Old Men, Much Fun

We were doing a city tour of Incheon, not recommended, and we saw a game going on at the small pitch next to the Emigration Museum.

Sport might not be very organised at school level, but after people leave school, there is nothing to stop them organising it for themselves. And organise the do, until the die of old age.

The old ballie in the back must be 98 years old, or maybe 60, but that is not stopping him and what looks like other retired men from entering a tournament.

Maybe they don't fly in for tackles, but they sure take it seriously, while not forgetting that it is still supposed to be fun.

Image taken with a Canon 650D fitted with a Sigma 18-250mm lens, edited in Adobe Lightroom.

Markings on the Path

I have no idea what this is supposed to be, it was there and looked interesting.

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.

Fishing the Han

Over weekends, and possibly during the week, you will see scenes similar to this one dotting the Han River.

The long walk from Donjak Station to Yeouinara will lead you along the Han. As you walk you will be passed by groups of cyclists. Some speed by on snazzy road bikes. Some are just out for a ride on their own bikes in normal clothes. Even the lost soul on a rented jalopy may pass you.

Just off the bike road you will see encounter men, usually sitting alone and well away from any other human. They all have about four fishing lines cast into the river connected to fishing poles, leaning on special stands. Most of the men are just sitting there, doing nothing. They don't read. They don't listen to the radio. They don't play on their phones. They just sit and wait.

I can't help but think that doing this, once you get past all the thought that will inevitably run through their minds and when that chaos settles down, then this will be a great form of meditation. I'd really like to try it some time.

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.

Better Days of Fishing

Korea is one of the world's major fishing countries, but I suspect that is not due to boats like this.

This small fishing boat at Eulwangni Beach near Incheon has seen better days. I'm no expert on what vessels should look like, but somehow I feel that the rust there is not a good thing and not a sight of a prosperous fisherman.

I've never lived near the sea and have very little knowledge of the life of small scale fishing men and women. I have, however, always thought that it's not an easy life. From my sporadic encounters it looks like these men and women are forever living on the edge where failure means going to bed hungry and exhausted.

The life of those who must provide food for themselves and others can be hard. We in the cities really don’t appreciate them or their hard work.

Image taken with a Canon 650D fitted with a Sigma 18-250mm lens, edited in Adobe Lightroom.

Basement Price

Amazingly people are still trying to sell these shirts.

These were the cheap shirts sold to the general public for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. At the time they were about W30,000. As the months passed people still tried to sell them, most notably in areas where tourists hang out.

Four years later and despite a new shirt for the 2014 World Cup, they are still trying to sell these. Best of all, this photo was taken AFTER Korea was knocked out of the 2014 tournament.

Does anyone at all buy these anymore, even at that price?

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.

Gwanghwamunian Summers

The new revamped version of Gwanghwamun features a water fountain much larger than the one at City Hall.

On warm days you will find fully clothed children, soaked to the bone within the fountain. Some scream. Some run. Others stand. A few stand and watch with caution, trying to decide if they should venture into the wet unknown before them.

And with the children come parents who are divided between those who are doing their best to get no less than 79 out of focus photos, and those who watch with eagle eyes just in case someone slips and hits their little golden lamb.

You can always count on it that there will be some people in Seoul willing to use every opportunity they can to enjoy the what the city has to offer, even if it is not the same way as the person right next to them.

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.

An Opinion Shared

There wasn’t much going on in the City Hall to Gwanghwamun area when I went past there last weekend.

There was just the usual mix of Falun Gong promoters, or activists, I’m not sure which and odd meeting for who knows what. The only notable visuals were the yellow ribbons at City Hall that are still up, months after the Sowal ferry accident and the children playing in the water at Gwanghwamun.

But then there was a lone little lorry with this large poster on it’s back doors. There was not one nearby saying or doing anything anything. From the look of things it was a park and leave job.

Whatever it was supposed to be, it was funny and well worth the photo.

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.

Chit-chat

Taking the motorcycle to Big Bird took me through parts of Suwon that I’ve never seem. Granted, I don’t know much about Suwon anyway.

The route marked out on the map at one point took me to through the semi back streets. This is rarely a problem for me, because side and back streets tend to be much more interesting anyway.

On one of the intersections someone had painted a few murals/graffiti pieces. The others seemed to be more what we would generally call artistic, but this one was a bit, well, whatever it was.

There were other things I saw that I would like to go back and photograph, but for now this will be all.

Image taken with a Samsung Galaxy S4, edited with Snapseed.