Ang Summer Lakwatsa ng Balikbayan na Titser

Here are some snippets of my recent ‘pinas vacay…

Nothing can beat the summer in ‘pinas!!!!!

Bye-bye Seoul!

So much for my installments of our Korean adventure.

We loved Seoul so much that our flight home was kind of bittersweet---but we had to leave and pacified ourselves with the thought that we’ll surely be back.

Kamsahamnida Korea!

Deeply Rooted, in Here

Home...is where the snowflakes in the middle of summer are actually the delicate narra blossoms that drift and somersault in midair and eventually settle to burst its vivid orangey color to the otherwise, barren earth.

(This is after teaching (or tricking?) my one year old niece of the make-believe that we used to do (and still do) when we were kids that falling narra blossoms are actually snow flakes. Yellow snow flakes in the middle of summer? Sure.)

                                                              *  *  *

Home…is where the grasses grow greener, more than they’re allowed or expected to be.

Seoul Street Scenes

I always had a thing for roads---may it be superhighways or beaten ones.

One of my old entries in my journal which I labeled as a “crazy” and a “way out there dream” is “to be able to have a road trip in Korea” . For who wouldn’t be smitten by their roads and highways in the countless Korean dramas and movies shown on 'pinoy television?

But what I know now is to NEVER ever label your dreams as “way out there”.

I am so giddy to share these photos of the Korean road system. So here it is!!!!!!

Another entry in my bucket list: crossed out.

The Subtle Tang of Salt I Carry With Me Anywhere---Which I Don’t Mind

This is Philippines that is not covered by any news, the Philippines that is committed to my memory, stitched in my heart.

This is home.

It is the multi-colored sago beads floating on the pinkish, melted ice shavings in a left-over halo-halo.
The buzzing of mosquitoes on your ears on a warm summer night.
Blaring soap-opera sounds out of the windows of every nearby homes.
Off-key voices, singing all time favorite videoke pieces.
Sunburns, dried sand sticking on a pair of worned-out tsinelas.
Sticky hairs from too much sun and saltwater.
Whiff of dried fish mixed with the tangy smell of vinegar and soy-sauce on a crisp morning. 

Clothes and pillowcases and blankets hanging on the clothesline. The meeting of the glittering blue of the waters, and the soft blue of the skies.
The bursting of pink and orange and yellow and peach and purple on a setting sun.
It is the tasty fish balls downed with a bottle of chilled coke.
The loud colors of hanging banderitas, body paints on tanned skins, beatings of the drum that match the beatings of your own heart, and dancing….dancing everywhere.
The first bite on a saccharine water melon, or the thirsty gulp of pure coconut juice.
The intricately painted jeepneys, jam-packed with local tourist heading for the beach.
The steady buzz of the pump boat’s engine against the crashing of the waves.
Plump shrimps and inviting crabs.
Footsteps of the Floristas on a humid May afternoon.
Familiar voices, singing Hiligaynon Flores de Mayo songs. Latin prayers.
Dried flowers dumped on the corner of the dusty barrio chapel, from yesterday’s offering.
Pinas’ summer is for family, for pictures, and umbrellas…and memories.
Pinas’ summer is for gratitude, for the happy shades of green and blue.
Pinas’ summer, is always, always for going home.

SEOULFUL Trip, Day 3: 4th destination, Cheonggyecheon Stream

What is the most amazing thing in this big, sprawling city that is Seoul is that they don’t try hard to struggle with nature in order to give way to their uuuuberly modernized structures and well-planned city-scape.

Here’s another anecdote before I talk about this stream:

While we were riding on the taxi from the N-Seoul tower, Ahne and I instructed the cab driver that we wanted to go to the Cheonggyecheon Stream (That’s with less difficulty on our part since learning the Korean way of speaking is just like second to breathing---what with the hundreds of k-dramas and movies that we watched for these past years. Ahahaha!). We were so elated that the driver didn’t have any questions and he didn’t seem baffled by these two strange, trying-hard-to-speak-korean ladies, that were us. So, we assumed that he understood us (Yay!). 

After about 15 minutes, he stopped the cab in the middle of a busy highway and told us that we were on the stream. That immediately deflated our happy bubble. Seriously? But we didn’t come unprepared for situations like that--- just so you would know, we have about two years of practice how to make ourselves be understood when there’s a posing language barrier problem. So, with our Thailand-learned strategies, we tried to explain that we wanted to see the Cheonggyecheon stream and not a busy highway---and when I say explain, that actually meant making an exaggerated motion of flowing water coupled with uttering these words: “See, stream. Stream. Water. Water.” I know right?

The cab driver just scratched his head, as if almost unbelieving, that these two unassuming foreign ladies are actually close to being retarded, what with our one of a kind way of explaining our destination. So, he turned on his engine and drove the cab again and just after about 10 minutes, we were close to desperation when he stopped the cab in just the exact location the first time he told us that we were in our destination. Not wanting to ruin our night by arguing further that we wanted to see the stream and not cars in the middle of a busy highway, we just went off the cab and luckily, right in front of us was a tourist information center. We almost cringed of amused embarrassment when the tourism officer told us that we were actually in Cheonggyecheon stream---all we had to do was go down the stairs on one side of the highway and we will be at the stream! What could the taxi driver have thought about us?! But how are we supposed to know that? How are we supposed to know that a stream can be found in the middle of a highway?

Lesson learned? Put a little faith on the locals.

What a pity that because of the extremely cold temperature that night, we weren’t able to take photos of the stream. So we just ended up sitting on one side of the stream while people watching (it never fails) and half-hoping that the people that we dearly love could share that exact moment, including the happy buzz caused by Seoul’s energy, with us.

(photo credits: google images)

Cheonggyecheon is actually a creek in the midst of downtown Seoul that connects to the Han river, and finally empties into the Yellow Sea. During the rapid post-war economic development, when a lot of people migrated to downtown Seoul, shabby makeshift houses were built alongside it which resulted to the accumulated trash and waste. It was then required to cover it up with concrete and in 1968, an elevated highway was built over it.

In 2003, the Seoul mayor, Lee Myung-Bak initiated a restoration project of the stream. It was an ambitious project as it was not only the elevated highway that should be removed but also the years of neglect that left the stream almost totally dry. It was opened to the public in 2005 and was lauded as a major success in urban renewal and beautification.

We tried step-hopping on these stones too, to cross to the other side!

This was like the exact spot where Ahne and I sat to do Seoulite-watching.

…and this is proof why Korea is on my top list of the romance bustling cities of the world. This particular scene made us wish that there was actually some shoulders, no let me rephrase that, that there was actually THE shoulder beside us to lean our heads into.

A stretch of the Chenggyecheon stream amidst the bustling highways and towering buildings of Seoul---proof that nature can comfortably exist with development. If this city can do it in a mere stream which has actually a misplaced location city-planning-wise, why couldn’t we do it with our Pasig river, or with our own Manila Bay?

SEOULFUL Trip, Day 3:3rd Destination, N-Seoul Tower

Once darkness envelops all over Seoul, one will instantly notice a remarkable point jutting out of the city’s skyline. The N-Seoul tower is the highest point in Seoul. It is a communication and observation center, turned into an ultimate tourist destination, located at Seoul’s Namsan Mountain.

Once we got off the taxi, we paid for the cable car which brought us to the Namsan Mountain. It was about a 10-15 minute ride on the cable car and then we hiked up at the peak of the mountain where the tower is located. Imagine 2 pairs of unconditioned knees with 2 sets of tropical-reared lungs, add a more than a hundred steps of stairs going up the mountain with an 8-degree night chill and you’ll get a clear image of 2 females struggling for breath while going up to the tower. Surely, the Koreans who were walking up the tower with us were probably thinking, “Oh, these two are not locals. Hindi sanay sa autumn temperature namin eh.” Oh snap! Ahahaha.

The tower was opened to the public in 1980. Aside from its famous observatory, it also has some souvenir shops, restaurants, and a teddy bear museum (next post). At night, the tower in itself is a spectacular site for it is illuminated by a brilliant blue light which is visible all over Seoul. At around 10:00 pm, this blue light is turned off which is the signal of the start digital movie presentation which features the whole tower as the screen. While everyone was watching the 20-minute digital video presentation, I stood in awe and uttered a silent prayer of thanks for having given this opportunity to travel (and I hope that this was just a start).

A large display of the N Seoul Tower logo and a wall covered with tourist information in Korean is not just a promotion, but a creation of a digital media artist.

One of the most famous activities in the tower especially for lovers (ahem!) is to hang padlocks with love messages attached to them in an area on the Tower fence. According to legend, a couple who makes a wish in the Namsan mountain gets to be together forever. Now, this legend is definitely sensationalized, hence the line of padlock trees along the Tower fence. A pity, I didn’t have someone to lock the pads with. As a promise to myself, the next time I’m back to Korea with my one great love (ayeeeeee!) , I’ll surely bring a huge industrial padlock. Small padlocks are waaaaaay too passé in these times, don’t you think?… Ahahaha!

This is the observatory room where a 300° view of Seoul can be seen. This was certainly the most perfect way to spend our last night in Korea. And see, we’ve got Manila posted on one of its glass walls!