Not quite so sad.

I'm a happy cat, because my best friend came back from his travels in Europe, and we get to hang out. He really liked the Sauna I showed him, the one with the best workout room I've seen in a non-jimjilbang sauna.

The underground arcade near my work was decorated with these ribbons up, down, and all around, to commemorate the new year.


I cross this intersection about four times a day. This entire glut of vehicles are just the vehicles that got caught between the end of the left-turn signal and the green-crossing light. (this is the same intersection I ranted about before, where drivers are constantly endangering pedestrians by trying to sneak through). They'd just started moving again when I took the picture, but they were all there, piled up and getting honked at by cars trying to go straight through the intersection. As I overheard Random Seattle Cop once say to Random Guy, "Don't enter the intersection if you can't get out, buddy."
Only in Korea:


Spam is hugely popular here (as it is in a number of other post-war countries). One of the most common holiday gifts is a huge box (wrapped up and presented beautifully) containing eight or ten or even fifteen (whoa! you really went all out!) cans of spam.

Sometimes, it isn't even spam. It's (wrap your head around this) imitation spam. Pam 팜. An imitation of an imitation of meat. It's on restaurant menus, you can get spam soup or spam stew, without a single drop of irony or chintz for spice.



Number 4 is bad luck, so some elevators will say "F" instead of having 4 on the elevator panel. Here, CK tailor's, on the fourth floor, accidentally hinted at something far more than a tailor shop in their office. . . or an attitude toward 양복(western clothes) far meaner than they intend.

Had to take a picture.

There was a random sameul-nori group playing down in Chonggyecheon stream on Sunday. On closer inspection, they were all about in their sixties, having a great old time.





Their skill level (and athleticism) wasn't quite on par with these guys,



but as "random things to stumble across in downtown Seoul" go, it was pretty awesome.

Also on the random things to stumble across in downtown Seoul list,

Not a single harness or strap. Just a dude, and a rope, and a really tall building. Maybe some people looked up and thought he was badass. I looked up and thought he was reckless and maybe stupid. . . especially if he has a family.


Think of the irony in this one: create a space where people can get a rest, and then fill it with a monument (best of all would be if the statue were made as a tribute to the importance of slowing down and getting some rest) -- kind of like asking the librarian, "Hey! HEEEYYYY! Am I quiet enough now?"


My valentines day gift for girlfriendoseyo:
(the picture, not the wallpaper. The wallpaper came with the house.)

I love this city, and all the random little things you'll bump into.

Hope all's well with you, too.