Ho Gun Memorial Post

Hey, hey. I just got back from the wedding of one of the teachers. They do it a bit differently in Korea, but I'll write more on that experience later (check back in June at the rate I'm updating this).

My winter vacation was pretty good. I wasn't sure what I would do with my free time since my best Korean friend, Ho Gun, left to go back to the United States. Ho Gun is a microbiology professor at Kyung Hee University in Seoul. He is an elite jedi knight at cloning DNA. I met Ho Gun in the genetics lab that I did my research in during my undergraduate era. Even though he is a professor in Korea, his family lives in the United States, so he travels back to the US whenever there is a winter or summer break. Our lab does similar research on tuberculosis that Ho Gun's lab does, so he is able to continue researching with us during his sojourn in Seattle. Not only is he a jedi knight in science, but he is also one of the friendliest and most fun guys that I know.

Ho Gun has helped make my stay here in Korea much easier and I am forever in his doubt. One of the first things he did was help me find the essentials that my apartment was lacking. We ventured out to the glorious Seoul neighborhood known as Yongsan (용산구). (Quick side note: Seoul is divided up into various neighborhoods kind of like how Seattle has Capitol Hill, Fremont, U-District, etc.; what makes it novel for me isn't just the sheer ginormosity nor crowdedness, but that each neighborhood specializes in only one or two things. It would be like if Fremont only sold jewelry and that was pretty much it. If you wanted clothing then you'd have to go to some other neighborhood because Fremont only sells jewelry and some food, and that's it.) Yongsan specializes in selling electronics. It makes Fry's Electronics look like a little Radioshack in terms of size (not in terms of price, unfortunately). There are a bunch of huge buildings that are all kind of connected with above-ground tunnels, and they have various consumer electronics on each floor. It's kind of weird because each floor has vendors selling the same things in a bunch of open kiosks. I have no idea how you're suppose to choose which one to buy from, but Ho Gun knew what he was doing and in the end I came out with some blank CDs and a web camera. Ho Gun looked really worried about the web camera because it was made in China, but so far, so good.

Inside one of the various malls in Yongsan.

After the exciting adventure to Yongsan, Ho Gun and I went on a quest to find me some soccer shoes and a good soccer ball. The first place we went to was Namdaemun market (남대문 시장). It was a market with crowded pedestrian streets with tables and small shops scattered about. I'll probably be going back sometime soon because I saw running shoes for $5 (made in China, though). Unfortunately, they didn't have any soccer shoes as those are all in Dongdaemun market (동대문 시장). So off we went to Dongdaemun, a much more upscale shopping area with more people selling things inside of big malls rather than outside on tables. I got some nice new turf soccer shoes (I've never seen a grass field in Korea yet) and a soccer ball (which after two months of use, is already having some stitching come out. The ball was made in China; you were right, Ho Gun).

Ho Gun and I in Dongdaemun.

This was a big display describing fashion. Kind of odd, considering all of the clothing stores that I've seen sell the same style of things.

A couple of weeks later, I met up with Ho Gun again. The next stage of my journey with Ho Gun took me to his past. We went to the area in Seoul where Ho Gun grew up. He claims that it was completely different then from what it is now. You can still see the remains of that time with a few old houses with the old school tile roofs, mixed in with the new modern buildings. We went to Ho Gun's old childhood stomping ground, Changdeokgung (창덕궁). It is a huge palace, but even though Ho Gun is a charming guy, he's not a prince. Apparently, back in the day, the palace was uninhabited and the local neighborhood children ran amok there. Ho Gun told me that his schoolyard chums and him would play hide-and-seek, and go ice skating at the ponds during the winter. I had a great group of neighborhood friends when I was a child, and we would play kick the can and Parcheesi like everyone else, since that was the style at the time, but doing our shenanigans in a huge ancient palace would have been pretty exciting. Most of the different parts of the palace were connected with sky bridges and Ho Gun even said there was a big underground area as well. I didn't see any wild kids running around, so I guess now the palace is considered to be pretty important. I guess if you ever want to preserve something you shouldn't let little kids touch it, they're devilish little hands are like the opposite of the Midas touch.

The brown building behind Ho Gun is the spot where he was born. Ho Gun is a pretty extraordinary scientist, so I'm doubting that he was born like the rest of his mortals, but I guess all superheroes need an alibi.

Here is one of the many buildings that Ho Gun and is friends got to play in. I could totally picture my childhood self running around franticly and screaming in there.

Ho Gun and the tour guide lady both told me that these are palace guardians. You can see them on the corners of most of the buildings as well as a lot of temples, and they all face outwards. I had assumed they had something to do with helping the TV reception.

We're just chilling next to the frozen pond. All of the grounds in the palace are dirt because it was easier to keep clean. There was a garden behind the palace grounds, but our tour didn't go that way and the security guard had his eye on Ho Gun and I. He must have recognized Ho Gun as one of his old childhood palace nemesis.

After leaving the palace, Ho Gun and I trekked on to Insadong, land of Korean antiques and traditional souvenirs. We meandered down the pedestrian street and browsed through some of the shops and did what the Koreans call "eye shopping." Probably the most interesting thing we did was step into an art gallery. The first floor had some sculptures of animals and fantasy creatures that were life size and made of old tires. The strips of tires were applied like strips of muscles, and really made it look convincing.

The streets of Insadong.

This thing was about the usual three or four feet that a real life fantasy wolf dog would be.



Right before Ho Gun left for the United States, we met once more. This time I met him at the new place where he and his schoolyard chums currently run around and play hide-and-seek, Kyung Hee University. It's a big university in Seoul, but it wasn't too crowded because the students were already on holiday. Ho Gun is very popular and nearly every person we passed had to stop and greet him and shake his hand. I can't imagine how he ever makes it anywhere when school is in session. The university was pretty big and kind of gray. I saw some interesting artwork on campus that reminded me of UW. I also got to visit Ho Gun's lab and see where all the magic happens. It looked a lot like my old lab and he even had some of the exact same equipment. I met his graduate and undergraduate students, whom are very nice, albeit a little shy. I have since hung out with them on multiple occasions and have always had a good time. Ho Gun is mentoring them very well in being cool.

I was also able to get my hair cut while in the area. Ho Gun took me to his favorite spot, the Blue Club, which is a chain for cheap hair cuts. It only cost me $6 and I followed the Korean custom of not tipping so it was a real bargain. I might have to get my hair cut more than twice a year since it is that affordable. A few weeks later, when I told Yeong Ki Bi's son that I got my hair cut there, he laughed and said, "worst haircut place." I disagree, but maybe the Blue Club in Suwon isn't so sharp, and the one at Kyung Hee University is where it's at.

Sporting a new do, I went with Ho Gun to the Seoul National Museum. The place was huge. We looked at an endless number of books written in Chinese writing that neither of us could understand, we saw old maps, we saw old clothing and we saw old tools. It was interesting and I had a fun time talking and joking with Ho Gun. If you're ever in the area and need something to do, then I suggest checking the place out.



In conclusion, I have been very lucky to have Ho Gun as a friend. Without him, I would have long unmanageable hair and I wouldn't have the soccer friends that I have now. So thank you, professor Ho Gun. I eagerly await your return.