Random Information and Other Stuff

I thought I would take a few minutes to post a bit of facts I have learned about some of the things we have been doing. I feel the need to do this also for my own future so I easily have these facts in one place as a back reference. 

N Seoul Tower
Height
            Above Sea Level: 479.7m/ 1.574ft
            Seoul Tower: 236.7m/ 777ft
            Monument Structure 135.7m/ 445ft + steel monument 101m/ 332ft
Space
            8,456 square meters
Floor Space
            3,986 square meters
Total Floor Space
           15,378 square meters
Total Area of Observatory
          2,403 square meters
          Tower 1F 450 square meters
          Tower 2F 460 square meters
          Rotation Observatory 271 square meters (rotation area 149 square meters)
Time for one rotation
          48 minutes
 N Seoul Tower is a communication and observation tower located in Namsan Mountain, central Seoul, South Korea. Built in 1969, at a cost of approximately $2.5 million, and opened to the public in 1980.
 (Information from Seoul Tower Information booklet and Wikipedia)

Namsan Park
Namsan is a 262-meter peak in the Jung-gu district of south central Seoul, South Korea. Although known as Mount Mongmyeok, or 목멱산, in the past, it is now commonly referred to as Namsan. It offers some hiking, recreation and views of downtown Seoul's skyline. The N Seoul Tower is located on top of Namsan. The mountain and surrounding area is a public park maintained by the city government. It is a popular spot for a panoramic view of Seoul. It is also the location of a smoke signal station called Mongmyeoksan Bongsudae' which was part of an emergency communication system during early times until 1985.(Information from Wikipedia)

Haechi Seoul
     "You may have seen a relentlessly upbeat flying cartoon figure printed on various pieces of Seoul Metropolitan Government property in recent years. It has wings but otherwise looks like a rotund, very friendly, button-nosed big cat. Or not. In fact, you can be forgiven for failing to identify it as any particular terrestrial creature, because it is part of a different animal kingdom altogether: the big, imaginary menagerie in the sky.
     Haechi is an imaginary animal that has enjoyed a long relationship with the Korean people, both as an enforcer of justice and a model of integrity; and as a provider of security, particularly against fire. It was thus used as a symbol of integrity in officialdom and as a talisman to ward off disasters during the Joseon era (1392-1910). Old and new Haechi statues can be found in various places around Korea, particularly in Seoul.
     In 2007, Seoul Metropolitan Government began a process of selecting a symbol to promote the capital's image. Haechi was chosen, then developed into a logo and a character. These were officially announced in March 2009. The smiling, golden creature is the character, while the brand identity is a more understated but nevertheless dignified light blue and white, as if formed by auspiciously swirling clouds in the sky.
    For loads more interesting information on all aspects of Haechi, see haechi.seoul.go.kr/eng "
(Information from article in Seoul, Travel and Culture Magazine July 2011 edition.) 
And I checked out the website and it is very cool!

Han River
The Han River is a major river in South Korea and the fourth longest river on the Korean peninsula after the Amnok, Duman, and Nakdong rivers. It is formed by the confluence of the Namhan River (South Han River), which originates in Mount Daedeok, and the Bukhan River (North Han River), which originates on the slopes of Mount Geumgang in North Korea. The River flows through Seoul and then merges with the Imjin River shortly before it flows into the Yellow Sea. The two major branches of the river, the Namhan River and the Bukhan River, come together at Yangsu-ri, Gyeonggi-do province, at which point it is referred to as the Han River. It then passes through Seoul and continues on to the Yellow Sea (or West Sea to Koreans). Broad tidal flats can be found at the mouth of the Han River, where it meets the sea along the DMZ (demilitarized zone) that divides South and North Korea. The total length of the Han River (to include its tributaries the Namhan and Bukhan Rivers) is approximately 514 km.

(Information from Wikipedia)

Tomorrow we are going to the Boryeong Mud Festival. I will post on our experience there later, but for now some information about it.

Boryeong Mud Festival
"The Boryeong Mud Festival is an annual festival which takes place during the summer in Boryeong, a town around 200 km south of Seoul, South Korea. The first Mud Festival was staged in 1998 and, by 2007, the festival attracted 2.2 million visitors to Boryeong.
The mud is taken from the Boryeong mud flats, and trucked to the Daecheon beach area, where it is used as the centerpiece of the 'Mud Experience Land'. The mud is considered rich in minerals and used to manufacture cosmetics. The festival was originally conceived as a marketing vehicle for Boryeong mud cosmetics.
In 1996 a range of cosmetics was produced using mud from the Boryeong mud flats. The cosmetics were said to be full of minerals, bentonite and germanium, of which occur naturally in the mud from the area.
In order to promote these cosmetics, the Boryeong Mud Festival was conceived. Through this festival, it was hoped people would learn more about the mud and the cosmetics. The festival has grown incredibly popular with both Koreans and western tourists, as well as American Military personnel stationed in the country, and foreign English teachers working in Korea.
For the period of the festival several large attractions are erected in the seafront area of Daecheon. These include a mud pool, mud slides, mud prison and mud skiing competitions. Colored mud is also produced for body painting. A large stage is erected on the beach, which is used for live music, competitions and various other visual attractions.
A small market runs along the seafront selling cosmetics made using the mud from Boryeong. Various health and beauty clinics offer massages, acupuncture and other treatments utilizing the medicinal qualities of the mud.
The festival is closed with a large firework display."
(Information from Wikipedia)
For more information also see this web site: http://www.mudfestival.or.kr/english/festival/festival1.php

Ok so no post would be complete without some pictures and a little story...

Last night Mike picked up Angie and Abbey after work and brought them up to the apartment. Angie was having a little bit of a lull in her week and needed a reset. So we took a walk in Namsan Park, and attempted to find dinner. We wanted pizza but that didn't pan out. So we ate here at the apartment which was for the best in the end. Angie was very happy to enjoy our awesome view especially after it got dark! It was a great night.

There are these rock paths with all different rock textures you are supposed to walk on, its like a free foot massage!

The girls tested it out too! Abbey wasn't a fan!!!

Giulianna's foot print

There are several of these exercise stations throughout the park and the whole city. They are a lot of fun for everyone!

There are these rabbits all over the park. They look like domestic rabbits, this was just a little one, some of them are huge!!

This is a follow up to my last post where I talked about the bathrooms. This is one of the bathrooms in the park just as an example.

A story inside a stall. I guess I need to learn to read Korean!

I also took some great pictures of the sunset over the city last week that I want to share now.

There are some more from another night but they aren't loading so they will show up in a future post. For now I want to add a few misc videos to conclude this post. Two are of Giulianna's Dance recital from a few weeks ago, and one is the kids playing some music.

Every day it rains.... but I guess that should be good for the Mud Festival tomorrow! Next time I will post lots of "Dirty Pictures"!!!!