Weekend of Not Boozing our Faces Off

Almost every weekend in October was one our friend's birthdays or my birthday or Halloween. We did a lot of boozing and we were all starting to feel it. So, this weekend everyone independently decided to sober up a bit and get outside. Matt, Kent, and I went to Wolchusan National Park for a hike. It's only about an hour and a half from Gwangju and very beautiful. It's a pretty rough hike, for me anyhow, it was pretty up and down. Parts were steep. My thighs are still sore two days later. It was about a six hour hike. However, there were sweet views around every corner and there is also a sweet suspension bridge. 

Koreans leave the cities in great numbers for hiking on the weekends. Well, middle aged adults do. Young Koreans are hardly interested in hiking for the most part. You are never alone on the mountain and everyone has better gear than you do. Anything short of head to toe breathable high performance gear from head to toe is pretty unacceptable. If you see anyone on the mountain with a sub-par gear ensemble, they are probably a foreigner. Despite their gear, they are rather friendly, or can be. One group of men sat us down on their rock and literally shoved food in my mouth as I sat down. They gave us cold beer and offered us a bunch of food and some soju. 

What is this crazy miguk girl doing on this mountain in cotton?!?!? That is not gear! Also, the sweet aforementioned suspension bridge. 

Hiker on top of the next peak.

Fall happening in a valley. 

The gingko trees turn bright yellow in fall (on the mountain anyway- I'm still waiting for this yellow on the gingkos in my neighborhood). 

This is Matt reading some of his poems at an open mic on Saturday night. 

Also, because we didn't booz hard, I got out of the apartment before noon on Sunday and caught the things I hadn't seen yet in the Gwangju Biennale that were scattered at different locations throughout town. I went to a little museum on Mudeung mountain, the Gwangju Museum of Art, and checked out the installations at Daein Market- a traditional fish market near downtown. I took advantage of the free shuttle the Biennale offered and saved a bunch in cab fare. It was a pretty cool thing to have in Gwangju.