Website Gallery Updates

Well, I've been able to get some of the photo galleries uploaded on the main website.  Since there's so many pics, it'll take a bit to get them all posted.  In the meantime, thanks for your patience... and I hope you enjoy seeing a bit of some of the beautiful places here in Asia.

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Ayuthara

I went on a day tour to Ayuthara, the site of some ancient ruins. 

These ruins are best known for a carved head of a Buddha that is encapsulated in the roots of a tree.

We also visited a large temple there.  Since it was over the New Year's holiday, there were many worshippers present.

Apparently, one of the ways one shows reverence is to apply gold leaf to statues of Buddha sitting around the temple.  Others would burn incense or offer prayers.

Still others would give offerings of money.  I think it was really interesting that there was a "money tree" of sorts where people would attach their offerings for others to see.



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Floating Markets, the Tiger Temple, and Bridge over the River Kwai

My grandmother used to have about 10 years worth of National Geographic magazines that she kept shelved in a small reading room.  When I was growing up, I spent numerous hours there reading about different exotic places and wishing that one day I would get to see them.

One of the things I wanted to see was the floating markets in Thailand.  I made a day trip to one of the largest ones located in Ratchaburi.  It was really amazing! (and yes, I know I use that word a lot when talking about my trip)  There are canals that are used instead of roadways through some parts of the country.  People live along the canals, so the merchants simply take their wares from home to home... kind of door to door salesmen on water. 

In the main market areas, there are shops both along the edge of the water as well as in longboats in the water.  You can find almost anything you can image-- from hats to fresh produce to souveniers to food cooked fresh on the boat.

 

 

 

 

When we left the floating markets, we made a short stop to see the Bridge over the River Kwai (yes, the one from the movie). 

We then finished off the day by a visit to the "Tiger Temple".  Apparently, a number of years ago someone gave an orphaned tiger cub to one of the monks at a Buddhist temple to care for.  Others soon followed, and now there are a couple of dozen beautiful cats there, as well as other animals such as camels and water buffalo that roam the grounds freely.  

During the afternoon when the tigers are feeling lazy/sleepy they let visitors come and interact with them.  It was absolutely incredible to be able spend the afternoon petting tigers.

 

 

 

 

Ever feel like you've got a tiger by the tail?  lol

I was even able to help walk the biggest one back to it's cage as they were closing up for the day.

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The Land of Smiles

Thailand is known as "the Land of Smiles" and now I know why! The country is absolutely beautiful and the people are amazingly gracious and inviting.

Since I had a month vacation, I decided to spend 3 weeks of that time touring Thailand.  I spent roughly a week each in Bangkok (central Thailand), Chiang Mai (in the north), and Koh Phangan (an island off the southeastern coast).  I also went a number of different tours so I was able so see other parts of the country as well.

It's kind of hard to know where to even start... there were so many absolutely spectactular things.  Here, I'll post a few pics of just the streets and the people to give a bit of a feel for everyday life then I'll make seperate posts for the highlights.

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Danyang

Since it's Fall, I went with a group of Korean friends to Danyang, a small town about 2 hours via bus from Seoul, this weekend to do some sightseeing.  We had a really nice, relaxing weekend enjoying the beautiful mountains and the autumn foliage.

After we arrived on Saturday, we visited a cave to see some pretty amazing rock formations.

 

 

We spent the night at a pension, which is kind of the Korean equivalent of a rental cabin.  Pensions usually are more like a hotel or condo, except without furniture so everyone sleeps on the floor... kind of a big slumber party. 

 

 We grilled out and played some kind of traditional Korean game.  Honestly, I have no idea the name of the game or the rules of the game.  All I know is you throw 4 wooden pieces and they way they land decides how many spaces you move around the board.

 

On Sunday, the weather was beautiful. I took a few pictures of the area around the pension. 

 

 

That afternoon, we went on a  scenic boat tour to see the mountains.

 

We followed that with a little skeet shooting.

 

And wrapped up the day with a visit to Dodam Sambong, also known as "The Three Peaks".

 

According to Korean legend, the three rock peaks here tell the story of a man, his wife, and his mistress.  The larger peak in the middle is the man.  Since his wife (on the left) was unable to bear him any children, he took a mistress.  However, the mistress became closer to the man than his wife which is why she is turned away from him.

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Wow, Time Flies!!

I can't believe it's been 2 months since I've posted here... meaning, it's also been 2 months since I moved to Seoul.

Well, a brief recap... my mom came to visit me for a week during Chuseok (kind of a Korean Thanksgiving).  We traveled around much of the country together and had a great time.  First, we went to Busan (beach in the far south) then Gyeung-ju (one of the most historic cities in Korea) and finally to the DMZ in the far north.

As to work... it's been going great.  I love my new position.  The kids are good.  The coworkers are great.

AND I just booked my tickets for 22 days in Thailand starting the Monday after Christmas!!!

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