Bukhansan Hike with Nick

This is all I ever want to do:


I loved, loved hanging out with Nick this weekend. We've known each other since the fifth grade, and I just never ever guessed we'd both be living in Korea at age 24.
This is the alleyway which hides his apartment in Hongdae, a really trendy area of Seoul. Nick really picked his location well. Lots of stuff to do, lots of good food. Also, this neighborhood, which I like a lot.

Bukhansan Mountain was breathtaking. It was an incredible, difficult, beautiful hike. Just north of Seoul, it's the most crowded mountain in Korea. I thought this would be a major drawback, but I really, really enjoyed the experience of basically hiking in a queue. The path wasn't rigidly set, so it was easy to kind of wander away from the route most people were taking and sort of create your own adventure hopping around on the rocks. So many people!

This truly did not bother me. I really liked having all these folks around.

Of course, there were a few less-crowded moments. Here we are, beginning our ascent.




There was a lot of clear, perfect, beautiful water on this mountain.



I turned into a big baby once we got close to the peak. It was really really steep, and I think it would have been enormously easy to slip and fall to my death. This was irrational. Everyone else looks pretty relaxed.

I'm giving the cheesy "I conquered my fear and here I am at the top of this crazy mountain" thumbs up. Nick humored me.




Seoul. It looks so nice and tidy.


This is Insubong. It took our Sabonim five hours to master this thing at one time. I'll never attempt it. Can you see all the brave little climbers?

We spent a little while trying to figure out if this guy in the blue was using a rope. For all the ten minutes or so that I watched him, he never took any tension or made a lot of progress. What do you think?

I really like the Korean flag.


Post-hike arcade fun. This place was LOUD. I only stuck around for a little while to take the pictures.