Korea Herald 20090818

18 COMMUNITY

TUESDAY AUGUST 18, 2009

Expat Living is a section dedicated to the daily living of expatriates. It is printed on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. To share stories about your life abroad, send stories or story ideas to Matthew Lamers at [email protected] Submissions may be edited for length or clarity.

Orphanage gets help from expats By Jason Teale

Go to World Cup Park during a weekday evening to avoid crowds and cool off in the shade. Matthew Lamers/The Korea herald

Seeking shade in Seoul’s parks By Jina Yoo

Although at times difficult to find, there are quite a number of parks in Seoul. Everyone knows Namsan Park, the various Han River parks, Olympic Park and Seoul Forest. But there are dozens of lesserknown parks. In fact, the webpage for Seoul parks lists nearly 115 of them, of which many offer special programming. The Ttukseom Resort, as one park is known in English, is located on Subway Line 2. Of course, this is a great place to sit and chat with friends, but if you take a moment to check the schedule of events, there are also many programs, similar to the programming offered at the better-known Seoul Forest. There are also other parks with various programs such as the Gildong Ecological Park and Boramae Park.

For the many people who simply want to take a moment out of their daily lives and enjoy a bit of nature, one hindrance can be the crowds. Head to Inwang Mountain Park to avoid the crowds of Namsan (but be careful what time you go; on weekends it can get busy). As Inwang Mountain is quite rocky, it is better suited for hiking than taking a leisurely stroll. It is located in downtown Seoul, so accessing the mountain is convenient and the view of the city from the top is impressive. Traversing Inwang Mountain involves walking along part of the old fortress wall. In and of itself, Inwang Mountain is a sight worth seeing, as it is the background for one of Korea’s most historically significant paintings, “The Colors of Inwang through the Mist.” Another park worth seeing is Samcheong Park. It’s also inside

Seoul, making access rather simple (if you live in the GSA). This is the first park designed as part of the city’s urban planning policy on park development. It holds historical significance by displaying a memorial plaque to Jung Mong-ju (a Goryeo Dynasty nobleman) and his mother, as well as natural beauty, as it holds a natural spring and creek. Samcheong-dong is an area of Seoul that is particularly charming. The main street of this neighborhood is lined with small Korean-style shops that allow visitors to see a more quaint side of Seoul. After touring this area, taking a break in the secluded, quiet Samcheong Park or a relaxing stroll through it can be a relief, and days spent in this neighborhood are known for being rounded out with a stop in one of the many adorable cafes in the neighborhood, where having a coffee or tea while

reading will leave you feeling as though all your troubles have melted away. The last park is Cheongye Mountain Park. It should be noted that although it carries the same name as the Cheongye Stream, they are not located in the same place. The Cheongye Stream begins downtown, behind City Hall, and flows nearly six kilometers through the city eastward. Cheongye Park, however, is located in Yangjae-dong, near Gangnam. This park offers wide, dirt trails. The mountain is rather steep, but well-maintained. Dense trees and foliage add to an out-ofthe-city feel, and as the park is situated on the borders of Seongnam, Gwacheon and Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province. If throngs of people don’t bother you, head to World Cup Park. A testament to urban redevelopment, it sits on what used to be the home to

100 million tons of garbage. Now though, it is one of the greenest areas of the city, consisting of five parks. The best time to go is on weeknights, when you can expect to avoid the crowds and enjoy some peace and quiet. To get there, go to World Cup Stadium station (Line 6), cross the street and walk 5 minutes toward Mapo AgricultureFisheries Market. For more information on Seoul parks, go to http://parks. seoul.go.kr (available in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese). Of course there are many others ripe for exploration this summer, each with its own quirks and things to do. The Seoul Global Center’s tourism desk can also help with directions and other tips. They can be reached at (02) 2075-4120. Or for more information on life in Seoul in general, call 1688-0120. ([email protected])

ULSAN — In September the faces of the underprivileged children will be a little bit brighter, thanks to some hard working English teachers. The members of T-HOPE plan to bring joy and friendship to some orphans by donating their time, energy and kindness. T-HOPE, which stands for Teachers Helping Other People Everywhere, is an organization that helps people in need. T-HOPE is made up of teachers in Ulsan who are committed to helping a wide range of under-privileged people all over Korea. The group’s efforts center on helping out a local orphanage in Eonyang, a small city close to Ulsan. They are providing much needed friendship for the children and helping them develop where they might otherwise not have had an opportunity. The main focus will be in three areas: English, arts, and activities. “It’s not just about teaching them English,” Dan Gauthier said, “it’s about companionship.” Gauthier is the founding member of T-HOPE. Sept. 12 will be the start of the program for the children and Dan hopes it will be a success. It is a big commitment, but Dan seems confident that everyone will pull together for the opening day. Gauthier, originally from Canada, is a long-term member of the Ulsan expat community. He is committed to improving the lives of not only foreigners, but the citizens of Ulsan as well. “I’ve been here for 10 years and I want to give something back,” Gauthier said, speaking about why he started THOPE. Over the past summer, Gauthier and his group have put on events that have benefited various charities and have pulled the foreign residents together alongside local Koreans in a spirit of giving. T-HOPE is getting ready to expand to other cities around the country. There are close to 80 teachers signed up to help with T-HOPE’s current program. The teachers will head out to the orphanage the second and fourth Saturdays of every month, starting in September. Gauthier said the program’s success rests on the regular participation of the volunteers. Like children everywhere, these children need role models and someone to be there for them. THOPE plans to provide them with exactly that. “It’s more than just helping them, it is about being there for them,” Gauthier says. T-HOPE is preparing the formalities of trying to become a registered organization, but faces problems related to being a foreign-run organization. Gauthier is set to return to Canada to register T-HOPE as an international non-profit organization. The city of Ulsan has been a key figure in helping T-HOPE. The city has been a positive force for the efforts of teachers who try to help others. They have provided funds and locations for events that have helped a great many people over the years and they continue to support organizations like T-HOPE. ([email protected])

In Focus: More on utilizing bokeh The Photo Challenge is sponsored by Hyosung Camera (English: 010-7203-9599) and Babo Shirts (www.baboshirts. com). Winners of the weekly competition receive 50,000 won store credit at Hyosung Camera and a Babo Shirt. To take part in the competition, simply upload your photo at www.flickr.com/groups/seoulp hotoclub — Ed. By Aaron Raisey

Last time we talked about what bokeh is and how we can produce it. We now know that bokeh is strongly linked to the size of aperture we choose, and the kind of lens we use has an effect on the bokeh we get. This week we’ll look at lenses in a bit more detail and how they relate to producing bokeh. Before we go any further, we must remind ourselves that bokeh is a very subjective quality and there are always exceptions to any typical set of circumstances, but we can make

some generalizations. So let’s look at the different lenses that photographers use. We can group them into three convenient sets, or kinds of lenses — wide-angle, prime and telephoto. First let’s deal with wide-angle. Here, wide-angle means shorter than 35mm and bokeh is typically difficult to achieve, especially at very short focal lengths. The commonly smaller minimum apertures combined with the wide-angle effect means you have to be very close to the subject with a very large distance between subject and background to even begin to produce noticeable bokeh. If you are looking for the ability to create worthwhile bokeh, wide lenses are not the kind to be using, and this is also why point and shoot style cameras have

great difficulty in this area. At the other extreme, telephoto lenses generally produce a good bokeh effect. Telephoto lenses of about 135mm and longer can produce nice blurring of the background as a by-product of their perspective at similar apertures to the wide-angle lenses. Nature and sports photographers use telephoto lenses to separate their distant subjects from the background. Many portrait photographers also prefer a short telephoto for this very reason. Without a doubt, the kings of bokeh are prime lenses. A prime lens is a lens whose focal length is fixed, and most generally taken to mean a fixed length lens from about 35mm to 135mm — and within this range bokeh is often an important design consideration. Using a prime lens to produce attractive bokeh means we don’t need to get into extreme situations like with wide-angle lenses, or to stand a great distance from the subject as when using a telephoto. Using a prime lens at larger

apertures, we can get that great bokeh effect in just about any ordinary photographic situation. The focal length of 50mm is by far the most popular among the primes. Commonly with apertures of f/1.8 or f/1.4, these lenses are usually of very high quality, reasonably cheap and excellent bokeh makers. So you bought a DSLR last week with a zoom lens? What about zoom lenses? Most zoom lenses span focal lengths in the prime range, but they vary greatly in quality, and perhaps more importantly, have smaller apertures than primes for any given focal length. The more expensive zooms can often produce great bokeh, but if you are really looking to bring this effect into your photographic repertoire, you need the larger apertures only available on prime lenses. Get out there, experiment with different apertures and head over to the Seoul Photo Club on Flickr. ([email protected])

PHOTO CHALLENGE — weekly winner — At the Teddy Bear Museum, in Jeju-do, a display features Darwin Alberto a group of pandas battling with various weapons.