Egg-Nogged and Kilometres Logged.

Christmas Eve 2011 - 5.30am

"Happy Christmas Kyoko"
"Happy Christmas Julian"
*cue jingly music*
So this is Christmas and what have you done,
Another year over, a new one just begun.
And so this is Christmas, I hope you have fun.............

The first strains of Happy Xmas (War is Over) greet my ears, a masterpiece, and the one Xmas score that no matter how un-festive I may feel (or try to feel), creeps into my core and warms my yuletide cockles. I set this song the night before to wake me up, and after having given the whole Christmas shebang not a moments prior thought, I was suddenly ready to embrace the holidays and gorge my way into a world of gluttony and over indulgence.

But not till I could first justify it.

I dragged myself out of bed just as the Harlem Community Choir were in full voice, still wrapped in the duvets warm embrace, much to Minju's chagrin. I soon threw it back over her and left the room with the faintest hint of jealousy.

I showered quickly and dressed even quicker, and soon after met with Jeff D. and Norah N. to bash out 25km. 20km before meeting the Seoul Flyers running group at 8am, and then a further 5km with the beginners group. Suprisingly, even though the mercury read -6, it didn't feel too bad at all, and with not a breath of wind to bother us, we were soon into it, chatting about all sorts of stuff. It was nice to have a light covering of fresh snow under our feet as we went and even though it was dark, the paths ahead were lit up with the magic of Winter. Jeff and Norah are quickly becoming my go to 'running buddies', as we seem to have fallen into a great pattern of coaxing each other away from our comforts when it would be all too simple to settle for the easy option of a warm sofa. Jeff Dixon takes up a lofty perch in the US Marines and has an impressive running record while Norah Newcombe is quite simply one of the quickest elite amateur female runners in Korea. So, they are certainly great motivators to have on board, and decent folk to boot.

It was a great way to start Christmas Eve, running for an hour or so in the dark, before the sun started to rise up over the Han River, our usual Saturday morning route. We joined up with more Seoul Flyers members at 8am and warmed down with a further 5km's before heading to the welcoming Paris Croissant bakery and the dazzling array of beaming smiles that emanate from the customer-centric sales-assistants (not.)

Coffee, Cheese and Onion Bread, Coffee refill (free), done, and now personally defrosted.

The afternoon took Minju and I to the residence 'chez Maltby', for a Christmas Eve party, including the fun game of White Elephant. This game is found primarily in North America but is also know as Yankee Swap, Black Santa, Chinese Gift Exchange, Dirty Santa, Thieving Secret Santa, Parcel Pass, Christmas Swamp Thing, or Pollyanna, with the majority of those monikers carrying a certain amount of political incorrectness. That said, even the name White Elephant may not be sanctioned by some London Borough councils. So, as per the gathering at the Maltby's, let's call it Ecumenical Elephant. And it was fun. A kind of gift exchange where you can forfeit unwrapping your selected gift, as per your turn, for another's already unwrapped gift.

The Xmas Eve crew at the Maltby residence

Waiting patiently to play Ecumenical Elephant

Minju and the cute wee Gabriel Maltby

More cut-throat wheeling and dealing in Yankee Swapping

And then there was Egg Nog. Now, this is a tipple of which there are very few, that has passed me by. I'm guessing this may be because it's popularity in North America outweighs that of the UK, even though it is thought that the origins of the drink may be traced back to East Anglia, or at least developed from Posset, a medieval European drink made with warm milk. Anyway.......

It's bloody lush. I like it a lot. I drank quite a few, and only slowed down my consumption when realising I was in (vanilla)essence drinking pure unadulterated cream! My internal calorie counter went off the scale and I was tempted to chuck on the trainers and head out for a further gallop, but contented myself instead with trying to teach little David (Sara Maltby's son) how to do a backspin. This was also soon curtailed when I realised there was whipped cream cheese in the making and started to feel a little bilious.

I settled into a few decent imported Beers from the impressive Maltby stock-pile, ate heartily, and enjoyed the company of a great bunch of people who made the day fat with merriment.

Christmas Day 2011

Do you know that sinking feeling you get, when after a big night on the booze, you take at least a minute or two to gather your senses and fall into the rhythmical beat of the new day, only for the metaphorical needle to slide off the LP with an almighty scratch, as you sit bolt upright in bed and recall a shameful event from the night before? My colourful past could offer up plenty of moments like this, where kicking oneself was too light a punishment for the crimes committed. (None illegal! well.... not many anyway).

This morning I had a similar feeling............the culprit, Egg Nog!!

The moral anguish quickly arose from my repentance for this terrible misdeed. I was strangled with remorse. I got dressed, wished Minju a Merry Christmas and kissed her cheek before she had the chance to open her eyes. I grabbed my water bottle and sailed down to the sanctuary of the Han River, by whose banks I hoped to wash away my sins on this holiest of holy days.

I did an easy 10km and arrived home feeling purified.......and ready for more naughtiness.

I had a smashing day, a low key affair with our very good Korean friend Jessica joining us for traditional fayre, Bucks Fizz, and some very nice red wine. It wasn't long before day turned to night and we were joined by Minju's brother (who had to work on Christmas Day, as is largely the Korean way, especially within retail enterprises). We got to have the whole Xmas meal again and it was equally welcomed and enjoyed. I staggered off to bed maybe a tad over satiated but at ease with the world nevertheless.

Minju and Jessica ready to tuck into a hearty roast

Pretty much soused and on the way to 2nd Xmas meal of the day

Bro-in-Law's first ever Xmas dinner. "Can I get you some chopsticks?" Revenge!'

Boxing Day - Norah and I ran 20km from Eungam station to Itaewon. It was cold, and after so much revelry, not that enjoyable on a physical level. But still glad to do it. Wasn't I?

So that was the Chrimbo period all boxed off and now as we segue into the New Year with cold toes, one has to wonder what 2012 will bring. No matter what, it will be an adventure, but more on that later.................

Freezing One's Proverbials Off

A very fond memory I have, is of a time way back when I was a grubby little chap, obsessed with football and spending weekends with my Dad. Friday night would be 'Fish and Chips' night and Saturday was 'Chinese' or 'Chinky' as expressed by way of mostly inoffensive parochial argot. I would heartily tuck into Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls and marvel at the brightness of the sauce, briefly wondering what was in it, without letting that affect my enjoyment. My entire knowledge of the Orient amounted to various dishes from the 'Chinky' in Northallerton, the town where my old man lived at the time. I do have one further enduring image of the Far East that stays with me from that special time. Quite often when devouring various quasi-Chinese dishes, we would all settle down to watch the ITV show Clive James on Television, in which he showcased unusual or (often unintentionally) amusing television programmes from around the world, notably the Japanese TV show Endurance. Za Gaman "The Endurance" is not particularly well known or remembered in Japan, but it became famous in other countries, particularly Britain, due to its appearance on the aforementioned show. Contestants would try to outdo each other in withstanding unpleasant experiences such as being buried up to the neck in sand and then licked by reptiles. The winner was the person who endured the longest. I seem to remember that partial nudity and freezing conditions seemed to figure heavily, with ice-baths a regular feature. Contestants would often have to be pulled from the bath partially frozen and would not be able to stand, all in the name of endurance. I remember laughing at these funny characters with their faces screwed up in pain emitting strange noises that were totally alien to me. I'd throw an uneducated and ignorant sweeping statement full of Yorkshire panache into the mix, such as, "They're all mad them Japanese lot!" 

So why the sudden recollection of these images? Well, the 20th Annual Daegwallyeong Naked Marathon is coming in January, and I will be partaking. In fact, there are a good number of my running club's membership  who have decided to endure and to race. For men, only shorts are allowed, although as you can see from the following photos, the running tight seems to be allowed, which I'd class as a total false economy. It is going to be blindingly cold. Daegwallyeong (대관령) is a mountain pass in the Taebaek Mountains of eastern South Korea. It is very close by Pyeongchang which has been selected for the 2018 Winter Olympics. The pass rises to 832 metres (2,730 ft) above sea level.  The average daily mean temperature in January is a raw -7.7*C. A brief glance of today's current temperature in Daegwallyeong reports a frigid overnight low of -16*C with windchill up to -24*C. So who's the crazy one now? As part of the event, there is a team race with five members per team running 10km each. Each member's finish time goes towards an aggregated team time. We have put forward a strong team and will be challenging for first place and some decent prize winnings.

After running in the extreme cold of last weekend, we did make a mental note that in January, we will be suffering similar conditions with only a pair of shorts to cover our personage.

Brits, Irish, Americans, Canadians, New Zealanders, South Africans, Koreans (we're a diverse bunch!)......... "they're all mad them lot!"

Naked Marathon.......... a couple of years ago

Tights should be banned in my opinion. I mean, what's the point?

And to give you an idea of what used to help pass the evening over 25 years ago, here is a clip taken from the Clive James show, showing the kind of tomfoolery that Endurance would endorse. It still makes me laugh to this day. Those crazy guys!

Endurance - as seen on the Clive James show

Of Wedding Bells and Frozen Trails

Saturday morning and 6am found slumber rudely curtailed by the shrill report of my phone's alarm. I immediately Googled the weather and a sharp intake of breath was all I could muster as the display read -11*C. This was in Seoul too, so I could only imagine it was going to be colder out at the mountains and up on an elevated trail. But, perversely, this was what had been firing my excitement all week. No turning back now. 

I gingerly left my pit (no pun intended) and started to layer-up after a quick shower. Sometimes the problem with extreme cold weather running is not so much being cold, as this is to be expected, but over compensating and being too hot. I placed trust in my judgement and hoped the technical gear I'd opted for would pull through. A first layer of compression wear would be the last line of defence in keeping the cold at bay, but also drawing sweat away from the body. The thermal layers would warm up the perspiration and then finally my Salomon soft-shell jacket would keep the wind out. With hat and gloves in place and an extra pair of socks for good luck I left the house at 6.25am to meet the three other intrepid Seoul Flyers members who'd decided to commit to this madness. 

It was cold..........and I can't understate that any more or less. 

The journey to Gangchon was uneventful, asides from a Korean guy who latched on to Sara Maltby and repeatedly wanted to tell her in his best pigeon English that, "I am drunken..... today coldest, today...uhhhh...coldest." Thankfully he staggered off the train a few stops before Gangchon but, quite eerily, his parting shot was, "You know 119...yes? You know?" and with that he most probably went in search of his next bottle of Soju. For those not in the know, the emergency number for Korea is 119. Interesting.

First view after getting to the station

No sooner had we all wondered if he knew something we didn't, that we arrived at the station to meet up with the rest of the crew. There were nine of us out today to tackle the 30km of trail on and around Bongwha Mountain. We were very keen to get running, more out of necessity than anything else. The first 5km found us on a steady climb, that with each bend rounded, refused to reward us with the ridge line, but invited us to grit teeth and dig in further. Did I mention it was cold? We got a reading of just shy of -13*C as we set off. Norah's frosted eye-lashes highlight this very fact, as seen in the photo. Please also note her Heterochromia Iridium, different coloured eyes in layman's terms, a la David Bowie. Cool.

Little Miss Frosty

We were soon at the top of the first big climb of three that were to present themselves on the journey. A good chance for a photo opportunity or two. 

Just after the first climb of the day

We ploughed on and managed to make good time, finishing the whole trail in just short of 3 hours. Overall elevation was around 1200ft, so not too crazy, but it is a fantastic trail, with rewarding scenery, and legs that will thank us for the effort in the end. With Seoul International Marathon only a few months away, there is no better conditioning than the ups and downs of this workout. Here are a few more choice pictures from the days events. I am planning to do it again on January 9th and would recommend you SF's out there to join us in preparation for March's big race. Of course no trip to the Gangchon area would be complete without a good feed of Dakgalbi and some Makgeolli to wash away the aches of the day. Absolutely delicious. Maybe even more so when you know you deserve it.

Up in the snow line with the super-fast Katie and Norah

Cold

Rewarding scenery adds to the pleasure

Nice

Jeff's bladder problem. Leaking pack froze his leg.

The trail-runners post run, happy, and no doubt a little tired

Looking back at the mountains we had tackled

No better way to round off the run - great food and company

And then there were Wedding Bells...........................

The last time and also first time I attended a Korean wedding was that of my own. A great day of course, but no sooner had it begun that it was all over, and in somewhat of a blur. Sunday morning was welcomed under blue skies and sunny conditions for my good friend's wedding. Mr Chris Green was to marry Miss Annie Choi, and this time I could sit back, relax, and take it all in. Very enjoyable it was too. A great day all round with some great memories captured forever, no doubt for Chris and Annie but for all those in attendance too. 

The bride was beautiful, as expected, Chris looked the business and took it all in his stride. It was nice to see a really great group of Seoul Flyers, the extended family, in attendance too.

The lovely bride with Minju and the smashing Jen and Jihwa

Annie with three very handsome men

The ceremony went off without a hitch and it was soon time to dive into the buffet, charge plates full of sundry items to savour and crack a bottle of Soju in celebration. Zuleika Rivera was adamant that she wanted a few Soju's and a little against my will, I did the chivalrous thing, and couldn't let her drink by herself. A true hero.
After the food was done and group photos taken it was time to go up to the roof for some traditional Korean ceremony that would see me have a part to play. As one of Chris's close mates, he did the right thing and asked me to walk in front of him as he rode a horse around the roof of the wedding hall. I of course accepted and agreed to do whatever was required. Little did I know that I would be required to 'kind of' dance to some traditional Korean drums as we went. I did my best, aided in part by the Soju that had been drunk, and I soon felt like a natural, like this was a totally normal thing to do. Here's a short clip of the frolicsome festivities that came to pass....... on a roof......with a horse.

I mean really, how normal is that!! It was a great end to the ceremony. A dedicated group of fun seekers decided to kick on to a local alehouse and shoot some pool and enjoy a beer or few. The night was rounded off nicely as the bride and groom caught up with us and a few went on to a Thai restaurant for some grub and further revelry. Here are a selection of photos from the day.
A big thank you to Chris and Annie Green for providing us with a memorable day and to all the Flyers for adding to it in their own unique way, and of course to my missus for being just ace.

The Wedding Hall, in all it's garish greatness

A table of Flyers

The happy couple

Western wedding attire

Sporting the traditional Korean Hanbok

Getting ready to perform

Chris, on a horse, in Seoul, on a roof

Stu with the lantern and me bearing gifts from the village

Paebaek

The other happy couple

Having a nice pint with Buckers

Having a laff

You know you're getting old when.....

......you start to embrace the cold and positively revel in it. 

Exclamations like, "Ooooo it's lovely and crisp!" and "Makes you glad to be alive!" billow from your lips in a cloud of vapour. That said, the largely dry and sunny days of a Korean winter make it a lot easier to bear than that of the cold damp greyness of Blighty. It's undoubtedly a harsh winter here, as the abundant summer greenery, save for the hardiest of evergreens, all but disappears. We are left with a barren topography of large rocks that account for nearly 80% of the peninsula. Early European travellers once remarked that Korea resembled 'a sea in a heavy gale' and I'd say that rings true even more so over the winter months.

So, not to put too fine a point on it, I am thus far enjoying the winter here. A huge contrast to previous winters, which shook all the positivity from my soul, and proved my happiness to be deciduous in nature. Two winters ago, I was generally not happy with my lot and I lay blame solely at the feet of the cold. (thankfully, not cold feet, or else I definitely wouldn't be here now). I even agreed to another year in Korea on the premise of not having to endure another Korean winter. This led to Minju and I taking off on our 3 month long travels from December '10 to March '11.

As I look back at my travelogue from this day last year, I was in south-west Thailand, at a place called Ao Tonsai, a small bay at the northern end of Railay Beach, famous for luring the rock-climbing fraternity to it's magnificent cliff faces. Yes, of course I'd rather be there now but I am surprised that reading back on this doesn't reduce me to tears and a yearning to escape the cold. 

Excerpt taken from travelogue - 15th December 2010;

This morning I had an experience. I set off for a run and headed inland and up into the jungle behind our bungalow knowing that the trail would eventually lead to the beach on the opposite side of the peninsula, about 5km away. With GPS set, to help if I got lost, I started out at a nice steady clip. I was energised by this new running environment. This was my first experience of running through a 'real' Jungle. It was a bit mad to be honest. Maybe last night’s frivolity was making me edgy, but I could have sworn that was a Tiger.........or that.... or that.  However, I did soon happen upon a group of Monkeys playing in the canopy overhead. Straight after hearing the initial commotion above my head, I was rooted to the spot in both fascination and apprehension as I couldn’t have been certain if the source of noise was friend or foe. I stood stock still trying to catch a glimpse of whatever was above. Fifteen seconds later my legs are burning. I look down to see them covered in black mosquitoes. Aiiiiiya!! I’d also forgotten to put on any repellent. The twenty bites (after later examination) were a good motivator to run and run hard all the way through the forest till I reached the relative safety of the beach. I borrowed some repellent from a kind tourist and hot-footed it back through the jungle to our bungalow. It was a good session, but not one I'd like to repeat without being lathered in DEET.

These rock climbers are something else. I’m guessing that this place attracts the cream, as they are lean mean scaling machines and great to watch as I lay on the beach, prone, inactive. I think I might have a go tomorrow on the beginners face. One has to start somewhere.'

So what can I attribute to the big turnaround? Is it really an age thing? As my skin becomes as leathery as old boots does it form a natural shield from the cold? Or am I just 'hard'?

In all seriousness, maybe my whole mental outlook has a sunnier disposition creating warmth from within. I'd put a lot of that down to running. The benefits of which I'd happily evangelise with a gay abandon. 

Saturday will find me trail running in the mountains. With predicted early morning temperatures for this particular region forecast at a boreal -11 degrees Celsius, I may re-address my current joie de vivre. We'll see.

But just one thing, I couldn't stand the summer here this year! The stifling humidity and sapping heat. The heavy air, thick with perspiration and frustration. Don't make me stay here another summer!

Post Jungle run cool down. But, I really don't mind the Korean winter. REALLY!!

Compression Sock Dangers

I have had this rather odd habit since I was in my late 20's. I'll explain. 

In the evening (usually), if I am just sitting and watching TV or the like, I'll subconsciously roll one of my socks down (usually left, although the right has been known) so that my heel is exposed but the rest of the foot remains covered by rolled down sock. I have no control over it. 

Either this, or I go all the way and I spend the whole evening with one sock on, one off, usually dictated by the time of year. It will come right off in the summer, and remain as aforementioned for other times, thus the majority of the year. 

Anyway......... on the back of the 20km trail run I did yesterday, I had my usual slightly stiff calves so I wore my Saucony compression socks, which I must champion, as ordinarily they are great. I wore them to bed. Not only do they help the muscle soreness, they maintain nice warmth from the knee down now that the mercury has plummeted.

Last night I had the strangest of strange dreams. I was running a half-marathon somewhere which I imagine to be in the North-East of England. The accents heard in the dream were County Durham-esque and I was running along a shabby seaside promenade. Each time I passed a pub, a big pub-brawl would break out and spill out onto the course, and I found myself having to dodge people and their flailing fists, weaving and jumping as I went. There were occasions when people I knew from my past, friends or family, were involved in the brawl, so I had to try and step in to stop it, always conscious of the time slipping away as I was shooting for a PR. There must have been at least eight different fights block the way as I ran.

As I got to the final two kilometers of the race, which incidentally, saw me run up and down the aisles of Morrisons (a low-end supermarket chain, primarily in the north of England), I was still on for a good time, regardless of the sporadic mindless violence. Suddenly, my foot went numb. I lost all feeling in it. I started to panic, it really affected progress and I was reduced to dragging this malfunctioning limb behind me, like a war-wounded trying desperately to escape the line of fire. Everybody started overtaking me, literally everyone, and I was soon just in front of the sweepers. I fell to the ground, petrified, and clung to my dead foot.

And then I woke up.

Thank God, it was only a dream! That feeling of elation was short lived though, as a new wave of fear struck me. I tried to wiggle my toes but couldn't feel them! Oh Jesus! NO!! It can't be real.

I grasped my left foot and felt a big mound of sock around it. I had once again, even during my sleep, worked the compression sock down around my foot, but given it's lycra heavy composition, formed a tourniquet of noose like strength. I pulled the sock off completely, and all drunk with sleep, jumped up, but landed on the left foot first which just gave way, leaving me to fall against the bedroom wall. The loud bang woke Minju from her sleep and she shouted, "What's going on?"

"You wouldn't believe it." I answered, and left it at that.

Bukhan Sanity

I decided to head out to the Bukhansan Mountains this morning to run a small section of the 'Dulegil'. The Dulegil is a trail that circumnavigates the entire national park. Last year a small group of Seoul Flyers ran about half the entire loop, cutting across the middle of the range, as you can see from the map below, and we ran (where possible) 50km in total. It was an epic adventure given the brutal conditions. A day that, at the time, held the record for the most rainfall in a single day in and around Seoul. We had lightning strikes all around us, parts of the trail washed away, leaving us to try and figure ways around the natural roadblocks.  It was chaotic, but incredible fun all at the same time.

This morning, the sun was out, the conditions bone dry, if not a little chilly, but pretty much perfect. If you want a good way to build strength through the relative 'off-season' during the harsh Korean winter, then this is always an option.                                                                                

The Dulegil. 44km half loop, 78km full loop

Bulgwang Station, exit 2. Follow the 'Dulegil' signs

It is very easy to get to the trail, a quick journey up the brown line to Bulgwang and leave via Exit 2. Then follow the road signposted to Gugi Tunnel and after a 1km jog along the road you will see the signs for the Dulegil and then you are at the trailhead for this particular section. The good thing about this trail is that wherever you are you just need to keep an eye open for the abundant and well positioned trail signs. These are on the trees when you are on the trail and also when you drop out of the trails and come to small villages along the way, they continue to clearly highlight with directional arrows where you want to be headed.

Here is an example of the sign that shows you the way. Very handy and omnipresent.

So, after getting onto the trail and heading in an easterly direction, the initial climb is about 1km and steep, a good tester to get the legs firing. Power hiking is advisable, especially if you have a long run ahead of you. This initial ascent gets you up onto the first ridge line and then it's all fun from there. The trails are really good, they are undulating and at the moment they are carpeted with fallen pine needles, so it was very soft underfoot and my knees were thankful for these unfamiliar conditions given the thousands of kilometers that have been pounded out along the unforgiving Han River cycle paths all year. It was very pleasant. 

Soon enough I was up on the ridge line and able to take a few pics of the great scenery all around me. It was reasonably clear and visibility was good. Not so much when looking in the sun's direction, as it was low in the sky given the time of the year, and the perma-haze was apparent.

There are always a lot of interesting things to see along the way. I always find that the more technical single track that you have to navigate in some places really takes your mind off the distance as you focus hard on your footing, avoiding roots and rocks, jumping left and right. I think that trail running of this sort is also very effective as it builds strength in those muscles that are pretty much redundant when road racing. There is more emphasis on lateral movement so this can help adductor, piriformis and gluteal conditioning.

As you can see from this picture on the right a lot of the trails gently meander through pine forests. The smell of the pines were great today and the air was fresh. It felt like I was giving my lungs a day off too, from the unwholesome pollutants that have a tendency to hang in the city air.

Today, I just did 10km out and then turned back, but I will be looking to arrange a 44km day in February. This will provide the Seoul International Marathon entrants with a great workout about 6 weeks out from the race. It will mean a good 6+ hour plus day out on the trails, as we are not racing it! There will be plenty of times to just hike and plod along, it's not all runnng. I know of a couple of good stops where we can replenish our energy levels with some food and drinks.

Today I came across the great little temple that we saw the last time, and I took a break here to eat a  sandwich and inhaled the calm all around me and thought myself lucky to have the use of two legs and a beautiful playground within which to use them.

Views like this are all around

The temple where I had my lunch

Great trails ready to be blazed

Boobies!

So I am now looking forward to the adventure on Saturday morning when several of us head to Gangchon, to tackle a 30km trail run with 1100ft of elevation in temperatures that are forecast to make today feel like a spring day. I look forward to it.