South Korea

Hey Guys

Hope all is all well back in Melbourne.

I am having a great time. I am currently in Seoul where i have been for 8 days and before that i was in shanghai for 4 nights.

Shnaghai was just OK, it was pretty crazy considering it has the population of Australia. Coming into Shanghai we had to sit on the plane and have our body temperature checked by these stormtroopers...it was a bit over the top! Shanghai itself has lots of big nice buildings including the bottle opener which is pretty cool. There are so many skyscrapers and so much pollution which made getting lost rather easy. There was also McKids, a clothing store for children with McDonalds branding. There wasn't alot of touristy stuff apart from shopping which was awesome to do there and the maglev train to the airport which cruised at 431kmph - 4 nights was enough for me. Oh yeah I also ate the local specialty - frogs! I'm not amazed that it hasn't caught on!

And then I come to Seoul which as been amazing! The hostel I am staying at is in the exact right area - right next to 3 universites! The streets are chockers at night with heaps of young ppl, it's really hip. The owner of the hostel Mary is amazing, she treats everyone like they are her children - every morning she comes in with a big plate of muffins! Seoul is a super place to visit, it's very westernised and super clean. The metro makes Connex look like a poodle next to a rottweiler. There has been so much to do everyday. I also met this lovely German girl Janin - great personality lol and we have had a ball. To list a few - Lotte World a funny little amusement park. Temples etc. Seoul Forest. The stream which runs through the city with clean clear water and living marine life. The world cup stadium which was quite funny where Janin and I was asked to pose for about 100 Chinese tourists! The DMZ tour on the border of North Korea - got to visit one of the tunnels the North built to invade Seoul! but it got discovered! Again the shopping. And the nightlife lol. Everything is so cheap here! free entry to nightclubs for foreigners - it's brilliant. Food is spicy and a bit of a lottery but I'm slowly deciphering what to eat and what not to eat.

I also took a day trip to Boryeong mud festival which was crazy. Beer + mud + beach + people = happy times. check the pics!

My plans for the next two weeks are to go to Sokch'o where they have a mountain and a beach. Think hike one day beach the next! And after that I am doing a volunteer work camp for 7 days in a small little village with a uni group from Seoul. I am thinking it will be more of 'socialist contiki' type thing and I'm hoping to pick up some Korean (language that is!)