Technical Quickie – “Issues” after upgrading to Mac OS Sequoia

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Technical Quickie – “Issues” after upgrading to Mac OS Sequoia

Wow!  It has been ages since I have posted a Quickie!  This evening I upgraded to Mac OS 15.3.1 “Sequoia” which went off relatively painlessly.  There was one issue that popped up right away!  The second issue was related to trying to fix the first issue..

#1 Address Unreachable error in Chrome when trying to access Brent’s World (Worked fine with Safari).  Okay Okay, I see what you are all chuckling about!  If you are a home user who does not run any local websites or services, this is will be a non-issue!  If you are in corporate IT.  Take NOTE!!!, and remember to think outside the box.  This may also affect on premise client server applications, so if applications are behaving in a strange manner or cannot connect to their servers, you may want to add this to your troubleshooting steps.

Issue: Apple has added additional levels of security to applications accessing resources on the local network.  You are now prompted on the launch of network aware applications, if you want to allow “The application to find and communicate with devices on your local network.”  I guess I misunderstood the question, because I had answered no.  In a broad sense, I do not want apps to “find” and start chattering with random devices on the network, but I have not yet been able to find any granularity, to say.  I want Chrome to be able to access websites on my web server, but not access file shares. 

  To make a long story short, by me answering no.  It denied Chrome access to anything on the local network, where the web server resides, and only presented this error, which made it seem like an application issue!

How to fix: Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security > Local Network.

Move the slider to the right of Google Chrome to the On position.

Interesting that only third party applications are listed here..

Issue #2 : When approaching this as an application issue, I attempted to flush the DNS cache in the terminal, only to find out that I was no longer in the sudoers file.  This is the first time to my recollection that this file has been overwritten during an update. 

Solution – Switch user to the local admin account and add your username (or group) back to the suderos file using visudo.

NOTE: it is CRITICAL that you use visudo do make changes to the sudoers file, as the file is in use by the system ‘visudo’ copies the file to a temp file to be worked on.  The temp file is written back to the actual sudoer file on exit.

So far these are the only issues I have seen with Sequoia.  I have started a new thread on the forums, and will continue to update that as the need arises.

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On The Road Again – Week In Orlando – Drive Out and Day 1 at Magic Kingdom

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On The Road Again – Week in Orlando

Drive out – and Day 1 at Magic Kingdom

  It has been 6 months since I have taken any type of  road trip (Not since the Florida Bat Festival last August).  The ARRL Southeastern Division Amateur Radio convention also known as Hamcation is held every year in February and I have never been to the WaltDisney World parks (Growing up in South California, and Disneyland being only 2 hours away meant that we always went to the West Coast Disney Parks.  Adding camping to the list of  things I have not done a long time.  Put all these all together and what have you got?  A week long camping trip in Orlando Florida that included the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Hollywood Studios, and Hamcation!  Come along for a lot of hits, some misses, but never a dull moment on a road trip with Brent!

   The 2 days before departure were filled with running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting last minute tasks done!  I had intended to be on the road around 8, but I kept hitting the snooze on my iPhone, I did not get on the road until 1130!  This would usually not have been a problem and I tend to not stick to any set schedule on road trips but the gate to the park I was camping in closes at sunset, which this time of year is 6pm!  The GPS had me scheduled to arrive at 6:15.  A call to the park, and I was able to make arrangements to be checked in by the campground host.  At one of my fuel stops I discovered the error of my ways!  I had somehow enabled the Toll avoidance mode on my iPhone and the route the Maps application chose to  get around the Florida Turnpike added an extra hour to the trip!  I ended up arriving at Moss Park at 05:57pm!  Just by the skin of my teeth!

  I wasted no time setting up camp and was tired enough that I decided to skip a formal dinner and subside on some Publix pasta salad and a Roast Beef sandwich I had made at home.  It was then to bed early and get ready for our first Orlando Adventure at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. 

  I had every intention of waking up at 0730 to get coffee on the stove and head out to the Magic Kingdom.  Exhaustion from driving and setting up camp won over and I ended up hitting the snooze button until 0800.  I was finally able to drag myself out of the sleeping bag and get going!

  Fortified by freshly percolated Starbucks Breakfast Blend, it was time to hit the road.  I made a slight mistake by programming just “Magic Kingdom” into Apple Maps, which took me right to one of the hotel parking lots.  Save yourself the headache and program in “Magic Kingdom Toll Plaza” instead.

Finally parked.  Baxter and I were in the tram to The Magic Kingdom!

  I had already purchased 3 day Florida Resident tickets, and made my reservations for 3 parks so I could bypass the ticket lines.  I had an extra stop with security due to my camera backpack, tripod, and Handi Talkie, but the screening was quick and polite, (Disney should provide training to the TSA and the number of complaints with that agency would drop to zero!).

  Our first stop was Tomorrowland and Space Mountain, I was eager to compare the ride to the one in Disneyland in California and Hong Kong.   Besides for the volume of the rides soundtrack, I did not notice much difference, though it did seem darker without some of the background effects I seem to remember form California, but that could just be due to the fact I have not ridden it in over 20 years!

  We then quickly headed over to the Tron ride, which was probably our longest line of the day (with the Jungle Cruise being the second longest!).  I really enjoyed this ride!  The G-Forces were out of this world!  I would have gone on the ride again, but the process of securing all of my camera gear in a locker was just not worth it!

  Leaving the ride, I setup for one of my first technical remote photo shoots!  I had mentally seen a couple of places I wanted to try to get ride photos.  What a technical nightmare!

While it was easy getting a great on ride photo without me in the picture, I just HAD to get a couple with Baxter in I in it!  Enter the headache.

  So, getting the Camera Connect app setup, mentally and visually counting off when a train might pass where I want it in relation to the subject (ME). I set about a lesion on “just good enough!”.  Here I am too late!

  This was the closest I could get to the perfect picture I had in my mind, and this is with 1:1 cropping in post.

I think the best picture, was this one with Baxter, though I still have the phone up, which I usually do not want, so.  I can still use it, and create the story that “Baxter was doing his best to help get a a complicated shot!”.

  One more try, and we were a fraction of a second too late.  Time to reflect on other lessons, like the Professor Falken’s lesson in War Games, that sometimes you just have to give up!

  We then headed over to the Autopia, and Baxter got to try driving a car!

  After going to several rides that I wanted to, it was only fair to give in to Baxter’s desire check out the haunted mansion.  So off we went to one of Disney’s most enduring and beloved attractions. 

I did not get any on ride photo’s but here is Baxter hamming it up after getting off the ride!  I enjoy this ride.  I think the ride at Magic Kingdom is a bit longer, and the dining room scene is enhanced from California.  I did not see the section where a ghost rider is projected into your “carriage”.

If you are a frequent visitor of Brent’s World, you know I make an effort to put gags into my blogs, so we had to do It’s A Small World!  So off we went to what should have been the least stressful and trouble free ride in the park.   I ended up accidently elbowing a young girl in the head getting on the boat and taking off my backpack!  Not one of my more coordinated moments, and extremely awkward all around!  Fortunately, apologies were accepted and outside of a moment of abject shame, we settled down to enjoy the ride.  I later felt guilty because I realized I spent more time apologizing to the parents than the girl I clocked in the head!

Waiting in line, I could not help feel I was beginning the Squid Game!

Baxter got a kick out of the ride though and was all smiles!

We then headed off to Pirates Of The Caribbean, which for some inexplicable reason I did not get any photo’s on!

 

Finally we hit the Jungle Cruise, which is always a favorite due to the on-ride humor.  I got a kick out of these 1940’s style mailboxes, because they are still in use in the Kunsan Air Base’s mailroom.

Here is Baxter, keeping a sharp lookout for any relatives hanging in the trees.

  Don’t know what happened here, but looks like a potentially explosive situation!

  Ahh, the pride in this photo!

Yup, this is definitely Florida!

This picture makes me feel so “ALIVE!”

 

A game of Happy Hippo anyone?

This picture reminded me of the Cambodia Temples.

What is a river cruise without some elephants?

It was then time to head back to the campsite, have dinner, and get ready for our day at Disney’s EPCOT!

Getting back to the campsite, tired but in need of real food, I baked a potatoe on the grill, and fixed up some Mahi Mahi and Rice Pilaf!  I had forgotten to bring the ingrediants for the rub I had intended to season the fish with, but desperation fosters innovation!  Wondering how the Texas Roadhouse Steak Rub would work, I decided to give it a shot!  It ended up turning out really good!

Fortified with a great dinner, and refreshed from the free hot showers at Moss Park, into the tent I went, to start my fight with my snooze button all over again!

Thanks for reading part 1 of a series of blogs documenting my trip to Disney’s Magic Kingdom and Hamcation in Orlando!

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Trials, Tribulations, and Triumphs – A look back at 2024 and looking ahead to 2025!

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Trials, Tribulations, and Triumphs – A look back at 2024 and looking ahead to 2025!

  I always make the first blog of the new year about what I have accomplished on Brent’s World and what the plans and hopes for the coming year will be, as well as thank YOU my viewers, because seriously… Without you, I would just be writing everything for myself. 

   I have to say that 2024 flew by!  It seems like yesterday I was facing the challenge and uncertainty of leaving Korea and moving back to the US, with no job leads, place of my own, and realizing with the cost of putting down roots in the states again I would pretty much be emptying my savings.

  It was another shock to end up moving almost all the way to the other side of the country to Pensacola Florida, settling in to a completely new job there, and setup home, my network/website, and after almost a 20 year hiatus my amateur radio station.

   There were other triumphs along the way!  I finally was able to upgrade to Amateur Extra!  For that I would first like to thank Robert Jones, who got me bitten by the Ham Radio bug when you demonstrated the San Diego Repeater Association’s AUTOPATCH in 6th grade.  The Late Jack Dobbs (WB6AXW), for your patient pushing me to take the 5WPM and later 13 WPM morse code test.  Chris Ruggiero, for all the fun we had exploring new facets of the hobby when we were still wet behind the ears radio amateurs. The T-Hunts, Conventions, and contests!  It has been a rewarding adventure to say the least!

  So, while my energy and effort spent on the blog the past couple years has waned, as my stats clearly show, 2025 marks the opportunity for renewed energy and opportunities for more and better content!  Let’s take a look at the stats for 2024!

   In 2024 I wrote 19 posts, which surprisingly was an increase from 2023 (A lot happened in 2022 – 2023!), some of my favorite blogs of 2024 were.

 

 

On The Road Again – The Lubee Bat Conservancy – We took a road trip to Gainesville for a private VIP tour of this great nonprofit organization dedicated the research, conservation, and breeding of endangered species with a primary focus on bats.  Which are crucial to our rainforests, pollination of fruit trees, insect control, and more! 

 

 

On the Road And On The Air – Installing the Yaesu FTM-500R – Installing a brand new 2meter and 70cm mobile radio in my Bronco Sport, so I can communicate with fellow radio amateurs on future road trips!

 

 

 

Pensacola Restaurant Review – Miguel’s Mexican Restaurant – It was so nice finding a Mexican Restaurant that served food in the same style as Nati’s Mexican Restaurant in San Diego, a Hendricks family staple!

 

 

  We had approx. 2,300 views. Up 1,100 views from 2023.

 

 

 

The most popular blog was On the Road and On The Air Again – Mounting the Yaesu FTM-500

 

 

 

Our viewers were from the United States, followed by Korea and Germany.

 

 

 

 

  So, what do I have planned for 2025?

  First and foremost, I need to get back to my 1 blog a week goal, alternating between getting out and exploring Pensacola, Restaurant Reviews, Technical, and Photography.  With amateur radio now being added into the mix, it will be a challenge to vary the content between radio technical, and computer technical.  Though sometime they will be combined.

  I always joke, “I hate writing!  That’s why I have a blog.”  Which actually hits closer to home than I sometimes want to realize.  It takes a lot of time and effort to plan and develop new content!  Though the reason I originally started this blog was to force me to get outside, share my experiences with others, push the boundaries of my technical knowledge.  As documenting and sharing often reinforces your understanding of a concept.  With the added bonus of keeping my writing skills at least par.

  Though as stated earlier, none of this would be possible without the support of the people who visit my page, if my view counters always read zero, this hobby of mine would quickly completely lose its appeal!

  As I like to say, “Onward, and upward!”  Lets see what 2025 will bring to Brent’s World.

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In The Kitchen – Parmesan Baked Cod

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In The Kitchen – Parmesan Baked Cod

   While I finish putting together the next technical Blog, Amateur Radio Nets And How To Use Them.  I thought I would follow up our restaurant review with an easy recipient for your own kitchen!  I do not like a lot of seafood, but cod fish is one of my favorites!  A great texture and mild flavor goes well with many sauces and side dishes.  Let’s get in the kitchen, and put together a dinner your family or guests will love!

 Ingredients – (for 2)

1lb Fresh (or Frozen Cod Fillets).
3 ½ Tbsp. Mayonnaise.
2 ¾ Tbsp. freshly grated parmesan cheese. (*I use the food processor attachment for the Bosch Universal Mixer to grate the parmesan cheese.).
1 Tbsp. Fresh chopped Parsly ( I cheated and used dried.).
1 Tbsp. Fresh chopped Basil ( I again cheated and used dried.).
1 cloves garlic grated
Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions –

Preheat the oven to 450 F.
Grate the parmesan cheese (Here I am using the food processor with the grater attachment of the Bosch Universal Mixer.).

Pat the cod fillets dry with a paper towel and place in a on a prepared baking sheet or baking pan. (I used non stick spray, but you can also use butter, or parchment paper to prevent the fish from sticking to the baking sheet/pan.).
In a small bowl, stir the mayonnaise together with the cheese, fresh herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper until combined.
Spread over the top of the fillets.

Bake 10 – 12 minutes or until the fish starts looking opaque and flakes easily with a fork.
Switch oven to broiler and brown the tops of the fish until lightly golden, (About 1-2 minutes, but watch it carefully so you do not burn the parmesan topping.).

This dish goes will with rice pilaf (Shown here) or mashed potatoes, and vegetables.  (String green beans with almonds pictured here.).

Please support Brent’s world!  If you purchase the Bosch Universal Mixer, or Food Processor Attachments please consider using the links below.  The proceeds will be used to bring you more great content!

BOSCH Universal Plus Kitchen Mixer (Wire Whips, Dough Hook & NutriMill Dough Hook Extender Bundle).

Please be sure to come back next week for more great content!
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Pensacola Restaurant Review – Miguel’s Mexican Restaurant

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Pensacola Restaurant Review – Miguel’s Mexican Restaurant

  Happy Sunday everyone!  Well, I figured I would follow up my previous Florida Restaurant Review with a restaurant that is actually located in Pensacola!  It seems that most of the best restaurants are found by accident.  Miquel’s Mexican Restaurant is no exception to this rule.  Sitting at home one night with hunger pangs I was looking through Door Dash and came across Miguel’s, which stood out to me because of the family owned chain of Mexican Restaurant’s in San Diego with almost the same name, “Miguel’s Mexican Cantina”.  So, taking the plunge I decided to order.

  I was glad I did!  The food was awesome, in fact it reminded me of my families staple Mexican restaurant that every member of our family grew up with, Nati’s (See the blog HERE). The food was so good that I just had to try it out in person! 

 

You always have to have chips and salsa when going to a Mexican Resturant!  (Refreshing since a lot of Korean Mexican Restaurants they did not automatically come with a meal, you had to order them).  You have a choice of salsa, white or yellow queso.  I chose the yellow queso, which was excellent!

  I ordered a small Naco’s Grande as an appetizer. 

  For my main course I ordered a large beef Puff Taco, which is made with a “puff shell”, which reminded me of a Chalupa shell.  Covered in enchilada sauce and cheese!  The taco shell is oh so soft and the taco flavorful.  Being topped with sauce is what reminds me so much about Nati’s.

  Following the Puff Taco, I also ordered a beef burrito, which comes with beans and rice, and again topped with enchilada sauce, and cheese.  What shocked me, is Miguel’s is one of the few (maybe the only) restaurant that makes their refried beans almost exactly like Nati’s!

 

  To the surprise of the entire resturant staff I was able to finnish the meal all by myself and I enjoyed the dinner so much more actually going to the restaurant in person!  Even more shocking than finally finding a twin of Nati’s was the price of the bill! 

  The entire meal came out to be around $39 dollars!  I can spend almost that much going in person to McDonald’s these days and spending well over that if delivered by DoorDash! 

  Miguel’s Mexican Restaurant will definitely get return business from me, and I highly recommend it to our visitors.

Hours –

Tuesday 11am – 9pm
Wed-Thurs 11am – 4pm
Friday 11am – 9pm
Saturday 11am – 4pm
Sunday & Monday – Closed
Bingo every other Thursday: 7pm

Mappable Address –

6560 Pensacola Blvd
Pensacola, Fl. 32505

Website –

https://miguelsmexicanpensacola.com/

Facebook-

https://www.facebook.com/MiguelsMexicanRestaurantPensacolablvd

Phone # –

850-944-4778

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In The Kitchen – Grilled Burgundy Tri Tip (Cardiff Crack)

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  In The Kitchen – Grilled Burgundy Tri Tip (Cardiff Crack)

 

  Who doesn’t like a good grilled steak?  I had tried preparing and grilling this once before on my last road trip in Korea.  However, it ended up slightly overcooked.  Though the recipe had potential.  The recipe comes from Seaside Market in Cardiff California.  I decided to give it another go, with great results! If you are looking for a good first indirect heat recipe I highly recommend giving this Burgundy Tri-Trip a try!

 Ingredients:

3 -5 lb Tri-Tip or substitute with a sirloin roast (I used Picahna).  If you plan ahead you can order form https://wildforkfoods.com/  which is where I will try to get mine next time.
2 Cups Pinot Noir
¼ Cup olive oil
½ cup low sodium tamari
2 tsp Maggi sauce
3 tsp Honey
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbl cracked black pepper

Preparation –

Trim the tri-tip of excess fat ( The picahna had a large fat cap. ).
Add all of the marinade ingredients into a zip lock bag with the tri-tip.
Press out as much air as possible.
Seal the plastic bag and place in the refrigerator for a preferably  for 24 hours, a minimum of 3.

 Grilling Directions –

When it is time to grill, set your grill up for indirect heat, and preheat the grill to 250 deg. F.
Place the tri-tip on the indirect heat side, and grill until the internal temperature reaches 120 def F (approx. 1 – 2-hours.).  It took me 1 hour.
Move the tri-tip to the direct heat side, and grill until the you get a nice char, and the internal temp reaches 130 deg F.
Remove the tri-tip from the grill, lightly cover with foil and let rest 15 – 20 minutes. temp should be 135 – 140 deg F for medium rare.

Cut against the grain and serve!

Thank you for visiting Brent’s World!  If you try this recipe, please be sure to come back and leave comments!
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Looking Back On Korea – Dark Side Of Seoul Tour.

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Every Country Has A Past, Every City Has A Story

Get Spooked On The Dark Side Of Seoul Tour

  It was a dark and stormy night, the wind howled, and the full moon shown through the gathering storm clouds, clearly illuminating the group of huddled tourists on the bustling streets of Seoul.  The seasoned guide explains to his charges that a famous psychologist theorized that we create ghost stories and legends to give voice to our deepest fears.  Most of us, either at a sleep over with our close friends or classmates or around a campfire at summer camp have gleefully told stories that would make the hair stand up on the necks of our listeners.  Every culture has their haunted locations, ghost stories, and urban myths.  The Dark Side Of Seoul Tour will take you on a leisurely guided walking tour exploring Korea’s seedy, sometimes turbulent past and the history and legend deeply embedded in these areas of Seoul and Korea.  The bloodied past, sordid tales of political intrigue, sex, and jealousy hidden by the march of time, just waiting to be uncovered and if only briefly brought back into consciousness.

 

 Without spoiling the tour let’s take a look at some of Korea’s spooky past that at one time or another covered on Brent’s World, and you would never know a deeper story existed.

 

  Let us start with Cheonggyecheon stream, which every year hosts the Seoul Internal Lantern Festival <Click HERE to view!>,  and used to be one of the city’s main sewer canals.  In Seoul, you will hear a lot about the Joseon Dynasty.  King Yi Seong Gye had 2 queens. One from Jeonju, and one from Seoul.  The King was madly in love with the 2nd Queen.  Queen Sindeok.   The sons of the Queen from Jeonju were never happy that their father was more enamored with Queen Sindeok then their own mother.  This lead to Queen Sindeok wanting to promote her own sons to be heir to the throne of Korea.  Queen Sindeok suddenly became ill and passed away.  This lead to one group of sons plotting to kill the other, and when the King found out (As Kings often do of such things.), he was so heartbroken he abdicated the throne and gave it to his oldest son from oldest heir on the Jeonju side.  Shortly after this a massive flood hit Seoul and took out the Gwangtonggyo bridge.  One of the main roads crossing the stream.  In a way of showing disdain for the late Queen Sindeok, and flexing his nuts to his half-brothers he decided to reuild the bridge not only using the stones from Queen Sindeok’s tomb, but moving the entire tomb, and reburying the queen upside down, the ultimate disrespect in Korean burial!

 

The Dead Virgin And The Day The Fish Stopped Biting.

  Way back in 2014, on our trip to Seokcho, we stopped at an interesting attraction called Haesadang park, or colloquially Penis park, so named because this cliffside park is literally strewn with these carved wood and stone penis sculptures.   As stated in the blog < Click here to view > and paraphrased here, this blatant display of sexuality is very unusual for a usually very traditional Korean society.  What exactly is the story behind these strange sculptures that fill this town?

  A long time ago in a small fishing village in Korea, a maiden went down to the sea on her wedding day and was swept away and drowned.  Her unsettled spirit being upset that she was not able to consummate her marriage with her husband cursed the ocean around the village and the fisherman were unable to catch any fish!  Faced with famine, the fishermen came up with a plan!  Each of the adult village men all went down to the sea, whipped out their manhood and depending on who is telling the story either had one large circle jerk casting their seed to the ocean, or they all urinated.  Take your pick.  Regardless, this appeased the virgin and the catch rate returned to normal.  So, these statues were built to continue to make the virgin happy thus sustaining the village.

Saenamteo – The Catholic Martyrs Shrine, the day the Han turned red with blood.

  Saenamteo was a military training ground outside the city walls of Seoul near the Han river, it was famously used as an execution ground for political prisons.  Most famously Catholic priests, missionaries, and followers.  The Christian religion was seen as a contradictory belief system to the reverence of confusion beliefs and more importantly the rule of the Joseon Kings, after all you should honor your King and Queen before honoring your father and mother!  On a day of torture and execution it was said that the Han River would run red with blood.  In the 1980’s the church of Saenamteo and martyrs’ shrine was built, the unique feature being that the building is constructed using traditional Korean architecture.  If you are interested in visiting Saenamteo, read my blog by clicking HERE.

  The Dark Side Of Seoul tour was a real interesting tour for Mi Jung and myself, although we had been to most of the areas talked about on the tour, it was really nice to get an idea of the history of those areas.  I would definitely recommend the tour as a first stop to tourists, and new arrivals to Korea as it is a great overview on what to come back and explorer.

 Reservations can be made online by clicking HERE, there are 2 tours offered, a 2 hour or 3 hour tour (Don’t worry, there are no boat rides!).
You will be contacted by your guide with the final instructions after booking.

There are 2 meeting points. 

Anguk Station Exit 2, Gahoe-dong, Seoul, South Korea
Seodaemun Station, Chunghyeon-dong, Seoul, South Korea

If you take this tour, please come back and discuss in the comments section, or the forum!

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Looking Back On Korea – Penis Park

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Looking Back On Korea – Penis Park

  One of the contrasts of Korea that I don’t think I will ever get used to, is what is usually a very rigid conservative culture and the sometimes brazen display of sexuality.  In that regard I am not talking about finding a late night tv program where they blur out a cigarette or a knife with blood in one scene, while showing full frontal nudity in the next.  Or the young adult’s women’s clothing style of wearing some of the shortest miniskirts you have ever seen, even in the dead of winter (You will see women in think fur coats, winter gloves and hats while wearing nylons and a mini skirt.)  Think Nanook’s wife with a G-String, or ordering 2 double cheese burgers and a diet coke. 

  I am talking about the sexuality that seems to be embedded in Korea’s past, wrapped up in the very folk lore that explains the existence of cities.  Near Samcheok, a place called Haesadang Park, colloquially known as “Penis Park” is a perfect example. 

   I am not sure what aspect of “Penis Park” is the most strange, the collection of carved phallic statues, or the legend and myth surrounding the statues.  The story, set in the remote fishing village of Samcheok, says that a young woman who was just married was down by the shore and was swept out to sea by big wave. 

  Following her death the local fisherman were not able to catch any more fish.  That is until they gathered on a cliff and urinated into the sea, then the catch rate in the village returned to normal.

  This prompted the fishermen to (SORRY!) erect these penis statues to honor the young bride, so that her sprit could rest, and they could catch fish to feed their families.

Welcome to Penis Park!

  The ocean scenery from Haesadang Park cannot be beat!

There is also a diving, and marine museum next to the park,  You can also hike further down into the actual fishing village that still exists, and see how the locals harvest and dry out seaweed, which gets sold as gimbap (Kim-Bop) wrappers.

Interesting that they decided to put boobs on these photo divers (The diver to my right is definitely a man. With MOOBS.

 

  Awaiting the bus to take us back to our hotel in Donghae, I came across this closed school, which the story Mi Jung told about it was almost as interesting as the young virgins death that enticed a bunch of fishermen to whip it out and pee in the sea.  Mi Jung said that in allot of these rural villages, once the children grow up and move away, only the older parents are left and there is no longer a need to keep the schools open.  I had fun walking around taking video of the complex.  It looks like the buildings are still being maintained as a disaster shelter.  I walked around, imagining the students who spent a good deal of their childhood here learning.  Hearing their laughter in my head, while thinking of Bob Dylan’s Forever Young.

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How to get here:

From the Dong Seoul bus terminal buy ticket to Samcheok bus terminal then take bus # 24 to Haesadang. 
The bus runs from 5:30am – 7:20pm, and runs 11 times a day.

I always get confused in the Korean bus terminals, because it seems that each ticket window sells tickets to different destinations.  Arrive early, get a print out of the hangul spelling of your destination, be patient and ask a school kid for help is the best advice. 

Looking Back On Korea – Seoul Lantern Festival

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Looking Back On Korea – Seoul Lantern Festival 2013

 

I was very fortunate to pick up this months issue of Stripes Korea, a free addendum of Stars and Stripes specifically geared to the Korean theater.  Not only do they have informative and humorous articles related to serving in Korea but it has an entire section dedicated with keeping you up to date with what is going on in the community.  One of the entries caught my eye.  Every year since 2009, local and international artists build ornate and picturesque scenes using lighted lanterns placed along the Cheonggyecheon Stream. 

  Always looking for an excuse to use my camera, especially in new and challenging conditions, this was an event I really wanted to go to.  I really needed to make sure I got out of the house Sunday night, since I had a 13 hour marathon at work on Saturday doing multiple installs.  I was just too tired to drag myself out of the apartment Saturday night and Sunday was the last day of the festival.  It runs from the 1st of November until the 17th.

  In all honesty I did not know what to expect, Whatever preconceptions of what a lantern festival was it was not exactly what greeted me when I found my way down to the stream.. I think I was expecting more of a traditional Chinese style lantern.  Maybe I have seen Raise The Red Lantern one too many times.  So I wandered around a little bit looking for lanterns that we have all seen in China Town.  I got to the stream during sunset, so the lanterns were not well lit, but really nice art in the river.. I like it..  When the sun finally went down and a crowd of Koreans descended on the river it dawned on me.. Those were the lanterns!

 

 

 

  I spent about 3 hours walking up and down the river, taking pictures in the changing light conditions.  My goal was to use only my 50mm prime lens (Canon’s Nifty 50), no flash, and everything in manual (Except White Balance, which was left in AUTO).  I was going to switch to my 24 – 105mm L series zoom lens for another pass. I was getting such good pictures with the Nifty 50.  That I never even bothered to change the lens.

  All my pictures where taken in manual mode, changing only the aperture, and shutter speed and ISO.  I did not use exposure compensation, and only a few times used an ISO higher then 800.  By the end of the evening I was feeling much more comfortable using my camera, had a great time mingling with the local Koreans, and passed 20,000 steps in a day on my fitbit!

  Great evening all around.  If you are even in Seoul in November, I highly recommend checking out the Seoul Lantern Festival.

More great pictures from the Seoul Lantern Festival.

 

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Restaurant Review (Gainesville) – Cantina Anejo

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Restaurant Review – Cantina Anejo

Great Mexican Food in Gainesville, Florida

  It has been FOREVER since I have done a proper restaurant review. July of 2023 to be exact!  So, what a great time to also get one of those out of the way as well.  After stopping by Depot Park and the Cade Museum I had worked up quite the appetite.

  Where to go to get a bite to eat was the next question.  It had been a while since I have had real good Mexican food, why not look to see what Gainesville has to offer.  A quick search on Apple Maps directed me to Cantina Anejo in the University area.  Finding the restaurant was easy, finding parking was not.  If you go during peak times, be sure to bring some extra patience with you.

  I arrived at 1230 and was immediately able to get a table, they do have a sidewalk bar area where you can get a quick drink or bite to eat.  I chose to get out of the heat inside the dining room.

  I ordered the Queso and Mexican Chorizo to get started and a Carne Asada Burrito.

The food was filling, and very flavorful.  It made me miss San Diego!
The service was quick and professional, and the restaurant is suitable for small or large groups!

I highly recommend Cantina Anejo when you are in Gainesville.

Searchable phone # and Address –

(352) 781-2050
1680 W University Ave – Ste 10
Gainesville, FL 32601

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