eunjin in SOUTH KOREA: [Part 3] 154. Skiing in Yangji Pine Resort

Sunday, January 2, 2011

[Part 3] 154. Skiing in Yangji Pine Resort

I wanted to spend 3D2N at a ski resort this holiday but didn't get the chance to do so :( Muju Resort would have been nice! Even so, I had a great skiing experience today, despite it being both emotionally and physically draining on both YW and I.

We took the subway from Anam to Bucheon at 6.30am and met Dongsoo, Youngjin, Youngjoo and their cousin in front of Homeplus at 8am. At 8.15am, we took the free shuttle bus to Yangji Pine Resort and reached the resort an hour later. We had to wait in the freezing cold for nearly half an hour for the daughter of a ski suit rental shop that Dongsoo contacted to pick us up from the resort. She drove us to the rental shop, about 5 minutes away from the resort, where we got our suits and ski/snowboard equipment for 27,000KRW. We paid another 43,000KRW each for taking the chairlifts at the ski resort. Actually, I panicked when I heard that we were going to take the chairlifts because I can't ski...so how can I ski down? Walk, like what Nandar did? While it was my 5th skiing experience, I still couldn't ski because I was always with a tour group and all we had were very basic skiing lessons and skiing on almost flat ground with minimal slope. This time round, I wasn't with a package tour group. I was on my own with 5 Koreans who can ski and snowboard well. Jeannie and Phyllis were supposed to go on this day ski trip as well but Jeannie wasn't feeling well because of the cold she endured yesterday. If both of them had come along, we could have stayed at the beginners' corner together. Instead, I had to hit the slopes and I was terrified.

Upon arrival at the slopes at 11am, Dongsoo, Youngjin, Youngjoo and their cousin headed for level 2 Intermediate slope while YW and I headed to the beginners' slope for me to practise a few times before we took the chairlift up and skied down. We skied down the slope about 4 times before meeting up with Youngjin and the rest for lunch at 12pm. The beginners' slope was alright but I got hit by the chairlift once when I got off too early :( How embarrassing! I didn't understand the chairlift staff's instructions in Korean :( So what YW taught me was to count to 3 when the guy told us to get ready. At the count of 3, stand up and as the chairlift makes its turn, it would gently push us so that we could slide down the slope without using our ski poles.

Having lunch at the eateries near the slope was so expensive! In the end, we bought hotdogs from a kiosk outside the rental house. The last time I went skiing in Korea with my brother, we had instant noodles for lunch.

The most trying part of the day was after lunch when YW and I went to the Intermediate Level 1 slope. It was too steep for me and because I couldn't turn and ski down in a S shape manner, I fell countless times and it took me half an hour to ski down the slope! Each time I tried to turn, I turned too slowly and ended up skiing down straight which only made me gain more speed and lose control. I almost wanted to give up then. I had only slept for 3 hours the night before and my brain couldn't seem to process any Korean at all. YW tried to teach me and gave me instructions but most of it was in Korean and I couldn't understand anything at all and both of us got really frustrated with our communication problem. It made me scared. Communication is vital to the sustenance of a LDR but if we have a language barrier, can we make it through? But my fear eventually gave me the strength to persevere because I don't want to give up on us and skiing. We hit the slope 2 more times and I got a bit better each time before going to the food hall for some kimbab and fishcake. Initially, we were supposed to meet Youngjin and the rest at 5pm but Dongsoo called me at 4pm to change the timing to 4.30pm instead. We needed time to clean up before taking the shuttle bus back to Bucheon at 5.15pm. So YW and I took the chairlift and skied down one last time and I DID IT! I didn't fall at all :) I almost did but I didn't and I felt so proud of myself. Actually, credit goes to YW. If not for him, I would never have been able to do it alone. Not only was he most patient with me, he was always there to help me up when I fell, to hold me and help me put on my skis again. Even when I tried to chase him away because I felt I was a burden to him and if not for me, he could ski in peace without having to look out for me but he refused. He always skied behind me so that he could look out for me. 정말 고마웠어! 힘들었지만 같이 재미있게 시간을 보냈어.

We only went to the slope on the extreme right.

At 4.30pm, we met up with the rest and cleaned up before taking the shuttle bus back to Bucheon at about 5.30pm. The journey back was longer because of the heavy traffic and the bus driver also forgot to make a turn to Homeplus so we ended up alighting near Bupyeong Station instead. From there, we took 2 taxis back to Bucheon's New Core to meet Jeannie at Lotteria before heading to an eatery for 닭갈비. The dakgalbi there was actually more delicious than Chuncheon's! After dinner, we went to Youngjin's place and I formally introduced YW to Youngjin's parents.
Today was the last time Jeannie was meeting Youngjin's family and she wrote a card for them in Youngjin's room. When she still hadn't come out of the room, I went in to check on her and found her crying. I hugged her and we both cried together for awhile. I feel so sad. All good things must come to an end and this is it. The end is fast approaching. The end which I always thought was so far away is now coming.