Extras, Extras!

Here are just some of the last few pictures from the first memory card dump. Nothing special or specific, just some things I was interested in enough to take a snapshot of. Remember to click on the photo for a bigger version if you so desire. I hope you like them.


The campus where I work is pretty nice. It is set up against some hills. There is also a lot of space compared to the last place I worked. Plenty of room for Frisbee. Now if I can just find someone to play with. Here are a few sculptures in front of the Art and Physical Education department.


Behind the art department building are these, a bunch of student projects that have no where to go. It looks like a few of them have been there for a while. It makes for an interesting crowd.


Several of the individuals in the crowd.


Maybe she was stretching for the finish line or something.


Another face in the crowd. She has a nice expression.


There are even a couple of children there.


Some of the sculptures are a little less finished than others. And no, the one on the left is not flipping me off.


In the hills up behind campus is some nice forested area. And, as can be found in any hills in Korea, there are some graves. Koreans are only recently burying their dead in graveyards due to space constraints. Traditionally Koreans chose a gravesite based on their own version of mortuary feng sui. I have heard that the best spot is on a hill with a view of the valley with some water somewhere in the view, especially running water. Yes, that guy is taking a nap against the grave mound.


The hills can be colorful in the fall.


Just some totems on campus.


Just outside of town, situated on top of a hill, is what is left of what used to be a small amusement park. Muryohng Land. This Ferris wheel was the biggest thing left, but it too has since been removed.


There is nothing sadder than a forgotten amusement park and Ferris wheel.


If only I could have made it work ...


... this would have been the view from the wheel. Well, the bottom of the wheel anyway.


Here is what apparently was a slide. You would place some sort of seat down, sit on it and slide down to the bottom.


This is a closer view of what you slide on. A bunch of plastic golf balls set in some kind of egg carton like frame work. The frame is a bit springy so the golf balls do spin a bit.


These are some of the buildings left standing. That is the ticket "maypyoso" office to the right.


If you look back at that expansive view, you can just see the edge of a river. Follow the river around to the right, and you get to here.


While not actually part of Muryohng Land, this small park obviously benefited from the amusement park customers. Now the customers are few and far between.


It is still a nice place to visit for a picnic. Here a spring comes directly out of the rock wall.


In the other direction along the river, in a completely different area, is this.


If you change angles and look into the sun, the color changes dramatically.


An individual portrait ...


... and an individual walking through the field.


Parts of the river have a lot of algae, probably due to all the field fertilization, but the water is still very clear. Kind of pretty, isn't it?


In a small village are some persimmons drying in the sun.


They tie them up like this to make it easier to dry them. The Korean name is gotgam 곶감.


These have a bit of time left to dry. Dried persimmons are pretty good. Like a giant raisin only a lot stickier and a lot sweeter.


Something else drying in the sun. This is the beginnings of 된장 dwenjang (different spellings available). Basically it is fermented soybean paste. Here the piles of paste are formed into blocks, rounds in this case, and left to dry to preserve them for later.


Later these rounds are reconstituted and allowed to ferment a little more before using the paste in soups and stews. The smell is strong, and it is an acquired taste, but it is generally pretty good. Yes, those are flies on the block. Hey, the flies are nothing to worry about by the time it is finally cooked. The cooking usually, but not always, destroys the aflatoxin in the homemade varieties, too.


Still more things drying in the sun. Jotap-dong ocheung jeontap 조탑동 5층 전탑. This particular pagoda has been rebuilt or repaired a couple of times, but it still retains some of it's original look.


An old house with the family tablets shrine in the back.


Heading to the field ...


... where grandma is knocking the soybeans off the dried stalks.


The colors can really be nice out away from dust of the cities.


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Again, change the angle with the sun and you get something completely different.

Well, that is all for this time. For the next batch of photos I will take them from the most recent dump of the memory card. It is a 1 Gig memory card, so those photos are still a few months old or so. If you liked anything this time, feel free to leave a comment.

Hahoe Village and Environs

Hahoe village, 하회마을, is about an 30 minutes or so outside of Andong, situated along a bend in the Naktong river. The name 'Hahoe' is derived from the shape of the river. 'Hahoe' means winding river, circle water, or spinning river depending which translation you get. The whole village is designated as important Korean national folk material. The village is actually a living cultural artifact. The houses have been preserved, as best as possible, in their original state, or have been rebuilt or renovated in the traditional style. These days though, many of the houses have been converted from family dwellings into homestays, shops, or restaurants. If you look beyond the trinkets and consumerism, there is still a bit of charm in the old houses and the surroundings.



Hahoe village is also famous for another cultural item. A series of traditional mask dances, or plays. The photos I have posted this time mostly focus on a few of the buildings and some of the surrounding scenery and area. If you want some more detailed photos of the architecture, you can go here. Remember, you can click on my photos to see a larger version. I hope you like them. Leave a comment if you want.



The village was founded by the Pungsan Ryu family, and their family house is still there. Not the Ryu home, but here is a typical upper class house. This photo was made from two pictures stitched together to show the full house structure.


Here is another house of a slightly different style.



A wall which makes up the narrow streets of the village.



As you can see, these photos were taken in fall. Just a pumpkin ripening on a roof.



Many older villages were built around, or have, an old village tree that is both representative of the village and serve as a gathering place. Occasionally, in time, these trees become shamanistic sites. All the papers you see tied to the rope around this tree are wishes or prayers of people visiting the village. An interesting side note, I heard that during the occupation of Korea by Japan, the Japanese would sometimes chop down these large trees in an effort to demoralize the local population.



This 'totem' representing a Korean scholar or upper class individual is hollow. If you put your hand in the mouth something is supposed to happen to you- good luck, long life, or some such thing like that.



The gate to a particularly large family compound.



Here is another house. The chimney is for the under floor heating system common throughout Korea in old and modern houses and apartments, though these days the heat comes from water from a gas-fired boiler instead of wood.



These are the clay jars in which Koreans traditionally (and even now) store their various kimchees and other foodstuffs. In this case, these jars contain 'shikhye', a traditional sweetened rice drink.



The village is nearly surrounded by the Naktong river. One portion of the opposite bank is a large cliff face that looks back over the sand banks of the village. This photo is another composite.



The wide river, hills in the distance, and part of the village sand banks.



On the village side of the river, above the sand banks, is a nice grove of tall pine trees.



One more shot of Hahoe village. This is just the roof feature on a gate to a family compound.



I saw this old man while waiting for the bus to Andong. I figured since he wearing a more traditional outfit, and I am going to a traditional village, the photos would go together.



Just outside the entrance to Hahoe village a bit is a place that makes some traditional, and not so traditional, village totems.



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Quite a pair!



Perhaps this one is supposed to represent the village idiot or something.

If I was prudish I might label the next two photos as for adults only, but I am pretty liberal, and after all, they are just pieces of wood.

I am pretty sure this is not the traditional village 'totem'.



Not only the head, but the nose too. And he seems happy about it.



More proof that these pictures were taken in fall. This is the gingko tree. The leaves are deep green in summer and bright yellow when fall arrives.



Along the way to Hahoe, just outside another small town, is this small building. It was built by an aristocrat who came back to the countryside for a little peace and quiet. He even had the pond built in front.



It looks like a really nice place to contemplate life, if only the road out front didn't exist.



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Another door shot.



Along the road in front.



Further down the road.



Just a few sunset shots taken near Hahoe.



I can't decide which of these two sunset shots I like better. Originally I liked the second one, but now I am thinking this one.



I still can't decide. Which one do you like?