Lazy Sunday

I should really start carrying my camera around with me more often. I've been incredibly busy these past few weeks--loads of exploring, new stuff at school (you're reading the words of the #2 "nicest teacher" in school, thank you, thank you), Korean class field trips, etc. etc.--but today I went to the National Cemetery, which I heard was really peaceful and very informative. All of the exhibits on the edge of the graveyards were closed (boooo!), but it was still worth the trip.

Because graveyards take up a ton of (livable) space, and because Korea is short on (livable) space, it's usually the norm for people to be cremated and "kept" (I don't know how else to describe this) in an urn on a mountainside, along with a couple of other people. So when you take a drive along the highways, you'll see a lot of intricate jars lining these paths.

Anyways. What I'm trying to get at here is that it's a great honor to be buried here in this cemetery. Three former presidents are here; it's like Arlington.



There were many statues, and most of them featured men fighting against Japan.

The base to this one had two dragons running around it. 

I wish it had been clearer out. From this point you could see over the river and into the city, which was really nice, but it was so foggy out I had a hard time getting a decent picture of it. 

It was very pretty inside, however.  I don't know if I've ever seen such picturesque nature like Korea's. Case in point: this little bird was perched on the edge of a murky pond.

I took a detour on my way back to the subway and found these men fishing in the Hangang river. Here's that view I was talking about--too hazy.

And lastly, there is no Thanksgiving buffer for holiday cheer (though these and the adjacent department store windows are the only examples I've seen so far. I get the feeling there won't be a lot of Christmas spirit in the air come December 25), which is fine by me. These are right outside my home city's subway station entrance, so it's nice to come back to at night, even if they are sort of helping advertise a sale. Whatever.