gangneung daze

the weather in gangneung is like it is in many places around the world: quite often strange and perplexing.

the current time of year, spring here in the northern hemisphere, is usually pretty predictable (save for this particular year--2006--it seems). when the equinox arrives on march 21, the days are beginning to warm up a bit from the winter just past, but the nights can still be quite cold. the days are more often than not sunny and bright. any snow that has fallen during the winter in gangneung and the surrounding beaches is gone from the ground, though that isn't always the case in the nearby mountains. like any region that lies near mountains, what falls as a cold, ugly rain in late march and early april falls as snow at elevation.

as april makes it way into our lives here, it brings with it the dreaded hwang-sa, which is translated into english in any number of ways: yellow haze, yellow dust, yellow sand, yellow wind, yellow storm, yellow fever... oops, maybe not that last one.

april days begin to get warmer and there is often lots of sunshine, only it can't be seen all too well because it's hidden behind tons of this yellow crap. this yellow crap--perhaps the best translation of them all--is from china and mongolia's gobi and taklamakan deserts. there are lots of theories as to why this yellow crap attacks korea (and japan, as well, if one solicits the truth), usually in the form of conspiratorial theories, such as the one that the chinese government's breakneck development to become a worldwide economic power has resulted in the devastation of so much of its land and massive uprooting of flora that would keep the sand from billowing away into the atmosphere and blanketing all that lies in the path of the easterly winds.

while it is true that i would have more nice things to say about having a hot poker shoved up my arse and into my lungs than i would about anything related to china, especially its government and its culture of saving face, i would have to say that this yellow crap phenomenon is nothing more than just a result of natural forces, such as high winds and wild storm systems, because i've read where countries that lie to the east of the sahara desert in africa also suffer from similar, though not as severe, yellow crap phenomena every year. however, i would be willing to bet that whatever the hell the chinese are doing over there doesn't make this yellow crap any better. it must be said, though, that the korean and japanese governments have, in recent years, been working with the chinese and mongolian governments in a massive effort to plant trees and other such flora in an effort to reign in the flying soil that china's deforestation has produced in its eastern half and in countries that lie to china's east. hopefully, as long as china doesn't fuck this up, future generations of koreans won't have to endure this yearly yellow crap phenomenon as much as recent generations have had to.

and, this year, 2006, has been the worst for yellow crap been since i've been in korea--in fact, it's been the worst in many years, if what the weather reports say is true.

once the yellow crap dissipates a little bit, then another tide of yellow descends upon korea: pollen. however, this is not the sweet sappy pollen that clings to everything that you're used to; no, this is pollen mixed with yellow crap, so it just annoys the hell out of you, makes one's eyes grainy, scratches the throat, and makes leaving things outdoors or opening the windows in your house to let in the warm air an exercise in damned if you do, damned if you don't.

however, april is the time, as it is elsewhere north of the equator, when flowers bloom, and most specifically here on the korean peninsula, cherry blossoms. while there are several places down south that are more famous nationally for their cherry blossoms, gangneung begins to reveal its own charms in this regard, especially at gyeongpo beach and lake, where there are scores of trees that spring to white life when their flowers bloom. lining the road into the gyeongpo area and then ringing the lake and sidewalks next to the beach are quite a sight for even the most curmudgeonly of people.

as may hits, temperatures at night begin to be less chilly and those in daytime begin to climb, and that leads to necklines plunging, skirts rising, sleeves shortening, sandals adorning feet, and skin darkening as it sops up the sun's UV rays and vitamin D. restaurants start setting up tables outside so customers can take in the nice, warm air while dining; supermarkets and grocery stores start stocking up on coolers, outdoor grills, sunscreen, and picnic sundries in anticipation of the upcoming beach season. there is, like in most other places that sees spring replace a cold winter, a definite spring in everyone's steps, a bounce in everyone's blouse, a looseness in everyone's pants.

this spring has seen a lot less clear, blue skies than in recent years and lot more rain, cloudiness, and basically just shit weather, which is disappointing because april, may, and early june together are, along with september and october, usually the sunniest period of each year here in the break between winter and late june's monsoon season.

the next installment of gangneung weather will be summer, coming soon to airspace near you.

gangneung is a city on the northeast coast of south korea. it's an average-sized city, having about 250,000 residents and is conveniently located between mountains rising to the west and the east sea washing ashore to the, um, east.

there are ten provinces in korea and gangneung is located in the most northeast province of gangwon. it is one of the largest provinces in land area, but it's only the second-least populous, which is a welcome break from the crowded rest of the country. gangwon, on average, is also the most mountainous of korea's provinces, and it is with this in mind that the mountain town of pyoung-chang is bidding to host the 2014 winter olympics after having lost out to vancouver in the last vote for the 2010 winter olympics.

most people's first trip to gangneung is via seoul, which is 230 kilometers to the west, accessed by travelling the yongdong expressway. after the (on average) two and a half hour trip, and after one pays the exit fare at the tollgate, one can see a veritable feast of trees on one side--and the tall presence of city hall poking up through--and a small river that bisects the city on the other. there are the ubiquitous apartment buildings dotting the skyline, as is true in any korean city of any size, but none of them are too tall, relatively speaking. as one approaches gangneung, one can continue along the river, cross the river, or head north away from the river and then make one's way through the relatively unclogged streets of the city.

perhaps the most popular way to traverse gangneung from the freeway is to take the street that passes by city hall and continues past the express bus station. this main road will lead all the way to the beach. however, from this road, you are also able to access downtown (or, city center); the newly-developed area called gyo-dong taekji, which is still being developed, truth be told; gangneung university(next to taekji); gyoungpo lake; gyoungpo beach, to which the lake is adjacent, one of the most popular beaches, if not the most popular, on korea's east coast; ponam-dong ("dong" means district or burough, in this instance), which is one of the oldest sections of gangneung and is the closest part of gangneung proper to the beach; the three beaches south of gyoungpo yet still north of the river: gangmoon, songjung, anmok beaches; and the part of the city that's south of the river, including noam-dong, gwandong university, namhangjin beach, gangneung city airport, and more.

as an introduction, this will do to start...