World Cup is over

We have now seen both of 'our' teams fall in the last three days. It was great to see first hand the intensity and passion of the Korean supporters (intense but still very eastern - have you ever seen soccer fans clean up rubbish at the end of the night?!) but of course our hearts were really with Australia, who lost just a few minutes ago in rather a crushing way. Things are looking all too familiar in the Cup now - so go Ghana!

UPDATE (thanks Suzi T!): As you may have seen in the news, 4.2 million Koreans have emailed FIFA complaining about the refereeing during the Korea-Switzerland match. Apparently a fan spread the news that if FIFA received 5 million emails they would have to replay the game. Subsequently, FIFA has put a ban on all emails originating from Korea!

Finding old Seoul

Although Seoul has a history dating back over 2,000 years, it has suffered numerous devestating invasions which have resulted in extensive rebuilding - hence the modern look of most parts of the city. The Korean War took quite a toll, but perhaps worse was the delibrate destruction of anything of Korean cultural value by the Japanese during their occupation. However, pockets of the old city remain and we found that taking the effort to find them was well worth it.

The rooftops of one of Seoul's old districts

Though no doubt renovated over the decades, these great old houses retain fantastic character

The hilly, winding lanes give you an idea of what much of the city must have looked like pre-invasion

Of course, most of the city is considerably newer...

Jongro Tower

A Jongno building in reflection

Very non-traditional illuminated waterfall, built 2004

Korea def. Togo 2:1

We gathered with 300,000 people in the centre of Seoul last night to watch Korea v Togo. With all the hysteria it was hard to believe that the actual game was being played over 8,000 kms away in Germany!

A sea of red devils

A haze of soccer frenzy

Only about 100,000 people between us and the screen- lucky it was a few storeys high

The trains ran on special schedules to traffic all the red devils home- this is us in the middle of the post-game crush

It was a pretty peaceful event given the number of chanting red devils. The police were definitely playing a good cop role, with a very soft approach taken with fans who climbed on the roof of the subway entrance- hence the following comical scene we saw develop in front of us...

Frame 1: A few spectators mount the roof of the subway entrance, in an attempt to get a better view of the screen. Shortly after a police officer clambers up to try and remove them. No luck- they appear to be laughing at him and playing cat and mouse around the sign

Frame 2: (about 5 minutes later) The crowd of spectators on the roof grows paying no attention to the lone officer who is trying to remove them

Frame 3: (about 10 minutes later) The police and spectators appear to have brokered a deal where the spectators get to stay until half time and the police get to watch the game from here as well!

The kids are of course getting right into the soccer at school, many wearing red devils tees. Trent joined in for the day of the Korean:Togo match and the kids were very impressed. One of the great soccer idols is ex-coach of the Korean team (the guy who led them to 4th place in the last World Cup), Gus Hiddink. He is now the Aussie coach, another great talking point with the kids. Some of the middle school girls have even declared their love for him!

Trent and his Kids striking a pose

One of Trent's students with his Gus Hiddink t-shirt

Incheon

Incheon is mainly know for being the site of the international airport servicing Seoul, however, we decide to challenge the stereotype and check it out for the Memorial Day public holiday. We arrived in Incheon after about an hour on the subway and were greeted by the district mascot- Worldee. His ears are seagulls wings symbolising the the district's coastal location and tourism.

Worldee

The highlight of the day was a stroll through Chinatown, perched on inner-Incheon's narrow hilly streets. Here are some images from the day.

Looking up the hill...

...and down the hill

Shops of Chinatown

Kiddie's World Cup

Korea is getting redder by the day as the World Cup countdown is on and everyone is decked out in Red Devil t-shirts, hats, armbands, bandanas... and underwear! Trent has a t-shirt and we both have the arm bands ready to go.

For the warm-up match against Ghana (in Scotland) half a stadium worth of people watched the match on a big screen in Seoul. The trains have already started special extended schedules so that masses of people can move around the city and gather in front of big screens to cheer on the Devils.

The crowd for the warm up game! (Stolen from Korea Herald)

If that's not enough, there is a TV channel that broadcasts X-box soccer games (complete with studio audience!). But, our favourite is the Kiddie's World Cup. The telecast features full commentary and all the camera angles that you see in the real comp. Recently they showed a Korea v England showdown- as you can see the English team had a bit of a height advantage. Despite this, Korea took the game 2:1 thanks to a late goal.

Hilarious, even if we couldn't understand what they were saying!

Go Korea!

Technology crazy Korea

Korean's have to have the latest gadgets, especially in relation to mobile phones and portable MP3 players. These mini machines are like their best friends whom they spend hours starring at on the subway and buses, and as they walk the streets. Many phones now have TV screens, an issue that has resulted in many a phone confiscation in my classroom. One of Korean's national papers was recently joking about the mobile phone being designated as the national symbol of Korea, so it's not just the outside world who think that they are obsessed!

Samsung is the most popular choice, apparently Nokia couldn't compete in the local Korean market

In the midst of all this technology, Trent still managed to find a small arcade room full of old favourites- 25c per game.

Retro lives on in Seoul

Kingslands invade Korea

My Mum and Dad departed Korea today after spending 10 nights with us in Seoul. We managed to accommodate them quite comfortably in our little apartment (hint, hint...). I think they were pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to explore the city, especially since a lot of it they did on their own while we were at school. All we needed to do was set them up with a transport card (for the subway and buses) and point them in the direction of some of the main sites. They actually managed to do more than we have done, including a trip to the DMZ- the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea.

We probably tested their taste-buds a few too many times with the heat of Korean food, but they definitely tried a lot, including sundae (pig blood sausage) and soju, Korea's favourite (20% alcohol) spirit. Here we are on their last night with a feast of galbi (grilled beef), which you BBQ at your table and wrap in lettuce leaves. In between, you snack on a vast array of side dishes.

Dad, Trent, galbi and heaps of sides

Mum and I - Mum's hair colour was quite an attraction

ps. Have to give Radio Australia a plug because they came through with the goods and we are now in possession of a Lonely Planet guide to the Western Balkans. Needless to say, our list of travel destinations for next year is growing by the minute!