2013 Fall Conference | Enjoying a Serene and Sunny Afternoon On My Own

Welcome to day #3 of Fall Conference!

I woke up this morning motivated by the free breakfast the hotel would be serving downstairs. Most of the ETAs were hurriedly chomping away before taking off for a whole-day tour around Gyeongju's historic sites. Since I had already inadvertently gone on practically the same tour during Chuseok with my Korean family, I opted out of this experience and spent the day relaxing, reading, and wandering around the vicinity of the Commodore. 

But before all of that, I took a post-breakfast nap. Invigorated and feeling quite serene, especially with the absence of the other ETAs, I took my bag, stuffed my book of "50 Great Short Stories" inside, and walked out back. 

This is what my afternoon looked like: 

Decided to eat lunch here. Loved the view and the background noise of children laughing, parents calling out after them, and of just one very peaceful Sunday!

Super filling lunch. I made sure to eat slow and to savor every bite. 

This store, and this light - that is all.

If my sister had been on this walk with me, she might have asked me to take her photo by these steps.

South Korea, You are so beautiful!

Families spending time together, a wonderful picture on any day!

I was definitely not envious of these little kids on their mini motorized vehicles.

Sometimes, I forget South Korea has all four seasons. And then I look down and remember.

Everything was beautiful...

Favorite store of the day. I could have bought this whole store - it was that charming! Because I'm thrifty, I only ended up buying a watch.

A shop owner in the middle of a paint job? 

The columns and the shadows made me pause here before going on

I'm not sure what this building is, but it's impressive enough

View of the lake from the ground

Beautiful area where seemingly every family in the area were hanging out at this Sunday afternoon

Making my way back to the hotel

The pool was a yucky green, but I went up the steps anyway and imagined what it would have looked like if the water was fresh and clean.

Back on the fifth floor, still very quiet before the arrival of the rest of my cohort

I returned to the hotel only because it was getting chilly and my light sweater was not enough to carry me through a longer walk. After returning, I may or may not have taken a post-walk nap.