National Park Images of the day: Georgian Bay Islands National Park

On Sunday, I took some friends to Beausoleil Island, a national park on Georgian Bay.  Along the way, we stopped at Kevin Cadeau’s residence (his info is halfway down the page).  Cadeau is a chain saw artist, making bears and other animals from wood in the round.

Signs of low water levels were everywhere, like this dock that was half a metre too high above water.

Most of my pics are of friends and family and so will not appear here.

This is the first trillium with hints of pink that I have seen.  They might be common but I haven’t been in Canada for many years.Tadpoles were everywhere and I think they might all have hatched at once.  They were staying in brackish ponds that had some access to Georgian Bay water.  I watched some minnows dart in, grab one and depart. This is a Rock Harlequin and there were common on the thin soil on the rocks in the northern half of the island.Beausoleil Island has some connection with Sainte Marie Among the Hurons, I think.  When the Sainte Marie village closed, some local people moved here.  The last burial was in 1927 so someone must still be visiting to care for this grave.There were several other graves and the ages listed showed remarkable variety.  Many had died tragically young – two years or ten months – while others lived incredibly long lives – 101 years is listed on one marker.I don’t know what kind of salamander or newt this is and would love some assistance.When we returned, I was exhausted and just rested.  My son, on  the other hand, went out to do some gardening.

 

Provincial Park Image of the day: Awenda in spring

My mother, son and I returned to Awenda Provincial Park on April 13 and had a good walk although no wildlife was spotted.

Again, we visited a beach and again, I admired the ice piles.

I could have walked out to them, I think.  The last four metres was of thick-but-broken-and-refrozen ice and where I could see water, something in the clarity wailed cold.  I was still going to do it, but my son was watching and I decided not to demonstrate what foolishness I am capable of.

We found one fin and one deer scapula (?) 

My son likes to be clear on where precisely he is.  When he learned we were just outside of Penetanguishene and in Tiny Township, he decided this line was the border and delighted in hopping in and out of Penetanguishene.

 

Since I’ve returned, deep views into forest have become fascinating to me but I cannot explain why or take a photo that offers the same pull.

Awenda has a small ampitheatre and stage.  I hope to hear some wildlife talks or the like there.

 

Arrowhead Provincial Park and more (Second week in Canada)

Feb 11 to 15 was TLG’s first (and only, as yet) full week of school as his first and third weeks both had snow days.  He has settled into school and enjoys it.

We are still working on finding food for him and getting him to try new foods.  He likes ham sandwiches and peanut butter sandwiches and has eaten great amounts at supper but we can’t find much in the way of fruit that he will eat.

The weather has continued interesting with bitter cold followed by thaws, driving snows followed by rain.  Indeed, this week (really our third) there have been two snow days with the latter one entirely justified but the former a poor example of prediction.  The house quickly becomes cramped and boring for a seven year old so he prefers to go to school, nearly as close as the one in Korea and less than ten minutes on foot away.

Penetanguishene’s Winterama was on the weekend and we watched the parade Friday night.  The parade was short as many school teacher unions are recommending against participating in after-school events.  Also, some schools had problems with the theme “The War of 1812″.  In watching the parade, I saw a lot of references to local history but none specific to our War of Kicking US Butt.  I do understand, in a general way, that we shouldn’t glorify war but it is also local (European, and so recorded) history and this region has more of that than much of Ontario.

Anyway, we enjoyed the carnival Saturday morning and TLG saw his first bit of hockey.  Although I am thoroughly Canadian, I was too uncoordinated to enjoy playing the game and so never pushed the sport on him.  I did enjoy the camaraderie and sportsmanship I saw on Saturday, but TLG was non-committal.  He rode a pony, a hay-wagon and a snowmobile and we watched some of the “polar plunge”.  I think the Busan Polar Bear Swim has spoiled me for lesser events.

That afternoon, we went to Bracebridge and visited with friends.

On Sunday, we went to Arrowhead Provincial Park to skate and tube. Good times but would have been great -and still well below freezing – if it had been ten degrees warmer.

We also swam at the fantastic Bracebridge pool, enjoying a slide, a full size pool, a kids pool and warm-tub.

Monday was “Family Day”, a new holiday that allowed us to spend more time with my Bracebridge friends.  We tobogganed at Kerr Park in Bracebridge and loved it although I had a bad landing and really felt it the next day.

Tuesday and Wednesday (today) are snow days here.  Yesterday threatened freezing rain but was only warm and dry.  Today, there is a lot of blowing snow.  I like it.

Our first week in Canada

Here is a brief look at our first week in Penetang, Ontario.  I am on my mother’s computer and don’t want to take too much time on it so a lot of this post will be terse to the point of being cryptic.  I am writing this post more for my memory than for international scrutiny.

Just before coming to Canada, I had one last hike on a small, local mountain and finished the hike in my T-shirt. The day before leaving, The Little Guy (TLG) and I rode our bikes to Eulsookdo.

 

Jan 31: Long slow drive home – often terrible visibility.  Went to sleep early, up at 3:30 for the day

Sat Feb 1: Midland winter Carnival.  Candy cannon and dog-sled ride

 

 

Here, re-enactors fire the Candy cannon, much as the originals would have done to fight the Americans in 1812.  Britain had access to sugar cane and so worked to rot the American’s teeth.

Sun Feb 2.  Visited the Wye Marsh where my mother volunteers.

 

 

 

Mon, Feb 3: First day of school, chose a cat

 

Tues, Feb 4: picked up cat “Colino7” from the SPCA.  Colino7 is a four-year-old neutered cat that apparently lived outside for a month or two before being brought in to the SPCA.  I say apparently because the volunteer at the pound pointed out that she only had the drop-off person’s word to go by and that wasn’t always trustworthy.  The cat is amazingly laid-back and has quickly adjusted to living in our home.  TLG, who loves the number seven, named the cat.

Wed, Feb 5: I drove to Toronto to Korean Consulate, and Barrie Drive Test for Ontario drivers licence

Thurs, Feb 6: Vet checkup for cat. All good

All this week, TLG watched a whole lot of TV – Treehouse channel

Fri, Feb 7: Big snow, buses cancelled but TLG went to school -only 20 students total.  Lots of fun.  We met Alex’s teacher, Mrs D.  She called TLG “Brilliant” regarding math.  She repeated that he helped his classmates on the math problems.  She had started him on Grade one spelling, which he is motoring through.  I thought it strange that he learn those words at a slow rate -I considered pushing him in that regard -but they are the basics of letter sounds and phonics.  I guess she knows what she is doing.  He has a good friend in class, Tyson, but is quiet in speaking to the full class.

 

 

Saturday, Feb 9: Big tobogganing day at Midland’s little lake park hill.

 

  TLG dressed in his hanbok and we recorded a bow and new years greeting in korean for YN and family.

 

 

 Made a snow fort and played inside.

 

Sunday, Feb 10, played in snow fort.  We shopped for Valentine’s Day card stock and a ‘ministick’. This is a tiny hockey stick that the kids use at recess at his school. Full size sticks should not be brought to the school but similar sticks are available for gym class. TLG was surprisingly quiet and cranky at the time.

He is still watching a lot of TV -no friends to visit or evening activities organized yet.  Perhaps due to the move and the changes, Alex needs me to hold him and sing lullabies to put him to sleep.
TLG has been uncomfortably interested in death and pets.  His questions have put my and Nana’s faulty memories on display.  We have told him about the cats Little Man, Blackjack, Tailor and Mums and the dogs Midnight, Misty, Buddy, Kingkong, Mr Mugs and Snoopy and I am happy to relive the good memories of these pets.  Still, he has asked how long these pets lived and how they died.  As I noted in our last visit to Canada, he asks similar questions many times possibly to ensure he knows all the details and understands them clearly.
Now that he has a pet of his own, he seems to be preparing for that time, probably when he enters university, when his cat will pass away.

Hwamyeong Waterpark

I’m not sure if “waterpark” needs to be in quotes above, but it sure fits the bill for kids in early elementary school.  This is no competitor for Caribbean Bay, but it is a great place for a family to spend the day and I think around one-twentieth the price of Caribbean Bay, too.

Indeed, Busan does children’s aquatic entertainment right, with free fountains and shallow pools (Samnak Park’s 60 cm deep pool is great and just a little downstream of Hwamyeong) spread throughout the city.  Hwamyeong isn’t free, but plenty cheap; two thousand for the little guy and four thousand for me.

Hwamyeong consists of one large pool, most of which is eighty cm deep, plus a ‘river pool’ and water playground.

Here is the large pool:

 

and the playground:

 

and the river pool:

This pool has a strong current that pushes you at quite a clip.

The parasols seen in the background of a few photos are free.  They are also quite low to the ground; during the times I saw a lot of blue bathing suits, I felt like a Smurf under a toadstool.

I guess if more westerners visited, these loungers would see more action:

 

I went to the park with my son and we met his uncle and aunt and three cousins.   I had a great but exhausting time shepherding the kids but noticed that most kids had no adult nearby.  The lifeguards seemed vigilant but I just can’t understand Korean parenting around beaches, pools and waterparks.

As for me, the four kids frequently wanted to go to diverse places and I struggled to keep them all under my eye.

We all had fun in the river pool.  I would hold the youngest and spin around as the current pushed us around.  The water was just deep enough for me to kneel and slide my shins or feet along the bottom. When we left the park, I found my toenails had been ground down quite thin.

English Busan tells us:

Opening hours are from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m. and the price is 4,000 won for adults, 3,000 won for youths and 2,000 won for children.
How to get there: Take Metro Line No. 2 to Sujeong Station then leave by Exit No. 3, or take Bus No. 15, 59, 111, 121 or 126 and get off at Sujeong Station.

For more information, please contact the Busan Nakdong River Project Executive Office at 051) 333-3238. 

I want to go there again!  I would describe it as a better than the Dadae waterpark I visited a few weeks ago, although the other attractions in Dadae – the fountains and beach- may give it the edge overall.

 

The Games start soon!

Tomorrow night, my son and I will be watching Olympic swimming, and probably other sports and events.  I’m excited to see what the swimmers can do but also am envious of my son’s idealistic view of The Games.

If I were to write down my own version of an Athlete’s Credo, it would describe wanting to do my best but also wanting the same for my competitors.  I would prefer to win or lose and be secure in my belief that the outcome was correct.  If I were to win, I would want my opponent to say something like, “I did my best and you were better” rather than “If I’d had a better start…”.

Of course, I won’t be there competing and perhaps people who have put enough effort into getting there have different priorities.

Back to contrasting my son’s view of The Games with mine.  He doesn’t notice all the politics involved.  He happily sings the jingles of the Olympic-themed advertising.  He doesn’t know that one of Korea’s IOC representatives is a convicted felon who was pardoned specifically so as to improve Korea’s chances of hosting the ’18 Olympics.  He hasn’t read The New Lords of the Rings.  Again, I envy him.

I will not be burdening him with my views of the games for a decade or more.  Unlike Santa or Jesus, the idealism of The Games is not  imaginary.

I’ll probably share this story with him.

Kang Seung-woo gets it.

In my time zone, it looks Like Bak Tae-hwan is swimming 400 free at 6:52 tomorrow night. Finals around 4:00am Sunday morning.

parenting milestone

My son and I went for our first bike trip on Sunday.  We rode along the river and across a bridge to Eulsookdo, a park with ecological preserve, a drive in theater and other tourist attractions.

 

Previously, I had jogged or roller-bladed beside my son as he rode, careful to be close enough to try to catch him if he tipped over.

This time he was on his own and I followed . Oh, in taking this picture and others, I tried to hold the camera back enough to get my profile in the shot and ended up crashing into the fence.  That’s not really part of the trip as I plan to remember it.

 

Later, we were walking the bikes on a sidewalk and found this little lizard.  My son first thought it was a snake and I was able to give a little bio lesson about how the lizard’s hips cause the legs to jut out sideways so it runs in a slithery sort of way.

I don’t remember cycling with my father.  He certainly taught me to ride and I remember him running beside me as I started, but I don’t recall actually going anywhere by bike with him.

We travelled by canoe and that I do remember clearly.  His long powerful stroke, at a rate of one per two of mine, and the surge I would feel when he dug in.  We explored many rivers and lakes together.  I don’t remember him as the patient sort except when we travelled by canoe.

I intend to travel more with my son, by bike, canoe and on foot.  I don’t expect to be the homework dad or the team sports dad -the way I think my dad wanted to be with me – but I will be the explore and educate dad and I am looking forward to it.

 

Children’s water park in Dadae

My son and I had a great afternoon at the new waterpark at Dadae Beach.  The location has a lot to offer children and a few things for adults as well.

1. The waterpark is right on the beach which has a very gentle slope so there is lots of room for running and playing in shallow seawater.  At the beach, one can also take classes in kite-boarding and small-boat sailing.
2. The somewhat-famous giant fountains are next to the park and beach and kids can also cool off there.  At night, there is a remarkable laser and music show at the fountains.
3. Mollundae anchors the southern tip of the beach and has shaded hiking trails and an exploratory boardwalk.  I think it would be fun for strong-swimmers to hike through Mollundae to the open water side and snorkel or swim there, although I have never done this.
4. There is no Starbucks but most other purveyors of cold drinks and ice cream are nearby.

The park itself has five pools.  Two are mostly for their rental boats; electric and hand-paddle boats

Two others have inflatable slides and most kids loved them – just scary enough.

Although these four pools had specific uses, many kids were splashing around in them as well.

Apparently, I don’t have a photo of the big pool.  It was around thigh deep and had several inflatable toys in it for the kids to climb on and try to tip.  The depth was sufficient for me to relax in yet not too scary for my seven year old son.  The bottom is strangely lumpy as it is just vinyl placed over beach sand.

The pools were evacuated for fifteen or so minutes every hour-and-a-half.  At those times, and others, this inflatable toy was popular.

 

Around the pools were large shaded areas that were pleasant to sit in and relax.  There was a stage for performances and a sign offering draft beer but I didn’t partake.

Our visit on July 1 was free as part of the ‘grand open’.  I think regular admittance will be around six thousand won, perhaps a thousand cheaper for kids and a thousand more for adults.  Tickets to ride the boats were five thousand for the electric and three thousand for the paddle.  In the big pool were ‘hamster wheel’ inflatables and I don’t know the pricing for those.

The park was a lot of fun and my son and I will definitely return.  We may make a full day of it, starting in the surf and catching crabs and shrimp near Mollundae, then using the park showers to wash the salt off.

The dinosaur museum in Goseong (and more)

Hi there!  Long time, no read.

I attempted the Nanowrimo project last month (the goal is to write 50,000 words- a novel – in one month) and didn’t get very far.  Still, that was the number one thing I was to do, so if I wasnt doing it, I couldn’t do things lower on the list either.

Anyway, I’m back.

December third was our wedding anniversary so like any middle-aged couple with a child, we did child-friendly stuff.  Heck, we all loved the dinosaur museum!

I sure didn’t love the trip to the museum.  Over the last few weeks, I’ve been suffering from headaches occurring roughly every other day.  First, I went to a dentist but he found no problems.  Then I went to a hospital and I learned my cold has progressed to sinusitis and the infection in a sinus cavity has been causing my headaches.

On the drive to the museum, my head began to pound.  In addition to the anti-viral pills, my doctor had also given me Tylenol to help until the infection subsided.  I’m not the smartest man in Korea, but I knew better than to take pain-killers then drive in heavy traffic on unfamiliar roads. So, I suffered.

The tiny bit of blue paint scuffed onto the bumper of my car came from a low-speed accident.  Of course, this is the back bumper: I am in the clear, responsibility-wise.  In a tunnel, in heavy traffic, a car stopped.  The next two struck.  I stopped in time.  The truck behind me didn’t.  Not the smartest man, but in the top 40% of drivers (five cars and drivers, two blameless)!

I probably scared the very concerned driver who struck us.  I stumbled out of the car holding my head and looking at him from my left eye.  Anyway, it was a low-speed impact and we took some pictures and told the guy not to worry.

Then we got to the museum.  The little guy was out of control and could hardly breathe he was so excited.  We climbed some stairs and he looked left at some dinosaurs and right at some dinosaurs and was briefly rooted as he didn’t know which way to go.  Finally he went left.

After checking out the T. rex, we headed toward the museum proper.  The location is fantastic on it’s own, as you can see below.

The museum itself is good for all ages and includes a 3-d video for children.  My camera takes terrible photos indoors, so let me skip to what I found to be the best part.

I repeated the number “one hundred million years” to my son, but he didn’t seem so thrilled.  For me, though, these prints, the actual prints of actual dinosaurs from so long ago were more interesting than the models inside.

There is a ‘cafeteria’ onsite, but it didn’t have much to offer.  Bring your own food!  The little guy was energetic and uncomplaining through the whole visit although he didn’t eat much.

As we headed to the car, we found this roller-slide.

 

I would say this wasn’t the highpoint of the visit – nothing can beat dinosaurs – but it was a highpoint.

The little guy went up the escalator and down the slide many times.

 

Around four, the place was getting cold and we were ready to head home.  If I had been feeling better and the weather warmer (it was as good as one could expect for December) we could have stayed much longer.  I want to go back and hike along the shore more.

We spent the night at the in-laws farm and did some farm work on Sunday.  I also found this spider skeleton.  A photo of a skeleton is appropriate in a post about a museum, right?

I knew spiders have an ‘exo-skeleton’ but wasn’t aware of the internal frame that is clear in the photo.  Cool.

Headlice isn’t so bad.

 
 My students often tell me they eat ‘lice’.

You can see a stroller in the background.  I think the reason Korean grandmothers love becoming grandmothers is that they will soon get a handy cart to carry their stuff.

This was the end of a mere 2 hours of  rice harvesting.  I lifted and carted -in a bigger cart- perhaps two tons of rice.  My brother- and father -in-law don’t seem so tired.  I guess driving the combine isn’t so tough as carrying the rice.

 

Honestly, they did work hard, and longer than I.  Here, my father-in-law scythes the rice in a corner of the paddy. The combine can’t get into the corners so well, so they are done by hand.

 

 

My brother-in-law is driving the combine – a ‘Super Combine’ according to the side panel.  Each bag is filled to around 40-50kilos of white rice with the brown seed coat still on it.

 

Wikipedia has images and info on other combines which make this one look a little less ‘super’:

 

My brother-in-law had gone off to play volleyball, so my father-in-law brought in a tractor to carry the last 12 bags.  If you click to embiggen, you can see my son is getting a ride in the tractor’s scoop.