Yellow Dust

[Sonia]

Yellow dust is a phonomenon that has been affection Korea for over a decade and getting worse every year. In springtime, the sky get hazy (and even yellow) as a cloud filled with dust and heavy metals blows in from China. It's blamed on deforestation and the expansion of the Gobi Desert.

I am at the far tip of the penninsula, but it is still bad. 10 years ago, it was limited to a few days several times in the spring. . . it's getting longer ad more intense, starting earlier. . .

Mokpo has been decorating itself (lights, artificial waterfalls, expansion of parks and pedestrian areas) recently, and is emerging into a true Korean provincial capital (even one of the most remote, rural and sparcely populated provinces). On the negative side, the conspicuous consumption has taken hold, with the ensuing noise, packaging, pollution, traffic, waste. On the positive side, there are still some quaint neighborhoods and the people largely retain their southern hospitality. And finding decent coffee (and wifi) is possible. There are two vegetarian restaurants that are excellent quality and crowded! Quite a few foreign climbers live in Mokpo now, and I've managed to see Nicola, Maggie, Shannon, and Richard. . . from KOTR.

Ricky's place is huge, and she's letting me store a couple bags, emptying my car a bit! I was able to organize maps, files, etc, a bit. My car still looks pretty bad, but maybe a third person could fit now?!

Tonight we will go to the local climbing gym. I have a few questions for them regarding the local crag (Kokkiri Bawi) and gyms in neighboring Gwangju. Tomorrow I plan to head east, possibly stopping near Wolchulsan to revisit the Artificial Rock Climbing Stadium, before checking out a few climbing areas along the way to Pusan where I'll meet friends for the weekend, Another friend may join before the weekend for the road trip. . . I just have to assess the quality and whether or not the crags meet my criteria for the book. . . but if the rock looks nice, it might be fun to get some climbing in (and productive). . .