Monday, June 30, 2008

Robots, Mountains, Beaches, Goesong trip




We took two days to visit Everland Park in Yongin, and drive all the way to the East Sea of Korea (Sokcho). We spent an unforgettable night in a public bathhouse/sauna (Jim-Jil-Bang) and drove north on the asian highway #7 to Goesong, and to the meeting place just south of Geumgangsan Mountain in North Korea. The further northeast that we continued to drive, the cleaner the air quality became. Having polarized sunglasses on the overcast day was an eye-opener! The smog (brown tint as seen through these glasses) was noticeable inland, then disappeared on the northeastern coast. We saw a water spout cascading off the tip of a mountain, a tank from the Korean war era, and funky Robots made from recycled engine parts, in front of a roadside cafe built inside train cars. Driving there was equally exciting, since most of us don't own a car in Korea, it was nice to be able to move around small towns, and up the coast without buying a ticket or waiting in lines. We missed Min Jae, but the trip was definitely worth it. I'm home from our journey, of course I had to see a doctor to determine I still have a bad case of bronchitis! Well, the yellow dust is 'almost' gone, but I still have loads of it trapped deep inside my lungs. It's a dangerous mixture of fine dust and hundreds of heavy metals and pollutants which originated in China. Now they are inside my lungs, hopefully, I survive with only minimal side-effects, though the "Hwangsa" (Yellow Dust) is known to cause scarring to lung tissues and other potentially hazardous long-term side effects. It's best to wear a mask while cycling outdoors during the spring season in Korea, otherwise, you end up like me visiting the local doctor's office a third time in two months! Not good, but you know it could be worse!!! ^^++ We're having a great summer so far...it's almost CANADA DAY, JULY 1ST ~SO I WILL SEND OUT THE LOVE! Blessings friends & family from the far east. Be safe & Keep in touch!

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About the Korean-World Author

Brian Perich was an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturer for a decade, father, and adventure cyclist based in South Korea.

Previously, Brian has led Canoe adventures in Quetico Provincial Park, Atikokan, Ontario, Canada (1993/1999); led Grand American camping adventures (2000); lived at Paramahansa Yogananda's SRF Ashram for 5 months (see the film "AWAKE"), formerly worked in titanium welding at Agilent Technologies, formerly worked in Winery industry in Marin County with Kendall Jackson in California; Surfing and Meditation continued for several years in California, British Columbia, South Korea, Yoga training in California 1999-2000.

Between 1994-1998 - Brian completed his own adventures with motorcycles. His motorcycling marathons took him across the United States and central/western Canada, while traveling solo over an astounding 24,000km in 60 days! Brian endured 900 mile/1300km average days in the motorcycle saddle and apparently loved every minute of those adventures.

Today, he has given up motorcycle adventures altogether, but finds an outlet for his enthusiasm in outdoor recreation while bicycle touring and micro-blogging about those experiences on his mountain bikes.

While employed as an English teacher in South Korea, Brian has became an advocate for bicycle touring on his mountain bikes. The Korean-World blog originated from those small adventures in Korea, now expanded to cover his recent trek down the TransMongolian highway to the Gobi Desert, cycling 900km east through the Khentii grasslands and in 2012 crossing Mongolia in 45 days, 2500 kilometers 1553 miles. HimalayasX expedition Brian previously cycled across western China, the Taklamakan Desert, the northern Himalayas of East Turkestan Xinjiang/Uyghur Autonomous Region, the corrugated back roads and mountains of Kham Tibet. Brian successfully completed his 2011 mountain bike expedition with 3200 kilometers / 1988 miles unsupported, on/off road MTB adventure cycling.
Brian has completed his second mountain bike journey, MongoliaX expedition - Crossing Mongolia 2012, an unsupported mountain bike MTB expedition across 2500km of Outer Mongolia from Ulanbaatar to Altai Taven-Bogd National Park bordering China, Russia and Mongolia.


In 2013, as a sequel to a trilogy of cycle tours, Brian enjoyed a more leisure bicycle tour onboard his Koga-Miyata World Traveller seeing the northern tier of the United States and western Canada covering 3400 kilometers / 2000 miles in 30 days. This North American cycle tour was called Totherocktour. Enjoying the adventure of bicycle travel and every great conversation started while traveling on the road - has refueled his inspirations to cycle around the Earth. In 2013, while he cycled solo from the Great Lake State of Michigan, United States to Banff National Park in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. He weaved through local communities and reconnected with friends, family and community after spending almost a decade in Asia.


Brian is now supporting several non-profit foundations through expeditions: IDEAS Foundation of Canada IDEAS is the acronym for Intestinal Disease Education and Awareness Society which supports the IBD community, those suffering from IBD-inflammatory bowel disease, also known as Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.


The second non-profit foundation is ETE.ORG - Education Through Expeditions, UK which supports educational outreach programs inside schools around the world. ETE connects explorers with students in the classroom, through an interactive online program in development (Beta).


Brian is researching support for a 18000 kilometer bicycle expedition across the Americas: North, Central and South America - ONE -Arctic to Argentina
Please contact him if you are interested in helping out.

Twitter: Cycleagain
Location: Gangneung, Gangwon-do, South Korea or southern Ontario, Canada.

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Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

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