Namsan: the top is done

My first trip up the mountain revealed that the construction crews have finished with the summit esplanade: it's all bricks and tile now, the surface having been completed in my absence. However, the bricks appear to be of the rubberized variety; they gave under my steps and felt springy. As was true with the wooden coverings over the stone steps leading up from Namsan Library, I have to wonder how long this sort of covering will last under the constant pressure of thousands and thousands of tourists' feet. We'll see. On the bright side, such surfacing is easily and cheaply replaceable, which is probably why it was chosen. Heavy flagstones, once broken, are a pain to replace, especially when they're up on a mountaintop.

The rain was on and off during my walk up the mountain, and the mountain road itself was largely deserted. Tourists are fair-weather friends; they don't flock to Namsan when it's too cold or too rainy or too snowy. It was good to go up in relative quiet.


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