Are you an old Seoul?

Been here in Seoul for a couple days now. Having been to Beijing and Tokyo in the last year, Seoul feels familiar. Everyone is well dressed, the streets are clean, there is a lot of neon and street signs. The city is laid out along the meandering Han river and nestled within a series of hills and mountains. Due to this geography the city's road network is not quite a perfect grid. I pride myself on having a solid sense of direction, but yesterday I got quite lost and quite wet during an afternoon stroll. My presentations ended at 3pm so I headed to the Seonjeongneung Royal Tombs, housing two emperors and an empress from the 1500's. A nice bit of nature in an overurbanized metropolis of 14 million people. I have lucked into the short season of the cherry blossom here in Seoul. The peak of my day yesterday was sitting at the top of a hill between tombs, listening to the magpies under a canopy of white cherry blossoms. From this vantage the city was gone and my heart opened and I released a lot of emotion that had accumulated on my journey over hear and away from my boys.

Food has been the other highlight and adventure. Lots of soups and Korean BBQ. I am loving the requisite Kim Chee (spicy pickled cabbage), but also versions with beets and lighter vinegar sauces. Every meal is served with several plates or bowls of unidentifiables. Last night it was mud octopus in red vinegar chili sauce and cows blood soup. The cows blood is frozen and served as a brown blob in a beef broth, tasted like liver.

Meeting with customers and partners for the next few days and then hop the pond back home. Love you all.

[Image borrowed from another blogger]