In what turned out to be a feeble attempt to find the local library, we stumbled upon a little treasure not too far from our apartment: Samduk Park. I had been to about three bookstores in the area, desperate to find something to read aside from the two measley books I had packed. Whoever said not to pack books because they were too heavy was clearly not a scholar. Nothing fills a hot day better than a good book. The stores here have a small selection of mainly classics (think: East of Eden and Little Women), but the prices are atrocious (about $20 for a softcover novel). So I Googled like mad, attempting to find a magical place where they allow foreigners to borrow books. Low and behold, I found it. The map seemed quite self-explanatory: start near Anyang Station and go east...you should hit it. By the way, here's Anyang Station, my local and nearest subway station:

So we stumble upon this park and I'm thrilled. It is right on the Anyang River (more of a stream when compared to the Han River in Seoul) and is full of older people and children. There is a water park, artfully arranged pathways winding around manicured lawns, nurtured birch trees, and hundreds of dogwood bushes (I heart dogwood: reminds me of Duke Street). Again, pictures don't really do it justice, but here is one of me (this shirt is getting a lot of play on my blog...note that Leanne was sporting her blue one on a previous entry) in front of a mountain (how majestic) and with the park on my left. The river is below me, and to my right, a collection of homes, restaurants, and bars.
Anyang is the Art City (city of art?), and I've noticed that they tend to decorate outdoor spaces quite nicely. Even sidewalks here are more cobblestone than cement: not entirely practical for the thousands of ladies clad in sky-high heels, but it sure does look nice. Here, in a small pool for children (not full in this pic), some outdoor art for kids to play on and around. Why didn't we think of this?

We never did find the library.
No comments:
Post a Comment