Rediscovering my passion
Not drinking has its perks. Yeah, it's been a little on the slow side at night, but the days have been much better: particularily Saturdays. Yesterday I woke up at 6am and met my friend Ho Ki for soccer. We took a cab across town to the field where we played our last game way back in November. I was a little out of shape, but I felt better than I thought I would. I was afraid my touch would have abandoned me over the winter, but it wasn't so bad. Luckily, I'm bigger than most of my opponents, so I can just run people over or shove them out of my way. I was nice enough, though, and they invited me to join their spring team. We're getting uni's and everything starting next weekend.
The nice thing about playing so early is that I am done by 9 and have the entire day ahead of me. Being so accustomed to sleeping my Saturdays away, this is a nice turn. I thought about skipping town, but wasn't sure where to go. I decided to walk up to Suwon Station to get lunch and think about it. I ate some sushi and decided to hike around Suwon. After all, it was a gorgeous day and I still hadn't walked around the legendary wall. Pictured here is the main strip across from the station. There are restaurants and shops galore. I usually come up here on Saturday afternoons and hit baseballs in the batting cage.
Today, however, I decided to wander further down the strip, towards the mountain where the wall is. It was a fair walk, and you can see a totally different view of Suwon Station in this picture. I should note that since I hadn't played soccer in a while, that I was quite sore from the morning match. Walking up the mountain was quite a chore, but it was worthwhile to see the city from a new angle.
I continued up the mountain to the wall. The wall is Suwon's claim to fame. It was built in 1782 and fully restored in the last decade. The wall goes completely around Pal-dal San (a mountain), through the heart of the city. I walked all the way to the top of this mountain, following the wall. The vistas were pleasant, and it was great exercise. I was a little gimpy, but pressed on all the way to Na-mun (the north gate). Na-mun is a cool market area which is a shopper's haven. I decided to cut short the wall hike and walk around this area. This was the second time in the last week I had been to Na-mun. Last sunday I had Italian food there with some friends and watched "War of the Worlds" at a DVD bang. Let me tell you, if you think the hill in St. Louis has authentic Italian food, then you should try Italian in Suwon. I had a risotto which was a far cry from what my sister would make, but was good none-the-less. For me, it's nice to have something other than Korean food every once in a while. I like Korean food, but need variety.
Anyway, I wasn't hungry on this occasion, so I wasn't sure what I was looking for. I popped into a couple of stores, but didn't buy anything. At this point, I was just wandering around aimlessly, not knowing any purpose or destination. I was just following my nose, wondering where it might lead...
What do you know? I ended up at Suwon Stadium, home of the professional Blue Wings. This is an adjacent practice field, which had me drooling. The field I played on in the morning was a big, unmarked sand park with goals. which is typical. The pictured field is reminiscent of the great Soccer Park facilities in Fenton, Mo. The talent was also a step up from the morning group. I was licking my chops, thinking: "This is where I want to play!". I started shooting the breeze with one of the players on the sideline, who luckily spoke English. I asked him about the league and how I might be able to play on this field. I told him if his team ever need a player, I would be more than willing to fill in. He said he would ask his captain. So at halftime, he talked to the captain and waved me over. The captain said: "Can you play now?". Even though I was exhausted and wearing blue jeans and tennis shoes, I said: "Sure!". They put me up top and I played for an hour (This was just a scrimmage.) I saw it as an audition, so I ran as hard as I could. I ended up with a pair of assists, and they invited me to play in their league, starting in late April. They also asked my opinion on jerseys, if I preferred the blue short sleeve Nike jerseys, or the long sleeve zebra striped kits. I said: "Go with the Juventus shirts, no doubt!". Some were awestruck that an American picked up the Juventus connection.
So there we have it. After a winter of not playing soccer, I picked up with two teams in one day. Now my Saturdays will be filled with morning and afternoon soccer, and I couldn't be happier with the development. I'm also getting some really cool gear out of the deal. I should note, however, that I can hardly move today. My entire body is sore, moreso than it's been in a long time. I haven't been this worn out since I got lost in the jungle. I had to pry myself out of bed this morning, and it was painful to do so. After being idle for so long, I guess I could have expected this. I'm fully back in the swing now, though, and shoud be fit in a couple of weeks.
The nice thing about playing so early is that I am done by 9 and have the entire day ahead of me. Being so accustomed to sleeping my Saturdays away, this is a nice turn. I thought about skipping town, but wasn't sure where to go. I decided to walk up to Suwon Station to get lunch and think about it. I ate some sushi and decided to hike around Suwon. After all, it was a gorgeous day and I still hadn't walked around the legendary wall. Pictured here is the main strip across from the station. There are restaurants and shops galore. I usually come up here on Saturday afternoons and hit baseballs in the batting cage.
Today, however, I decided to wander further down the strip, towards the mountain where the wall is. It was a fair walk, and you can see a totally different view of Suwon Station in this picture. I should note that since I hadn't played soccer in a while, that I was quite sore from the morning match. Walking up the mountain was quite a chore, but it was worthwhile to see the city from a new angle.
I continued up the mountain to the wall. The wall is Suwon's claim to fame. It was built in 1782 and fully restored in the last decade. The wall goes completely around Pal-dal San (a mountain), through the heart of the city. I walked all the way to the top of this mountain, following the wall. The vistas were pleasant, and it was great exercise. I was a little gimpy, but pressed on all the way to Na-mun (the north gate). Na-mun is a cool market area which is a shopper's haven. I decided to cut short the wall hike and walk around this area. This was the second time in the last week I had been to Na-mun. Last sunday I had Italian food there with some friends and watched "War of the Worlds" at a DVD bang. Let me tell you, if you think the hill in St. Louis has authentic Italian food, then you should try Italian in Suwon. I had a risotto which was a far cry from what my sister would make, but was good none-the-less. For me, it's nice to have something other than Korean food every once in a while. I like Korean food, but need variety.
Anyway, I wasn't hungry on this occasion, so I wasn't sure what I was looking for. I popped into a couple of stores, but didn't buy anything. At this point, I was just wandering around aimlessly, not knowing any purpose or destination. I was just following my nose, wondering where it might lead...
What do you know? I ended up at Suwon Stadium, home of the professional Blue Wings. This is an adjacent practice field, which had me drooling. The field I played on in the morning was a big, unmarked sand park with goals. which is typical. The pictured field is reminiscent of the great Soccer Park facilities in Fenton, Mo. The talent was also a step up from the morning group. I was licking my chops, thinking: "This is where I want to play!". I started shooting the breeze with one of the players on the sideline, who luckily spoke English. I asked him about the league and how I might be able to play on this field. I told him if his team ever need a player, I would be more than willing to fill in. He said he would ask his captain. So at halftime, he talked to the captain and waved me over. The captain said: "Can you play now?". Even though I was exhausted and wearing blue jeans and tennis shoes, I said: "Sure!". They put me up top and I played for an hour (This was just a scrimmage.) I saw it as an audition, so I ran as hard as I could. I ended up with a pair of assists, and they invited me to play in their league, starting in late April. They also asked my opinion on jerseys, if I preferred the blue short sleeve Nike jerseys, or the long sleeve zebra striped kits. I said: "Go with the Juventus shirts, no doubt!". Some were awestruck that an American picked up the Juventus connection.
So there we have it. After a winter of not playing soccer, I picked up with two teams in one day. Now my Saturdays will be filled with morning and afternoon soccer, and I couldn't be happier with the development. I'm also getting some really cool gear out of the deal. I should note, however, that I can hardly move today. My entire body is sore, moreso than it's been in a long time. I haven't been this worn out since I got lost in the jungle. I had to pry myself out of bed this morning, and it was painful to do so. After being idle for so long, I guess I could have expected this. I'm fully back in the swing now, though, and shoud be fit in a couple of weeks.
posted by Christopher at 8:13 PM
1 Comments:
Don't forget to spread the word of Steinclub in Korea. You are not the first Stienclubber abroad, but you are an important one.
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