_tkrLz5OOAE/UttaYk9NzXI/AAAAAAAAGv0/G4sYkifM2HE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_tkrLz5OOAE/UttaYk9NzXI/AAAAAAAAGv0/G4sYkifM2HE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-6.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The peacock's were really beautiful. A couple, like this guy, seemed to pose for our cameras as we sat alongside them and snapped photos.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XmHfoZWO93Y/Uttabq8eQuI/AAAAAAAAGwI/gm_QpJKFnAQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XmHfoZWO93Y/Uttabq8eQuI/AAAAAAAAGwI/gm_QpJKFnAQ/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-7.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The safari was all about timing. We raced up to this watering hole and across the water we spotted two elephants eating leaves. We waited a few minutes and just as we were about to leave, two more came out and joined them. We sat for another few minutes and just as another jeep full of people pulled up, the elephants sauntered back into the jungle. The people in the other jeep never even saw them.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BrcAd4o46M8/UttaU2BXAMI/AAAAAAAAGvM/oSyNKzuo2rs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BrcAd4o46M8/UttaU2BXAMI/AAAAAAAAGvM/oSyNKzuo2rs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-14.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sri Lanka was one of those country's where everything seems to be more colorful than anything you've ever seen before. From the grass to the tea leaves to the feathers on the birds, it was color everywhere.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T6H60dJ8wYA/UttaUTQmflI/AAAAAAAAGvI/3UFjnJ_wdvU/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T6H60dJ8wYA/UttaUTQmflI/AAAAAAAAGvI/3UFjnJ_wdvU/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-12.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These buggers, two feet in length, were everywhere. On the grass of one our hotels, hiding in the bushes of a temple, resting on trees, they were everywhere. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WV2-719nkwk/UttaV7r94QI/AAAAAAAAGvY/nFLoTqs59hE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WV2-719nkwk/UttaV7r94QI/AAAAAAAAGvY/nFLoTqs59hE/s1600/Sri+Lanka+Animals-13.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Not the best picture, but by far the best story. These jaguars are really rare. Seeing one, even inside the national park is a real coup. Our driver was taking phone calls all morning during our safari, getting updates from other drivers on where animals were being spotted. At one point he turns around and says to us "Now we have to go fast," and he starts tearing up a dirt road. A jaguar's been spotted in a tree and everybody's racing to get a look. We're behind another jeep, the road's maybe a one-and-a-half-lane dirt road with dense brush on either side. Our driver is pushing the jeep pretty hard and making like he wants to pass on the left. Then, ahead, in the middle of the road, maybe 100 meters, a jaguar. The big cat turns his head, looks at the approaching jeeps and slowly lopes off into the brush. Our driver floors the jeep and forces his way to the left of the other one, all the while the dirt road and the speed are rattling the metal bars we're sitting under. The driver and the passengers in the other jeep are close enough that we can hear them protesting, we can see their fear, clearly they think they're about to be run off the road. Our driver, after 25 meters or so, cuts in front of the other jeep, reaches the spot the jaguar ducked into the brush, and slams on the brakes. And just as it disappeared into the forest, I snapped this shot. We sat in that spot for a good ten minutes while the driver peered into the brush hoping the jaguar would come out. For the rest of the day the driver and his partner clapped each other on the back. Even the guy who drove people around on safari everyday was excited to see this animal. So thanks to that driver for nearly killing us, but also for getting us that close to such a rare sight.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I've got to crank out these posts at a faster pace. Sri Lanka's already nearly a month behind me and the memories just aren't as sharp as they were. I've got a couple more on an elephant orphanage we visited and one on the beautiful tea country at the top of some pretty glorious mountains. I haven't picked up my camera since coming back to Korea, we're in the relentlessly cold, windy, and brown faze of Korean winter that seems to last forever. As it heats up I'm sure I'll get back out there.</span></td></tr>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-40820345140484158562014-01-16T10:08:00.000-08:002014-01-17T10:14:59.522-08:00The People of Sri Lanka<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sri Lanka's not a country you want to spend a whole lot of time thinking about while you're there. Better to bounce from beach to restaurant to five star hotel. Thinking about Sri Lanka is a quick ticket to a spiral down into everything that's wrong with the modern world. It's a country troubled by a recent civil war and a tsunami that killed 30,000 people while displacing over a million. Sri Lanka's also the place where things are made because the cost of a human beings is so incredibly low. That's really the only way to put it. 20th century industrialization and capitalization, the hunt for cheaper and cheaper human labor, has led to the completely unfair truth that most Sri Lankan people's time is worth almost nothing. A woman picking tea for twelve hours might make six dollars a day. Spend a few minutes tossing that fact around and you quickly realize that while on vacation you'll spend two years of her salary in two weeks. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">But it's not all bad. While the 20th century was the time of America and Europe and the rest of the western world, the 21st century will belong to the third-world (sort of). While wages stagnate and America's middle class slowly dries up, countries like Sri Lanka are witnessing incredible growth, unprecedented access to health care, the internet, and education, with infant mortality rates and life expectancies that rival the most developed nations. Sri Lanka's not a country anybody's going to mistake for a superpower anytime soon, but generation to generation growth and prosperity should be relatively exciting. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sri Lanka's a beautiful country with what I hope is an exciting future. There's just a lot of heartbreak and what looks to me like hopelessness. It's hard to remember that there are people on the other end of those t-shirts and jeans, people who get up and go to work and come home with very little to show for it. This is a depressing post, and not one I meant to be depressing. The country was absolutely beautiful and the people were great. But I'm looking at these pictures thinking about how much money the people in these photos make so that I can have cheap shit, and I can't help but be a little bummed out. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Fpp57vM9Qyw/UtVt8a33ZQI/AAAAAAAAGtQ/X21urYGTJIw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka snake charmer" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Fpp57vM9Qyw/UtVt8a33ZQI/AAAAAAAAGtQ/X21urYGTJIw/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-2.jpg" height="424" title="Sri Lanka snake charmer" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I did not know snake charmers were a real, 21st century, thing. I turned around and this guy was sitting on the wall. "Picture, picture," he said pointing to my camera before taking the lid off his basket. I thought he wanted me to take a picture of him or maybe not take pictures of him. Then this cobra started curling out of the basket and this guy nonchalantly squatted next to this snake while it danced and ducked. He blew an ocarina, but mostly he looked bored. He had no problem taking his eyes off the snake while I freaked out and took as many pictures as I could. After a minute he asked for money, nearly 10 dollars, which I thought was ridiculous. I gave him 5, walked away, and then immediately felt bad, both for contributing to the exploitation of the snake and for not giving him enough money. The guy was clearly keeping a cobra as a pet just so people like me could take pictures like this. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3HvYd_0VdOA/UtVt7fWMVtI/AAAAAAAAGtM/aqDmlpq9XKs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sri Lanka mahout" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3HvYd_0VdOA/UtVt7fWMVtI/AAAAAAAAGtM/aqDmlpq9XKs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-14.jpg" height="424" title="Sri Lanka mahout" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Going to a country where mahout is a real profession is a trip. We were walking around a temple and a guy was there with an elephant offering people rides and letting people take photo's with it. Maybe he had a license or something, but it looked like he was just a guy with an elephant. This picture was taken at an elephant orphanage where seventy or eighty elephants now live under the care of these mahouts. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M8AiTZBJZtA/UtVuBMCqgRI/AAAAAAAAGuI/zvQ6ahzdtyc/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M8AiTZBJZtA/UtVuBMCqgRI/AAAAAAAAGuI/zvQ6ahzdtyc/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People.jpg" height="422" title="Sri Lanka" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Tuk-tuks, the little engined hornets that swarm towns and cities around the third-world. In Sri Lanka, Tuk-tuks are everywhere. There really aren't highways between towns, so the tuk-tuks go everywhere. The island is small, but takes forever to get around, lots of times because the road is full of these guys and motorcycles, tractors, people, animals, cars, buses, anything with two or four wheels or legs. 50km's took three hours! Still, if you're in a town and want to go a short distance, tuk-tuks are great, as long as you bargain. Always agree on a price before you get into the tuk-tuk, and you should almost always bargain a lower price. Cut their offer in half and start from there. Five bucks to take you 2km's is not a good deal, though I am generally a terrible bargainer.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E6rwlaGmtmg/UtVwFJdR0nI/AAAAAAAAGuc/8ylvAEw6FFM/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Stilt Fisherman" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E6rwlaGmtmg/UtVwFJdR0nI/AAAAAAAAGuc/8ylvAEw6FFM/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-15.jpg" height="640" title="Stilt Fisherman" width="424" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The famous stilt fisherman. It turns out these guys make so little money from the fish they catch, that they sit out on these stilts hoping tourists come by to pay to take pictures. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GSDTb1HpABc/UtVt9ylbxgI/AAAAAAAAGto/5B7lQmMCvEU/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GSDTb1HpABc/UtVt9ylbxgI/AAAAAAAAGto/5B7lQmMCvEU/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-4.jpg" height="640" title="Sri Lanka" width="424" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This guy was collecting money on the beach for the stilt fisherman. He claimed his wife and children were killed in the tsunami. An incredibly sad reminder of the devastation this beautiful country experienced not that long ago.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wq0_w0vlg18/UtVt_CkHuJI/AAAAAAAAGt0/qn8_A91dzVs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wq0_w0vlg18/UtVt_CkHuJI/AAAAAAAAGt0/qn8_A91dzVs/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-5.jpg" height="640" title="Sri Lanka" width="422" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Many people in the tea country live in what I would call shanty farms. Tiny, aluminum roofed houses sitting on big swaths of land. Hustling around the countryside and the city alike are women with firewood piled on their heads.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nWo2SfHHJCs/UtVt_aTrJDI/AAAAAAAAGt4/0t2kiP20TFY/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka Tea Country" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nWo2SfHHJCs/UtVt_aTrJDI/AAAAAAAAGt4/0t2kiP20TFY/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-6.jpg" height="640" title="Sri Lanka Tea Country" width="422" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Six bucks for a day in the sun picking tea leaves seems... not so great. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5nH7uwOLGxI/UtVuAh5wGQI/AAAAAAAAGuE/cPKTnJm8Q7A/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5nH7uwOLGxI/UtVuAh5wGQI/AAAAAAAAGuE/cPKTnJm8Q7A/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-8.jpg" height="424" title="Sri Lanka" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This kid chased us down a mountain, on foot, while we slowly made our way down the switchbacks in a van. A 10 km drive was probably a 2km run for him as he cut through farms and houses going straight down the mountain while we curved around it in our much slower van. We'd see him every time we came around a corner and he ended up waiting for us at the bottom of the mountain, hoping we'd buy his flowers. We stopped and gave him a round of applause and a couple of bucks for his truly impressive effort. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eWmjojm95Cw/UtVuB-ktH1I/AAAAAAAAGuQ/VSeCVVNz150/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Sri Lanka" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eWmjojm95Cw/UtVuB-ktH1I/AAAAAAAAGuQ/VSeCVVNz150/s1600/Sri+Lanka+People-9.jpg" height="422" title="Sri Lanka" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The cultural dance we attended was interesting. The costumes were really cool to see, but the performers looked bored out of their minds. They were in full on robot-zombie mode, until the fire came out and they started doing tricks like this.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here's most of the dance troupe taking turns running through fire. Sara says it's a trick, but I think they just ran through the fire. Check out that awesome giant Buddha in the background.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sri Lanka was truly a blast. A beautiful country that delivered an unforgettable Christmas trip for our family. It's hard to believe ten years ago I didn't have a valid passport and now I've spent three of the last four Christmas's abroad. Next year.... Spain? </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-39398213458229331902014-01-10T09:15:00.000-08:002014-01-17T10:17:11.591-08:00The Animals at the Singapore Zoo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Zoos in Asia are hit or miss. Usually miss. Usually I leave a zoo feeling creeped out and ashamed about paying for/participating in the incarceration and exploitation of once beautiful animals. I've seen sharks bent nearly in half by the too small nature of their tanks, lions pacing furtively, walking the same tiny route again and again rubbing up against the glass until their hair is rubbed away in clumps as the zoo patrons slam on the glass and howl. I've even seen an orangutan drinking from a glass Fanta bottle. Over the last half decade I've rarely left a zoo feeling like animals and humans will be able to coexist in a world where zoos are a necessity for the survival of many species. Zoos are kind of a sad reality in a world over-hunted, over-poached, over-eaten, over-taken.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">So as anyone who's been to Sinagpore will tell you, the Singapore Zoo is refreshing. In a universe of too small cages and underfed, under loved, under appreciated zoo inhabitants, the Singapore Zoo stands out as a model for what a zoo can be. Few of the animals lacked space, all the animals we saw looked healthy, and the orangutans, chimpanzees, and other monkeys looked like they could have gone wherever they pleased, though none of them chose to. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We started our day with breakfast with the orangutans. If you're in Singapore, you're probably going to be having an overpriced hotel buffet for breakfast, so you might as well eat the same quality food at the zoo while orangutans chomp on sunflower seeds a few meters away. The food's nothing special, but totally edible, and you're really paying for a picture of you and some orangutans. Totally worth it. We spent the next three hours walking around seeing everything from the pygmy hippo to the white tigers to the meerkats to the monkeys. We only had a few hours to spend, but I think a full day would be worth it. There's a ton to see and if you want to feed basically everything in the zoo, all you have to do is time it right and you can feed anything from the kangaroo to the elephants. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For my birthday I picked up Nikon's 28-300 lens, a zoom with some pretty great reach which I took full advantage of on this trip. It's a great lens that let me get some close up shots of these beautiful animals. As always here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UBMuFunG6v4/Us9pT-8eZWI/AAAAAAAAGrw/79f6aSIruok/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UBMuFunG6v4/Us9pT-8eZWI/AAAAAAAAGrw/79f6aSIruok/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-6.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This little guy ate breakfast about twenty feet from us. That's my kind of tourism. Come gorge yourself at an all-you-can-eat-buffet! And also, apes!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rmi6EpBwt3Q/Us9prfDlghI/AAAAAAAAGr4/dsrMLqVJDSM/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rmi6EpBwt3Q/Us9prfDlghI/AAAAAAAAGr4/dsrMLqVJDSM/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-16.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Everybody lined up and then stood in front of four of these big guys, turned their back on them, and had their pictures taken. While I was having my picture taken, with my back to two giant orangutans, all I could think about was this guy reaching over and ripping my arms off. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hdNmEVOQfe0/Us9p0v4AXfI/AAAAAAAAGsA/22lw1Gr4MF4/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hdNmEVOQfe0/Us9p0v4AXfI/AAAAAAAAGsA/22lw1Gr4MF4/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-132.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sad? Wistful? Melancholy? Resigned to his fate? Ray Liotta at the end of Goodfellas?</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zdFkCj-kUw8/Us9p1hb1dSI/AAAAAAAAGsI/JoZm-DDr5HI/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Chimpanzees Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zdFkCj-kUw8/Us9p1hb1dSI/AAAAAAAAGsI/JoZm-DDr5HI/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-115.jpg" height="422" title="Chimpanzees Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">If these chimpanzee's ever start a band I think this is their album cover. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nsmdBPyTZIU/Us9p5hOKlRI/AAAAAAAAGsQ/4JZ8FjjeVfA/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-74.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Meerkat" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nsmdBPyTZIU/Us9p5hOKlRI/AAAAAAAAGsQ/4JZ8FjjeVfA/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-74.jpg" height="640" title="Meerkat" width="422" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The open nature of the zoo makes me feel that this meerkat probably has something to worry about. Made me wonder how many get picked off.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-789BWFcaCS0/Us9p_GnPkhI/AAAAAAAAGsY/_D-Ng1Ky9vM/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-62.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-789BWFcaCS0/Us9p_GnPkhI/AAAAAAAAGsY/_D-Ng1Ky9vM/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-62.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">"OMFG, so cute!" said everybody.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qGAWxMNDYiE/Us9qD919TaI/AAAAAAAAGsg/B8sYljkhqds/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qGAWxMNDYiE/Us9qD919TaI/AAAAAAAAGsg/B8sYljkhqds/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-52.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Of course the elephants were doing tricks like dancing and spraying water and rolling logs. Show-offs. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-60gMqmAuCrs/Us9qJAr1EqI/AAAAAAAAGso/1pYYcv8pWCA/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-46.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-60gMqmAuCrs/Us9qJAr1EqI/AAAAAAAAGso/1pYYcv8pWCA/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-46.jpg" height="424" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Douc Langur, winner of best name and possibly my favorite animal. When I go to the zoo I want to see exotic, and this guy was pretty damn exotic. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1FK7O0vVcXM/Us9qN79u0PI/AAAAAAAAGsw/_XPHp1eFMAI/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1FK7O0vVcXM/Us9qN79u0PI/AAAAAAAAGsw/_XPHp1eFMAI/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-23.jpg" height="424" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I made eye contact with the white tiger and he telepathically told me he wanted to eat me.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--KJJHJKoXxs/Us9qj1Q8llI/AAAAAAAAGs4/75nEwRxrGM8/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-95.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Singapore Zoo" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--KJJHJKoXxs/Us9qj1Q8llI/AAAAAAAAGs4/75nEwRxrGM8/s1600/Singapore+Zoo-95.jpg" height="422" title="Singapore Zoo" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">All the proboscis monkeys were sitting like this. Standing there watching them made me feel like I was in the presence of intellectual greatness. If thinking were a spectator sport, this is the level of dignity and gravitas I hope the mentathletes would bring to the championship match. Also the big ones had noses that had developed into giant...proboscis looking things, so maybe they were just contemplating the deep unfairness of the universe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Singapore Zoo was easily top three on our two week trip through Sri Lanka and Singapore. 10/10, would recommend. Right now I'm working through the nearly 4,000 pictures I took trying to figure out which one's best tell the story of our trip.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Up next, some Sri Lankan awesomeness.</span></td></tr>
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zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-79461723085861586182013-12-11T22:07:00.000-08:002013-12-12T03:02:23.374-08:00Owning A Dog in Korea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">For the entire time I've lived in Korea, I've kind of lived with one foot out the door. I've spent four years preparing for the thing after Korea, all the while being slowly pulled deeper into Korea. It started when we came back two and a half years ago. We bought a T.V. and threw ourselves into our jobs, planning early on to stay a second year. Then, after months of going back and forth, we decided to stay a third year, buying a car and a couch, putting up pictures in our apartment, making Pohang more and more our home. Now it's time for those deliberations again, will we or won't we leave Korea? And yet, despite the fact that we're weighing all of our options, we keep making decisions that pull us deeper into this Korean life. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Our latest, and biggest, commitment to our life here is our new dog Gus. For years we've wanted to have a dog, but the timing was never right. We never had enough time or our landlords weren't keen on an animal occupying their apartment. Finally, in our third year at this job, things have lined up and we've added Gus to our little family.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Having a dog in Korea is probably a lot like having a dog anywhere else. You need time, money, patience, and a stomach for cleaning up after a dog just barely house-broken. Getting Gus was a piece of cake. The shelter in Pohang would have given me a dozen if I had $30 for each. Before we'd even asked any questions about Gus, the guy was handing me the paperwork to sign and trying to get my money. I don't think it was anything shady, they were just super motivated to move some animals. I've heard of other shelters going through rigorous screening processes, but in Pohang, $30 and a signature means you can have a dog today.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Having two incomes has been a major help with the dog. He's been neutered (150,000), micro-chipped (30,000), treated for ear parasites and blood parasites (200,000), he needed a crate (150,000) and toys and bones and all kinds of other stuff that I had no idea dogs needed and we walk him four times a day. So he hasn't been cheap. The biggest obstacle is space. Our apartment is small, we don't have a yard, and there's nowhere close by to let him off the leash and have him run. It's a bummer for the dog, but we do our best, getting him out as much as possible. It's a lot of work, but it's been great. In trying to think up this post I've been trying to put my finger on why having a dog is worth it. I can't figure it out, all I know is that it is. Having a dog just makes me feel better. So, here's our dog, Gus. As always 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OOgHFlBFTCQ/UqiRmFgEseI/AAAAAAAAGho/NWhIu5dty8Y/s1600/Gus-19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OOgHFlBFTCQ/UqiRmFgEseI/AAAAAAAAGho/NWhIu5dty8Y/s640/Gus-19.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Getting a dog and starting winter means that there are already hundreds of pictures of Gus lying on the couch. This one might be my favorite.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2Pkn_qoHx00/UqiRmV9gvrI/AAAAAAAAGhk/94Tlbn99R74/s1600/Gus-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2Pkn_qoHx00/UqiRmV9gvrI/AAAAAAAAGhk/94Tlbn99R74/s640/Gus-6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">He's a pretty good dog in the car, so we took him up the coast to one of the rocky beaches. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g0_kogQlmOE/UqiR2dCyQEI/AAAAAAAAGiY/iq1KYWwRVnk/s1600/Gus-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g0_kogQlmOE/UqiR2dCyQEI/AAAAAAAAGiY/iq1KYWwRVnk/s640/Gus-11.jpg" width="424" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Not everywhere is dog friendly in Korea, but Oeosa Temple just outside of Pohang has some great trails and nobody yelled at us.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WtXFxkCDoSs/UqiRoCkRQdI/AAAAAAAAGh4/QUZBHhn-BqM/s1600/Gus-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WtXFxkCDoSs/UqiRoCkRQdI/AAAAAAAAGh4/QUZBHhn-BqM/s640/Gus-8.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pUzB04y3grw/UqiRkc87ADI/AAAAAAAAGhM/GlOtNnGroj0/s1600/Gus-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pUzB04y3grw/UqiRkc87ADI/AAAAAAAAGhM/GlOtNnGroj0/s640/Gus-13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bOOJ77OFAKE/UqiRknWtj1I/AAAAAAAAGhQ/c5Gl0rVLogs/s1600/Gus-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bOOJ77OFAKE/UqiRknWtj1I/AAAAAAAAGhQ/c5Gl0rVLogs/s640/Gus-16.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lOC4n0FKIKs/UqiRj0AaE3I/AAAAAAAAGhI/GE4RYx3Ajy8/s1600/Gus-18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lOC4n0FKIKs/UqiRj0AaE3I/AAAAAAAAGhI/GE4RYx3Ajy8/s640/Gus-18.jpg" width="422" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ipBNpK7rZlY/UqiRmH7iGoI/AAAAAAAAGhg/DF1LZ60DPfo/s1600/Gus-21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ipBNpK7rZlY/UqiRmH7iGoI/AAAAAAAAGhg/DF1LZ60DPfo/s640/Gus-21.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It's really a bummer we don't have a yard, because he really likes to run. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SwbiY3Pcdkc/UqiRy8SkfDI/AAAAAAAAGiQ/IMOPGTCL6HM/s1600/Gus-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SwbiY3Pcdkc/UqiRy8SkfDI/AAAAAAAAGiQ/IMOPGTCL6HM/s640/Gus-10.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There are now very few pictures of Sara without Gus.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X1v_sNQZLhg/UqiRwRMiy0I/AAAAAAAAGiA/K3qaJkY0u5I/s1600/Gus-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X1v_sNQZLhg/UqiRwRMiy0I/AAAAAAAAGiA/K3qaJkY0u5I/s640/Gus-17.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-57973488128816875692013-12-04T22:07:00.000-08:002013-12-08T22:03:06.895-08:00Gourmet 494: The Best Food Court in Seoul<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Every department store in Korea hides a food court in its basement. Generally the food is passable, just fuel for the next stop on the shopping trip. My problem with these places is that while there are lots of options, the food's never that good. It's a restaurant I would never eat at if I weren't trapped within the walls of a giant department store. So when I heard about Gourmet 494, another food court in a basement, I figured we could pass. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">But it turns out this food court isn't like those other food courts. Whoever's running the show in Seoul pulled together a bunch of the cities great restaurants, put a gourmet grocery store, and a couple coffee shops and bakeries into the basement of one of Apgujeong's nicest shopping centers and created an amazing place to eat and eat and eat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Hamburgers, pizza, sushi, apple pie, chocolate, coffee that tastes good, ice cream, and tons and tons of cheese. Living in Pohang for two years has turned every adventure outside our small city into an eating adventure. Going to Seoul or Busan, Istanbul or Madrid, I just want to eat non-Korean food. Gourmet 494 was the perfect stop. I had pizza, cheesecake, coffee, and an apple pie, and if I'd seen them before we were on the way out, I would have had some of Vato's Kimchi Fries. I'm planning my next trip to Seoul just thinking about it. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qgiUs6UwDwQ/Up9OF_XMh5I/AAAAAAAAGfY/bewfkzLI1cM/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qgiUs6UwDwQ/Up9OF_XMh5I/AAAAAAAAGfY/bewfkzLI1cM/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The grocery store is pretty well stocked too, lots of chocolates, cheese, and snacks from around the world.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IvpuaEFfdE4/Up9OJjrSKUI/AAAAAAAAGgE/1_jbY0MFFpM/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IvpuaEFfdE4/Up9OJjrSKUI/AAAAAAAAGgE/1_jbY0MFFpM/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This place might be a chain, but they'll make chocolate mixes for you. Choose what you want mixed into a bar of milk, dark, or white chocolate, wait thirty minutes, and boom, your own personal chocolate bar. We went cashews and white chocolate.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XdnriHjZBGw/Up9ONmKFwEI/AAAAAAAAGgo/Obbicvp-VNY/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XdnriHjZBGw/Up9ONmKFwEI/AAAAAAAAGgo/Obbicvp-VNY/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Wood-fire oven! Tasty pizza!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hWYYRVzgDS4/Up9OMLXWHoI/AAAAAAAAGgY/TwWu9ta5nZo/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hWYYRVzgDS4/Up9OMLXWHoI/AAAAAAAAGgY/TwWu9ta5nZo/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-7.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was good, though still in the Korean style of a very undercooked, and limp, crust. Delicious though.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q2_hzGZqGC0/Up9N-0zo9jI/AAAAAAAAGeY/yT3Qk0ieJF8/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q2_hzGZqGC0/Up9N-0zo9jI/AAAAAAAAGeY/yT3Qk0ieJF8/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-11.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A hamburger with a red onion, it's like you're not even in Korea anymore.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LkGPisAt5yA/Up9OBEJawfI/AAAAAAAAGeo/k3JrKRlsCnI/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LkGPisAt5yA/Up9OBEJawfI/AAAAAAAAGeo/k3JrKRlsCnI/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Giant wheels of cheese are rare, but here they are. A kilo of brie!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-P8KgiwLthCY/Up9ODtjRhJI/AAAAAAAAGe8/NJtnZ0C3IO0/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-P8KgiwLthCY/Up9ODtjRhJI/AAAAAAAAGe8/NJtnZ0C3IO0/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-15.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know what Fell+Cole San Francisco style ice cream is, but it looked delicious.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q13es8e01M/Up9OHczMHtI/AAAAAAAAGfo/JHeEHv4TKCA/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q13es8e01M/Up9OHczMHtI/AAAAAAAAGfo/JHeEHv4TKCA/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-3.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yeah, I ate one of these apple pies. It was pretty good. If you need a bigger one, you can buy a full-size pie for around 40 bucks. Yikes.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aiCcA9byLd0/Up9OEXhJulI/AAAAAAAAGfE/G3xw8LYCkvM/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aiCcA9byLd0/Up9OEXhJulI/AAAAAAAAGfE/G3xw8LYCkvM/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-17.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know why these chocolates have little drawings on them, but notice the one in the bottom left corner. We passed.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hg2Cxgchfso/Up9OGzGtmOI/AAAAAAAAGfk/HxKYDLMo_YY/s1600/Galeria+494+Seoul-19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hg2Cxgchfso/Up9OGzGtmOI/AAAAAAAAGfk/HxKYDLMo_YY/s640/Galeria+494+Seoul-19.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Gourmet 494 is located in the basement of the Galleria Department Store. Drive up and down the streets around it and you can get luxury anything, including cars and plastic surgery.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">If you need to do some insane shopping, this is the place. And if you need to do some insane eating, this is also the place. Get a pizza, get a cheeseburger, get some chocolate, and then go buy a $35,000 T.V. </span></div>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-41435289164804035592013-11-27T09:23:00.002-08:002013-11-28T08:26:07.395-08:00Gyeongbokgung Palace<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Just outside of Seoul's National Folk Museum, under the shadow of a five-tiered pagoda that makes up just a small part of Gyeongbokgung Palace, is a tree lined walk through a street built to look like a typical Korean street from the 1970's. There's a fake bookstore and a fake restaurant, there's a cable car and a barber. It's a quick trip to a Korea that peeks through in some places still today. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I'd like to say I know something about the National Folk Museum or Gyeongbokgung Palace or any of the things we saw as we wandered slowly through the palace grounds, but I'd be lying. I don't know anything about any of it. Sara and I were cold and starving and passed through faster than I would have liked. We didn't go to the folk museum and we didn't really go to the palace. We'd been wandering the twisted streets of Bukchon Village for a few hours and we were hungry. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I can say I know about some awesome food right outside the palace walls. Cafe Mama's is one of my favorite places to eat in Seoul. They serve all kinds of sandwiches and a ridiculous salad that's smothered in ricotta cheese, in a good way. In terms of access to food Pohang is basically rural Korea. The Korean food is great, but everything else is kind of meh. So for me, Seoul is really about getting to as many restaurants as possible. Cafe Mama's, just a five minute walk from Gyeonbokgung Palace, is one of my top choices. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RKlgVUzwtfU/UoOUOhzFezI/AAAAAAAAGUg/QU5rr9VLrl8/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RKlgVUzwtfU/UoOUOhzFezI/AAAAAAAAGUg/QU5rr9VLrl8/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Fall was full on just less than a month ago. Since then winter has come on fast, with multiple reports of snow in Seoul, and even a few flurries in Pohang.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EXbWZIN0QZM/UoOULEsWAwI/AAAAAAAAGUI/jU_7tWDGpoM/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EXbWZIN0QZM/UoOULEsWAwI/AAAAAAAAGUI/jU_7tWDGpoM/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-11.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't really know, but I think this mocked-up like a traditional medical shop. All manner of sticks and berries and dried fruits claiming to cure just about anything. If your into this kind of thing, you can still find traditional medicine markets pretty much in any regular market.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bvn7YRGIyYE/UoOUPDgKN_I/AAAAAAAAGUo/qrw8n-2Q7Mk/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bvn7YRGIyYE/UoOUPDgKN_I/AAAAAAAAGUo/qrw8n-2Q7Mk/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Korea's huge on statues, they're just everywhere. These guys had seen better days.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T-eZw70BCGo/UoOUSKT6-JI/AAAAAAAAGVA/BHaIiR-eXy8/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-T-eZw70BCGo/UoOUSKT6-JI/AAAAAAAAGVA/BHaIiR-eXy8/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-8.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">You could even try on some traditional shoes. Sara thought she could use a pair of these.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RXP8slf_jl0/UoOUQXcKt8I/AAAAAAAAGU0/vZMT838pWLQ/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RXP8slf_jl0/UoOUQXcKt8I/AAAAAAAAGU0/vZMT838pWLQ/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-9.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I have no idea where this cable car came from. I've never seen anything to indicate that Korea had cable cars. Maybe it was an early subway car.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_F36LxMhA/UoOUIjZpVTI/AAAAAAAAGT4/9zqBmW3UkZY/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_F36LxMhA/UoOUIjZpVTI/AAAAAAAAGT4/9zqBmW3UkZY/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-13.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here's pretty much the only reason I think this thing is from the 1970's, this movie poster. How many of these could still be around? Star Wars poster with Hangul? </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZF5FgDIQ7Ao/UoOUIkwt0fI/AAAAAAAAGT8/v58SZkzq_EU/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZF5FgDIQ7Ao/UoOUIkwt0fI/AAAAAAAAGT8/v58SZkzq_EU/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-14.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">If it weren't for all the North Face stuff, you wouldn't know this was a fake town. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5M5Vcs-idMc/UoOULRPeE6I/AAAAAAAAGUM/BWA75G4_izw/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5M5Vcs-idMc/UoOULRPeE6I/AAAAAAAAGUM/BWA75G4_izw/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-15.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Of course there are statues of the Chinese Zodiac.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ht7kKbapECs/UoOUMBsEfUI/AAAAAAAAGUc/2z8bGe4UDYo/s1600/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ht7kKbapECs/UoOUMBsEfUI/AAAAAAAAGUc/2z8bGe4UDYo/s640/Gyeongbukgung+Royal+Palace-17.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A view of one of the palace buildings.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RlNGHWE9xtU/UomGOVAbCKI/AAAAAAAAGWQ/mXmYD1f8lM4/s1600/Gyeongbukgun+Palace+Seoul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RlNGHWE9xtU/UomGOVAbCKI/AAAAAAAAGWQ/mXmYD1f8lM4/s640/Gyeongbukgun+Palace+Seoul.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is from the city surrounding the temple. The whole road walking down from Bukchon has a view of the palace. If the weather's not too horrible, it's a great place for a walk.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">This is almost it for Seoul. I might have one post left, but I'm about ready to move on to Fall here in Pohang. Sadly, winter's coming and I don't know how much I'll be outside, pretty soon this blog will just be pictures of our dog. </span></div>
zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-73471446552969630852013-11-20T20:09:00.002-08:002013-11-21T20:32:39.468-08:00Bongeunsa: Templeing Gangnam Style<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sometimes when you're wandering the labyrinthine shopping malls and department stores of Gagnam, gorging yourself on cheese and guzzling eight dollar cups of coffee, trying to choose between the dozens of plastic surgeons that fill block after block, you need some fresh air. You need a chance to step outside the thick, heavy, uncirculated air of wherever you've decided to spend a ludicrous amount of money and take a breath. Just across the street from COEX, one of the most labyrinthine of all shopping malls in the world, rests Bongeunsa Temple. Surrounded on all sides by apartments and gray buildings, Bongeunsa is a quiet spot to take a break. To think about whether or not you really need that $35,000 television, or that $40,000 car you can buy in the mall. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Founded at the end of eighth century(!), Bongeunsa has seen the city grow up around it. Today it's one of Korea's most important Buddhist temples and a place for tourists and locals to come and pray, take a break, and try to find some serenity in all of Seoul's neon madness. The grounds are surprisingly large, we spent an hour walking around and taking pictures, hoping that the rain wouldn't start to fall and push us back underground into the tunnels of COEX. Because of the bad weather there were only a few dozen other people there, and we got a chance to take in some of fall's colors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Because the sky was a kind of blanket gray with little to no texture, and because I'm trying some new techniques, I decided to just go crazy with these pictures and throw a bunch of textures on top of them. I did all of this on Pixlr.com, an awesome browser based photo-editor. It's a process with a steep learning curve, but with some pretty cool results once you get a handle on it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For more info on Bongeunsa, check out <a href="http://www.bongeunsa.org/eng/info/history.asp">Bonguensa.org</a>, which has a great English language version of the site.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For more info on using textures in your photography, check out <a href="http://frenchkisstextures.com/tutorials/using-textures/quick-start-texture-tutorial-with-free-texture-and-photo-downloads/">Frenchkisstextures.com</a>, a great place to get started.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xUdqDzLFkOk/Uozl3AeUbhI/AAAAAAAAGYw/oeNveDMyJrg/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam-stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xUdqDzLFkOk/Uozl3AeUbhI/AAAAAAAAGYw/oeNveDMyJrg/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam-stars.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I imagine that a hundred years ago this place would have been like most of the temples in Korea, surrounded by fields, a view of the mountains, a quiet peaceful place. Now it's apartments, hotels, and office buildings. Also, if you're looking for a great hotel in Gangnam, the Park Hyatt is pretty nice.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A0mQfHyCV3U/UozlzMstPjI/AAAAAAAAGYI/uY00pUO49PY/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A0mQfHyCV3U/UozlzMstPjI/AAAAAAAAGYI/uY00pUO49PY/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+2.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">I'm really shy about taking peoples photos, so I'm starting slow, taking pictures when people aren't looking.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-46R2a3Bi2to/UozlwpLXuxI/AAAAAAAAGXo/t7xr1_XtnRM/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Blue+Sky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-46R2a3Bi2to/UozlwpLXuxI/AAAAAAAAGXo/t7xr1_XtnRM/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Blue+Sky.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="422" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Bongenunsa's a beautiful spot, running water, vibrant colors, a great job's been done by the city to incorporate it into everything around it.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l0gn945_lEw/Uozlv25vosI/AAAAAAAAGXg/6AL8KQHbrlE/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-l0gn945_lEw/Uozlv25vosI/AAAAAAAAGXg/6AL8KQHbrlE/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Door.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="422" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These temples always have great doors, but this one was particularly massive. Three meters high, at least, with a great painting.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2RVLQp5TiVc/Uozlx-JBZoI/AAAAAAAAGX8/4mZMxUxIsls/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Lantern.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2RVLQp5TiVc/Uozlx-JBZoI/AAAAAAAAGX8/4mZMxUxIsls/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Lantern.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Anytime you can get to a lantern festival at a temple is really cool. All the paper lanterns, all the colors, a great chance to take some photographs.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ui1OuvLEW9k/Uozl1dkSC4I/AAAAAAAAGYY/VAzzyPMJDak/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+sky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ui1OuvLEW9k/Uozl1dkSC4I/AAAAAAAAGYY/VAzzyPMJDak/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+sky.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Park Hyatt's probably two kilometers away, but this statue's so big we could see it from our room. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D9Bh4aF-smI/Uozoty7xEUI/AAAAAAAAGY8/_TkJqkXO2RQ/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Building.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D9Bh4aF-smI/Uozoty7xEUI/AAAAAAAAGY8/_TkJqkXO2RQ/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Building.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There were a lot of little buildings like this one, and Sara says that each one had it's own special purpose. Some buildings were for financial prosperity, some for health. By far the busiest was the building for fertility.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gHH5KoKbGwM/Uozl0gzQFaI/AAAAAAAAGYU/fASHeIUCkIg/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gHH5KoKbGwM/Uozl0gzQFaI/AAAAAAAAGYU/fASHeIUCkIg/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+5.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The statues were really impressive, the lions, the buddhas. Very cool.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C0KP2WrYLjQ/Uozl0Hi_hkI/AAAAAAAAGYM/7q3iVbnzE-s/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C0KP2WrYLjQ/Uozl0Hi_hkI/AAAAAAAAGYM/7q3iVbnzE-s/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gangnam+Texture+4.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A little path runs behind the temple and gives a pretty good view of Gangnam and COEX. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uY7V494IY3g/UozlwEckkYI/AAAAAAAAGXk/ux6PQ_aTt3o/s1600/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gagnam+Texture+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uY7V494IY3g/UozlwEckkYI/AAAAAAAAGXk/ux6PQ_aTt3o/s640/Bongeunsa+Temple+Gagnam+Texture+3.jpg" title="Bongeunsa Temple Gangnam" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is one of my favorite bell towers. It was really old and had a ton of texture in the wood. And a sign that said, "Don't ring this bell."</span><br /><br /><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Gangnam's a great neighborhood to stay in if you're only in town for a weekend. There's tons to eat and tons to do. I don't think I'd ever move to Seoul, but if I did, I'd like to be in Gangnam.</span></div>
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<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029073909780595044.post-84253817291469347472013-11-14T19:32:00.001-08:002013-11-14T19:39:02.946-08:00Bukchon Hanok Village<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Korea's turn to modernity is a relatively young move. In 1950 the now ultra-posh Gagnam was not much more than rice fields. During the seventies and eighties the city exploded: high-rises, skyscrapers, an influx of people, an influx of cars, the 20th century. This period of massive growth was marked by a desire, and a need, to repurpose nearly every bit of land in order to accommodate all the growth. Rice fields were filled in, buildings torn down, houses knocked over. History and the preservation of the past was an idea that was conceded in the name of record growth and expansion. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Today, the city of Seoul and the country of South Korea finally have the time, money, and foresight to put into protecting some of Seoul's cultural gems. Near the top of that list is Bukchon Hanok Village. A residential area dating back six hundred years to the Joseon Dynasty, the neighborhood has seen an impressive rise in tourists over the last five years, and in response, an impressive commitment from the Seoul government to maintain and protect one of the cities greatest connections to it's more traditional past.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">A stroll up and down the streets today reveals very few original homes. The preservation of the neighborhood is really more about the sense, the feeling, the style, in which people used to live. New construction is actually continuing, as it's become fashionable to own a hanok, if not live in it. The neighborhood is small, compact, and easily walked in an hour or two. Surrounded by a city which nearly consumed it, Seoul's Buckchon Hanok Village sits against the backdrop of the 21st century as a striking, and rare, reminder of Seoul's not-too-distant past. As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h2hNr29j5L0/UoORjs_0C9I/AAAAAAAAGRU/uIhcc-ynWmg/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h2hNr29j5L0/UoORjs_0C9I/AAAAAAAAGRU/uIhcc-ynWmg/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+2.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Nearly every spot in the neighborhood is surrounded by buildings, apartments, Seoul Tower, constant reminders of where you really are. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OeXzf633Dw0/UoORfKB_7mI/AAAAAAAAGQ8/Kao2qqJwDNo/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OeXzf633Dw0/UoORfKB_7mI/AAAAAAAAGQ8/Kao2qqJwDNo/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+3.jpg" width="418" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">There are a number of museums and cultural exhibits hidden in the alleys of the neighborhood. One is the Korean traditional knot making workshop, where you can buy yourself some traditional Korean crafts.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d-sRWzirbUU/UoORiBnFfKI/AAAAAAAAGRM/YorOh8rhQ5I/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">In 2006 the number of visitors to the area hovered around 10,000 annually. In 2013, the number is more like 600,000. The word's out on this place.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CQp43XDUIj4/UoORoiSEhFI/AAAAAAAAGRs/zbscD9byZjU/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CQp43XDUIj4/UoORoiSEhFI/AAAAAAAAGRs/zbscD9byZjU/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+6.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Most of the courtyards and homes are privately owned and off-limits. A few, like this one, are open for pictures and craft-making.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UcAMQd6fkSo/UoORgwvnNiI/AAAAAAAAGRE/3pFd7pSSMAQ/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UcAMQd6fkSo/UoORgwvnNiI/AAAAAAAAGRE/3pFd7pSSMAQ/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+10.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">A young couple sits and paints in the traditional style. They were very quiet and very serious about their work. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tXO0GHSnPKo/UoORs2CZmjI/AAAAAAAAGR8/rOQx0OuFQlI/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tXO0GHSnPKo/UoORs2CZmjI/AAAAAAAAGR8/rOQx0OuFQlI/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul-5.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Tea, everywhere tea. Most of the exhibits/museums have an entrance fee, and some of them come with free tea. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">More of the traditional style painting.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jwa4-u_s0Bw/UoORlFzS8nI/AAAAAAAAGRc/GSH2U1AFBUU/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jwa4-u_s0Bw/UoORlFzS8nI/AAAAAAAAGRc/GSH2U1AFBUU/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+7.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">One of the newer additions. The debates about the direction of the area continue. Land developers, real estate holders, the city government, everybody sees a chance to<a href="http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2013/05/116_135424.html"> make some money.</a> The land is right in the center of northern Seoul, so undoubtedly extremely valuable. Will this area even be here in 50 years? Tough to say.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oQ0zR5HyuAU/UoORoNClB9I/AAAAAAAAGRk/kER_aOYvOBI/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oQ0zR5HyuAU/UoORoNClB9I/AAAAAAAAGRk/kER_aOYvOBI/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+8.jpg" width="470" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The roofs are really the most distinct feature and a couple of small restaurants and teashops offer some great views over the neighborhood.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4y4YTSgrp_8/UoORt81UkBI/AAAAAAAAGSE/LKS1GlRMDq8/s1600/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+Text+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="422" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4y4YTSgrp_8/UoORt81UkBI/AAAAAAAAGSE/LKS1GlRMDq8/s640/Bukchon+Hanok+Village+Seoul+Text+1.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">All the fall colors were on full display during our trip. If you're planning to travel to Seoul, fall is by far the best time to come.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">For more information check out:</span></div>
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<a href="http://discoveringkorea.com/081028/seoul-bukchon-hanok-village/"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Discovering Korea's informative post.</span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">or</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=561382">VisitKorea.com's page</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://openarchive.icomos.org/1293/1/IV-2-Article4_Lee.pdf"><span style="font-size: x-large;">And if you want the nuts and bolts of the regeneration project, here's a PDF outlining the initial goals of the project and the outcomes. An interesting read if you're into this kind of thing.</span></a></div>
<br />zthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15733321979676923289noreply@blogger.com2