so many travels

Here's a little preview of a wonderful place my sister and I found in Manhattan while we were there towards the end of August. Full post to come soon.

seoul pictures: details from gyungbok palace

wall scrawl

So I never had a chance to update from Seoul -

- because we were constantly on the move. I think we only stayed in our hotel room long enough to sleep and, once, to recover from heat exhaustion. And even so, a week was seriously not enough time. We managed to see most of the bigger attractions, like the Seoul National Museum and one of the larger palaces, but we missed out on Seoul's thriving independent music and art scenes. My sister and I had a lot of things we wanted to do - see a few punk shows in Hongdae, visit the DMZ, check out the dozens of independent art galleries in Samcheongdong - that we didn't have enough time for. Next summer we'll probably stay for closer to a month, and arrive in June so we can catch the annual Queer Culture Festival and avoid the worst of the summer heat.

So in lieu of real-time accounts I'll just post a few retrospective pictures. I took over 4,000 (I know, it's ridiculous, but in my defense a lot of them were "crap, why can't I steady my hands" repeat shots) so I'll try to spare you the bulk and just post a few over the next few weeks.









A sampling of the wares available in Insadong, the neighborhood closest to our hotel. Insadong used to be the main road leading out of the royal palace (which was less a single building and more a city within a city, designed to house not only the royal family but their courtiers, officers, civil workers, and attendants) and is now known for being a bit of a tourist-oriented neighborhood. There is a high density of traditional wares and restaurants, and an even mix of locals and foreigners shop for things like traditional brassware antiques, ceramics, handmade paper products, and the usual tourist trinkets. All of our younger relatives said there wasn't much to see there but I actually kind of liked it.

I'm leaving for the airport in twelve hours. It's crazy, I haven't been to Korea in over a decade, and I'm freaking out a little because a) I hate flying, b) I hate companies with pathologically indifferent customer service, and c) I hate crowds and yet I am making a twelve hour flight with a notoriously indifferent airline to one of the most crowded cities in the world.

So instead of, you know, making sure I have everything and stuff like that, I've been enjoying the time I have left at home. (And yes, yes, I'll be back in eleven days, but that's the longest I've been away from home in four years. No, more like seven years. So it's weird for me.)



The next update will be from Seoul. HOW NUTS IS THAT. Holy moly.

He knows.

We travel infrequently. As soon as the suitcases come out Bartleby knows something's up, the same way he knows something's up when his cat carrier comes out, or when we reach for the kitty shampoo and squeeze a little into a full bath. He hates, hates, hates when we leave for a trip. August is going to be full of travel, and I'm a little afraid he won't stop sulking until Christmas.

My sister and I are leaving for Seoul the day after tomorrow and I still kind of can't believe it, and I am so underpacked, and I have basically been feeling a constant level of subdued anxiety for the last week without actually acting on it until this morning. Posts will be sporadic until I get back on the 11th. But then: get ready for a deluge of travel photos.

P.S. Yes that is my bra in the corner of the photo. I figured I should get that out of the way now, before things get too awkward.

lockets

Some little lockets I made earlier today. Each panel is an original gouache painting, measuring 23 mm in diameter and glazed to an enamel-like finish.

Also, they are a major pain in the ass. But my sister thinks they are cool and I should make a bazillion more. Dilemmas!