Byeonsanbando Revisited: A Letter to Nanny

Last August I visited 변산반도 (Byeonsanbando National Park) with Ben, Mary, and Myles. It was an epic adventure and one that remains one of the fondest memories I have in Korea (the blog post is incomplete...I'm a procrastinator). Since I have such wonderful memories of it I wanted to revisit it this summer for my birthday. My birthday weekend had a heinous forecast consisting of torrential downpour and huge storm, so against my "fuck it let's do it anyway" attitude, I cancelled it. Clearly it didn't rain for more than 2 hours all weekend and it was quite beautiful. Leaving that frustration behind, despite more warnings of rain and thunderstorms some friends and I decided to take the plunge and head there this past weekend.

Megan, Kevin, Yonghoo, and I head out Saturday afternoon by bus for 부안 (Buan), where we caught another bus straight to 격포비치 (Gyeokpo Beach). On our way home on the bus I wrote my monthly letter to my Grandma (Nanny), that sums up the weekend quite nicely so I thought I'd just share that. So here it is:

Nanny,

We are driving past bright green rice fields set against a backdrop of layers upon layers of mountains. The sky is a bright blue interrupted by fluffy white clouds constantly changing shape and moving ever so slowly across the stunning blue canvas. It is almost as if the clouds are admiring the beautiful scenery below, and the mountains reaching up to touch the sky.

I am on a bus heading from 격포비치(Gyeokpo Beach) to 대전(Daejeon-where I live). I have spent the weekend with some wonderful friends playing on the beach and swimming in the ocean. We cooked and ate as many shell fish as our tummies could handle at a restaurant on the beach.

We licked up ice cream as quickly as possible so as to not lose it to the heat. We lit fireworks and drank beers on the beach, enjoying each others company under the night sky. When it began to rain we sought refuge in a 노래방 (singing room). Singing song after song, as loud as possible, until we could no longer muster a sound, well a nice sound anyway.

The next morning after waking up Kevin, and Yonghoo, my friend Megan and I headed for the beach telling the boys to meet us there when they were ready. We swam, etched our names in the sand, and created models of each other from shells, seaweed, and anything else we could find along the shore.

When the boys finally met up with us, they added their names to ours, and made models of each other. We then headed for lunch, 갈국수 (kalguksu-noodles, vegetables, and seafood). Obviously in need of desert we had 팥빙수 (patbingsu-shaved ice, condensed milk, fruit, fruit syrup, ice cream, rice cakes, and beans). It was my first time eating patbingsu, but it shall not be the last, although it sounds like an unlikely mix for a delicious treat, it is delicious and perfectly refreshing on a hot summer day.

We walked through the water and enjoyed the amazing weather for a bit longer, where I burned my legs really badly. Then got on a bus to head home. And here we are on the bus together. You are here with me, enjoying the view.

Love you always,
Meagan MacAshPash

Yonghoo proudly displaying his cooking skills.

Kevin disgusted by some of the shellfish.

Gorgeous sunset.

Sparklers!!!

Kevin getting a little too excited with fireworks in his hand.

Noraebang!!! (karaoke)

Strike a pose...clearly Madonna.

Kev on one of his intense solos.

I made Megan as yellow as I could.

And she made me as white as she could.

Practicing our yoga poses.

Yonghoo made Kevin's model well endowed...yet to be verified.

Patbingsu!