Becalmed

random neighbourhood sculpture

The roar of the sea has screamed itself out and there are no more whitecaps on the blue. I had forgotten the rhythm of the ocean's proximity. The calm morings.  The midday breezes.  The gusty evenings.  And then some calm again, as days simmer into routine, and there are no cyclones in the offing.
Today I walked the famous black sands of Jeju.  This is all basalt stone and sand, because, well, it is a volcanic island. HallaSan is its centre, its core.  I vow to gaze into the mouth of this volcano, if I can figure out the bus route to get there.  And I shall.

Jeju City is 400,000+ souls on an island of 600,000+. It is a lovely and organized city, as is the whole island. They have given the seaside to walkers and bicycles in my neighbourhood, Aewol - well closer to Gonae, but the villages and bus stops are not far apart.

Kissing Grandfather

I have my vehicle for two more days and will make the most of them.  My friend from Seoul, JiYeon is here and we will drive to the southeast part of the island for a yoga class.  Then we will seek out the grandfathers.
Today we went to a restraunt and had SamBap, again, lettuce wraps, and all of the lettuce is grown on the premises, in hydroculture, part of Korea's Smart Farms initiative.  Very futuristic, and completely delicious.  I also had my first Hweh (raw fish). It is all about the texture I think.  It tasted as good a cooked.

I am pretty certain the smoke from the dreadful explosion in China wafted past me here last night, but all is clear now, to the horizon, and I see an island in the distance. The sky and sea are blue and the air is fresh.
This area is hotels, restaurants, and coffee shops, so I miss the genuine amazement of Korean life in GyeongJu, but modern as this is, it is also genuine.  There are fast walkers, working to complete thier passports, to prove they have walked all 26 links on the chain of the Jeju Olle (trail) that follows the circumfrence of JeJu-do.  There are cyclists, scooters, and just air breathers like me.
Today I picked a gardenia bud and have become aquainted with another flower that is everywhere - camellia.  And the cherry blossoms still are not out.
~~n Post24 Day26/75 (#omg 1/3 already!) 

Electricity Generation for Jeju - Coastal Access
probably coal - dunno yet