Seorak Fall Festival, Part 1.
Hong, Jenny, and Paul in the stands
The riders prepare for their jaunt around the track...
Aubrey and Jenny enjoying boribap (barley rice)
My favorite pic of one of the Korean riders after he'd shot the target
The riders line up for applause at the end of the competitionYesterday we had a special treat. This week is the Seorak Fall Festival in Sokcho, which includes many festivities around town. At the other lake, Yeongnangho, there is a horse track, which holds traditional Mongolian horseback/archery competitions during select festival times. We missed the one in the spring, but yesterday we got another crack at viewing one...
Jenny picked us up and we headed to Yeongnangho with her and Hong, our Chinese teacher. It was a bit overcast, but I figured we'd still see a sizeable group of spectators out for this event. Not so. The horse track, tucked behind the lake, had about 15-20 Korean viewers--mostly families. Riders (from Korea, Canada, Hong Kong, Germany, and USA) in traditional dress were stationed at one end of the field, tending to their horses and preparing to start. At first there was one archer's target positioned midfield, and each rider would race toward it without stopping and shoot an arrow, trying to make the 5-point bull's eye. Impressive stuff! I'd never seen this sort of thing before, and it felt like we were at a Renaissance fair. The horses were beautiful, ranging from coal grey, to dark brown, cream, black, and one that was painted. The Americans were quite good at hitting the target, especially two middle-aged gentlemen and a young woman (who had flowing wavy strawberry blond tresses that looked spectacular as she rode her black steed--a definite crowd-pleaser!) After a short break, they set up two targets, so that the riders had to shoot one head-on and the other behind them as they turned the curve of the track. This definitely made things more exciting! It was such a thrill to watch them in action. The leaves are turning here and the weather (for the most part) has been amazing--sunny and cool with a clear cloudless sky. It's been a while since we attended something like this, and this is just the time of year when you feel like going to an exciting outdoor sporting event--like a football game or a soccer match. Since we can't get the football, we'll take the horses! We had fun marveling at the different riders (their speed, their accuracy, their posture as they triumphed or failed, their horses).
Then, after a leisurely stroll around Yeongnangho (to check out the changing leaves), Jenny suggested an early dinner of boribap. Boribap means "barley rice" in Korean (bori=barley, bap=rice). There's a great little spot by the downtown bus terminal that serves this dish. You get barley rice and many dishes of different vegetables (kimchi, of course), like greens, mushrooms, bean sprouts, etc. to add to the rice. Then you season it with gochujang (red chili paste) or taenjang (soybean paste). They also serve pumpkin, kimchi pancake, and a really great crispy fried fish with the meal. Jenny, the ever great and generous Jenny, treated us! Thanks for a lovely afternoon!
Jenny picked us up and we headed to Yeongnangho with her and Hong, our Chinese teacher. It was a bit overcast, but I figured we'd still see a sizeable group of spectators out for this event. Not so. The horse track, tucked behind the lake, had about 15-20 Korean viewers--mostly families. Riders (from Korea, Canada, Hong Kong, Germany, and USA) in traditional dress were stationed at one end of the field, tending to their horses and preparing to start. At first there was one archer's target positioned midfield, and each rider would race toward it without stopping and shoot an arrow, trying to make the 5-point bull's eye. Impressive stuff! I'd never seen this sort of thing before, and it felt like we were at a Renaissance fair. The horses were beautiful, ranging from coal grey, to dark brown, cream, black, and one that was painted. The Americans were quite good at hitting the target, especially two middle-aged gentlemen and a young woman (who had flowing wavy strawberry blond tresses that looked spectacular as she rode her black steed--a definite crowd-pleaser!) After a short break, they set up two targets, so that the riders had to shoot one head-on and the other behind them as they turned the curve of the track. This definitely made things more exciting! It was such a thrill to watch them in action. The leaves are turning here and the weather (for the most part) has been amazing--sunny and cool with a clear cloudless sky. It's been a while since we attended something like this, and this is just the time of year when you feel like going to an exciting outdoor sporting event--like a football game or a soccer match. Since we can't get the football, we'll take the horses! We had fun marveling at the different riders (their speed, their accuracy, their posture as they triumphed or failed, their horses).
Then, after a leisurely stroll around Yeongnangho (to check out the changing leaves), Jenny suggested an early dinner of boribap. Boribap means "barley rice" in Korean (bori=barley, bap=rice). There's a great little spot by the downtown bus terminal that serves this dish. You get barley rice and many dishes of different vegetables (kimchi, of course), like greens, mushrooms, bean sprouts, etc. to add to the rice. Then you season it with gochujang (red chili paste) or taenjang (soybean paste). They also serve pumpkin, kimchi pancake, and a really great crispy fried fish with the meal. Jenny, the ever great and generous Jenny, treated us! Thanks for a lovely afternoon!
posted by streetwise at 12:06 AM
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