A Day of Contrasts

We spent the morning in the peace and tranquility of a Buddhist temple and the afternoon visiting one of Jeju’s Sex Museums. 

The Yakcheonsa Temple is a relatively new temple that was completed in 1996. It is a large complex, but is home to only eight monks. 

 

One to three night Templestays are offered, but didn’t work with our schedule, so we opted for a three hour course instead. What you do at a course at a Buddhist Temple? 

Well…….we made a 108* bead prayer bead necklace  (I am pretty sure that Steve has never made jewelry before), performed 108* prostrations 108 is significant as being the number of ways that one may suffer), 

• There are 6 bodily pathways that lead to suffering: eyes, ears, nose skin, tongue and mind. There are 6 objects that lead to suffering: something that you see, hear, feel, smell taste or think about. There are 3 periods in which you suffer: the past, the present and the future. (6x6x3 = 108). Here is a link to the 108 prostrations: https://youtu.be/Zacqn6BMx3E

had a  lesson in meditation

 

learned to drum,

 

had a tour of the temple 

 

and ate an amazing lunch. 

 

Our teacher, Tobin was recently interviewed by CBC for a segment that will air during the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang County, South Korea. How cool is that!

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Once we were at peace with the world, we assaulted our senses with a visit to the "Museum of Sex and Health", just one of many museums on this theme. 

 

Here are a few "censored" highlights: 

 

 

 In case you were interested, the foods recommended to enhance “ the experience” include: lean read meat, berries, watermelon, figs, walnuts, oranges, legumes, tuna and broccoli. 

 

Jeju Island, South Korea

After travelling for over 24 hours we arrived in Jeju Island, in the southern part of South Korea where we checked into the Hyatt Regency for a little luxury to assist in getting over jetlag.

 

Jeju is known for its hiking, scuba diving, kitschy museums and honeymooning. We spend the first day exploring our surroundings. The scenery is gorgeous. 

 

We checked out  Cheonjeyeon Pokpo with it’s three waterfalls, tropical gorge and botanical garden. 

 

 

We saw lots of Dolharubang, which are volcanic stone statutes . 

 

The original ones were carved in 1750 and 47 originals still exist. One legend is that they were designed to ward off evil. Another legend is that they were fertility symbols.

 

Steve, of course, found a crazy deal at the Hyatt which included a massage package…ahhhhh. The Spa has a  jjimjilbang, traditional bath house similar to the Japanese onset which we have been enjoying as well.

Safety in South Korea

South Korea must be the safest country in the world!! Afraid that you may be leaning against the door when the elevator arrives & you'll fall into when the door opens? No worries - they have a sign for that.

Might stub your toe on the rock in the middle of the path? Yup, they have a sign for that too!

And no chance that you'll hit your head either.

Concerned about running out of Buddhas? This monastery has 80,000, so they'll always have a spare.

And don't worry that the local Buddha will not take you as a disciple. Chop off your own arm to show that you're serious, and your acceptance is guaranteed!

And finally, if you're concerned that your friends are having more sex than you are, don't worry - the South Koreans have got a sign for that too!!

We are having a great time, seeing some amazing signs and eating incredible food. Just don't ask us how often we are having sex.

Central Asia!

Several years ago, the Kyrgyzstan national alpine club invited the Alpine Club of Canada to attend a celebration of that huge, vastly significant mountaineering anniversary - the 60th anniversary of the fist ascent of Mount Communism. We were intrigued because
a. the mountains sounded really cool
b. it was crazy cheap
Or at least it was crazy cheap until we realized that we would have to fly on Aeroflot via Moscow, which was stupid expensive. But ever since then, we have had it on our list. 95% of Kyrgyzstan is mountainous and 40% of those are above 3,000 m. There are plenty of unclimbed peaks below 4,000 m, and its the cheapest place in the world to bag a 7,000 m peak. The lack of 8,000 m peaks means that this country is off the radar of a lot of climbers, but the area is quite popular with Russians (well, it was before the oil price dropped and their economy imploded) and Germans. No visa required + a reasonable stable government = a good time to go!
We both have a bucket list item to visit 100 countries. Right now, Steve is at 78 and Jackie is at 69 (Steve having to work in a lot of weird places in the past). We originally planned to fly to Kyrgyzstan via Istanbul, but then decided to go via South Korea. Steve had worked a few times in Seoul, but never really saw much of the country. Kyrgyzstan is exactly half way around the world from Alberta, so it didn't matter which way we went.

We fly from Calgary > Vancouver > Seoul > Jeju, an island at the south end of South Korea where we will do some hiking and diving. Then we return to Seoul for a few days for some sightseeing. Next we fly to Tashkent for a 10 day cultural tour following the path of the old silk road. For 1,000 years, the swath between Peking and Baghdad was the centre of the civilized world - while most of our ancestors were starving to death or beating each other with sticks during the dark ages, these folks were inventing algebra! We fly from Tashkent to Urgench in Uzbekistan, and then have a private tour that involves driving & trains to take us back to Tashkent. Next we go overland from Tashkent to the Kygyz city of Osh, and then fly to Bishkek, the capital of Kygyzstan where we meet our ACC friends. 10 of us are going on a 2 week trek along the Inylchek glacier that ends up in the base camp of Peak Pobeda, which, at 7,439 m is the highest point in the country. We won't be attempting Pobeda, but we do plan an attempt on an adjacent peak. We fly by helicopter back to the base of the glacier and then return to Bishkek. Half of the trekkers are returning home, and 3 new ACC folks are joining us for a week of alpine climbing in the Ala Archa national park an hour's drive south of the capital. The we take a taxi to Kazakhstan (hey, its another country) and fly home after a couple of days in Almaty.