Wednesday, February 20, 2013

So Call Me Maybe! (Gyeongju Day 2)

I am currently sitting in the living room of Tavo House with Joaquin, and Gun Hee, the B&B host is playing Carly Rae Jepsen on the computer. That song, as I just explained to them, makes me think of a particular student I taught once, a J-He who burst into my class like an explosion of trolls. He kept looking at me and singing that song, but apparently that's his trade mark. Looking into the eyes of people, and singing that song to try and creep them out. Lol. Funny memory.

Today Joaquin and I cycled around Gyeongju, and saw Cheomseongdae Observatory, along with Anapji Pond, Gyerim Forest, plus the Wolseong Fortress (nothing remains of it anymore, except a veritable hump) and the seokbinggo. After that we took a well deserved break at a nearby restaurant, where we had ssambap. Then, we went to a coffee shop called Rain and Coffee for more than an hour. There, I had a hot chocolate and finished Sebastian Barry's The Secret Scripture. The book was not bad, but not quite something I'd recommend. Barry's style of writing was not quite to my liking, but I stayed on for the plot. It reminded me somewhat of Anne Enright's The Gathering (what is it with depressing Irish writers?), but was far more enjoyable. Plus I liked the (slightly predictable) twist, which gave it a much less sombre tone.

After that, Joaquin and I cycled to the Gyeongju National Museum to look at the sights. Then, on our way back he bought Gyeongju bread, which reminded me of Japanese dorayaki. When we finally arrived back at Tavo House, I was overjoyed. I kept expecting to meet some horrid accident while on the bike, if not explode from sheer I-can't-do-this-because-I-haven't-exercised-in-yonks. So I was relieved when we finally arrived back. The house was initially empty, but Gun Hee came back soon after, followed by his adorable Grandmother. The grandmother even plodded over and gave each of us a yakult, which was really sweet of her! I drank it, even though that stuff gives me a tummy ache from lactose intolerance. Fingers crossed nothing bad happens!

Dinner now, woo hoo.

No comments: