Friday, October 2, 2009. 4:50pm Ship time, 3:50am east coast time.
We were in Korea yesterday to "today" refers to yesterday. It took me some time to compile today's email
Pusan is the second largest city in Korea, second only to Seoul and Pusan has the largest harbour in Korea.
Twelve millon containers pass through annually. They also build lots of ships, many of which are under construction right by the road we took today.
Pusan seems very modern and housing is dense. It reminds me of the apartment blocks in Jamaica NY, which line the road on the way to JFK airport, except more dense.
It is 15 or 20 times more expensive to live in Seoul or Pusan than the countryside. A 100 square meter (1,076 square feet) apartment sells for $2,000,000. Mountains make up 70% of the country so there are a lot of tunnels. Farms lined the highway wherever the land was flat. Our ship picked up fresh produce here today.
Cheaper to but a Hyundai in US than Korea although Hyundai and Kia were all over the place. Many cars had mirrors above the tailgate to see behind the car which I had never seen before on cars.
In 1443, Hejong (sp?), the ruler revised the written language to contain only 24 characters because normal people could not learn to read and write. According to our guide, you can learn to read and write in 2 hours. I'm not so sure. I have trouble pronouncing ANY words and it looks like there are more than 24 characters on signs, but that's what she said.
We visited a museum whose prize possession is a huge bell which they do not ring but has the most wonderful sound which can not be reproduced today, but they try with loudspeakers hidden in bushes behind the bell. The museum contained many old objects which you could photograph if you did not use a flash or a tripod in the dim light. We have thrown out objects which were newer and in better condition but it's always nice to see objects thousands of years old.
At the Gyeongjui tombs, there is an area where the tombs are protected, except for the ones they have excavated. Too bad if you were buried there because you are on display (or what is left of you) for all to see but not photograph because you did not sign a release before you were entombed. The deceased and their possessions were covered with a huge pile of rocks and then dirt on top of that. There is grass planted on top of that and the local old folks cut the grass by hand. It is surprising that the old folks can even climb the mounds, much less hack away the grass. It is much quieter than all the machines working around Mirasol every weekday but you'd never get those old folks to cut their own grass, especially by hand, even though there are no hills. It would take a group effort to tackle the golf courses. Then you'd really find out who the serious golfers are.
Korean Social Security
Lunch was a buffet in a Hyundai Hotel which had a lot to offer for Laurie. We were entertained with Korean music and dancing but I can't say I care for the music. I was entertained in the men's room which featured one of those magic toilets. Even though I did not need to use it, I was compelled to try it out. The seat is indeed warmed and the water spray hits just where you would expect (hope) it to and then the dryer blows warm air on that same spot. The kicker was, it was built into a seat made by American Standard! There is a roll of bathroom tissue as well so I'm not sure if you are supposed to use one or both but I can tell you the water feature/dryer does not speed things up and there was a line out the door of the ladies room.
We had time to kill so we would be late returning to the ship. I was pleased to find wifi working at the hotel and we got to watch Jake on youtube as well as download mail to delete. I could also confirm that no hurricanes were heading to Florida.
Last stop was a Buddhist temple. It was interesting, but I don't think I need to see every Buddhist temple in Asia, which are included in every tour. We did learn a little about Buddhism and Confucianism and the difference between them. Confucianism is not a religion, but a social philosoply, there is no God. Just a way to guide your life. Respect your elders, people have to be polite, etc. Sounds like a good way to go. Buddhism is a religion and they pray to statues of Buddha which would not be appropriate behavior for jews. Visitors may not use the door (bridge) in front of a temple because they are not equal so we used the side door.
These guys guard the second gate. There are three gates to get to the Buddha. Photos are OK here.
They keep control of these demons.
The grounds are nice. The demon is pictured above, not below.
The big Buddha is in there, in the no-photo zone.
The bridge (steps) are a sacred national treasure and as such are not open to tourists. There are other non treasured but just as steep steps for us. I don't think skateboards would be welcome. I peeked in from the side. The Buddha is big and made of gold. I did not ask if it was solid and I obviously have no pictures. It was pointed out that the gates (doors) are smaller than the Buddha inside. They build the Buddha, then build the temple around it. The temple had been on this site for over 1600 years but the temple has been destroyed by fire and war many times since then. I'm not sure about the Buddha's age.
Wouldn't you like a nice can of Pocari Sweat while visiting a Buddhist temple on a hot day? I'm not sure what a Pocari is but I've got enough of my own sweat, thank you. Maybe I should bottle it? Another idea for a business.
There are police enforcement signs posted all over the place. They are a warning that there is a radar/camera a few meters ahead, which I thought was quite polite.
They even have red and blue lights without the police cruiser so you can have the full experience if you missed the first sign.
You don't even have to slow down to get your ticket, it comes conveniently in the mail. I asked our tour guide for more specifics on this system and she said the cost of the ticket is based on the size of your car, in addition to by how much you were exceeding the speed limit. I think the fine is $50 generally, but the idea is to avoid the ticket. It's nice to know where the speed traps are, but there are so many of them there is no point in speeding up in between them.
This is quite a contrast to Vladivostok where they don't even have traffic lights. Another contrast, Vladivostok is filthy, Korea is clean. Our bus coach windows were cleaned at every stop, in Vladivostok, maybe annually. The interior of both buses were gaily decorated though. Speed of email does not permit me to include all those pictures but maybe one day I will put together a photo book. I still haven't gotten around to Antarctica's book and that's been three years ago.
That's it for yesterday, As for today, it is beautiful. We have to go to a Chinese immigration and health screening in a few minutes on board. Yesterday, they took everyone's temperature by shooting their foreheads with a gun on the way out of the ship. Sorry, no photos.
If you have just joined the email list, past postings can be viewed at http://smillerdadtravels.blogspot.com/
Last night was the first night the hour hand did not bounce forward or ahead. Tonight we set the clock back an hour.
We are on a private tour of Qingdao, China tomorrow, then tour every day for 6 days in a row so it will be difficult to keep up with these emails.
We have already passed the health inspection. There were four guys in masks shooting foreheads with red lasers. you are pointed to the left, good, or the right, bad. Those sent to the right are subject to further screening and luckily I can not report on their experience.
Regards,
Steve & Laurie
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