Yellow Sea Cruise

Ok, the day after the Geumsan Trip, I went on a boat trip. Yes, this was a “canned tour” (which I hate) but I let this one slide because the price was right. Out on the Yellow Sea, here’s the pics from the trip:

The Vessel














The Destination: Sunyudo Island














Leaving the port












Saggy looking rocks



















The "Dragon Hole" I'm told











A big Mermaid Lighthouse




















Fog and Misty Horizon




















At Sunyudo Island I found a Nude Beach! I'm told the Korean writing actually says "Chicken" and "Beer" instead of "Nude Beach". I don't know when the last time this was open, but I thought it was hilarious!











My feet in the Yellow Sea


























Leaving the island, one last look.










Tokyo Slim sails again




























Some Fishing Boats

Monkey School, Puan S. Korea

This post was originally aired on Sunday, December 4th, 2005. The pictures were taken on October 8th, 2005. Yes, I sure was lazy. But now I'm leaping back, setting right things which once went wrong, just like on Quantum Leap! On with the Post:

The three of us who went on this excursion decided to use aliases, so with me are Matt McCall and Baxter Tanenbaum. Mine was Art Van de Lay. Yeah, I didn't try too hard on that one. Baxter is the guy with the flaming pink shirt.

So this was my 2nd trip into Puan, but I didn't know how to get to the Monkey School. We didn't know anything about it, just that we had to see some monkeys!

We found the place finally, and got there in between shows. Plenty to see before the show. There was a geological museum and dinosaur eggs, fossils, and skeletons. There was a crocodile area, where we walked on a glass bridge about 2 feet over the crocs. There were monkeys in cages and a big plant and bug section. Then it was time for the show.

We laughed our asses off. It was probably the funniest stuff I have seen in years. The pictures didn't come out all that great in there I'm sorry to say.




Me and Baxter at a Totem Pole.


A big-ass Geode, or Amethyst thingy.


It's an angel! No wait it's Matt in front of a giant oyster.


Here's the giant oyster, sans Matt.


Baxter didn't stand a chance.


Some crocs, or alligators, I'm not sure. There wasn't a little sign.


Here's another Crocigator now!


Oh my god, That Crocigator's doing god's dirty work for Matt's Blasphemy. Or however you spell it.


The not so golden Golden Ticket to the Monkey School show!

Ever see a calm monkey turn into a blind-rage filled minion of evil and carnage, trying to chew through a plastic coated chain link fence to rip your face off and play in your disembowled carcass when you came around the corner? This guy was disturbing.


Even closer to the madness.


And then, the money shot! So darn cute, I could just puke.


Bald-ass monkey with a pink shirt. Who dresses these guys?


The show


After the show


Kim Jong Il's proposed new flag of a Unified Korea. I can't read Korean, but I bet it says :

On the left in white: The new Unified Korea will be open from 10:00 am until 10:00 pm. 120 days of the year.

On the right in red : It'll cost you 2,500Won ($2.50) to buy the new flag and 4,000Won ($4.00) per wave of it. Democracy ain't cheap, sports fans!


Photos By Tokyo Slim

Geumsan Ginseng Festival

Here’s a trip I created because "canned" tours suck. Doing your own thing is a lot more fun and finding your way is better than following someone. I follow orders all week at work; I make my own God-damned rules when I'm off!

In a town called Geumsan, they grow a lot of Ginseng. As a matter of fact, they call themselves the Ginseng Capital of the World. Who am I to argue, really? There’s just no way I could possibly dispute it, so I don’t. But, what I can do is go check out their town, because every year, I heard they have a huge festival, celebrating ginseng and ginseng related accessories. How did I get there? Mr. N (Kool Korean Kat from the plant) hooked me up with some bus schedule info for traveling to and from Geumsan. How'd I find my way around Geumsan? Read on...

I found an easy way to get around Korea if you are a lazy American that hasn’t learned to speak Korean: Korean school kids learn English in school, and sometimes jump at the chance to practice with lazy Americans like me. I noticed the kids get real “Balls-ey” when they travel in packs. They will shout out “hi, hello, how are you,” and then you are in there. One kid might not speak enough to communicate with you, but if they’re in a group of 5 or 6, your chances just shot up that you’ll get the directions you need! I figure, the way my mind drifts in and out at school, so do theirs, but all at different moments! What one kid missed in Tuesday’s class, the next kid didn’t, and so on, until 5 or 6 kids talking at once equals 1 solid wealth of language skills, and a shit-load of fun!

So Geumsan goes on my list as a really nice town to visit. The kids were really cool to me, and they pointed me in the right direction of where to track down the ginseng festivities from the bus station. Here’s some pics:

Some of the cool kids I mentioned



















One tired ass little dog











ginseng in water or soju, not sure which














Closer Look














The soup from my lunch, under a yellow tent














Bi Bim Bap lunch, maybe the best bowl yet!














While I ate, a parade starts up











Little guy






































































A spry old man










































































Some shave ice with red beans, fruit and jello. Delicious!