Tony Huynh is in Korea at IBS for a couple of months and comes down to Daegu for a couple of days.

He is down from Daejeon to meet another friend, but he has some free time.

I am not bitter that I am an after-thought. After all I've only known him for 25 years. Or if I am bitter, I hide it like a pro.

We go to lunch, and halfway through, he asks me what there is to do in Daegu.

"Why don't you ask your friend? The good one. Who you came to meet." I answer his question with a question.

"She isn't from here."

Likely story. Probably she just doesn't do anything interesting. I think that if I give him some good suggestions, then next time he might meet another friend in the free time I give him when he comes to visit me.

"Hmm." I say, and think about how I spend my time.

"There are all sorts of things to do." I say. "There's washing dishes, taking out the garbage, laundry, sweeping the kitchen."

"Yeah, but..."

"You can make pizza, I guess." But that might be hard for him. "Is there an oven in your hotel?"

"No oven." he says simply.

"I guess you could ask your daughters how their day was. They'll just say 'Good,' at first, but if you pester them enough, you can get a real answer out of them." I suggest. "Did your daughters come with you?"

"I don't have any."

"Well, that's out then. I guess." I think a little more. "I don't know. What do you do at home. You can probably do that here." He nods his head. "You could go get drunk and bother my cat. He likes the attention."

I think he likes the idea, but then he asks, "Are there any tourist spots in Daegu?" taking the conversation in an unexpected direction.

There are, of course. Way better than there are in Daejeon. But I don't want to be too down on Daejeon while he is staying there.

"Oh." I think. "There are lots." I say. There are lots. But they are mostly mountains. "You can go hiking. Or to an amusement park. Or to the West market. They are famous for their fabrics! And there is Medicine Alley."

"Oh." he says. "What's that?"

"I don't know," I say, not ready for the question. Nobody has seem interested in it before. I get bit embarrassed that I know so little about this tourist highlight of the town I have lived in for fifteen years. "I've never been able to find it. I think it's downtown."

"Hmm." he says. It sounds like he is thinking about the hiking.

Then something comes to me. "Or you could go throw rocks in the river." I suggest.

"Why would I do that?" he asks.

I'm ready for this question.

"For the splashes! Its great! Rocks are heavy, and when you throw them in the river, they displace the water. It jumps playfully up in the air. It is delightful!"

"Yeah." he says, apparently familiar with the notion of a splash. "I can do that in Daejeon though."

"Not like here." I say, discouraged at the need to sell the suggestion any further "There are all sorts of rocks here. And they are all right by the river!"

"Oh." he seems intrigued, but doubtful.

"Hey Lady!" I call the waitress over to confirm it. "Where is the best place to throw rocks?"

"The river!" she says, properly excited about being asked a question.

"There you go." I say to Tony, as I wink at the waitress in dismissal. "Everybody knows! It's what Daegu is famous for."

"I thought Daegu was known for apples."

"You can't skip an apple, Skippy!" I say. The waitress gives me a thumbs up, excited that a foreigner knows the city motto.