Big City Nights (Scorpions reference)

Annyang haseyo. Been a while since my last update, and for that I apologize. I did manage however to break out the ol' camera and get some shots of the area near where I live. All of the shots were taken within a 3 block radius. The city of Changwon is broken into different neighborhoods, called dongs, so this is Jungang-dong, near my place. I think it's a pretty good representation of what an average city block looks like here.

(click on thumbnail for larger image)


For Us, By ... wait, who? I thought this was pretty funny. Here's a link if you're not 'in da know'.


Random city block near my house. I thought the little cartoon characters holding hands was kind of funny for some reason.


North Face shop. North Face is really popular here right now. I actually see more NF gear here than I did back in the States.


Random picture of an older building I thought looked cool.



This is how shops/restuarants/anything else is set up here. You have the ground floor shops set up and open to the street while the signs above it are refering to 2nd floor or above. So if you wanted a resturant on the 6th floor you'd take the stairs or elevator up to that floor's hallway. It's almost like walking in a hotel except all the doors lead to shops.



German beer anyone? The imported stuff I've had so far is VERY expensive. 10,000 won for a Guiness at this Irish joint in town. That's roughly $7 USD, which is pretty expensive considering the local stuff is around $1.75 for a pint.


I have no idea what this white sign is, but that old lady looks like she's having a good time up there.


Another random picture of a city block. Lots of flashing neon lights to get your attention that aren't being conveyed in a still photo.


An ajumma selling flowers. I don't think she wanted to smile for me because I wasn't interested in buying her wares.


More random shops. A few 노래 방 (norae bangs).


Notice the lady in the tent on the bottom left. There are a lot of these little tents set up on the sidewalks. They are little mini restaurants that sell street food. Very good. You just pop in and eat and you're out the door (tent) 5 minutes later.


An underground blues bar.


Random street shot. I liked the lighting in this one.



Huge movie poster. This spanned about 5 floors.



KB, my Korean bank.



Pocketball. I think it's billiards but their rules may be different.



Night club near my house. The difference between a club and a night club are very interesting and probably warrant a full post.



This is the driving range right by my place. Space in cities come at a premium so there aren't too many golf courses I've seen yet.

Random other updates:

I'm comitted to learning Korean. It's difficult being in a place where you can't understand most people talking. The language itself is actually pretty enjoyable to listen to even though I hardly know any beyond basic survival phrases. I've memorized the Hangul alphabet and can sound out most words but lack any grammar or vocabulary.

The weather here is starting to warm up. It's been really sunny here and it's nice to finally see spring. The cherry blossoms (which are EVERYWHERE) are beginning to bloom and there are some festivals coming up to mark that event.

p.s. if any of you have read any good books lately, email me. I need to order some because the English section at my bookstore is dangerously small.