Well, maybe Spring is finally here (oops, just jinxed everything again :smile:). Today was very nice, temperature in the 60s F and a light breeze during the morning and early afternoon, which turned into a howling banshee around 4 o’clock this afternoon. I did an early morning jog of 50 minutes and then I took off on a three-hour ride on my bicycle for the first time, riding up and down the hills of Yeosu, down by the ocean, up into the hills again and back to the campus. A bit too much for the first time–I’m totally wiped out. Probably shouldn’t have taken the jog.
As the day progressed, the haze in Yeosu became pretty bad, with some of the mountains obscured by whatever was in the air. At least last weekend was clear. As I mentioned in a previous post, I took some photos in a walkaround down by the Expo 2012 site and elsewhere. Here are a few shots from then.
First, here’s an artist’s depiction of what the site will look like when the Expo opens. Looks pretty nice.
If it actually ends up looking like this, it will be pretty spectacular. Right now, the reality is quite different from the final expectation. There’s a lot of demolition going on at the site, structures being torn down, areas being leveled, new roadways going in.
The next shot, an overview of part of the site, was taken from the top of Jasan Park, which is situated high above the Expo site and Odongdo. Lots of work to do yet, but I’m sure it will all be finished in time.
There’s quite a nice Expo 2012 Visitor’s Center on the site. Here’s a shot of the lobby. There are two floors, a conference room, auditorium, and many exhibits documenting the themes of the Expo, the construction of the site, the importance of the oceans in relation to the environment, and the expectations of the organizers.
Koreans, Chinese, Japanese, Thai and other people around the world (but especially here in East Asia, it seems) love to create androgynous, cartoonish characters to represent their special events. Here are the mascots for Expo 2012, YEOny and SUny (my capitals), a play on Yeosu, positioned outside the visitors’ center. Read about what the names mean here. Cute and adorable, eh?
Finally, here’s a shot of an eyesore right next door to the visitors’ center, an amusement park. I’m not too amused, and I hope it’s taken down and/or moved, but that’s just my opinion. I imagine it’ll be history soon. I’ve walked in the area more than a few times and this place never seems to be all that busy. Nothing against the owners, but it just doesn’t fit in with the overall look of the area. Perhaps it can be relocated.
I hope I can continue working here until 2012. That’s my desire, and if it comes to pass that I’m still here until then, I’ll try to document the ongoing construction of and subsequent opening of Expo 2012.
I have quite a few more photos to post from last weekend, including one of the most bizarre buildings I’ve ever seen, and there’s an interesting tale of shipwrecked Dutch sailors in Yeosu. Stay tuned for more later.