Korea / China - Day 6

Today was a rest day after the crazy night so we slept in until 10 AM and then headed to downtown Seoul for some lunch and a little shopping.  After that it was off to the airport to fly to Shanghai to meet up with the rest of the LGO class for International Plant Trek (IPT).

Once we landed in Shanghai we elected to take the mag train because you don’t often get a chance to ride a train that floats on the air.  It was totally worth it.  The train only went 300 km/hr but it felt very different than the land train we were just on in Korea which also went 300 km/hr.  The best part was the turns…you could really feel and see the train lean into the embankments.

After the mag train we hopped in a taxi and even though we had the address printed on a paper in English and Chinese we were taken to the wrong hotel.  Luckily one of us had a Blackberry so we picked up the hotel wifi, discovered that we were 1 km away from our hotel, and then walked to our hotel.  It turns out that we were very lucky that we were so close to our hotel…because the hotel they took us to is a chain that is all over Shanghai…so they could have taken us to any hotel in that chain (we passed another of the wrong hotels on the walk to our hotel).

After we got to the hotel we went out for a drink with a CLFM student that one of knew and then headed to bed so we could get up early to explore Shanghai.

Korea - Day 5

Today was pretty darn cool!  We took a tour to the DMZ between North and South Korea.  South Korea (and I hear North Korea to some extent) has turned the DMZ into a touristy area to try to re-enforce to the world that they are a stable and safe place to visit and do business.  It was interesting too because on numerous occasions the DMZ was talked about as a peaceful compromise and a step on the road to unification between the two Koreas.  It will be interesting to see how that pans out over the years.

Anywho, the tour began, as always, on a bus.  We started with a forty-five minute ride to the border to get a look at the typical border (fences with a long unoccupied area, aside from farms, in the middle).  The first area had a good lookout area with free telescopes as well as some memorials from the war/armistice such as the bullet-ridden train and the freedom bridge (where prisoners walked across after they were exchanged).

Next we headed to the underground tunnels.  In the 1970’s North Korea attempted to dig tunnels across the border toward Seoul.  A number of attempts were made and at least four tunnels were discovered by the South Koreans.  We visited the third tunnel which was the tunnel closest to Seoul.  The tunnels were interesting to see and there were some shenanigans going on with the tunnels.  The North Koreans deny(ied?) that dug the tunnels so the South Korean tour goes out of the way to prove that it was dug by the North.  They have spray painted all of the dynamite holes (which are pointing inward for someone digging from the north).  Next, the tunnel also shows how it slopes toward North Korea, which allows any water buildup to be removed from the North Korean side.  Finally, the walls of some of the tunnel are covered in a thin layer of charcoal and the North uses this to claim that maybe the tunnel is naturally forming so the South points out that the mountain is made up almost entirely of quartz…so yeah.  It is funny.

Next we headed to a fake train station.  The train station was built so that South Korea could connect to a railroad (trans-Siberian railroad) that will stretch across Asia and Europe all the way to Spain.  Naturally the track in the north is not complete, but the South is ready.  They also had fake passport stamps here so you could imagine that you would use the train station to go into North Korea.  It was all sort of weird.

• Top left: A train station with no trains.
• Top middle: You could not cross the yellow line and take a picture across the border.
• Bottom left: Anuj and Avni ready to go into the tunnel.
• Bottom middle: A ledge to a lake allowed me to be the fifth stone statue.
• Top right: Human MIT!
• Middle right: Joonhaeng had to leave so we were sad (we’re in the missing-man-hug-formation).

At this point we had to split off from Joonhaeng because we were going up to the border and he was not allowed there.  I don’t know how to describe the border other than to say that you could feel the tension in the air.  All the way up the mountain (where the armistice building is) we were instructed about how we could not stand, point, take pictures, etc. while on the bus or once we got off the bus.  We were escorted by an armed guard on our bus and our bus was escorted by armed guards in a jeep.  Once we go to the border we had to wait for them to change the flag in the building that is on either side of the border because the North Korean tour had just left.

• Top right: South Koreans watching the border 25 feet away.  The stand at an angle to minimize the exposure of their bodies.
• Bottom left: The microphones show the line that is the border between the two countries while we stood inside building that is a shared space between the two countries.
• Top middle: Me standing as far into North Korea (yes, I am technically in North Korea at that moment) as I am allowed to go.
• Bottom middle: A North Korean standing guard.

After the DMZ it was time for our final dinner in Korea followed by some hard-core Karaoke.   Joonhaeng took us to an amazing 5-star restaurant with traditional performances (see video).  Next we went to a very classy Karaoke room (Korean’s prefer personal rooms to open bars) with an amazing view of Seoul.  This went well into the night to top off an amazing week in Korea.  Great thanks to Joonhaeng for hosting all of us.

From 3-18-10 DMZ

From 3-18-10 DMZ

From 3-18-10 DMZ

From 3-18-10 DMZ

Korea - Day 4

Day four was all about visiting Hyundai heavy industries.  For those who do not know (which included myself before this trip) there are multiple Hyundai companies.  Hyundai was founded by Chung Ju-yung and some of the other parts which you may know (such as the car branch) are actually run by members of the founder's extended family and are not connected to the original company.  The Hyundai that we visited is the Heavy Industries company which means incredibly large ships.  Once again, because Joonhaeng is a total pimp, we were picked up in a first class bus.

• Top left: I am amazed at how awesome our bus is.
• Top right: Hyundai has a department store?  This is old-school business where the company runs an entire town to support their enormous factory.
• Bottom right: Also a Hyundai hotel.

After arriving in a fancy dining hall (which we later learned is typically only used for VIPs) we were treated to a 7-course meal that was pretty much the fanciest meal I’ve ever had while we chatted with an MIT alum (who was in charge of all R&D at Hyundai and a director).  We could not take any pictures inside the facility but I can tell you we were all impressed.  The sheer size of these ships and engines were unbelievable.  The cam-shaft for the diesel engine must have been 15 meters tall and 6 meters wide.  I wish I could say more about the factory but we really got more of an executive level tour than the detailed tour we typically take with LGO.  This was mostly due to our time constraint but it really did not allow for us to ask detailed questions about how they do operations.

• A view of the factory from the luxurious building where we had lunch
  

After a long bus and train ride back to Seoul we discovered that it was snowing.  Luckily this did not prevent us from having Korean BBQ (where you cook your own food over coals at your table) followed by shenanigans at the tent-bar.  The highlight of the tent-bar was the group eating octopus that was still wiggling as people ate it.

• Bottom middle-right: Joonhaeng is a master chef.
  

From 3-17-10 Ulsan and Seoul Korea

Korea - Day 3

Our third day started with a train ride south.  The train was traveling at or above 300 km/hr and felt smooth as silk.  Impressive!  After the train we again loaded onto a small bus.  This one was butterfly themed

• Bottom middle: Hector taking a picture of the train station
• Bottom right: Butterfly in the sky, I can go twice as high.  Take a look, its in a book.  A reading rainbow...do you remember that show?

We took the bus to Gyeongju for some historical learnin’.  We started at the National museum for a look at some archeological finds from different eras in Korea.  My favorite thing was the model of the ancient city and the model to show how they cast these enormous bells for the Buddhist temples.

• Top middle-left: You can see how they would pour boiling metal into a bell shaped hole in the ground
• Middle right: A large model of the historical city (which was a planned city with straight roads).  Amazing!

Next we headed to the burial grounds of the kings from the Silla dynasty (53 BC to 935 AD).  We met some people who are ancestors of these kings and each person is responsible for maintaining a burial mound.  Someone else got a picture of us with a couple of these guys, but I don’t have that picture yet.

• Middle right: Korean's love strange cartoon figures...and we love to make human MITs...so its perfect.
• Bottom right: Descendants of the Silla dynasty.
  

Then we headed to lunch!  This lunch was fun because it was a tiny little shack (they had a squatty potty) with delicious food.  Definitely not an American tourist place.

Next we bussed up some crazy mountain roads (no guardrails) to one of Korea’s most famous Buddhist temples.

• Everybody ring the bell and make a wish!
  

We finished the site seeing by visiting another temple complex that was quite large.  There were just too many temples to take pictures of.

• Top middle-right: Chris Lin doing shadow puppets
• Top right: Said shadow puppets
  

After that we checked into our hotel and then made our way to dinner for duck stuffed inside of pumpkin (I was able to get just duck).  After dinner we went to a traditional Korean spa where we all got oversized clothes so we could sit in boy/girl spas.  We all learned that the two spa temperatures that are available are really hot and try not to pass out as you walk hot.  After a relaxing spa visit we headed back to our resort.  The resort we were staying at had a 24-hour convenient store and a karaoke bar that was open late…so we proceeded into karaoke which went long into the night.

• Top middle: My voice hurt from singing so poorly
  

Korea - Day 2

After free breakfast in the executive lounge (did I mention that Joonhaeng is a pimp) we piled into a small bus for a tour of Seoul.

Many of the tourist areas in Seoul are closed on Mondays so our choices were limited, but we made out OK.  Unfortunately it was raining in the morning so we all got a little wet.  We started out in the market area looking for a tea shop, but it was too early in the morning so we took off.

Then we wandered some of the historical looking buildings (most of the city was destroyed in the war but they maintain the authentic look of some of the residences in this particular neighborhood).

Our next stop was the Korean President's house (like our White House).  This merited a human MIT.

We returned to the market for tea and I re-confirmed that I do NOT like tea.

After that we went to lunch at a quaint little dumpling house.  We had to sit on the floor, but it was quite nice because the floors used the Korean heating system (I don’t know how they heat the floors now-a-days but years ago they used charcoal and stones under the floor which kept smoke out of the palaces and helped to maintain them).

After lunch we headed to the main palace of the Joseon dynasty (1392 to 1910).  Most of the palace was destroyed by the Japanese in 1592 and 1910 but the Koreans have restored parts of it.

Then we headed to downtown Seoul to check out the buildings and see the river walk.

• Bottom right: Stones across the water clearly merits a human MIT.
• Middle: We apparently took too long to take our MIT picture.
• Bottom left: Flags of all of the countries that assisted South Korea in the Korean war.

After the downtown area we headed up to the Seoul Tower for a scenic view of Seoul and a fancy dinner.

Finally we headed back to the hotel.  We were supposed to Karaoke tonight but everyone was still tired from the trip so they all went to bed.  Joonhaeng and I went to the sauna for an hour (no cloths sauna = no pictures) and then we headed to bed.  We had to get up at 5:45 so we could catch a train to Gyeongju.

Korea - Day 1

After 24 hours after travel we have arrived in Korea.  We were met at the airport by some of the other LGO students who had also arrived within the previous hour.  Of course we were greeted by an extremely friendly Korean lady (everyone is SO friendly) and we were directed to our first class bus.

• Bottom right: Our greeter insisted on carrying Chris's and my bag
  

After a 45 minute ride we arrived at our pimp hotel, the Shilla, which we have been told is pretty much the nicest hotel in Seoul.  Our fellow LGO student and guide/host Joonhaeng is pretty much a ballah.

Most of the guys were tired so they went to bed, but I made a good effort to get over my jetlag while on the plane (stayed up all night the night before the flight and took a sleeping pill when I first got on the plane) so a few of us wandered the area around the hotel.  Turns out there is not much around the hotel so we grabbed an ice cream and headed home.

Plant Trek Day -1 (day 8 of my unofficial trek)

Day 1 - Travel from Boston to Berlin

This blog is actually starting above the Atlantic ocean at a cruising altitude of 35,000 feet. I am on my way to Europe to spend a week in Berlin and Warsaw before we begin the official International Plant Trek. I’m traveling with five other LFM class of 10 members and I expect to have a great time. This will be my first time out of North America and my first time out of the US if you don’t count crossing into Canada at Niagra Falls and going to Windsor near Detroit to gamble.

Side note: Does Canada count as a country or are they just a little sister to the US? They don’t have to pay for a military because they live next to us…and it is really cold there. Thankfully the Stanley Cup has not been won by a Canadian team since 1992-93 when the Habs took the cup in 5 games against the LA Kings (poor Barry Melrose and Gretzky).



The players may be mostly Canadian, but the cup sleeps in the US.  Deal with it!

Second side note: Ha ha Canadiens, you sent Roy packing to Colorado where he won 2 more cups!



That is what Canada gets for being Canadian. More on that when the hockey playoffs start. Simply stated, as a US hockey fan I am not a fan of Canada.

Back to the trek. This is my first international flight and I am excited about getting my passport stamped. This is also my first time in a plane with more than 6 seats across (a dual aisle plane). Many firsts for me. The time change should be 6 hours difference but the US decided to do day lights savings at a different time than the rest of the world so right now it is 5 hours. The day lights savings difference with the rest of the world is about as stupid as our countries unwillingness to adopt the superior metric/SI system…if only we could convince Americans that America thought of the metric system, then we would love it…but of course then the French would not be on board with it. To get the French on board, we had to let them think they created it and name a number of units after famous Frenchmen for example, Coulomb, Pascal, and Ampere.

I plan to approach Europe like any other obnoxious and ignorant American would (I am Southern, it’s only natural that I be ignorant…it comes with the territory…we spend our weekend recreating the civil war because we still can’t face up to the fact that we lost).

I will assume that Europeans do not bathe, do not use deodorant, do not have running water, ALL speak English (and more grammatically correct than I do) and that menus and signs are written in English, etc. Hopefully I am in for a rude awakening. Nothing like a little culture shock to get the blood flowing!

I love the smell of culture in the morning!

Plant Trek Day -2 (day 7 of my unofficial trek)

My blog got the flu and about 10 posts were lost.



Sorry for the inconvienence.  If by some crazy chance you have a copy of my missing blogs (like an RSS feed) please send me a copy so I can reupload it.  I would be very appreciative.  Thanks

Plant Trek Day -3 (day 6 of my unofficial trek)

My blog got the flu and about 10 posts were lost.



Sorry for the inconvienence.  If by some crazy chance you have a copy of my missing blogs (like an RSS feed) please send me a copy so I can reupload it.  I would be very appreciative.  Thanks

Plant Trek Day -4 (day 5 of my unofficial trek)

My blog got the flu and about 10 posts were lost.



Sorry for the inconvienence.  If by some crazy chance you have a copy of my missing blogs (like an RSS feed) please send me a copy so I can reupload it.  I would be very appreciative.  Thanks