This morning we talked to more people that had mixed reactions to their tours in Seoul yesterday. Taking the organized tours on buses sounded like a great idea, but the traffic was under-estimated. Saturday road traffic was not too bad in the morning, but coming back, we heard it was a nightmare, taking up to three hours to get back to the ship. Once there in the center of Seoul, some folks that were traveling independently, found there were no hop-on hop-off buses running on Saturday. With few options to navigate around the demonstrations and protests underway, some of our friends turned around and came back to Incheon. One of our friends told us that her husband had taken the dinner and performance tour, which was delayed three hours coming back at 10pm. Jokingly, she said she feared that her husband had been captured by the North Koreans, never to be seen again. She would have gone too, but she was still recovering from a recent illness that has plagued many passengers.
Today's weather was overcast, dreary, and still very cold. Bundled in layers, we took off on the shuttle at 10am once again to Incheon to further explore Zone 2, the Open Port and Chinatown area. We only saw part of it yesterday. There were only a few buses on the pier this morning with tours to Seoul and highlights of Incheon. We understand there were 6 buses to take passengers and crew to town. And the info desk and money changers were not present this morning. Good thing we had picked up the maps yesterday.
The Sinpo Market was not totally open yet. Of course, it was a Sunday. Right up the street, we located the money changing store, and bought $20 worth on Korean Won (22,760). Sure looked like a lot of bucks, but it was enough for a few items.
Across the street, there was a church, the Catholic Dapdong Cathedral. Hiking up the steep hillside, we entered the church where a mass was in progress. It was so warm inside, we stayed for long enough to count for going to mass today. Being that we are Catholic, everything was the same, except for the language. We heard that in South Korea, 32% of the locals are Christians. About the same amount have no religion, followed by Buddhism, and the church of Reverend Moon. North Korea remains Atheist, believing in no God.
Crossing back over the main street, we saw another church by the name of Incheon Naeri Church. It appeared worthwhile to climb the many stairs leading up to their doors. Judging by the cars that were parked everywhere, we should have known that this church was jammed with people. So much so, that we did not attempt to enter it.
This was the right direction towards the Hongyemun Gate and the Incheon Educational and Cultural Center for Students. Obviously a college-like building, it was closed today. This street led to the bottom of Jayu Park or Freedom Park as it used to be called. Looking at the map, who knew it was located on a mountain in the center of this area? Probably quite lovely in the spring, the flowering cherry trees and ginkos were barren and leaf-less now in the winter. It was a long walk uphill, but well worth it once we reached the top. You could get views of the port and city down below.
There are historic figures up here. The main statue was of General MacArthur, who was instrumental in helping save the South Koreans from the Communists North Koreans. He led Incheon Landing operations in the 1950's, and is honored here. A garden surrounds the monument, and it partially covered with straw mats to protect the plants from the winter snows. Further up the hill is the Centennial Monument of Korea and US Treaty of Amity. It was dated back to 1882. This structure is very modern, like abstract art. We saw few folks we knew up here today, as there was no tour that brought anyone here. Buses are not allowed in here, so walking up such steep slopes was probably not an option for the shore excursions.
Following the signs, we looked for the way to Chinatown, but could not see anything that resembled it from up here. We gave up looking, until we ran into friends Storm and Carolann. We chatted for 20 minutes about other things, namely the changes we don't like on the ship, then they went off to find Chinatown. They promised to tell us all about it if they located it.
The more we thought about it, it was worth a try. Reading that this Chinatown is the only one in Korea, we felt we should not miss seeing it. The hike going downhill was steep, but at least we did not have to use stairs. Following the local families, we found the closed off street leading to the district. A huge statue of Confucius was right on the hillside, so we knew we were in the right place. The street downhill was filled with tiled Chinese history.
We literally could not believe how many people were on this main street filled with dozens of restaurants, shops for souvenirs, clothing, and house wares. Gourmet food was being cooked in street stalls, and the folks had lined up for miles to buy it. Every restaurant and café had a line of hungry families waiting to go inside. Some of the food was interesting, but we were not sure what it was. A woman baker was cutting a very large cake or bread into loaves. Not sure what it was, we almost bought it, but figured it would take a week to eat it all. So we passed on the idea.
That reminds us of a story we heard at breakfast this morning from friends we see every day. They had gone to lunch, and a dish was served that looked like crunchy nuts of some kind. Someone they knew was eating them, and said they were different, but not nuts. They found out they were eating cooked silk worms, which is a common item on many menus in Asia. The silk thread is taken from the worm that has made the cocoon. The entire cocoon is boiled, killing the worm. It became a good source of protein, and nothing is wasted. Guess it can be an acquired taste, however, not for everyone.
Anyway, back at Chinatown, the winds had picked up, and it sure felt like it could rain. Well, instead of rain, we had snow flurries. How exciting was that? Snow is not something we see a lot of at home in northern California. It did not last long, which was probably a good thing. Walking over the mountain at Jayu Park with snow or ice would not be a wise thing.
It was getting late, and we were getting hungry. So we back-tracked and went down the first set of stairs down to the Sinpo Underground Shopping Mall. At least it was warm down here, and we could spend the little bit of money we had. Yesterday, we had seen some costume jewelry that caught our eye, and some cosmetic products one of us needed. In fact, we were a little short on the change, but the vendor gladly gave us the items anyway. That would never happen at home. This market place was full of shoppers today, because it was Sunday and many families were out and about with their kids.
Coming out at the 27 & 28 marker for the subway, we ended up right back where we started. A small pharmacy had some snacks where we spent most of the money. Another funny thing happened in one of the small stores. Guess some Yen got mixed up with the Korean Won, and the vendors would not accept it. Kind of looked the same, but the Japanese bills were smaller. Some places did take the US dollar however, but that was an exception.
We got back to the pier by 3:30pm, tired, cold, and hungry. We ordered a room service lunch of Caesar chicken salads and one club sandwich to share. This time we added two plates of fresh chocolate chip cookies. Dinner will probably be smaller than normal for us tonight.
Working on photos and reports kept us busy until the sunset, of which there was none. The clouds had gotten darker, and by dinnertime, it was raining heavily. Guess we were lucky the rain had held off during the day. The Captain came on with his PM talk, warning us that once we were out to sea late tonight, we would be hitting some rough seas. Nothing worse than what we have experienced, but rocking and rolling anyway. We should be heading even a little further north, so we do expect it to remain quite cold.
At dinner, we had complimentary wine to celebrate the start of the Mariner Appreciation Days, now that the powers-to-be from Seattle are onboard. Included in this group are the President of HAL, the Director of the Mariner Society, and the manager of Corporate Giving. Instead of the wine, three of us took sodas instead. No problem getting the cans unopened to enjoy tomorrow instead.
We have two days at sea to prepare for the overland adventure, although we are already half-way packed.
Bill & Mary Ann
That is ice on the teak deck
Cranes off-loading grain into turcks
A very slow and dusty process
A few buses today
Typical downtown
Many small shops
Older part of town
Incheon is a big city in itself
Clothing store
Simpo International Market
Dapdong Cathedral
Built on a knoll
Catholic
Mass was in progress
The altar and priest
Stained glass windows
Like modern art
Compass rose found in all churches
Male Eurasian magpie
Parking lot in the church was jammed solid
Mature trees
Walking back down was easier
Narrow and steep side streets
We have to remember this is the bus drop off point
Sunday morning traffic
Commuter traffic weekdays is far worse
Incheon Naeri Church
It was a steep hike to get to the front doors
Could not get inside…..too crowded
Which way to go?
Church properties
A shrine marks the spot
Fresh produce…very healthy looking
Bright colors cheered up the landscape
Desserts
Side street
Flowers always give color to winter streets
Incheon Educational & Cultural Center for Students
Campus was closed on Sunday
Dozens of cafes near the center
The menu items are pictured outside
Climbing the steep avenues
Wood cut-outs painted by kids
Afrika in Korea? A café actually
Small houses
An interesting brass door
Street map was helpful
Kept going higher
Did not know we were climbing a mountain
Entrance to Jayu Park
High school in the distance
Eurasian magpies
They were searching for fallen fruit
Or worms
Swastika sign is also a sign of peace
A tower
More stairs to climb
Little café in Jayu Park
The first monument dedicated to local teenagers during the Korean War
The war monument
And the story
Great view of Incheon from the top
A church was did not visit
An aviary in Jayu Park….empty this time of year
Wide bricked pathways to the top
Many benches scattered around
Gardens
Trellising for vines
Statue of General Douglas MacArthur
He was well respected in South Korea
The story
Water landing in Incheon
Respectful monument
Surrounding gardens
Dedication to the Navy
The story
Lights with boat decorations
Covered flower beds protected with straw mats
General MacArthur
A garden surrounds the monument
Covered garden beds
Lost in the square
Top of the mountain
A tower
