July 9, 2011: My train trip from Busan to Seoul went as smoothly as the one from Seoul to Busan the day before. Just as before, there were times on the train when I thought for sure that we were stationary at a station but then looked out the window to see that in reality we were traveling 300kph -- the train trip was so smooth I couldn't tell we were actually moving. Yang, another student from 1975, met me as I stepped out of my car and whisked me away to get started with our busy agenda. First we checked into my next hotel and from there we went to meet Song Misop, a colleague of mine from the 70's. Since we were a bit early for our appointment, I had time to take some pictures of Kwanghwamun area:
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| King Sejong |
Another building nearby caught my eye. How modern Seoul has become!
We met Misop and had lunch at a restaurant famous for its momilkuksu – wheat noodles in broth with green onions and red pepper flakes.
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| Yang and Song at Momilkuksu restaurant |
After lunch we went to Misop’s friend’s office to talk some more so I could see pictures of her daughter and grandchildren which were in her friend’s office. Then it was time for Yang and me to visit a former professor of mine when I studied and obtained my masters degree from Kyung Hee University in 1975. Dr. Yun Gap Byeong lives in an apartment just outside the city and it took some time finding it using Yang's GPS on his mobile phone. When we arrived, Dr. Yun held my hand for quite a while looking at me as if he wanted to savor the moment.
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| Dr. Yun and his wife |
His health was a bit frail and it took time for him to speak and listen to what I told him, but we communicated just fine. Meanwhile, his wife had prepared a nice lunch of fried sea urchin and vegetables, beef stew, rice, deep fried shrimp, and fruits for dessert. Since we had just eaten, Yang and I shared a plate of sea urchin and enjoyed ourselves talking with him. Although retired for several years, Dr. Yun is still an active member of the Korean Academy of Sciences, a tremendous honor. It was great to see him again.
Yang and I then went downtown again to meet another of my students, Young Bok Ahn, for dinner. Although others had originally planned to come for the dinner, two postponed meeting us until the next evening and another unfortunately had to work late, but I did talk with him on the phone. Nevertheless, Yang, Ahn, and I had a very nice dinner – another feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. Yang also presented Ruth and me with fine gifts that were especially made for us. Here are some interesting pictures of the dinner and market we went through after eating at the restaurant:
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| Ahn and Yang at dinner |
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| Ahn and Yang |
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| Night Market store at Insa dong |
It was a real pleasure to have had such a social day meeting longtime friends, professors, and students.
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