Building 63

Last weekend we took a trip to the 63 Building in Seoul.  It was the tallest building in the world outside of the United States when it opened it's doors in 1985.  It is still the tallest gold cladded structure in the world.

Conrad was excited about the trip!



We met some interesting people there.

And also a few that were less interesting.

Some we liked...

And some we didn't.

Jacqui stayed between this guy and the kids.

He was cool though.  He showed me some moves.

Delainey made some friends...  into a coat.

And Isaac gave a speech on self-sufficiency and denounced unearned entitlements and coprporate welfare.  I don't know where he gets this stuff!

You would be amazed at the people you run into in Seoul!

We decided to take a break before lunch.

Isaac couldn't decide what to order.  The crab legs were fresh and delicious.

After lunch we went to the aquarium.  They had some of the more typical things you might find in an aquarium like this octopus.

And some things you typically would not find like this prehistoric looking monster.  This fish must have been about 175 lbs.

This one was 10 meters.  That is just under 33ft for you Westerners.

After the aquarium we decided to go to the top of the bldg.  The black line up the middle of the building is the elevator.  It is mostly glass except for the floor, ceiling, and the door.  The elevator was really fast and felt like it was never going to stop going up.  Delainey said she wanted off.  Jacqui would not move from right next to the door and I thought I was gonna barf.  This is a definite "MUST DO" for anyone who comes to visit.



Isaac contemplating a way down without getting back on the elevator.



While we were up there we decided to get some culture.  It has been said that we are lacking.

Once safely back on terra firma, we decided to take a break next to the Han River.  The weather was great and there were lots of bushes to puke in after the super fun elevator ride.

I went and got ice cream for everyone from a little shop.  You have no idea what you are getting until you take the first bite.  This one was bean paste flavored.  Mmmmmm!

I love how excited Delainey is here.  She was less excited after she bit into this green tea flavored treat that that had little to no sugar added.

We had a good time and we highly recommend the elevator ride to everyone!

Hwaseong Fortress

A few weeks ago we took a short drive to Suwon to visit the Hwaseong Fortress.  It is basically a bunch of fighting positions along a ridgeline, connected by a wall that surrounds the city.

From the place where we parked, you walk up a stairway that leads to the ridge.  From here it seems to be the tallest set of stairs in the world.

Until you get to this point and realize that what you can see from the bottom isn't even halfway.

All of the stairs were covered in ice and snow.  We plan on going back here but it will be well after the snow and ice have melted.  Whenever we got to a point that we thought was the top of the stairs the view would open up and they would just keep going.

Isaac and I went to the top and took this pic of Jacqui, Delainey and Conrad coming around the last curve.

Here is a lookout that was at the top of the stairs.

Here it is from the side view.  There were several stations like this along the ridgeline.

This was our Sherpa, Dave, who helped us find our way to the top of the mountain. 

Isaac found this bronze memorial to remember when the Korean Pilgrims cut the paper boys legs off and ran around with sticks.  This is also the first known use of the wave.  This was several years before it made its first showing in Mexico.

Here is the rest of it.

This bell was at one of the stations.  They used to toll it to signal to the other stations.  It can be heard for several miles.

It had this log hanging from a chain to toll it.  Jacqui and the kids gave it some good whacks.

The fighting positions were all covered in art. 

Another fighting position.  They shot crossbows from the rock castle thing and from the second story of the building on the right.  There are holes that go through the green part that they could shoot through.

Another angle.

On the way down, Jacqui decided to get a drink.  We were all very thirsty and the water shooting out of the side of the mountain looked very refreshing.  They had some small pots to drink from hanging on chains.  Were were all thirsty but only Jacqui was brave enough to drink out of this thing after thousands of Koreans had been drinking out of it for years and it probably never had been washed.  The short term result is that for the next hour Jacqui felt hydrated and the rest of us were all thirsty.  The long term result was that Jacqui brough home a virus that had her vomiting through the night followed by a day on the toilet.

We plan on going back someday but now that we know what to expect we will be better prepared.  We need to carry lots of water and some food for a full day.  Once you get to the top there really is nothing to eat and the trail is probably 20 miles long.  We probably walked one mile once we got to the top and we were already ready to eat and drink.  Next time we plan to walk at least half of it.