(Posting 2 of 2) All that Skate!

So once again this is posting 2 of 2 for this week since I couldn't post last week due to my hospital visit (which you can read more about in posting 1 of 2) :)

All that Skate was a fantastic skating performance with Kim Yuna and her friends (if you don't know about Kim Yuna she is Korea's most famous olympic and world skater).

There were 2 acts divided by a 20 min intermission and there were some class acts and wonderful displays of skating!

I got some pictures and videos if you have the time to look. :)

Oh... here is the official web site program:

http://www.allthatskate.com/2011Summer/eng/program/program.php

That's all for this week. I am having a great public holiday today so i hope you are having a good time today and this week too! See you next time!

(Posting 1 of 2) Hospital, Bank of Korea Coin Museum & Drawing Show

This week I am going to post twice, so this is post 1 of 2...

So last week you may have noticed that I posted nothing... well that was due to me being admitted to hospital for emergency appendectomy. I got sick on Sunday night (thought it was food poisoning) then went to teach on Monday morning (impossible) and then was taken to the hospital for a check up by my friend and immediately subjected to a series of tests and 3 hours later I was being cut up. I got out Thursday afternoon and have still to get my stitches out.

I seem to have lost a lot of weight too :(

So here is last weeks posting!

Bank of Korea Coin Museum:

What dawned on me when I went here was that all things related to coins are in about 100m of each other just on the outskirts of myeong dong right next to the big shinshegae mall. The coin shop is across the road, the coin mall is just underground and the museum is just across the street!

So for you coin buffs... be that probably not many... or just those interested in museums this is a great one to visit. It has coins 9as you would expect) from all over the world, gold, silver and notes. It shows you the process of how paper and coin currency is made, shows you a mock up of a money vault and the kids can have fun rubbing coins or pressing coins in that activity area.

I took some pictures and they are usually worth 1000 words so I will let them speak for me :)

(A full slideshow will follow as well)

Drawing show

Well this was just outside Hywha station... well to the right and across the street.

I was expecting just what it said... a drawing show... and to be honest I was a little disappointed as there was little actual drawing and a lot of mucking around and comedy. I would have preferred to see some fantastic drawing and creative styles. I would probably give the show a generous 5/10 so if you have nothing else to do go and see it.

Pictures:

Full slide show:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66276856@N07/sets/72157627414752738/show

So that was last week... if you want to see what I did this weekend check out post 2 of 2 :)

Kangwon Land

Wow! I finally had some kind of holiday! Mid-day Friday I took the train to Kangwon Land which is a set of hotel complexes built around a mountain which is great for skiing in the winter and I believe the only casino that Korean nationals can gamble at.

There is still a lot of construction going on there with is seems like a few new hotels going up. The place is still quite amazing with big grounds and all the things you would expect of a big casino hotel.

Here are the official links:

http://visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=266841

High 1 Resort (Where we stayed)

http://www.high1.com/Hhome/main.high1

We went to a show in the theater which by all observation looked like a modern form of Swan Lake which was performed by a Russian group. Then we went outside to see the water, light and fireworks show which I managed to capture 90% of on my camera... I am determined now to get a bigger memory card :/

So I took some photo's... Oh and unfortunately I didn't get this but the road down from the mountain has a series of grooves in it and when a car drives down the road the tires going over the grooves plays a song :)

** Update **

Just found this on Youtube:

Anyway I might catch it if I go back in winter for some snow stuff :)

Here are the photos and video:

Until next week have a fantastic time! :)

Boryeong Mud Festival 2011 & Toy Museum Sincheon

Saturday was the famous Boryeong Mud Festival... which if you didn't know occurs annually this time of year about 3 hours south of Seoul and is extremely popular with foreigners.

I went on the second weekend so it wasn't as busy as the previous weekend but there were still a lot of people about all caked in mud!

I thought that the place had mud flats but to my surprise the mud is all brought in especially for the event and the beach is all sand.

The sea was also crowded with floating tubes and banana boats being towed along by jet ski's.

It was excellent.. I hadn't been in the ocean for over a year so it was a treat for me!

We also rented a room for 3 hours and all it cost was 30,000w just for the convenience of having somewhere to put our bags.

Anyway here are some pictures for you to look at and a quick video of some of the landscape on the journey back by train.

I also discovered this cool toy museum just across the road a bit from where I live. It has lots of old toys and some for sale too! Take a look:

Here is the official website and directions:

http://www.pollalla.com/index.php?pass=1&pgurl=shop/etc_infocp

Well that's almost it for this week and more excitement for next week.. maybe a late posting as well as I have 2 days off :)

Have a fantastic week and I will leave you with this:

Lotte Shooting Range, The Science of Aliens & Aiins World

Tuesday, that's right Tuesday... I had the afternoon off so what better way to spend it than shooting a hand gun!

Lotte World in Jamsil has a shooting range on the lower floor next to the ice skating hire place.

As far as I can see its only for hand guns but there is quite a selection to choose from.

The cost is 30,000w for 10 rounds.

I chose the Glock 45 and blazed away with that. I was actually surprised by the weight of the kick of this thing! It is a pretty powerful hand cannon but super cool to use. This was the first time I have used a pistol but I shot ok with it.

Here is the video... a little long at the start with the safety drill but you do get to see the action :)

Here is the result:

a 99... one a little wide, a little high and a couple a little low.

Here are the gun options and details:

Saturday - The Science of Aliens... I cannot find anything on the web about this in Seoul so I cant give you the address... but I am sure this is close to Kunkuk University.

So this cost 13,000w per person and I really think this is a little overpriced when you compare it to other things I have been to. There is a little museum display of old movie memorabilia, an alien autopsy area with a rubber alien, a rubber floor which you can pretend is the moon, a science area for wildlife and planets and a make believe planet, an area to send a message into space and a mission impossible laser obstacle course oh and also a movie room... that's it nothing mindbogglingly exciting... but here are some photo's:

And a slide show:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/64219328@N07/sets/72157627089392835/show/

From there it was onto Aiins World:

http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264491

10,000w per person - worth it!

Probably it would be a good idea to go when the rainy season is over and not in a thunderstorm...

So this place has many of the famous building from around the world which you can visit all in one day! Some of these buildings are really impressive especially when you see the area set out for the pyramids which is quite large. Its a fantastic place to visit and take pictures and since pictures can tell a thousand words....

Slide show:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/64219328@N07/sets/72157627214064364/show/

Well that's all for this week. I am fully booked out until October so I will see you back next week with something else interesting :)

Have an excellent week!

Rain

Today's post is going to be more of a review post than normal.

Last night I went to Cirque Eloize - Rain. Unfortunately its run in Seoul has come to an end (10th of July 2011).

This happens to be the only show I would not "recommend" going to but I would insist that you must go and see it. If you get a chance to see either this show or this performance group sometime in the future you have to go and see them!

This had to be the most entertaining and distracting show I have ever seen. Calling this a circus is a little misleading. This is not like the Chinese circus or any death defying spectacles of the like. This is more art in motion. There are amazing feats of strength, acrobatics and flexibility all given an early 19th century French feel. The male and female cast perform magically showcasing a truly unique and captivating experience.

If you are questioning the art, cirque fusion I can give you an example. An angel is narrating a story under a piano that is suspended from the ceiling as two men roll a box across the stage. Or perhaps the scene where boots rain down from the ceiling onto the stage like rain... This gives the show a very vividly visual aspect and mixed with the stunning performances leads to a wonderful and satisfying experience that takes the mind on a fantastic voyage.

Some of the highlights for me were the "curtain acrobatic dance", The actual rain at the end of the show that must have lasted for 10 minutes or so... and the box contortions or flexability show.

Well thats enough talk... I will let the pictures and video tell the rest of the tale. Here is the official website, keep an eye out for dates after August they might be coming to a town near you :)

http://www.cirque-eloize.com/en/shows/rain/calendar

That's all for this week. Oh except for the Techno Mart building shaking which I happened to walk through as it seems that the idea of closing a building which potentially could collapse escaped the authorities that day...

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/07/06/2011070600847.html

So have a fantastic week and see you again soon!