The Amazons Invade a Toga Party

A Bright Idea

About 2 months ago, a couple of theater friends of mine (of course they are theater people lol) had the idea to throw a Toga Party in Downtown Daegu. Now our friend Nick is known for putting a spin on these kinds of things. He approached us with the idea to dress up as Amazons and invade the party. 

Of course, busy schedules and all, we left the costume making till the last-minute. The lead Amazon, Una, is amazing at sewing and costume making. She headed to Seomun market to buy material and scraps. As many of you recall, Seomun Market is famous for its fabrics and is also pretty cheap. 

So for a few hours, we were outside in the parking lot, hammering holes into this pleather material we bought. It was a lot of work, but the end result was pretty good. I was really impressed that we were able to look like an awesome pack of warrior women!

I think the whole neighborhood can hear us

Toga Parties

Angled cement beds from Pompeii

The Greeks had parties that were male-only. It was filled with elite men who reclined and propped themselves on pillows in order to drink, chat and over indulge.  For the Romans,  they also included upper class women in the soiree. 

Straight from Wiki, here are some more facts:

 

• The first recorded college student toga party was in 1953, when Pomona College students wore togas and ivy wreaths, and brought their dorm mattresses to freshman Mark Neuman’s home.
• The Guinness World Record for the largest toga party is 3,700 participants.
  

Toga Daegu Style! 

The birthday boys looked like emperors~

Amazons and Ares

The beautiful goddess Laura~

Close-up of my Princess Mononoke inspired make-up

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Physical Therapy in Korea

So as some of you know, the lady hero of this blog (aka me), was stupidly injured during a warm-up of Insanity. That’s right.. Insanity. Insanity is insane, and I literally got hurt doing the first day of warm-ups. That thing is ka-razy. Don’t believe me? Then do the 60 day challenge and prove me wrong while looking super beastly. Anywho, that’s why I couldn’t really do the 10K I had been training to do. So needless to say, I headed over to Saemyung Hospital, which was recommended by my coworker as being a great hospital for bones. Here is the address for those interested:

세명병원 Saemyung Hospital

606-6, Bongdeok 1(il)-dong, Nam-gu, Daegu ,Korea 
TEL : +82-53-470-1000 
http://smhospital.kr

I spoke to the CEO of the hospital, who spoke English. He checked both knees, and unfortunately in testing my right knee, it was clear that it was weak. When he pressed down, it started to ache pretty badly. Ouch! He prescribed some meds, and 3 weeks of physical therapy. I headed upstairs to the Physical Therapy ward and here is what followed:

 What was it like?

1. The ward is a shared space divided by make-shift walls. Mostly athletes exercise in the gym, they are high school and uni students. 
2. My achy knee was placed under some really really hot towels and compress…it felt amazing.
3. I was hooked up to some tingling electric things.
4. The various numbers of the first machine.
5. The session ended with some goo on my knee while a nurse massaged more electric currents on my knee.
6. That’s the last machine- note it’s programmed to 1, which is Pain Acute

After the session, my aching knee felt better. I’ve gone back and received similar treatments. They change slightly but so far so good!

Korean Movie Review: Dancing Queen 댄싱퀸

Release Year: 2012

Genre: Romantic Comedy / Comedy / Melodrama

Directed by: Lee Seok Hun (이석훈)

Starring:

Eom Jeong Hwa (엄정화) as Jeong Hwa 정화

Hwang Jeong Min (황정민) as Jeong Min 정민

Rating: 4/5 Stars

The 22nd Gyeongju Cherry Blossom Marathon!

 

My Gyeongju Story

We had a FANTASTIC time running in the 22nd Gyeongju Cherry Blossom Marathon 제22회 경주 벚꽃 마라톤. Sadly, the cherry blossom trees were already losing their flowers, and not really in a romantic kind of way. More in the  this-is-kinda-depressing-to-watch-spring-go kind of way. But it was a beaaaauitful day, the sun was out and about, the wind decided to take a rest for the day and it was just perfect. I must admit, waking up at 5 am to go run 10 kilometers wasn’t my idea of a Saturday morning. But, once we got there and I took the much needed nap in the car (I am such a jerk passenger!), I was ready to go!

I attended the Daegu Marathon last year, but this marathon was by far waaaaay better. Here’s why:

1. The meeting place for runners was roomy and filled with awesome tents that had snacks and drinks. Much easier to relax in and lay on the grass. 
2. The scenery was beautiful even though the trees weren’t at their peak.
3. These guys:

They wanted to make sure they stood out, in case people didn’t realize they were foreigners.

 

It was like the Hunger Games!

Running Marathons in Korea

Marathons in Korea are fun. One, they simply call them marathons, regardless of what you are running. So I feel so awesome when over lunch or coffee I offhandedly let out a “Oh yea, in a few weeks I’m doing a marathon”. No biggie…hehehe. Or rather simply, I just lack the Korean language skills to easily explain what I’m doing ;). Anyways, I love the fact that my money goes to full use. One, I get an awesome sporty t-shirt as a souvenir. And it’s not one of those lame 100% cotton shirts, but it is a legit sports running shirt that could actually be put to use. Second, I get a medal! Every participant gets a medal, and I don’t know about you, but I freakin’ deserve a medal after running 10 Kilometers. That pseudo-gold circular disk on a blue string means something!

Next, my money gets put to use through the means of unlimited food and drinks. I assume it’s unlimited, I have never tried to gorge myself on the soups and boiled eggs they serve, or on the beer and rice wine they are pouring for you after the race. Gatorade is for the weak apparently. So my 30,000 WON (about $30) is fully used in a way that I can’t complain. Because alas, at the end of the day, the comradeship that was built between Matt, Dave and I and the almost violent self-competitive “rivalry” I waged through for the past two months, cannot be measured by bills alone. Blood, sweat and tears went into this… at least sweat and probably messed up cartilage (-_-).

I’m sorry, did you say “free makgeolli”? … Come again?!

You can shop for your next marathon outfit right here!

Imma sun bath all day and get my money’s worth!

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