Graduation Goggles?

Seoul

It would be premature to say that my days in South Korea are over. I remain here through the thirteenth of May and it is unlikely that I will not return here a few more times this year but with the local office coming up to speed, our Product Support team growing it seems like the need for me to be on site is decreasing. It has been 19 weeks in Korea since August, 23 weeks since the start of 2014 and now 29 weeks in Korea total. I have now spent more or my life in Korea than anywhere else in the world with the exception of Massachusetts and New York. I've even spent more time in Korea than in Wisconsin where I was born. Korea in general, and Dongtan in particular, has become like a second home. So with my time here dwindling I figured that I would do a look back at my travel here over the years (with a few interjections about things that happened between trips to Korea)

I first came to Dongtan in 2010. As a 27 year old kid traveling to Asia without my family for the first time everything seemed new, foreign and exciting.

The pig head shop was new to me.

It wasn't just pig of course. You can get almost anything at the market in Suwon.

Before there was the Human Centipede movie there was the Human Centipede statue.

Of course not everything was that foreign.

There were western style beer bars like this Blues Brothers Bar. This bar is 6567.54 miles from Chicago according to the Measure Route app on RunningAhead.

But other things were unlike anything else I had seen before or since:

It was a suitably grey day when I visited the demilitarized zone. As we approached the border the map went blank to the north.

I did not think it appropriate to smile in a picture with the walled off no-man's land of the DMZ behind me.

The fog prevented me from seeing all the way to the North Korean side but occasionally the deathly silence would be broken by the calls from the loud-speakers on the north side over which the soldiers called for the South Korean boarder guards to defect and cross over to the North.

Some of the saddest sights were the chain-link gates across the streets. When the treaty established the Demilitarized Zone and Korea was split in two you were stuck on whichever side of the line you were on at that moment. Husbands, wives and brothers and sisters found themselves separated for decades by these fences. Now the gates are festooned with prayers for a chance to see loved ones again some day. Many of these prayers have never been answered.

That first trip to South Korea was intended to be a three week trip which would have given me one week to get back on Boston time before going to New York to run the New York City Marathon but the trip got extended to 5 weeks and I missed the race. When I returned from South Korea, I expected to be back somewhat regularly but my work schedule turned out to be quite different.

After returning from Korea in November I was sent first to Dresden, Germany.

The path along the Elbe is one of my favorite places in the world to run and the Old City is beautiful any time of year; especially so in winter when the Christmas Market fills the air with sounds of merrymaking and smells of roasting nuts and meats. There's nothing quite like wandering the marker with a mug of mulled wine to keep away the chill.

I actually took this one in the summer before going to Korea so it's a bit out of order but the recently rebuilt Frauenkirche in Altstadt is not to be missed. I just didn't take any pictures of it in December because I had taken so many over the summer.

From Dresden it was straight off to Hsinchu, Taiwan in January 2011 where not only do they not use police details to direct traffic. They don't even use flag-men. They use robots. Somehow I think that the movie RoboFlagMan isn't going to catch on quite like RoboCop,

It was about as hard to walk down the street in Hsinchu without seeing a Betel Nut shop as it is to walk down the street in Boston without seeing a Dunkin' Donuts.

For all the grime, industry and construction in Hsinchu there was some cool archetecture.

Things got cooler though when I took a weekend trip up to the north coast near Taipei.

Up in the north the towns were still packed but they were less industrial and more walk-able.

After returning home from Taiwan it was not long before I was back off to Dresden after a brief stop in Las Vegas for Bryan's bachelor party. I've already put enough pictures of Dresden in this post and everyone knows what Las Vegas looks like so I'll skip ahead to returning from Dresden and getting on the longest flight of my life to go to Singapore for a few weeks.

There are monkeys on the trails up to the Bukit Tamah Summit: the highest peak in Singapore at 163.6 meters.

I hadn't seen Evan since college so it was cool to catch up.

We visited a temple with really cool, intricate design.

Then we visited another temple. This guy didn't want to let us in so I beat him up. Then we went to an out-door Indian restaurant to watch India beat Sri Lanka to win the Cricket World Cup.

After Singapore I was off to Austin, Texas for a couple weeks. I only managed to run 3 miles in my two weeks there. I'll claim that it was either too hot or I was working too much or that I was still recovering from a knee injury that I picked up running in Taiwan but there was actually a strong laziness component to that mileage total.

I wasn't home long from Austin before it was finally time for Sarah and I to get some vacation time together! We went to Sarah's cousin's wedding in Oregon and then took a road trip down to LA.

We hiked in the Redwoods.

We consider "Steep" and "Strenuous" signs to be a welcome mat so of course we took this trail. It was all switchbacks that took us down about a thousand feet in elevation to the ocean.

I'd never been to the Redwoods before. It was awesome.

At the bottom of the Damnation Creak Trail we were greeted by this bridge and then a short hike to the beach.

Back in the car we came upon Paul Bunyan and his big blue ox balls.

Of course, what trip through California is complete without at least a couple winery stops?

 My next assignment after our getaway in California was to take the technical lead at the install, start-up, qualification and process development for a fleet of our equipment at a new Fab in Capital District New York so I was off to live in Malta, New York for basically 6 months. The good news is that it was a close enough drive that I could come home most weekends.

Most Fabs don't let you take cameras, cell phones or computers into the clean-room. This Fab did not have similar security measures. I could bring in my laptop and they even gave me a wifi login password. In the background you can see TEL and LAM etch tools. The Axcelis plasma-ash tools that I was supporting were just to my right but didn't make it into this picture.

I came hope from Malta for Christmas and got engaged to Sarah! But could not stay home long. I was back out to Malta right after the New Year and stayed there until we took a holiday to Italy with Sarah and Harold Currier.

We went first to Rome and caught a Centurion off guard.

We went to the Spanish Steps where a guy gave Sarah a flower and came to me to get paid. He wanted 20 Euro but we finally settled on 5. He still made his margins.

Then we went to Florence to see naked people.

And this guy in the Duomo.

There was a sign forbidding cloudy days but we had one anyway.

After Florence it was time for Positano.

That town's gone to the dogs.

We tried to climb Mt. Vesuvius but the mountain was closed due to some rumbling so we went to Pompeii figuring that it was a safe distance away if there was an eruption. After-all, we had our alarm clocks set for Volcano Day and this wasn't it.

Since we didn't get to climb Mt. Vesuvius we decided to climb Montepertuso when we got back to Positano.

There was quite the view of the Mediterranean from the top.

The next day we went up to Napoli so that I could run the marathon.

In Napoli, Harold got an ice cream which apparently comes with a cone by default so if you order it with a cone you get one bonus.

I wasn't fast but it was the first marathon I finished outside the United States (it was my second try at running a marathon in Europe).

After the marathon we decided not to stay in Napoli as planned and went back up to Rome to explore the Vatican and have dinner again at Il Gabriello: our favorite restaurant in the world up to that point. I have yet to find one I like more.

After Rome it was back to Malta for another month or two. On one of the trips to Malta I found out that I was going to change departments from Plasma-Ash to High Energy Ion Implant. This meant that my days in Malta were numbered. I did not get the "graduation goggles" about leaving Malta the same way I'm getting them now about leaving South Korea. When my work in Malta was all done I had one more trip to support the plasma-ash tools before making the transition to Ion Implant. That trip was to Fishkill, New York which was not so picture-worthy.

That summer I did not travel for work except to go to Valladolid, Spain to present a paper at a conference. In July we went back out to California to attend Sarah's other cousin's wedding. August was all about planning for our own wedding. In September we married.

We got married, barefoot, on the sand by a lake in Plymouth, MA then went up to Neburyport for a few days of relaxing before going back to work.

We relaxed, played mini-golf and I made Sarah jealous by dancing with this girl.

Our honeymoon was to South America (Ecuador and Peru) so we delayed it to November to get later into their spring for better weather.

We paid some guy $3 to use these chairs and tarp for the day. I don't think he worked for the beach.

We found a bar in Canoa Beach and tried to order margaritas but apparently it is illegal to serve liquor before 6pm in Ecuador so we settled for beers.

The breakfast area at our hotel in Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador.

This was our hotel room while in Bahia.

In Cusco, Peru we visited Paddy's Pub: the highest elevation fully Irish-owned pub in the world and had a couple Guinness.

And Sarah made some friends.

Walking about in Cusco all day was a challenge due to the elevation so we stopped for a rest at the top of some stairs near our hostel for a rest and to watch the sun set behind the mountains.

Once we had a chance to get over our altitude sickness (and my food poisoning) it was time for us to make the hike to Machu Picchu with our awesome team of porters, cook at our guide Roger, all from Llama Path. We were a bit on the shoulder of the season so the trail was mostly empty of tourists and we had the team of 4 porters, one cook and a guide to ourselves.

Even your "outhouse" is worth a picture on the Inca Trail.

Roger led the way and Sarah and I followed. Our porters were always far ahead of us.

That little tent that you can see in the valley by the lake is where our porters had stopped to setup a camp for us to have lunch and take a rest. These guys have some serious fitness. I was coming off of what was then my marathon PR (3:17:30 at Manchester City) less than a month before this hike and I was pretty beat by the time we made it to lunch on the first day.

We went over the highest point in the hike not long after lunch. We were taking an alternate route which hit a highest point of 13800 ft: well above the famous Dead Woman's Pass which peaks out at 12300 feet. A few hours of hiking down from our pass we stopped at camp for the night and saw a spectacular sunset.

From there it was straight on to Machu Picchu. I'm sure you've seen a million pictures of this place so I'll only post this one.

After Machu Picchu it was time for me to finally make my return to Korea. In December 2012 I was nursing a calf injury but decided it was time to ramp my mileage and add a lot of quality to finally qualify for my first Boston Marathon. January was a mileage PR (204.81 miles) and then in February I made my return to Suwon. It turned out to be a 4 day trip (plus the 3 days round trip flights). And then 2013 was the best year I've had in a long time. I did not travel again for work.

In May Sarah and I stopped at an open house on our way to Maine for me to compete at the Maine Coast Marathon. We made and offer from the car and a few days later I had my BQ and our offer was accepted.

This was one of the last houses we looked at before we found the one we ended up buying. I liked it but Sarah said no to getting a house with a "open-concept quarter bath" in the bedroom. I like this picture so I always like to share it for shits and giggles.

We eventually settled on the final price after our inspection while we were down in Virginia visiting Kristjan.

After buying our house there wasn't much running for a while but there was a lot of barbecue. Dear Lord there was a lot of barbecue. 

In August it was time again for us to go on holiday. This time it was to Ireland. Sarah was still sort of a vegetarian at the time. This picture of her with her french toast and surprise bacon makes me happy.

We had been to Oregon for Jamie and Yasmina's wedding and then to California for Chris and Yvette's wedding together but this was my first real vacation with the whole Holzgraf family. 

Sarah and I did occasionally sneak away for a beer by ourselves though.

We were good tourists and always obeyed the signs. Our method of angering the vehicles was to be normal Bostonians and jaywalk everywhere.

Sarah took her risks with the cliffs.

And I took my risks with the cows.

In Belfast a Dr. Who fan sent us a message that the trip was almost over. We did get in a visit to Giant's Causeway before returning to Dublin to fly home though.

For the rest of the fall I did not travel. Sarah and I had a chance to set up and settle into our home. Late in January we were happy to help celebrate the wedding of Eric and Steph Gagnon.

At the reception the wheels started turning for an epic trip to Europe with Sarah, Harold, Kristjan, Jenn, Sarah and George. The idea was somewhere in between just going to Athens and flying into Prague to take a trip by rail through Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, Zagreb, Sarajevo and then down to Athens.

As it turns out, planning such an epic vacation is hard work so we took a break from it to go to Palma de Mallorca, Sóller and Barcelona. 

Cities like Barcelona are great but we cannot go on holiday with the Curriers and not climb a mountain so we hiked up here at Montserrat.

Of course, you cannot forget about Barcelona. The food might not be as good as Italy but the city is certainly beautiful and alive.

It was now 2014 which meant that it was the start of the year where Korea really became like a second home. We were not home from Spain for 48 hours before I was on a flight to Korea. This was the last time I stayed in Suwon and the last time that Korea felt foreign.

Apparently, you are supposed to have your picture taken with the statue from your zodiac symbol at this park in Seoul. I'm a pig so here I am with my statue.

I was in Korea for three weeks then returned for about a month which gave me just enough time to adopt Freddie with Sarah and to run the Boston Marathon. It was quite painful and I was slow but Sarah was at the finish so I was happy.

Freddie!

Three days after the Boston Marathon, I had to go back to Singapore for a few weeks so I got to hang out with Evan again.

After that trip to Singapore it was all South Korea all the time. There were a few exceptions:

We went to New Hampshire to celebrate Emily and Tom's wedding.

We went to Portland, Maine with the Curriers and then I went to Portland, OR to give an oral presentation and present a few posters at a conference. In August the 2-3 weeks per month in Korea started for real. Interspersed into my Korea travel Sarah and I went to Bar Harbor, ME with her family (and Freddie came too).

Jordan Pond, Maine.

I also visited Kristjan in Virginia in November before meeting Sarah in North Carolina to have Thanksgiving with her grandparents.

The sub shop where Kristjan and I had lunch had a strict policy on hippies.

In the winter Sarah and I cashed in some of the miles that I'd been building up from my constant flights to and from Korea to go down to Mexico for some relaxation.

We relaxed at our hotel.

Then we visited some ruins.

And relaxed on the beach.

Then visited some more ruins.

Then it was time to go back to Korea.

After another Korea trip we took a few days to go down to Key West.

The key deer were not afraid to get close to your car.

The Angry Chickens had no fear either.

Speaking of Angry Chickens, two of them were in my in-flight magazine on the flight home.

After Key West I stayed in Boston for about three weeks. Just about enough to seriously injure myself in a fall, recover a bit, run Boston again and book a flight back to Korea.

It was cold. I was in a lot of pain and ran poorly but got the BQ and had all the DeLucas and Holzgrafs at the finish so it was a good day.

Now about Korea. At I did not like Korea. It was just a place I had to go an work all of the hours every day. Over time I got days off here and there and got to see the natural beauty of the country, feel the perfect weather in fall and spring, try all the delicious food and enjoy the convenience of the tracks, the trails and the well planned cities.

I've stayed in Seoul, Suwon, Dongtan and Cheongju but of them all Dongtan feels the most like home. If you look just north of the intersection of Rt.1 and Rt. 400 you can see an orderly city that is laid out like the spokes of half of a wheel with a large wooded park at the center. That is Dongtan. The Shilla Stay hotel where I live when here is right on that wooded park. 

If you're out running and want to cross the street you can use one of the many pedestrian bridges that are surfaced with the same vulcanized rubber that you'll find on a track.

Speaking of tracks, if you dip down off the road and into the trails by the river that parallels Rt.1 you can find miles of trail to  explore safely on your run.

If you forgot your GPS watch don't worry: the kilometers are marked out for you.

You don't need to go far outside of Dongtan to find the serenity of a temple.

Returning to Dongtan in the evening you can go out for a beer at one of the countless bars and restaurants that fill the four main squares that make up the downtown section of the city. 

The waterfall in the park around which Dongtan spreads is man-made but that does not detract from how cool the hikes are in the park.

If it's food you're looking for there is plenty of good stuff to find around here too:

Grilled intestine with root vegetables and sprout.

Beef sashimi.

Grilled eel.

I don't know. I didn't get it.

Meongge! (Think sea urchin but a little bit tougher and more slimy and you won't be far off).

There is always soju and company when there is meongge.

Sushi of course. Grilled eel on sweetened egg. Call it breakfast sushi.

Make your own spring rolls.

It isn't Korea with a traditional BBQ with soju and mecju.

This isn't traditional but this sort of flat griddle cooking is starting to catch on.

I've watched the seasons change. I've found the restaurants that I like and the coffee shops that I frequent. I have my normal running routes for tempo, long, recovery and maintenance runs. I am looking forward to getting home and spending more time with Sarah but I do regret that we were never able to make it here together during the craziness of the past year.

As I said at the top of this post: this isn't my last trip to Korea but as the frequency of my trips starts winding down I will miss many of the running routes, the hikes, the food and the painfully beautiful autumn and spring. Sarah and I will certainly need to make plans to take a vacation to Korea before too long.