My vip treatment?

This weekend was jam packed with activities spanning the pastime spectrum. Saturday morning was the first day that it’s been warm enough for me to wear shorts, so I definitely didn’t pass up the opportunity to take my new basketball and play for a bit outside. I had a good time playing with some high schoolers that came out. We shot around for a while and discussed the Lakers and “Kobe Briann.” Later that day we had tickets to the Mobis Phoebis 1^st round playoff basketball game. For 13,000 wan (a little more than 11 dollars) we were 5 rows from the floor. We were also escorted to our seats and given drinks by a Foreign Services employee. Not too bad…The game was fun, the fans were hyped, and it was a great basketball environment. It was hilarious hearing all the fans yelling for the players to take their pants off (De-pants! De-pants!). I also guess they don’t do nachos or popcorn or burgers or hotdogs or pizza for in-game snacks – they do squid.  

where's my pepto bismal...

mobis (pronounced moh-bee-suh) in white...

i said "squeeze in tight!" and they did not...

With the game now over, the next thing on the menu for the day was to head to the Lotte Hotel, downtown for a Haiti relief concert by the Ulsan Symphony. The concert was a very emotive experience. There were moist eyes all around especially when the John Williams piece was played. Postscript, they still need help. 

Later that night we went to a Norebong (Karaoke) and sang our voices hoarse. The Norebong had songs from the 60’s through 2001. Those 41 years provided enough hits to last until the early morn.

The next morning, well, afternoon (after getting home at 6 am I gave myself a few more hours of sleep) a few of us drove out to the Seoknam Temple area and went for a hike. How the wind managed to be in our face during both the ascent and descent is beyond me. The trek wasn’t made any easier by the yellow dust, but we still enjoyed hiking and chewing the proverbial fat.

This weekend I am taking a trip to Seoul, so there will most assuredly be pictures and stories to tell of my sights and happenings. I plan to continue to stoke the fire of my Korean experience.