Richard's Travel Blog

Hi y’all. I’m writing this the day after publishing that last post. We’re kind of taking a day off today, so it’s a good time to catch up to the present. We’re in Mestia, and will go on to Batumi tomorrow. It’s supposed to rain for the next four days, so maybe catching up will be easy, while spending a lot of time inside our airbnb apartment.

So, this one’s about Kazbegi, technically what they call a municipality in Georgia. The town itself is called Stepantsminda. It’s a popular mountain destination north of Tbilisi, famous for its mountainous terrain, skiing in the winter, hiking trails ad as an access point to Russia, a few kilometers to the north. Many big trucks go through there, mostly bringing products from Russia. They aren’t too obnoxious. This isn’t like a major US/Mexico border crossing.

Visitors here generally chill out. The big thing to do is walk a few kilometers up to the Gergeti Trinity Church to the west.

Snow-capped Mt. Kazbegi is 5054 meters. On the top of the nearer hill, on the left, is Gergeti Trinity Church.

That picture was taken from the lane a block above our airbnb place.

Our airbnb in Kazbegi

View from our front porch in Kazbegi. Chechnya is on the other side of that ridge.

Mostly, we just walked around and looked at the buildings and the different views. You can see the flat stones used for construction on the building to the right above. Here are a couple more.

Old style building still in use in Kazbegi

Old style commercial building still in use in Kazbegi

A lot of times, it looks like the buildings are abandoned, and often they are, then you see modern window and door frames, people inside, curtains, etc.

Like many visitors, we went up to the church. Not too bad. Takes about an hour and a half.

That’s me, about two-thirds of the way up to the church.

Uphill to Gergeti Trinity Church? No problem for Myung. She’s a friggin’ mountain goat. Queue “Zorba the Greek”

Gergeti Trinity Church, in the mountain west of Kazbegi

Gergeti Trinity Church

Mestia is even nicer, so I’ll spare you more photos from Kazbegi.

When we came to Georgia, we didn’t have much of a plan. When we traveled before, it was open-ended, basically living on the road. We’re here for a little over a month, so it’s not living on the road, but it’s not if-it’s-Tuesday-this-must-be-Belgium either. Kind of a hybrid. We feel like we should “do” something every day, but aren’t compulsive about it. Like, today is one of those days. It’s a pretty easy life. One thing I did right was retire early and hit the road. I wouldn’t want to do it alone anymore, though. Sharing the experience is important. You need witnesses. At least Myung knows.

That’s part of the reason I wrote these posts.

I’ll blog again from Batumi in a couple of days. Until then…

I am curious to know if anyone will read my blog. Myung and I don’t travel much these days, so I don’t blog.

But… We’ve gone to Georgia, the country. This is Richard’s Travel Blog, and we are definitely traveling. So, I’d love it if anyone feels like leaving a comment.

First a word about our life in Korea. Since my last post in 2021, we are still living in the same apartment in Gyeongju. In short, we have a pretty basic domesticated life. We still walk around a lot, especially by American standards. I look at stuff online when I’m not performing activities of daily living. We go places nearby. We drove around Korea for a couple of weeks a while ago. Myung is taking a Korean history course, with field trips. And she has friends from when she was a school kid. That’s really about it.

One thing we do is watch a nightly travelogue on TV. They go to a different country every week. Georgia has been the destination a couple of times. It looked good, so we got out of Dodge. Right now, we are in Mestia, up in the Caucasus Mountains, just below the border with Russia to the north.

But let me start with Tbilisi, the capital, where we arrived.

Overview of Tbilisi. That round ball is a hot air balloon

Georgia has a population of 3.7 million. About a third of them live in Tbilisi. I think this is a real nice city. The old city is crumbling, but there are enough visitors and tourists to keep it alive. Georgia is no Germany, but the center of Tbilisi is fairly modern and full of things to see and places to eat/drink. There are many photo opportunities.

And it’s cheap. Our big two bedroom airbnb apartment, three blocks from the dead center of downtown, Liberty Circle (formerly Lenin Circle), was $37/night. You can get a huge amount of decent food at an old Soviet style cafeteria (but with way better food than back in those days) for about $7. Or you can have white tablecloth, candles, Starbucks cool jazz, and steak for about $20. Our trip is going to be over a month long, so cheap is good.

Too much text and no photos, and I think nobody will stick with it and comment. Here come some street shots.

Typical street in the fashionable part of downtown Tbilisi

Much of Tbilisi is very hilly.

Friendship Bridge over the Kura River

12th century fortress

Fortress from a distance

Rezo Gabriadze Puppet Theater and Clock Tower

Tbilisi wasn’t always the capital of Georgia. The area of the city of Mtskheta  is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, starting late bronze age. It became the capital of the Georgian kingdom of Iberia in the 3rd century BC until the capital was moved to Tbilisi in the 6th century AD. Interesting side note, Georgian and Basque are the only languages in the Iberian language group. Mtskheta is where the Georgian Orthodox Church was founded and still where they have their headquarters.

This is the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral.

In the distance is the Jvari Monastery.

Jvari Monastery

Here are some other photos from Mtskheta.

Uplistsikhe is a cave city about 50 miles northwest of Tbilisi. It started out as modified natural caves about 3000 years ago. Most of it was hewn out during the 8th-10th centuries. That’s a 15th century church on top.

Finally, for this post, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that we went by Gori, Joseph Stalin’s birthplace and childhood home. There is a museum there, which is actually halfway interesting. Many photos and memorabilia, which almost seem campy now. His private train car is interesting. But I’ll just leave you with a couple of pictures. One is of his chilhood home, enshrined in a neoclassical monument. The other is a selection of Joe Stalin t-shirts you can buy at the souvenir shop.

Is that a fitting way to end this post, or what?

My next post should be up in a couple of days. We are going to chill out tomorrow, so it’s likely I can get it done then. It kind of depends on 1) if we decide to be busy, and 2) if the internet server here can handle uploading my photos along with it’s usual traffic.

Until then, be well, all of you.

Peek-a boo

It’s been a quiet week here in Lake Wobegon. I keep thinking I’ll write more often from now on but, really, there’s not much going on. I could probably just copy and paste my March entry. Myung and I just hang out, go walking, shop the markets, cook, and sit with our computers. Myung sees friends from way back about once a week on average. Actually, this week, she saw friends twice and her sister and brother-in-law this week. We’re practically social butterflies!

Myung on the right, with old friends from middle school

After looking back at what I wrote in March, a brief update is in order. My prostate situation is in hand. I went to a urological oncologist at the university hospital here. He said for my type and stage of cancer, at my age (69), all they do is monitor my PSA, and if it goes over 20, start androgen deprivation medication again. My PSA was 2, and I am to get my PSA checked again in October. And a doc removed that toenail, something I couldn’t get anybody in Cuenca to do. That looks good. National health care here is great. It costs 45 US cents for a basic sit down with a rando doc-in-the-box at the clinic. Myung is fine.

Oh, we got our first COVID-19 vaccines, and get the second shot in August. Starting this month, people don’t have to wear masks outside. That’s a relief. They are uncomfortable on warm, humid days. Some Americans might wonder what “have to wear masks” means. Well, Koreans almost all take infection control seriously, and follow the strict rules laid out by the government. Only about 2 people per day die.

People here are into what happens during the seasons. (Seasons. What a concept after Cuenca!) One activity many people like is the presence of hoopoes, a bird that migrates here form Tasmania and East Africa in the spring to hatch their young. Photographers with their expensive camera equipment congregate in Hwangsoeng Park, down the street, to catch events like the first flight of the young birds.

We’re in on the fun, and have many hoopoe pics, though Myung took this one with her $90 cell phone. When we walk in the park, which is every day, we look for hoopoes. Ah, simple pleasures.

Hoopoe, feeding its chick

One of the simple pleasures we enjoy is how pretty Korea is. As I’ve said before, you are never far from a nice walk.

Back in April

Near Busan

9th century stone carving of the Buddha

A couple of weeks ago we took a 40-minute train ride to Yeongju. It’s an ancient historical site, with structures dating back to the 7th century, though most of the preserved and/or restored sites are from the neo-Confucian era which began in the 14th century. Yeongju was an important Silla and Unifed Silla dynasty site, later renowned as a Confucian learning center. The photo below is of a restored Confucian hall with a 9th century Buddhist stupa in the foreground.

I’ll spare you any more tedious historical information, and just post photos.

We stayed the night in this 300-year-old house.

Near Yeongju, is a big botanical garden called Bonghwa. Oh, we have so many flower pictures, but here are a few of lotuses.

Funny thing… Way up in the north part of the park is an about 5 acre enclosure for a Siberian tiger. I read that Siberian tigers migrate into the far north of North Korea, near where Russia and Heilongjong, China meet, but there are definitely no tigers down here anymore.

Here was a nice place around there.

That’s going to do it for now. I hope you Americans had a good 4th of July. Be well, all of you.

Well, mostly cherry blossoms. Spring has really sprung around here. It’s lovely. I’ve seen cherry blossoms, but I’ve never lived in a place where they are prevalent, and I could see them everywhere.  Gyeongju has thousands of these blooming cherry trees right now, and it’s a sight to behold. These photos are not so good, but they give you an idea of what it looks like. What you don’t see is they are everywhere. They’ll probably be around in abundance for another week or so. Some trees in cool, shady areas are coming along a little later. Here goes:

Even the croquet courts in the park down the street look nice. (Koreans call it gate ball)

Here are a couple of not-cherry blossom photos.

Very typical Gyeongju, with the ancient tombs in the background, old-style but modern buildings, and flowers in the spring

No bunch of photos of Gyeongju would be complete without yet another 1200-1300 year old Buddha carving. I am little (lower right) compared to them.

Obviously I got here. In addition, I got my green card, which is blue here. I’m even in the health insurance system. Now, the next thing to take care of is following up on my prostate cancer. Hopefully, I am indeed six years out now. I’ve also got a bad toenail. I screwed it up in Torres de Paine, Patagonia, back in 2010, and it’s been nasty ever since.

Does that qualify as news that’s fit to print? It’s probably fit, just boring. Myung and I are back into our routines. These days we are going somewhere to look at cherry blossoms. They will be gone so soon. Tomorrow a friend of hers is coming over, and we’re going to Bomun Lake, which you saw two or three posts ago. Nothing is on tap for next week.

So, I’m going to fire this off. Be well, all of you. And be safe.

Woo hoo! Finally, after months of effort and a few thousand dollars, I got a call today from the Korean Consulate in San Francisco. They gave me a Korean marriage migrant visa. I’m in!

I left Korea for Oakland on Jan 21, and had my packet of forms, documents and my passport in the mail the next day. Three days later, I got a call from the consulate saying they got it, but I needed a more recent Certificate of Entry and Exit for Myung. I called, she got it and EMS’d it to me. It came 5-6 days later, and I sent it on to the consulate. A couple of days later, I got a call saying they got it and everything looked in order, but that woman didn’t have the final say. So I’ve been on pins and needles, waiting for a call from the person in charge. That’s the call I got today, and I can pick it up any time. I’ll go tomorrow.

After all this time, I was worried that what can go wrong will go wrong. There have so many unexpected hurdles. Whew! Now, about the only worry is passing my COVID PCR test within 72 hours of departing for Korea. Of course, the flight has to be not cancelled or changed by the airline to a time more than 72 hours from the testing result. I’ve called around, and there are a couple of places I can be tested and get the results the next day.

So that’s the big news. I’ve been mostly sitting around doing nothing while waiting. I’ve walked outside with my friend, Mary, a few times, gone to Stockton to take care of some matters regarding my rentals, visited with my men’s group on Zoom and once in person, widely spaced. I go to the stores as little as possible, as COVID is rampant here. So I’ve been literally just sitting around a lot, mostly with my computer. watching TV on it and surfing.

I have some photos. The first is of Lake Merritt, about a five-minute walk from the airbnb apartment I’m staying in. The others are from the beach in Alameda, where I went today.

It’s very nice weather here, for the most part. Myung tells me it’s nice in Gyeongju these days, too, not much colder than here. It was cold before I left. Check out the views looking out our windows one day before I left.

That was the only snowy day, actually. Gyeongju is in Korea’s banana belt. Mostly, it was cold before I left, with lows usually around 10 degrees F and highs around 30 degrees F, give or take about 5 degrees. Some ice, but weather was usually clear. The city just made a Garden of Lights in the park by our apartment. The photos don’t do it justice. The colors change to music being played.

Here are pretty pictures of the walk to Bulguksa Temple.

Myung and her friends walking to Bulguksa

So, that’s it for now. Happy Korean New Year next weekend. Be well and be safe, all of you.

First of all, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody.

I’ve been in many countries over the Christmas season, and never have I seen Christmas ignored like I have this year in Gyeongju. It really feels weird. I mean, there are places where there is very little Christian atmosphere, but generally Christmastime is an opportunity to sell stuff. I remember when I was in Cambodia as Christmas season approached in ’99. (I was back in Thailand on Christmas.) There were some Christmas stuff up for the Westerners and merchants were trying to sell whatever. It wasn’t in your face or anything , like in America, but there was a little Christmas spirit around. Here, nothin’. No decorations around town, even though Korea is not locked down. No Christmasy displays in any of the stores I’ve been in or in the display windows. No Christmas music overhead. I understand get-togethers are strongly discouraged and in some businesses and churches are illegal. But still. Forty-some percent of Koreans are Christians. We’re hunkered down here, but this is amazing.

It was at this point when I noticed I had never published the November “Fall Colors in Gyeongju” post. How ’bout a couple more leaves pictures? It really was beautiful, back then before winter set in.

In the park down the street

In the park down the street

I don’t have many photos since then worth looking at. Of some interest to kimchi lovers is that late fall is kimchi making season. In the pictures below, you will see a large group of people who got together in the park to all make kimchi together. It was a kimchi-palooza!

That’s me, bundled up in black. The workers are generating enough heat to dispense with the winter clothes

Set up and ready to go

If you immersed somebody in a tub of Korean red pepper paste, they might not survive.

Mostly, our life goes on uneventfully. We do activities of daily living, like shop and cook. Sadly, the nearby farmers market where Myung likes to get our fresh food is closed for the month because COVID is increasing. (COVID is almost nothing compared with the States, but everyone means to keep it that way.) Get-togethers are limited to five people, but we haven’t had to do without much socializing, as we don’t get together with more than five very often. I guess that might have something to do with the low Christmas energy. Anyway, there is no news worth blogging about, except my upcoming trip to the United States.

Finally, we have all our stuff together to turn in to the Korean consulate in San Francisco for my resident visa. We’ve actually had it together for a couple of weeks, but I’m going to stay here till the end of this 90 day tourist visa I currently have. I’m leaving January 21 and have a return ticket for February 22. I get one free ticket change, which I can use if it takes longer than a month to get the visa. The consular website says it should take 2-3 weeks, so a month should be enough time. I built in enough time to submit something more if I have to, but I’ve exchanged several emails with consular staff and I think everything is in order.

Normally, I would be excited to visit my favorite places and see friends and family, but COVID is really putting a damper on many of the things I would otherwise do. Oh well. I wish we could all get together, like in the picture below of a little going away party we had for our friend, Etan, who went home to Singapore. That’s him to my left.

With that, I’ll close. Again, Happy Holidays. Be well, all of you.

Omygod! I was going to come back to this post after looking for more leaves, and never did it. It’s Christmas Eve and I started a new post when I finally noticed. Well, the leaves are long gone, as we are in the dead of winter now, but here it is, as I wrote it on November 8th.

Hi y’all. I got to Seattle and back no problem. Then I quarantined at home for two weeks, as required by law. And I do mean “by law”. You have to download an app, so they can know where your phone is, and you can report your temperature and answer questions about if you have  any COVID symptoms. If you have any thought of leaving home without your phone, if you put it on the table and don’t move it, they can tell, and they make your phone make a shrill alarm sound, and you must tap it to verify you are actually there. I didn’t know till I got back that if you live with somebody, you are supposed to stay in one room except to use the bathroom. Myung wanted to obey that directive, so I do that, for the most part. I usually make coffee before she gets up, so in the morning I did go to the kitchen to do that. Other than that, I dutifully stayed in one bedroom the whole time.

I got out three days ago. The first thing I wanted to do was go look at the fall colors. I have been looking forward to the Korean autumn since we decided to move here. Turns out, I was freed right at the right time. This post is  to show pictures of  the fall colors. They speak for themselves.

These first two are of trees in the park down the street.

Trees in the park down the street from where we live

The rest of these are all taken at Bulguksa Temple, about 10 kilometers south of here.

Bulguksa is the most famous World Heritage site in Gyeongju. Construction started in 751, at the height of the Unified Silla kingdom, and completed in 774. Here is how it looked in 1914. I got this picture off Wikipedia. It was restored between 1966 and 1973.

Now it looks like this.

Bulguksa Temple

Another smaller temple right behind it. Note the Chinese script. Written Korean wasn’t invented until 1443.

Way up the mountain is a fine 9th century Buddha statue. I got this picture off Google Images, as you are no longer allowed to photograph it.

I’m going to put off posting this until tomorrow, after we go to Bomun Lake, a little south of town, between here and Bulguksa. It’s a touristy place, famous here as a honeymoon destination. It’s got some pretty places, so maybe there are good fall colors there.

That’s where I was when I forgot to finish and send it off. There was nothing to see at Bomun Lake, as the trees are mostly exposed there and the leaves were blown off. So, now I’m going to go back to the December post. Hopefully, I won’t forget to sent that one. Sheesh!

For more on Gyeongju from when we lived near here in Yangsan in 2008, go to: https://rschuckman.com/?m=200807, or click July 2008 on the list of dates on the right, or type “Gyeongju” in the search box

Full Moon Holiday is something like the American Thanksgiving. Here is the spread at Myung’s friend’s home.

Chusoek (CHO-sawk) is Korea’s biggest holiday. The big day was last Thursday, as Thursday night was the full moon. So it was basically a four-day holiday. It’s a combination autumn festival and a time for veneration of your ancestors. A big meal is prepared and displayed like in the picture above. Of course, then everybody chows down. Even though the old customs of prayerful remembrance of ancestors are not as rigorously followed as in the old days, it is still a time of remembering them. Families and friends get together, though during this time of COVID precautions, that has been mostly scaled back.

We have been getting together with Myung’s friends in small groups. We partook in the above feed at the home of Myung’s good friend, Kyungja. Her friends have all been so welcoming to us.

Besides that event, we’ve spent a lot of time with her friends. They all like coming to Gyeongju because it’s got many parks, Buddhist temples and historical sites. Actually, we’ve all been eating like horses, not just during Chosoek. My experience with Koreans is that they are like Chinese in that they use meals as the venue for interacting. That works for me. I’m really enjoying Korean food. Myung makes almost all our dinners these days. Here’s what we had tonight.

Myung usually arrays her table like other Koreans. The lettuce, sesame leaves and zucchini leaves are for making little burritos, called “ssam”.

Kimchi (of course), gochujang sauce and leftover pachingae and bulgogi from lunch

Monkfish and bean sprouts  

Lunch yesterday at the Duck restaurant next door. Whew! It’s spicy, hence the sweat band.

Gyeongju has a rich history. Some artifacts are over 2000 years old. If you’re interested, it’s best you just google “Gyeongju”. The blurb on Wikipedia is good. The structures are of course all less than 300 years old, as most structures were made of wood. Much of the area is World Heritage

Royal tombs from the 6th through the 10th century are all over town. All over southern South Korea, really.

Cheomseongdae is an astronomical observatory in Gyeongju, South Korea. Cheomseongdae means star-gazing tower in Korean. Cheomseongdae is the oldest surviving astronomical observatory in Asia, and possibly even the world. Wikipedia

8th century stone figures. I think they are Confucian.

Many little Buddhas behind the stone statues

The insides of the temples in Gyeongju aren’t very ornate, at least what I’ve seen so far.

Some sites are lit up at night.

 My saga about getting a residence visa continues. That’s a long story! Short story is it will eventually work out, but I do have to renew the tourist visa I’m on. I have to leave the country and come back for another 3 month tourist visa, and no country will take Americans without quarantining except America. So on Oct 21, I’m flying to Seattle and flying back three hours later. Then I get to quarantine here.

Our life here has settled down, and we have our routines. I’m entertained by the new experiences. I’m starting to get a grip on the language. Myung’s having a great time with her old friends.

Fall is just about here. Just a few days ago, it started to be autumn-like. Almost no rain. Brisk and breezy at night and in the early morning and late afternoon. The leaves have just started to change and the apples are great. I’ve spent so little time in places with seasons, I’ve practically forgotten about seasons.

Fall colors have just started to come this week. They will be beautiful in 3-4 weeks.

Some of you may be asking about COVID in Korea. Well, it’s mostly under control. A couple of weeks ago, there were a few days of 300 or so new cases per day. The government reinstituted stronger restrictions. Like, even outside everyone must wear a mask. Koreans aren’t generally science deniers and are cooperative citizens, so the numbers are back down. 65 new cases during the last 24 hours and no deaths.

I think that’s going to do it for now. There are so many good photo oportunities here, I’m sure to be blogging more frequently than recently.

Until then, be well all of you. Stay safe.

Oh, you may notice that bruise on my chin. I fell hard walking in that park in the picture a coule of weeks ago, and got a concussion. I was pretty much okay after two or three days, but I still get headaches when I bend over. Not to worry. I was a nuero-trauma nurse for years. I know the deal and I’ll be fine.

Photo taken before mask wearing at all times was reinstituted. We were still careful at that time and, as you can see, have masks in hand.

We’re finally in an apartment in Gyeongju. Myung has done everything, from finding the place to buying what was not already here, to setting up the utilities, to getting another phone. In short, she’s done it all. I’m pretty helpless here, in a system I’m not familiar with and in a language I’m just starting to learn. I’ve forgotten most of what little I learned when we lived here 12 years ago.

Turns out, this apartment is a great deal. The 95-year-old woman who lived here went to live with her family. The family didn’t want to deal with anything in the apartment. They were going to get rid of it all. So they just gave it all to us. There’s a fridge, a TV, almost all the furniture we need, an air conditioner that worked after a $52 repair, tables, a sofa, kitchen and dining stuff and more. I was planning/dreading buying it all. All we bought or will buy was one bed, a table-top oven (as there is no oven in this typical Korean apartment) and a stainless steel table to put it on, a better dining table and chairs, a microwave, a coffee maker, a toaster and some odds and ends. I’m probably forgetting something, but the point is we don’t have to spend too much to have what we need/want here. For what should come to about $600/mo including building fee, utilities and internet, it’s really better than we had hoped for. Myung pulled all this off in a couple of weeks.

The main thing to accomplish at this point is for me to get a permanent visa. There’s been a big glitch in that regard. The authorities need an original of our marriage certificate. This I have, but Myung didn’t put her father’s correct birth given name, so they won’t take my application at this time. I had to apply to the State of California for a certified amended copy with the given name as it appear on Myung’s birth certificate. There is a process for this, involving online notarization of a form (which I learned is possible), a translated copy of her birth certificate with her father’s correct name, and a couple other forms. We got all this, and I sent it by EMS to my friend Mary, who in turn has sent it on to the guy with the state vital records department. His name is David, and I now have something of a personal relationship with him. He should have it by today or maybe Monday. I emailed him, asking him to verify I did everything right.

Here’s the problem. It might take 6-8 weeks to get the certified amended copy. I’m here on a three-month tourist visa. So I don’t have time to get it back and apply for a permanent visa. Unless I can wangle an extension, I may have to leave the country and come back. When we lived here before, I just took a cheap, short ferry ride over to Fukuoka, Japan every three months and back the same day. Now, because of coronavirus, I can’t go anywhere around here. They won’t let Americans in, or almost anyone for that matter. The cheapest destination is going to the US and coming right back. I may have to do that. And of course, I’ll have to quarantine again when I arrive back in Korea.

Other than all that, things are going pretty good. Our place is nice. There’s a park a couple of blocks away that covers what seems to be many square kilometers, if it is contiguous with a little mountain we can see from the park interior. There are several other large parks in this historically significant former Silla dynasty capital. Gyeongju is a nice size, about 250,000 people. Public transportation is good. I think life will be good here.

I gotta get a grip n the language. I’m working on it.

So that’s about it for now. When more develops and/or we go do some photo worthy things, I’ll write again. For now, be well, all of you. And be safe.

Who’d a thunk it would be so hard?

Back in early June, I booked us a ticket on Turkish Airlines. That trip was supposed to be quick (by Ecuador to Korea standards). About 4 days later, Turkish Air ceased operations. Getting my money back was a hassle. I had to dispute the charges with the bank. That worked out, but it was a hassle after already hassling with the online booking company and Turkish Air which doesn’t even answer their phones anymore.

It get’s worse. I then booked a ticket which had two stops in Shengen countries, in Madrid and Amsterdam. I didn’t know nobody could make two stops till we weren’t let on the plane in Quito. I was denied right away, so I was able to call the booking company and at least get a partial refund. Myung was going to go on by herself while I stayed and figured out how to go. They even gave her a boarding pass. Then at the gate they told her she couldn’t get on. Why not till then? Who knows. By then it was too late to get a refund on her ticket. I had to eat it and part of my ticket.

We had been staying at an airbnb in Quito. After the incident I just described, we went to a hotel near the airport, owned by a guy I know, until I could make new arrangements. It was boring at both the airbnb and the hotel. The airbnb was in a neighborhood a long way from anywhere, so we did nothing and ate food from nearby tiendas and had pizza and KFC delivered. The hotel was in the middle of nowhere, so we just had the cheap Ecuadoran fare they offered.

The new arrangements were tickets with only one stop, in Amsterdam, then a second leg direct to Seoul. Of course, we were a little nervous. What could go wrong this time? Would they just not let us on, for whatever reason, even after I clarified all the details of our nationalities, how Americans still don’t need visas to enter Korea, and every other thing we could think of with the US embassy, the Korean embassy and the airline?

It still didn’t go smoothly.

We got to check-in and the woman there said I needed a visa. The following took an hour and a half to transpire. I called the embassy, which gave me the URL with the information that I didn’t need a visa. He stayed of the phone while I tried to get the woman, her supervisor, and that person’s supervisor above her to talk to him. They weren’t interested in anything except their own chain of command. They next up supervisor was interested in the email from the Korean embassy, and relented when he/she found out we had one. He/She didn’t even read it. We were given boarding passes.

At the gate, the guy said I needed a visa. We had to whip out our computers again, all the while berating him about how we just went through all this. Fortunately, he relented after only a few minutes. Then, getting on the plane in Amsterdam went normally.

I hate long flights with long layovers going west to east. We got here to our current airbnb about 18 hours ago, and I’m just feeling normal again. 10+ hours from Quito to Amsterdam. 14 hour layover. 10+ hours Amsterdam to Seoul. 9+ hours from deplaning to our place. Fortunately, I got about 4 hours of sleep from Amsterdam to Seoul. Myung slept well on both flights.

Oh, I didn’t tell you about getting our deposit back from the landlady. She didn’t want to give our deposit back. Myung hit the roof. The landlady said Myung was being agressive and made the mistake of calling the police. The cops came. She said Myung was yelling at her. I showed the cops our expired contact. The landlady admitted she didn’t want to return the deposit. The cops made her return the deposit. But it was quite a scene.

So, now we are just hanging out in quarantine. The health department had us download an app, so they can keep track of us, at least the phone. We have to report our temperatures twice a day. They did a PCR test yesterday, and we passed. They gave us a big box of food, and Myung had more food delivered. So we’re good.

That’s going to be it for now. When we get out, there will be lots to talk about.

Until then, be well. Be safe.