So into 2007 we are charging at a mean rate. And down or rather up to the ski slopes too. Tis ski season in Korea and there are slopes to be explored, rather to be tumbled down. Our first excursion was to Yong Pyong, the prince of Korean ski resorts near Gangneung on the east coast. The gang of expats on the project headed down on a Saturday evening by car, self driven, and got there in good time, roads not too busy. Only two basic slopes were open but to the ski-deprived masses even hazarding long queues was not going to keep them off the man-made snow. Some of our gang had never seen skis before so I was the instructor, consisting of 'This is how you put the stuff on and when you fall this is how you get your skis off, this is how you stop and turn, buzzofff!'. At the end of the day most were managing. It is a beautiful place though, worth at least one visit but wait till the season is in full swing and take the gondola to the top, about 3 kilometres then ski the long track back, about 5.7 kilometres. It is intermediate level and more like a winding mountain road that you ski with lovely views. The road back to Seoul was super busy, a Korean once referred to the Seoul motorways on Sunday afternoons as parking lots, all 12 million Seoul escapees are returning at once.

After digging around on the Internet (http://english.tour2korea.com/03Sightseeing/SKI/ski01_01.asp?kosm=m3_7&konum=subm1_1 is a good start) for a closer ski resort than Damian Vivaldi where I learnt to ski in 2004 (Bibaldi in Konglish:-) that is reachable by train (no traffic queues) I discovered LG Gangchon near Gangchon near Chuncheon, the capital of dakgalbi, a delightful rendition of spicy chicken, vegetables and dok (large rice noodles, huge things) fried in a huge heavy metal pan, hmm. Back to skiing though, but the dakgalbi is great, to be had once at least in Korea.  Done` was here and we decided to shoot out one day and see what LG Ganchon was like. The train ride is an hour and a half and then there are regular free shuttles to the resort. The ski side is not huge but the slopes are not busy at all, unusual for Korea, and they have fast lifts. We spent a delightful afternoon wizzing up and down, Done` being a reluctant newbie but at the end of the day she was managing quite nicely.

We have been back there about half a dozen times this season already with our expat gang and have had good fun. It is a nice mix of easy accessibility, ultra short lift queues, good rental stuff and fun slopes. We discovered that they have free shuttle busses to and from various locations in Seoul as well although the Gangchon train ride is nice and scenic too. Our two girls were here for Christmas and New Year and we were out there twice. They had never skied before either so I had my teaching hat on, again. I think they enjoyed it, Lauren's shrieks and screams and groans on the last day when we went down a bit of an intermediate slope attesting to that, I believe. She did do some ploughing into the snow en-route as well, not snow ploughing. Melinde had a bit of a bad fall on her last run and we had the tobogan take her down but she has recovered in the meantime.

It was thir first time in Seoul and felt very surreal, I don't connect my kids with being here. We explored a lot, all the usual touristy Seoul type things. They were a bit numbed after I dragged them through Namdaemun and Meoyngdong on the first day. The downtown Christmas lights were stunning. It was good an cold too, being winter here and the family is not used to Korean extremes. It snowed a week before and a week after they left, a pity, but nature is like a grumpy w*f*, unpredictable at best. I was in a state of bombshock when they left but fortunately Done` got delayed for a week so that eased it a bit. I was at Yong Pyong again last weekend skiing and I could here Lauren's shrieks reverberating off the mountain walls, was a bit sad. One thinks you hatch, match and dispatch your kids and when they are grownup they depart but mine are 21 and 25 and still a huge part of one's life.

My mom has been going through a tough depression phase after my dad passed away but is strongly on the recovery path for which we are thankful but she suffered quite a bit. She had my Canadian sister, Mandy visiting for a few weeks and now her own sister from the US is with her. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of my Aunt Beth and American Uncle Gerry visiting on the farm. We would collect them at Bethlehem station. The reunions were something to behold, huge screams of delight and cryings and huggings. I was fascinated by my American family. My uncle and I built up a cool relationship, lots of hunting and exploring on our farm. The fact that he was an airline pilot and Vietnam vet added to the fascination.

Coming weekend we are skiing at Vivaldi again, going with the residents in our apartments, hoping there are no newbies again.