Stop & Chat: April 23 - Daegu Day 2

Saturday we were up bright and early. M woke up around 5:30 so he could shower. I dawdled in bed until around 6:15, when I hopped in as well. While M and I were sleeping, J picked up another person who had come into Daegu. We made our introductions and ate breakfast, then grabbed our bags and hopped into J's car. Since J was the race director, we had to be there extra early to set up tables and get everything together for player registration.



M used that time to practice some putting, and I brought out my camera and went to town.

The course was in bloom. We missed the trees blooming by a couple weeks, but all of the shrubbery was a medley of color. It was beautiful. Expect several flower pictures throughout this post. :)

The poster for this event. I had the opportunity to join in, as there was a woman's division, but I opted not to. I came here to support and spend time with M, and I didn't think I'd be comfortable in a new place being separated from him. Maybe next time. 

The course is built around a park that has places to skateboard, roller blade, play soccer, tennis, volleyball, and some putput golf.

7:45 rolled around and M registered and paid before we set off to walk the course. He had never played here before, so we figured at least a little practice on some of the baskets would be good.

If I didn't have self control I would have spent my entire two days at this course taking a picture of the foliage.

The course has undergone a lot of recent renovations, so we had near-fresh trees M had to throw around.

This hole proved to be a nightmare on Day 2. It's an island hole, which means your disc has to land within a certain area or you have to re-tee. This particular island was on the other side of the trail that ran behind the red line of bushes. It's not impossible to hit from the line the players in M's division were shooting from on Day 1. On Day 2 we shoot from a further line, though. There were lots of re-tees that held up the entire tournament.

The air was slightly fogged up. As the day went on, the sun burned up the stuff in the sky and we got a much better view. I'm not complaining. It made the course a perfect temperature to walk around at while still giving me an almost-sunburn.

Another picture from the side of the disc golf clubhouse. I think this map is the most recent. 

This tournament was 3 rounds. Each round you played on a different card with different people. On the first card there was a mix of people from different divisions. M played his first round with 1 pro, 2 men amateurs (including himself), and a woman. I believe this was our favorite card to be on. I don't know if it was the difference in skill level or the fact that this was the first round and thus the one with the most energy, but the atmosphere and support for each other was the best. It helped that the pro player we were with was American with two Korean parents and could speak both English and Korean fluently. He provided a great bridge between us and the woman and other amateur, who only knew Korean.

M's disc golf bag.

 

In case you're wondering, yes. Several discs landed in or got lost in the multitude of flower bushes along the course.

M had a few great putts this round. He also missed some easy putts.

One of the holes has you throw the disc over this river/ditch. No, not all of them made it. Thus - this picture. 

Towards the end of Round 1, there was a backup at one of the holes and M and I had time to take pictures of each other.

The hole we had the back up on was actually our last hole, so we went back to the clubhouse and all picked up our lunch. It was a combination of ramen, kimchi, and various other typical Korean foods. There was also some "American" fried chicken. I didn't try it, but the Americans that did told me it wasn't very good.

Once we finished our food, we took some time to watch the beginnings of an Accuracy Challenge, then split up into our Round 2 cards. This new grouping was all same-division people. There were two Americans (not counting me) and two Koreans. The language barrier was a bit harder this time, but we all knew the same disc golf terms and hand gestures helped communicate anything we had issues with. Everyone was nice, but I think the people we were with were a little too competitive. The other American started off this round with 3 over par and I think that set his mood for the rest of the game. It showed in all of our attitudes.

By this point the sun had come out in earnest and the course was getting a little hot. I didn't take many pictures this time around.

Once we all finished the second round, I took a picture of all of M's Round 2 Card together. Then we turned in our cards and waited for J to finish things up so we could head back to his place. We parked his car in his parking garage and headed straight out to an American draft house in downtown Daegu called EtoH. It had some amazing pizza. The coffee wasn't the best, so G and I went to a nearby Starbucks for some better coffee.

As the sky darkened the night life awakened. I never considered myself a city person, but as I've gotten older and come into myself I've noticed an inexplicable draw towards city life. I find myself appreciating the beauty in the architecture and the people just as much as I appreciate a forest or rural view of land untainted by man. I have no interest in clubs or a lot of what defines city night life, but I love the views, the colors, the hoards of people, the atmosphere these people bring with them. Walking back to J's amongst this was fun.


Saturday night there were 7 people in J's house. It was great! J showed the newcomers all of the things M and I got to see the first night we were there, and we all wound down by talking about our day and how the course was. We all had a fight over who got to shower in what order. I, being the lady I am, of course won first place. :) I fell asleep around 11 and had the best night of sleep I'd had in months. It really showed the next day.