Alchemy of Seoul

  The cherry blossom season has been unfolding gently in Seoul. There were some rainy days when it was too cold to enjoy a hanami stroll (hanami is the Japanese word for flower viewing). But by the middle of the week this week, the flowers were just everywhere, and the sun was spending more time pouring through clouds than being hidden by them. Consequently, I got out and took a lot of photos.  Two places where I spent a happy time in the blossoms were Seokchon Lake near Lotte Tower, and the river walk in Wyrie, near where Hailie lives.      Seokchon lake is a manmade lake and a popular walking destination for people in the area. The ornamental cherry trees are beautiful in the spring covered with blossoms, but also fantastic in the fall when their leaves turn the color of fire.    You can see the other side of the lake in these photos and the way the trees on the other side look like a pink cloud along the water. It was a lovely Tuesday (April 2) when...

  Donggung Palace and Wolji Pond at night on March 27, 2024 On Tuesday, March 26, Ally (my science teacher colleague) and her two daughters accompanied me on a long car ride across Korea to the southeastern coast. We arrived midafternoon in Gyeongju, where we stayed for two nights and explored the city.  I had been eyeing Gyeongju on the map of Korea for about 6 months. The entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage site, primarily because of the 103 tombs of the kings, queens, and nobles of the Silla Dynasty (that word is pronounced Shilla). The Silla became rich and powerful in the early part of the 600s CE, and unified pretty much the entire Korean peninsula (through battles and alliances). The Dynasty began around 57 BCE in Gyeongju. The thing is, the tombs of the Silla had been undisturbed until the Japanese occupation. The Japanese started digging up the treasures in the 1920s when they occupied Korea, so it was only around the 1970s when the Koreans had a strong grip on the...