Skiing in Pyeongchang


On the weekend of the 14th I went skiing with a group of Korean guys I had met in Seoul. A family friend from back home knows a Korean family well, so he got me in touch with the family’s son, Joon. He is around 30 and happens to live in Jamsil as well. I met up with him, his wife, and his sister at his apartment earlier in December, and then again on New Year’s Day. One Friday night I also went to dinner with a group of his friends. They had all gone to university in Seoul, but met each other while studying abroad in the US. They are really nice and can all speak English well, which makes it much easier for me!

Pyeongchang, east of Seoul
My skiing buddies

Joon picked me up early on Saturday morning – at around 5 am! – and we arrived in the town of Pyongchang by 8 am. Our group took two cars and consisted of Joon, his wife, his 6 month old baby boy, four of his friends, and me. We ate breakfast at a restaurant near the slopes before stopping at a ski rental shop. I had no supplies, so I had to rent the skis, boots, ski poles, and an outfit. Luckily Joon loaned me a warm pair of gloves to use, and I had a good winter hat.

The resort was huge, and the slopes seemed pretty crowded. It’s peak season in mid January, and Pyeongchang is known as a great ski town, so I expected it to be busy. Pyeongchang is also famous because it has been selected to host the Winter Olympics in 2018! I was told, however, that the resorts closer to Seoul are even more packed during this time of year. I had never been skiing before, so naturally I was a bit nervous. At first it felt like I was spending more time on my butt than on the skis! After a few shaky runs it started to get better though. I got a lot of help from a few of the guys too (they were all much more experienced).



After a few hours of skiing we grabbed lunch at the resort, then hit the slopes again. By 4:30 we were totally worn out. On the last run I went to a different slope (I had been on one of the easier ones for most of the day) with everyone else. They told me that it was similar to the one I had been on, just narrower and a bit longer. It turned out that it was considerably more difficult. I practically slid down the first, steepest section. But then I got the hang of things – it helped that the slope flattened out – and put together a strong finish. When I first got off the lift and looked down the hill, I was thinking “why in the hell did I come up here?” After the run though I was definitely glad I did it.

With just a little bit more practice this could be me...yeah right!

We turned in our ski equipment and headed to a small hotel on the outskirts of town. It was super nice, but since we were all sharing one suite still not too expensive. After showering we drove into the town for dinner, then went back to the hotel for snacks and a few drinks. It was fun to hang out with those guys and to hear a few stories about their experiences studying abroad in America. Like how they managed to total a rental car and get another one stolen during one academic year.

By 10 pm everyone was exhausted, especially considering they had only gotten a few hours of sleep the night before. I had managed to get to bead really early on Friday, but still was tired from a long day skiing. One of Joon’s friends wanted to stay up to watch the Manchester United football match on at midnight, so I decided to join him. Everyone else crashed by 11 though. During the second half I was, to borrow an English word here, shattered (barely able to stay awake). Man U scored to make it 2 nil and I decided to call it a night.

We left the hotel by 10:30 the next morning, and on the way back to Seoul had lunch in a small town off the freeway. It was nice to see part of the countryside, considering I had only been in the city before that trip. We arrived in the early afternoon, and the first thing I did when I got home was take a long nap! Joon was already talking about the possibility of going skiing again on the way back. If a trip does materialize and I feel like spending the money, it would be great to do it a second time!

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