Oasis.

Yesterday, I went to New Core Outlet to shop for a couple different things. They were having their Big Friday sale, and people were scrambling to find the best deals. The place was brimming with ajummas with teenage sons/daughters in tow, elbowing, shoving their way through the swarm of agassis and younger but equally notorious ajummas. To those who haven't been to Korea, it's hard to understand how scary they can be. With their short-curly hair, 'perpetually-angry' painted eyebrows, shiny faces and protruding bellies, it's understandable why some women hate to be associated with the word 'ajumma', more over, to be called one. But more than their outward appearance, they're the epitome of strength, frugality, and selflessness. They could sniff the best bargains from miles away, and with a few hundred of them at New Core, the place turned into a battlefield.

I was drenched in sweat, out of my wits, and terribly exhausted from all the pushing, shoving, and elbowing that I made a wrong turn and lost my way home. In the midst of innumerable apartment complexes, bustling shopping centers, unfamiliar congested roads, and pedestrians hustling their way from one place to another, I discovered an oasis that promises temporary relief and serenity from the frantic, frenzied, and 'headache-inducing' city.

It's a very spacious park, and I'm not sure if it's even famous or anything. The entrance is right in front of a busy street, but even if it's just a few meters away from the vehicle-clogged street, the air seemed fresher, cleaner, tinged with a bit of smell from pine trees and freshly-mowed grass.

I walked around and it was so relaxing to see the bright green trees and grass.


There were cute benches like this. I think it's a good, quiet place to read a book while drinking coffee.

Like with almost every park in Korea, there's a place to exercise.

This is what struck me the most. It's a huge, huge statue of a woman wearing hanbok. I have no idea who she is, but judging from the scale of the monument, I'm guessing she's probably deemed important and is revered by Koreans.

This is the view of the monument from afar. You could also see the buildings that surround the park.

There's also a Buddhist sanctuary at the far end. The place is so small and I'm not sure if we could actually call it temple (and do they have to have monks to be called a temple? ;-). Inside, there's a shrine where people could light some incense/candles, kneel, bow, and pray. Out of respect, I stayed outside and only took a picture of the gate.

Seeing this gave me yet another reason to love our city more!