Rooftop!

I've been in Korea for over six months now, and lived in my apartment for all but the first week. My apartment is good because: the bills are very cheap, there's always hot water, it's always a pleasant temperature, and it's very coneniently located next to the subway and near my school.

My apartment is bad because: it's small, dark, next to a very big road and so always noisy, and it has ants crawling along the wall.

To be fair, the ants are not a problem, the most miserable part of my apartment is simply the cramped dark noisy confines. It can be shining brightly outside and I still have to have my light on. I can't open the two tiny windows because the noise of traffic is too loud.

It's all ok in winter but now it's warm and sunny and light, there's no fun in hanging around my apartment (indeed, I am the only person to have set foot in it in months) and so it's a good impetus to get out of the house. But there are times when I'd like to be able to relax at home and still enjoy the sunshine.

Well, now I can.

Last night, I was at Rebecca's apartment with Matt, and we were on the rooftop. It was calm and peaceful and had a good view. Oh, I lamented to my two friends, how I wish I had such a rooftop.

Then, it occurred to me that I'd never actually checked. And so today I did. And I have a rooftop! The noise of traffic is minimal, it's lit up by the sunshine, and it has a fabulous view. To the north green mountains undulate behind a heat haze, to the south more green mountains behind a winding river, and immediately around me the cars seem less pesky, there are some plots of land used for growing vegetables, and best of all is this area of small 1/2 storey houses. I'm a good few storeys above then and am blessed with a glorious overhead view of all these traditionally styled Korean houses with a pathwork of multicoloured slated roofs. It's a very upliftng sight.

So I'm very happy about this discovery and will be using my rooftop a lot over the summer. Still, I can't believe it took me six months to realise it.

I suppose now I should explore where the stairs lead down towards now.