green tea.
green tea-flavored hard tack biscuits.
green tea-fed pork.
green tea ice cream.
green tea-infused water.
green tea noodle jajangmyeon.
green tea noodle mul-nangmyeon.
green tea rice bibimbap.
green tea bath at the sauna.

and lots of pictures of mid-air jumps in, of course,

green tea fields.

i don’t think it’s really appropriate to call the cascades of boseong’s green tea “fields,” as they’re actually entire mountainsides of green tea hedgerows.

but let’s back up. it all started with a little dwenjang-jigae down by the bus terminal.

then off to the pension on top of a very steep hill, where the owner grew every kind of flower you can think of and there were actually bugs and animals and the smell of something that isn’t ramyan or sewage.

the first day took us just over the mountain from the real green tea action, and we were kind of afriad we’d missed all the fun, what with all the bushes being cropped.

but this fella was weeding the place.

and he was generous enough to let me take his portrait.

plus, we got to tromp disrespectfully around some graves.

then, to the bus! — which was green by the way — down to the beach, where either the tide was way out or the apocalypse was descending a little ahead of schedule.

abandoned ships and barnacle-encrusted things abounded.


basically, the whole place looked like the inspiration for the closing scenes of cormac mccarthy’s the road. plus, then it rained. but exploring was a blast. all the verdant richness of the actual green tea slopes will have to wait, though, as i’m late for a check-up on the new tattoo — photos forthcoming when it’s all touched up and finished.

Really?! North Korea, too?

So far away from home, sitting in an empty classroom, all I want to do is be at home discussing this with my friends and family. September 11 hits too close to home, I still struggle with seeing images or movies about it. From my highschool I remember staring at the fire burning through the buildings, and the fear on my classmates faces. My English teacher sobbing because she didn’t know where her husband was, and fortunately he survived. And coming home to my mother puking from the white dust she was covered in. Finally this is over, but how will this affect our future?

Since it seems like everyone else had already done it, or had no interest in going, Ben and I braved the 8am trip to the DMZ by ourselves. We went with Koridoor, on the USO tour, which I can recommend. It was very well organized and we saw a lot.

The American soldiers really accented the conflict between the South and North. From their talks to the museums, there is a lot of propaganda apparent on both sides.

I did a lot of research while in University about the conflict between the two Koreas, and it was an interesting experience for me to have. Yet, even after going to the DMZ, it’s still really hard for me to wrap my mind around the two countries being divided and how reunification could occur in the future.

It took me a long time to update with this post, because I was hoping my thoughts would become less muddled. Sadly, time hasn’t helped. Looking at the photos of that day still leave me a bit dumbfounded. I’d have to say that visiting the train station and crossing the tracks that remain unconnected to the North was the most bizarre. I’m so happy I went, but the same questions linger unanswered for me.