Exploring Dreams

Seoul is such a unique city... third largest in the world, with a cosmopolitan feel, outlined by incredible mountains on all sides.  It's a city that values time, architecture, fashion, and culture.  One of the things that amazes me most about Seoul is that, although it is such a modern metropolitan city, it has the true Korean culture embedded deep in it's bones.  Anywhere you go in Seoul, you are sure to find both the modern dining restaurants, as well as traditional Korean dining.  The king's old historic temples sit preserved next to sky scrappers and the hustle and bustle of a busy city work day.  You see men scurrying to work in business suits, as well as old women balancing large pots on their heads walking down the clustered morning streets.  I love living in Seoul because I have the opportunity to live in the big city, but if I travel just 40 minutes one way or the other, I can climb to the top of the tallest mountains and get a peaceful look from afar.  The things I love so much about this city often send me trudging out into the streets on random explorations.  Here, I am always looking for what's around the next corner... a mountain, a beautifully light night stream, an old traditional village, a beautiful park, or an intense shopping district. 

Last week, one afternoon after school, I decided to grab my backpack and my camera and go wandering in a direction I had not yet taken.  I grabbed all my belongings and off I went through city streets, up and down stairs, across a river, and finally to a point where I was once again reminded of why I love Seoul so much.  What I came across was a beautiful park called, Dream Forest.... a name that I felt signified exactly what I had gone in search of that afternoon.  With eagerness I made my way towards what looked like rolling green fields filled with walk ways, bridges, and some small cafes.  What I found was far superior.  Walking through Dream Forest is surely something of a dream.  Perhaps it is not the dreams that we usually remember once we awaken from a deep slumber, but instead the dreams we think about and see in movies.  A dream where you are in a beautiful place and maybe what some of us expect our heavens to look like.  I walked through swindling paths, surrounded by green grass, and a sky that was confused about whether or not to let out the sun or confine it with the clouds.  The paths I chose took me to different wonders within the forest.  One path took me into a small traditional village that had been preserved and behind it, I found what I would call a miniature bamboo forest. I found a wooded area that had large modern streams running between and around the trees.  A large field sat open and welcomed everyone passing to sit and soak in the natural surroundings. I took another path and made my way to an enormous pond, which was surrounded by a variety of plants. The pond, itself,  was spewing water from five large fountains.  The fountains reached up to the clouds and with a slight breeze, it was just enough to feel a light mist touching your skin.  Looking to the left of the pond, there was a rock encrusted waterfall and a small traditional pavilion.  A path running along the top of the water was made to look somewhat like a floating maze and I watched as people walked down it hand in hand or carrying small sun umbrellas. What I enjoyed most about this spot, was seeing everyone taking advantage of it.  The area was not crowded by any means, but all the people that I saw seemed to be enjoying the space as much as I did.  I looked around and saw other people with their cameras, or just sitting on a bench with the same look of contentment that I knew was evident in my own facial expression.  Here, I thought, this must be what peace feels like.  My mind was absolutely taken back.  Another random exploration proves a success in Korea. Below are the pictures.  This is a place that I'm really glad I was able to capture.