1, 2, JUMP!

Friday was Buddha's birthday/ Children's day, both national holidays and so we were given the day off. Chantal and Rebecca decided at the last minute that we should go whitewater rafting. So at 7am we all met and took the trek that included a bus, the subway, and another bus.

Mikey on the bus to Seoul. Complain no more, woman!

Me, Scottish Mike (Princess), Mikey, Heather on the bus to Gangwon-do.

We had had sunny days all week prior so of COURSE this day was overcast and it threatened to rain the whole day. Of course when we were out on the water, it did. But no matter. We arrived to the campsite shortly after 12 and were shown to our cabin.

View from our cabin.

We met at around 1 to learn proper safety procedures and then get out on the water. They taught us the Korean for several important instructions which we didn't quite get. We only knew the danger signal and everybody row. "Hana! Dul!" (1! 2!) the whole time. I brought out my camera in a ziploc bag. Fortunately I took it out before we really shoved off and they noticed and made me leave it behind. We were all completely soaked by the end of the trip, so I got lucky.

Everything started out great. The water was a little bit calmer than I would have liked, which we later found out was due to the shallow waters. We went down small rapids surrounded by high cliffs with interesting rock formations. We passed a temple and some waterfalls that are used in many Korean movies. We saw lots of herons and cranes. The water was so fresh, our guide said, that he took a drink of it. We were a little bit more gunshy about that. When we approached our first big rapid, we saw a man fall out. That same man was taken to the side of the river with a big nasty cut on his leg. So we were delayed for about 20-30 minutes while we waited for EMS to figure out how to come get him.

The guides kept apologizing, but really it was ok. I wouldn't want to be left alone, either. We finally went on our way down some more small but fun rapids. We got stuck a couple of times. Then we stopped at a bank and while another raft packed up and left, we got to go swimming. It was cold of course, but for being May, it was not that bad. Just think of Lake Michigan, if you will, and how it is in June. The water was about 3 times as warm as that.

It was when we continued on that we hit the rough spots. And by rough I mean the water was so shallow that we could see the rocks we were trying to pass over. We all thought it would have been much easier if the 7 heavy foreigners had been able to get out and walk over these rocks, but to save the 3 Korean guides' dignities, we were forced to stay in the boat while we watched them struggle to pass over the rocks. Altogether, there was about 40 minutes of this. Just when we thought we were smooth sailing, we'd hit another rock and be stuck.

Hence the subject line in this blog. The only way they could get us to really go anywhere was by having us jump so they could push the raft from under us. "1, 2, JUMP!" Story of our rafting trip.

Then we went swimming again, and hit relatively calm waters. More beautiful rocks. Then games where we tried to knock the other "team" off the raft. Good times. We were out there for a little over 4 hours, and we went for about 9km. It was hard, but fun, and I'm just waiting for the next day off when we can go again.

Kind of a fun anecdote: no one expected for us to get as wet as we did. Which is why many of us neglected to bring how do you say...dry clothes or shoes. Mikey was wearing socks and shoes in the boat. Eventually they came off. So for the entire 4-hour duration of the trip we had two socks floating around in the boat, which was full ankle-deep with water. Great. Just great. Eventually I think we all got sick of it so he tied them around his ankles. Sporty!

Another fun anecdote: Our guide in the back, Hyuk Jin, reminded us that when we paddled, we should insert our ENTIRE paddle in the water. Chantal made reference to Scottish Mike, the most muscular one of all of us, and how he was doing virtually no work. Hyuk Jin said "Ah! Princess no!" So now we have Princess.

After we got back, we went and took hot showers and changed into dry clothes. We were bussed to a restaurant nearby for a kalbi dinner where we were gawked at by the vacationing Korean families. No matter. The food was delicious, and even moreso after being outside on the river all day.

Then we got back to the cabin and started drinking the beer that we had saved up. We saw the rafting guides out practicing and when they were finished, we enticed them to come join us for beer and singing. Really great people, so of course a really great time.

I don't remember their names, except for Hyuk Jin in the black hat.

Me, Heather and Rebecca with the rafting guides.

Rebecca, Heather, Hyuk Jin, Scottish Mike, Chantal, and....?

Watching Chad playing guitar.

A candid shot...Mikey looks like he's really feeling the music.

Welcome to the GUN SHOW! (I have no less than 4 pictures with Rebecca in this pose)

Where is the foreigner? Hint: skin and eye color.

Inae, the only female rafting guide, and Mikey rockin' out.

This massage chain is popular in Korea. Well not this specific one, but you get the idea.

So one of us fell asleep around 9/930pm. And you remember at slumber parties how if you fell asleep early, something really terrible would happen to you? Well...we had no shaving cream nor any freezer in which to freeze underwear. And this might not have worked with anyone else except the person who could sleep through the end of the world.

Chantal had earlier bought a packet of razors, possibly for the sole purpose of what happened that night. The Koreans thought it was hilarious.

Chantal and Chad shaving a racing stripe into Mikey's leg.

Inae is surprised.

I am horrified.

Let me just say that Mikey was the best sport about this that he possibly could have been. As he said, we could have beaten him with a baseball bat and he wouldn't have woken up.

One of the guys giving me a foot massage.

Our new Korean friends left shortly after and we lingered awake for a short time more before all piling together in our tiny cabin on the floor and passing out after a long long fun-filled day.

The stoop the next day. Kind of white trash-y, eh?

The razor/hair/cup the next day. Yum!

All in all, a great time had by everyone.

For more pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31481968@N00/