Sunday was a beautiful day so Andrea and I decided to check out a park near our apartment in Ansan - Hwarang Park. We initially planned on renting bicycles for the day, but the language barrier proved to be too difficult so we settled on walking around. The beautiful grounds were littered with families playing badminton, flying kites, and lounging in the grass. The sun was warm despite the crisp, cool air and everyone was in good spirits. While we watched people rollerblade around the skating rink, our attention was drawn to a large crowd off in the distance. Peals of laughter and chanting could be heard above the voice of an announcer on a loud-speaker.
We followed the sounds, and eventually the smells, to find a tournament in progress. I've since forgotten the name of the traditional Korean game, but it combines aspects of soccer, tennis, and volleyball. Using an outdoor volleyball court with a low tennis net, players on each team must bump, set, and spike a soccer ball over the net using only their feet. There are three players on each team and points are scored similarly to those in a volleyball game. After relaxing under a tree and taking in the excitement for several minutes, a man approached with 2 cans of beer and waved us over to his picnic. English was not one of his languages, but we awkwardly accepted and joined the group. Immediately after sitting down we were bombarded with food. Koreans don't pack sandwiches for a picnic; they bring kimchi, rice, dumplings, and various soups. We shared in the feast and then excused ourselves to continue exploring the park.
Outdoor roller skating rinks are everywhere.
Excited men cheering on their friends during the tournament. Either they were cheerleaders at one time, or the Soju (Korea's vodka) was doing most of the chanting!
Enjoying a picnic with some of our new friends!
From left to right and back to front: Shrimp soup, kimchi, mystery meat, Korean grapes, vegetable soup, and rice
The Gyeonggi-do Modern Art Museum is also located on the park grounds and is free to the public. Strolling through the museum brought back memories of our trip to Europe after college, and we felt right at home despite the oddities within the collection. The sculptures surrounding the building provided loads of entertainment and posed, without complaining, for many photos.
The flowers look small....
but they're actually quite large!
A priceless piece of sculpture? We hope not. People were playing baseball within very close proximity, and even bounced the ball off the sculpture at one point.
Hook 'em Horns!
One of the best parts of the park - randomly placed "exercise" equipment. Although taken seriously by Koreans (children and adults), the machines do nothing for the body except lift your spirits.
Located outside of the park, these sculptures probably ward off evil spirits... or portray them.
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