Busy Bee

As I was walking through Seoul last weekend, I came across a large display of flowers in Seoul Plaza. Despite the fall temperatures, the flowers were alive, looked fresh, and had several bees buzzing around. I stopped for a minute and flashed a few pictures.

N Seoul Tower

N Seoul Tower, atop Namsan Mountain in Central Seoul, is one of the most famous pieces of architecture in Seoul's skyline.

Cheonggyecheon

Cheonggyecheon is a stream running through Downtown Seoul. The stream was at one point so run-down that the city had it covered over with a highway. A few years ago while South Korean President Lee Myung-bak was still mayor of Seoul, he began the project that restored the river. Now, there are almost always crowds of people walking along the stream.

An Office Building Reflecting The Sun

Seoul Station

I went into Seoul on Saturday to get my camera's sensor cleaned. Alice helped me find a repair shop and gave me prefect directions to get there. The repair man - who operated out of a small, one-room office - listened to my problem, took the lens off, cleaned the sensor, and put the lens back on in about two minutes. When I asked him how much I owed him he said: "No charge. If this camera breaks, bring it back to me, then I will charge you." I immediately went outside and was very pleased to see that the dust spots were gone. I spent the next 5 hours walking around Central Seoul taking pictures, eventually meeting up with Alice.

Above is a picture I took in Seoul Station shortly after my camera was fixed. I have no idea why the entire place was empty.

Painters

One of the apartment buildings in my neighborhood was painted this weekend. As far as I could tell these were the only two guys on the job. They would secure their ropes somewhere on the roof, sit on their wooden seats, and repel down to paint. In this picture they are painting around the 10th floor of the 12-story building.

Azalea

Anyang From The River

The Building of Doors

A while ago I came across a university in Seoul that had covered one of its buildings with old doors. Unfortunately I was only able to take pictures with my cell phone.

Weekend

After a long week, Alice and I went out for a few beers on Friday night. She took this picture of me.

Behind the Forbidden City

This is the wall at the rear of the Forbidden City. If you look closely, you can see the crowds spilling out.

The Temple of Heaven

I really liked the architecture of this temple in Beijing. It was also one of the least crowded tourist spots we came across - something that was really refreshing.

Temple Roofs

Taken at the Lama Temple in Beijing. After a black and white image yesterday, I though I would go for something with a little color today.

Inside the Forbidden City

This was the only place inside the Forbidden City where there wasn't a crowd.

Fog Over the Forbidden City

The Forbidden City was the home of Chinese Emperors from the Ming Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty - a period of roughly 500 years. There are almost a thousand rooms within.

Flashback: China 2009

Sorry about all of the flashbacks! My camera has what appears to be dust or dried water droplets on the sensor and I have been getting small gray spots on some of my images. I have also been going through a lot of my old pictures lately, and I thought I would put some up while I wait to get my camera fixed.

During the summer of 2009, I met my Mother, Father, and Brother in Beijing for a week. We saw Tienanmen Square, The Forbidden Palace, the Beijing Zoo, a few temples, an acrobat show, and (of course) the Great Wall. Needless to say, it was quite a trip.

Here's one of my favorite pictures from the Great Wall. I will be putting up China pictures for the next few days.

The Subway After Leaving Anyang Station

My Neighborhood at Eye Level

My building is at the end of the road, on the right side.

Flashback: Busan, 14 August 2009

Last summer my friends Roy and Rossco came over to Asia for two weeks. During that time we traveled through Tokyo, Osaka, and Fukuoka in Japan and Busan, Yongin, and Seoul in Korea. One night, after more than a few beers in downtown Busan, we decided it would be a good idea to take a taxi to the beach rather than to our hotel. We arrived just as the sun was coming up, and I took my only picture of the night - this one.