The Korean weather refuses to warm up. Just as it looked like things were about to brighten up, it snows again. The night in the picture was a night where I had to walk a lot from place to place. It was annoyingly slippery especially when I was walking up and down small hills. I usually like snow but only when there is a lot of snow. Enough so it’s deep enough to feel your heels slightly sink into the soft powder; enough so that everything is a glistening white; enough so that everyone has to slow down and take their time in their busy lives; enough so that the children race outside to fight each other in the snow or build something amazing. Ah, how I miss the days when that much snow would fall. In the city that much rarely falls and in Wales the weather has warmed over the past decade. Maybe one day, when I have children of my own, I’ll go somewhere where I can relive those memories.

A couple of weeks ago I went to a show that I wrote a review about for a national newspaper here in Korea. Here is the article:

Saturday’s “Anyone can play punk rock” show started badly, progressively got better, and finished with the crowd begging for more. Held at Skunk Hell in Hongdae, a larger crowd would have helped the atmosphere and a heads-up on who was playing might have brought more people in.

Nevertheless, Seoul’s punk rock scene is catchy and fun, and will continue to develop as it draws a larger base of supporters.

First on Skunk Hell’s bill was a band whose name combines the names of two fairly popular Korean bands — No Brain and Crying Nut. However, once the starting time came around, the audience was surprised to see no instruments on stage and a girl in a cute punk outfit standing alone — looking a little embarrassed. So much for “Let’s meet at 10.”

Apparently, her band couldn’t come, so she decided to go it alone. Kudos to her fearlessness. Her aggressive vocals soon crushed her cute punk image, and after one song, she left the stage.

Second up was the three-piece, Use Your Head. Not impressive. They played a set of cover songs and looked quite awkward on stage. They weren’t very tight; nor were they combining sounds very well. However, individually, the members all had talent and I’m sure with more experience, they could come together well and blossom into a good young band. Finishing up the first half of the night was Hi Bud. More cover songs from this band and a broken bass guitar didn’t exactly help their show. They were loud and aggressive but really didn’t inspire me at all. On the plus side, the guitar player was technically quite proficient.

The second half of the night was a lot stronger than the first. After rocking out in the crowd for the most of the night, Full Ahead Romance took to the stage and, from the first song, you could tell they were playing music: because they love it. They confidently played a punk set of their own songs and a few covers. They even synced their actions during a couple of songs, which looked a little cheesy (it is punk, after all), but they get points for effort.

As the night went on, the bands got better, and The Phat Bananas were no exception. Their punk rock sound was tight, enhanced by two dueling guitars and the vocalist’s edgy, lasting voice. They looked good together on stage as they ripped through a strong set. A slightly pop sound made them accessible for the average punk fan.

A fashionable three-piece rock band, Jounkuk Bidoolgi Younhap, or National Pigeon Unity, aggressively took the stage next. They were loud, aggressive and epic. They made full use of the stage, climbing onto whatever they could, and challenging each other to push themselves harder.

Skunk Hell is closely related to Skunk Label Records, which has put out releases by various punk rock bands. The venue is tiny and dark; the walls are decorated with hundreds of black and white flyers from previous shows; a table covered in graffiti lines the front of the stage; and a booth at the back sells CDs.

To get there, go to Sangsu Station, Line No. 6, Exit 2, walk left and follow the road until you see a 711 on the left side. The venue is opposite 711, up the hill.

Going to a wine party is not something I usually do but I decided to go along to one held at exhibition/gallery space Sono Factory. The space wasn’t too large but it looked nice enough with cold stone walls, well lit shelfing, a sectioned-off office space and a slightly sunk down main room. After receiving a glass with my name stuck to it and a sticker on my chest telling everyone my name and occupation I headed over to the back of the room to sample the wines. In addition to a large variety of wines there was a pretty good spread of snacks. I nibbled away at those between glasses of wine.

It was interesting trying sweet red wines, dry white and red wines, and those in between. I don’t know a lot about wine nor do I pretend I do. Even after all the wine I’ve tasted in the last month I’m not sure I could tell the difference between a fairly priced bottle and a expensive bottle. Nevertheless I have enjoyed what I have tasted, particularly sweet red wines.

After mingling with various people and not talking about much in particular the entertainment started. Armed with a cello, one chap played some popular classical songs. He didn’t seem to be a master of the cello but it was nice to hear the deep warm sounds his instrument produced. A little later two singers preformed each with strong voices and a passion for the songs they were covering. All in all the acts were nothing special but enjoyable at least.

As the night went on I got a little tipsy and mingled more than I should with certain people. It would have been more fun if I had stayed with the friends I came with. The evening ended on a little bit of a bad note (for me at least) but all in all it was a good night.

More photos at flickr.

Last year I tried skiing for the first time at a slope with artificial snow. It was busy and I found it very difficult. This year since my friends were planning for a weekend of skiing I decided to give it a go again. This time we went to the Yong-Pyoung Resort (용평 리조트). It was high up in some of the Korean mountains which was a nice escape from the city. From the top of the mountains the scenery was quite beautiful. Anyway, after renting some equipment and getting a room for the night we hit the lifts and prepared to ski down a beginners slope. At first I found it hard to keep my balance and couldn’t grab the concept of how to turn but a few runs later I felt a lot better.

In the afternoon we headed high up a mountain to tackle a long run. The run lasted about 15 minutes and was quite exciting. By the third time I took that run I was skiing confidently and very relaxed. I came to enjoy skiing.

In the night time after some spicy soup we headed to the hotel for some poker and drinks. Recently I’ve been playing poker a couple of times a week. It’s hard but trying to understand probability and reading people is quite thrilling. After a long hand we soon all collapsed on Korean style bedding.

The second days skiing was fun too. I was soon racing down the slopes and took very few falls. By the time the day had come to an end I was already thinking about when I could ski next. It’s funny how one bad experience can be turned around completely by trying again.

More photos here.