Crazy and/or Gorgeous

The discovery of MeetUp.com is going to drastically change the shape of the next nine months. I've joined the Seoul Sports and Hiking Group and Hiking in Korea along with the Facebook hiking group I did Bukansan with two weeks ago. Between all of these I've got notification of hiking trips with other expats every weekend. It's possible that my updates and pictures are going to start sounding very similar (if you don't think they have already...)

This last weekend was particularly hardcore, but spectacular. Our group of 44 met at midnight to board a bus and sleep on our way to Samchoek City on the east coast. We arrived as the sun was raising and the drizzle was falling just before 5 am. Each of us slowly departed the warm bus to eat breakfast in the cold rain. We started the hike at 5:25 on the dot. The entire way we were walking in drizzle or mist. No down pours, but we were all soaked in the end none the less. The constant moisture keep my camera in it's bag most of the way, but I did manage a few pictures. The first peek we hit was spectacular. Amazing rock formations with small pools everywhere. Felt like we were in the movie "Into the Mist". It almost made up for the fact that when you went to the edge all you could see was fog. The next peek was not as enjoyable. It was raining a bit harder and we stopped so long the we all started to get very cold. The way down was a long and muddy trail, not without it's fair share of slips and falls. At times it was painful, but oh so worth it. We finally got a chance at a real view of the mountain along with following a river of waterfalls the whole way. All in all, I wouldn't have trading the weather for anything else. It was like walking through the rain forest the whole time. We arrived at the base a good 9.5 hours later excited to get on a warm dry bus and head to the beach.

Sadly, it was not really beach weather, but my companions and I didn't mind. We got ourselves some hot and spicy soup and went to bed. We spent the morning on the beach instead. The next point of the itinerary needs some explaining.

The Legend of Penis Park:
Once upon a time, in a coastal village there lived a beautiful girl who used to gather seaweed. In the distance there was a rock called Aebawi where plenty of seaweed grew. One day, this young girl was taken out to the rock by a man in a boat. The man, who had a pact to marry her, promised to return to the rock to pick her up after she had collected seaweed there and he went back to the village. At dusk, she waited for him the man to come and take her home, but he was unable to come and fetch her due to wild waves. That very night a terrible storm arose and a large wave struck the rock, drowning the ill-fate girl. From the time of her death, the fishing catches turned bad for the village and so a rumor started circulating among the villagers that is was due to the dead girl's bitter soul. Finally, the people of the village decided to offer carved wooden phallics as a sacrifice inside Haesindang to console the bitter soul of the unmarried girl.
Mysteriously, after that, the village again enjoyed a good catch. The ceremony where wooden phallics are offered is still held even today on the first full moon of the lunar year.

And so explains the penis status.

Next, on to Hwanseongul, the largest limestone cave in Korea. 3 km of open space. It was spectacular to say the least.

I left the weekend exhausted, but refreshed after falling in love with mountains all over again. It's funny, but it seems to happen every time I go to one.