September, after the rainy season had ended, seemed to be filled with sunny days.
Lately, I’ve been enjoying occasionally stopping to look at flowers and trees.
It all started when I learned about a plant called variegated privet while walking through Yeouido Park.
Sometimes, when I’m walking around, I notice this tree planted in parks or small spaces. Knowing what it is makes me happy whenever I come across one.
I’ve also occasionally taken pictures of a few other plants.
Here are some of the ones I photographed this month.
A flower in Cheonggyecheon. I thought it was a morning glory, but apparently it’s a petunia.
Crape myrtle flowers in full bloom in Euljiro.
The flowers are starting to fade now, so I suppose I’ll see them again around this time next year.
Glossy abelia I saw near Yeouido Park.
If you look closely, the white flowers bloom in the shape of stars.
Light pink roses and dandelions at Boramae Park.
There is an area near the lake at Boramae Park where roses are planted separately.
Besides the light pink roses, there are also bright red and orange ones.
Looking at the ground, you can see fallen red rose petals.
There are also white dandelions.
Along the long benches past the area where old men play janggi, white dandelions stretch all the way down the path. They look beautiful whether I see them during the day or at night.
These are red spider lilies at Seoripul Park.
Red spider lilies are also called seoksan in Korean.
Things I Saw
I watched Porco Rosso by Studio Ghibli.
Along with Princess Mononoke, it’s one of my favorite films directed by Hayao Miyazaki.
I love the atmosphere, colors, and scenery of this movie, so it comes to mind every now and then. I wasn’t even alive during that time, but somehow I still feel a sense of nostalgia for it. I don’t know how else to put it.
At the beginning of the movie, Porco is relaxing at his hideout when he hears on the radio that the air pirates have appeared.
This is the scene where he gets his plane ready to drive them off and spreads out a map.
Looking at this map once made me think that I should create a map of my own… I will someday. Someday.
After the air pirates realize they can’t defeat Porco, they hire an American mercenary named Curtis. This is the scene where Fio and the air pirates take a group photo before Porco and Curtis face off.
The air pirates aren’t portrayed as purely evil villains in the movie. They can be clumsy and even romantic in their own way, which made me rather like them.
The Hotel Adriano, the rough-looking planes, the Mediterranean, Porco Rosso’s hideout, Curtis’s Hollywood debut… It’s an animation overflowing with romance and adventure in so many ways.
Next, I read Zorba the Greek.
Zorba is different from Porco Rosso, but just as overflowing with charm.
While reading the book, and even after finishing it, I found myself thinking that I wanted to live like Zorba, at least once.
This book also sparked my interest in flowers.
Chuseok
For Chuseok, I went back to my parents’ home to help out with some household chores.
Near Yesan Market, I stopped by a shop where an elderly man sells LP records, CDs, DVDs, and various other things he has collected over the years.
I’d been there once before and left empty-handed, but this time I bought an LP as a decoration.
Apparently, it’s Zigeunerweisen by Sarasate. If I ever get a turntable, I’ll give it a spin.
I also went to the countryside.
There are two stray cats living at my grandmother’s house, and at first I couldn’t get very close to them.
The black cat, especially, was very wary of people. Even when I gave it food, it wouldn’t eat it there. Instead, it would carry the food away to a quiet place and eat it there.
Since I had plenty of free time and spent several days with them, we gradually became a little closer.
Eventually, they started coming up to me, rubbing their pheromones on me and head-butting me.
Maybe because they grew up in the wild when they were young, they’re afraid of human hands.
If I wait until they’re distracted while eating and sneak in a pet, they actually seem to enjoy it, purring and even showing me their bellies.
Both of them are male. They sleep together and even groom each other.
Maybe the black cat likes the white one more, because it keeps bumping its head against him.
The white cat sometimes walks away, perhaps because it’s starting to get tired of it.
I can’t tell if they’re fighting or playing…
Either way, they don’t seem to have much time to be bored.
I also rode a bus for the first time in a while.
It sped happily through the warm and familiar rice fields and farmland.
The rice is growing under the strong sunlight.
It looks like the time is slowly approaching for the rice to bow its head.