Decisions

After receiving an unexpected PhD offer, I took Ian to contemplate his decision at Seoul Grand Park - Seoul's alleged best zoo. I'd wanted to save all potentially overly couply venues until I was equipped with a strong couply force myself, but instead we had to negotiate the swarms of young families and school outings. I'm not really sure what I was thinking; parents do like to take their kids to the zoo.

Well, the cable car over the lake from the main gate to the animals was definitely worth the ride, and with no one before or behind us it was a serene, peaceful, undisturbed journey. Disturbed, however, is definitely how Ian felt as we went from one insufficient enclosure to the next. It's little wonder the lions were closing in on civil war with only a few paces available to pace between.

Despite the poor living conditions for the animals it was a reasonably well-kept park with cute signs and good facilities for the customers. With priorities clear, if eco-friendly zoos are your thing, I'd stay clear of this one.

Now after a night's sleep, a Chi-Hé-guided tour of Gyeongbok Palace and much deliberation, Ian decided - literally a few hours before the application deadline - to accept the PhD offer. Dr. Ian, eh. We headed to Hyehwa for celebratory beer.

With a 2000cc pitcher for ~W9000, the Bier Halle seemed like an inviting place to start. Having already had a large celebratory dinner, we'd forgotten about that unwritten rule that with any amount of alcohol purchased in a bar, one must order 안주, anju, or some kind of food to accompany your drinks. With all food dishes lounging around the W10,000 mark, it rather turns a cheap beer into a not-so cheap beer. Of course we're talking in won. If you could order four pints and a plate of food for a tenner you'd be doing all right. But we're in Korea. My perception of what's cheap has definitely been distorted over the last year.

One pitcher down, we decided to see what other establishments could offer us. Mildly interested in the Live Jazz Cafe on the opposite street, the W9000 for a 330ml beer and an obstructed view certainly nipped that interest in the bud. It also made the Bier Halle seem exceptionally cheap once more. Still, intent on trying somewhere new, instead we went to Drunken Memory - a bar a couple of doors down. With no purchase of anju necessary and cheap beer available, the place did its job and here the post must end.