New Friends-- like family!

The last Chuseok details I must write about involve the fun I had with my new Church. Our cell group wanted to show us newbies a few things around Seoul, so they set up a full itinerary and we had a blast seeing new sights, learning new things and getting to know our new brothers and sisters better.
One day held Geyongbokgung palace with a cultural museum on site. It should be noted that the day before was the mountain hike that left me so stiffly sore and this Palace/museum day required lots of walking! I paid about a dollar and gave up my identification card to rent one of those guided tour headsets and went into the exhibit with all my friends. This headset was quite amazing-- it's an mp3 player with a sensor on it so that it doesn't just rattle through explanations in a certain order, instead, the listener walks through the museum and when the MP3 "sees" one of the stickers on the floor, it begins the explanation of the specific part of the exhibit the listener is looking at! Amazing!
I'm sure it works really well, but I only listened to the guide in my ear for a few minutes because one of the Korean members of our group who is learning English, wanted to explain everything instead. We had a hard time understanding each other, but the work was well worth it as I slowly learned some Korean words and concepts that the guided tour wouldn't have been so patient to teach my thick head =)
After the museum, we went back out to the sunshine and walked around the rest of the palace grounds. Though I had been to one of the other palaces the first week I got here, I was still very trigger-happy with the camera-- the colors, lines, and newness of it all makes it fun to find new angles on these old buildings! And since it was a holiday week, multi-generational family groups were together and some even dressed in hanboks! (I heard a rumor that they get in free if they wear the traditional garb =) This made the whole atmosphere feel festive and old-world Korean.

Of course, any outing in Korea is not complete without loads of eating! We began our palace day together with a lunch that filled our tables with side dishes and various entrees as far as the eye could see! Soups, different Korean pancakes, rice dishes, kimchee and veggie varieties, many new flavors and all of them good! After our Palace excursion, we sampled many different rice cake varieties (the only thing they have in common is that the base ingredient is a white, doughy substance that used to be rice before it was beaten to death with a huge wooden mallet), Korean candy (made by vendors on the street-- sort of like taffy, but not) went to a noodle restaurant for the cut noodle soup (clams still in the shell, some veggies, and thick noodles in a clear broth) and steamed mandul (a little bit like won-tons). We were stuffed at lunch and stuffed with snacks throughout and really stuffed with dinner. After rolling ourselves to the subway station, we got on together and left at different stops to go on our way for the evening.

A few days later, the whole English ministry (Filipinos, Peruvians, Americans, Canadians, Indians, and the English speaking Koreans who make up the leadership team) went on an outing to Seoul Land (a big theme park right here in Seoul). It had everything including roller coasters, bumper cars, and another bungee drop ride! We quickly found out how a large Korean group gets around together-- slowly! We had to stop for pictures constantly and we found out the difference between Filipinos and everyone else: we all run away from pictures and they all run into pictures-- their way is really better because they get it over with faster and they look so much happier too! Once we got inside the park, we stayed in our cell groups and ran all over riding, eating and riding some more. Sue and I took the 2 girls who live in our building to give them a fun memory and their mom a break during the LONG vacation in their little apartment. Our Korean friends embraced the girls as their own and showed them a GREAT time! After Seoul Land, we took one more group picture (of course) and then split into 2 groups for an evening activity: ice skating! Yes, after a full day at the theme park, we went ice skating at the rink below LotteWorld (where I took our seniors on the class outing). One of the girls and I got matching battle scars on our knees when we took a spill on the ice, but overall, it was fun to get on ice skates for the first time in forever!
After our icy adventure, some of us went to Friday night service at church. It's not an English service, so Pastor Kang (the English ministry main pastor) translates through a headset for Sue and any other English speakers who come. It was great to be in a Korean service with Korean worship songs and a message from one of the missions ministers about what God is doing all over the world through Korean people! Some of it gets lost in translation, but the experience of worshipping with people who are speaking a different language, yet worshipping the same Lord, well, it's amazing really. The service doesn't get out until almost midnight, so it made for one very full and long day!

As I Was Saying....

Before being so rudely interrupted by being plunged into the dark ages with no Internet, I was trying to post this latest installment of our Chuseok adventures.
As the holiday drew near, every store-- big and little-- displayed these great gift sets of everything from perfume to crackers. There were a few carefully packaged items that just wouldn't make the translation to Western culture as coveted gift items, but mostly they covered the gamut of expensive fruit, soaps/lotions, sauces, juices, and cookies/candies/rice cakes. Chuseok is a time to give tons of gifts and visit family-- with gifts-- and show appreciation to employees-- with gifts...
Just before the break, our school's PTA mothers set out a feast of snack items foreign (just like home) and domestic (new treats to try) that covered 3 big tables. The leadership team at my church spent one whole day delivering fruit to all the foreign members of our English ministry. And we got a gift from the school-- along with a note of apology for the loud construction over the break (we affectionately named that obnoxious piece of machinery "the rockpecker" )

Here's a peek at the gift from the school:

Enough for a whole army of spam-eaters...
but is it enough for me?!

It even came with its own carrying case!

When I first saw these in the stores, I thought how funny it would be to get Spam in the States-- it's more like a gift you'd give an ex-girlfriend, a mother-in-law, or your accountant after his mistake cost you thousands of dollars in back taxes and overdraft bank fees-- not so in Asia. As you can see on Lon's page, Japan loves this stuff too!
The fruit from Church was really good: loads of Kiwi, peaches, and these gourd-looking things that I didn't know were melons until I cut one open and ate a big bite! Beware of new fruits in foreign lands!
One final word of encouragement:

Have a Spamtastic week!

lost connections....

When the network goes down, it's a sad, sad day! This weekend we lost the Internet in my building and no one was around to fix it until Monday. Writing this out loud makes the whole thing sound really lame, but it completely changed my weekend: I found myself thoroughly cleaning the house (I had meant to before...), going to bed at a decent hour (it's been a while!), reading a book (thanks Alyssa=), listening to my own music again (Phil Keaggy juxtaposed with Disney!) and even taking out the trash (I'll have to write more about the trash process soon).
That's when I realized I'm a computer junkie! Not that this really comes as a surprise, but I was amazed at what it did inside me. There was some relief that I didn't need to be connected to the global community because I couldn't be; but mostly I felt lost without a world of information and communication at my fingertips. At the same time, the chores I normally do grudgingly were not so hard to get up and do-- and even a little enjoyable.
Back in Oregon, at the house in the woods, we would have power outages a few times every year and alongside the frustration of poor timing, I found peace in a quiet house without the whirring/buzzing/beeping/glaring/etc., freedom from technology, and joy in doing things the "hard way." I couldn't finish the things that would otherwise NEED to be done, I couldn't work late into the night to finish just "one more thing," and I found time for people and projects/chores I hadn't seen time for when the lights were on.
Funny thing, this technology; it makes life much more efficient and me much less efficient as a human being. The Internet brings great comfort as I live halfway around the globe from the place and the people I call home, yet its absence has reminded me of a few Truths too. All in all, I'm glad for the chance to step back and see a clearer perspective again; but if the network is still down when I get home, it's no more miss philosophizer-- I want my connection back!

Catching up

Have you ever needed a vacation from your vacation? It just sounds WRONG to complain about that sort of thing, but I must say that Chusuk (spelled differently every time because it seems that even the Koreans I know don't agree on a correct spelling!) week really hit me! Run, experience, socialize, run, photograph, laugh, run!


Here are a few of the highlights:

Sylvia and I found a Dunkin' Donuts (they're EVERYWHERE here) that had a cool little cafe area upstairs to sit and relax. The donuts come in tiny donuthole size tasty options so you can try lots of different flavors and still have room for a latte-- the coffee was great-- way better than DD in the States!

Scenes from Insadong, an artsy/cultural district in Seoul....



O to be a centipede!!!



































































How it would look to a dog

Danger?

This week North Korea has been center stage again; some of you are wondering if it's really as bad as they make it out to be on the news. Here's the e-mail I received from the US Embassy in Seoul (I'm not just an alien, I'm a registered alien )

"On Monday, October 9, U.S. and South Korean intelligence services detected a
seismic event at a suspected nuclear test site in North Korea. North Korea has
claimed it conducted an underground nuclear test, but these reports are
unconfirmed. The U.S. Embassy in Seoul is monitoring the situation closely and
has been in continuous contact with South Korean government officials. As of the
evening of October 9, the Embassy has received no information from South Korean
officials or any other source indicating that there are health
dangers that
pose a risk to any areas in South Korea.

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul
continues to operate normally and to provide services to the public during
regular business hours. In the event of any type of emergency, the Embassy will
notify the American community immediately."

The government officials here (President Roh, etc.) are not ignoring this possible threat, but they are not rushing into drastic action either. It looks like S. Korea is wanting to stay on good terms with the other world powers (an important move if their guy is going to get head of the UN Security Council =), so although they have a love/hate kind of view of their ancestral countrymen to the North, S. Korea is not going to act without the world's backing and we are not N. Korea's target since much of the aid they need just to survive comes from private and public S. Korean sources.
All in all, I don't know what the news is reporting there, but it seems to be blown (punny!) way out of proportion-- for shock value and ratings perhaps? Besides, I have so much to catch up on this blog from last week that bombs and grumpy governments simply can't interfere =)
If all goes well (N. Korea doesn't have another tantrum or accident), Lon will be coming to Seoul for work one week from today and I'll get to catch up on the news from home and get my care package he's been good enough to haul here from the other side of the globe! Yippee!!

I'll keep you updated on bombs and weather-- news at ll

Take a Hike!

In general, I value the process more than the goal; the fishing more than the catching; and, for me, the journey is the destination.

The Joy Is In The Journey...
Except when hiking

The view from the top of Ui (oo-ee) mountain was incredible, but the path to get there was breathtaking in the most exhausting form of the word! Yes, the scenery on the way up was photo-worthy, but only as a destination in itself-- after the shutter snapped, the journey started again and all the peace, happiness, and color fell out of it. You might say I'm overstating the matter, but I say I'm still sore
Then I look at the pictures again-- this time, the destination was worth it all the way up and eventually, my muscles will forgive me for the journey.

It was apparent at the base gate that the Autumn colors are a-changing


Smokey and Lil' Smokey-- only YOU can prevent forest fires!

watch that 37,463,847,629,475th step is a doosie!

I MADE IT!!

we had the chance to watch these rock climbers from a perfect angle-- someday I'd love to get up there, but it will require a guide and some rental climbing gear!

pack all these people, cars, and industries on a small peninsula and pollution WILL result!

Mr Anderson: Art teacher and fellow Yoga buddy

Take a rock and stack it-- add your story to the pile

can you see the face?

It's MY "the city!" (ask a Tick fan if you don't get it =)

Some new stuff....

Got a cell phone! It's quite a nice one, actually. Remember the bicycle purchase? Well, again the first place we went to get a phone was the perfect one! Us foreigners get a used phone and pre-paid minutes instead of a new phone with a contract deal-- it's the easiest way to go when you don't know the language =) This place only had ONE used phone. It had been returned earlier in the day but never used (all the plastic was even still on it!) So although new it would cost hundreds of dollars, I got it for just under $100. Cell phones get pretty fancy around here, so this one is really simple by Korean standards, but I'm impressed with all the features! It can do tricks: phone, camera, menus/texting in both Korean and English, dictionary, MP3, planner... it even has a subway map, but that part isn't in English.

Went to a new section of Seoul yesterday and experienced the gigantic, year-round garage sale =) Of course, the prices they quoted the white girl were quite high and they weren't really interested in bartering (yes, Dad, bickering =) but I got back at them by not buying anything =) I know that normally they do barter, but I'll have to go back with more Korean vocabulary under my belt to be deemed worthy of speaking to.

I ate some spicy stuff-on-a-stick at a street vendor and the lady told Sylvia that I eat Korean food well, for a foreigner-- so I guess I am fitting in quite well when it comes to gastro-intestinal prowess. The stuff we were eating deserves a little mention. It's made of fish, but has all kinds of flavors depending on how it's prepared. It's about a quarter inch thick and kinda spongy. It's cut into strips and used in soup, seasoned&stir-fried, rolled up in gimbop, or cooked on a stick (boiled in broth or simmered in red-hot sauce). I'm sure I even eat it when I don't know I'm eating it in other foods too. I thought it was tofu until recently.

Climbed a mountain today! Really! I'll post the pictures to prove it =) 6 of us headed out for a hike at 10am and returned at 6pm. Some of that time was spent on subways, in lost taxis, and at a local watering hole to take a breather before heading up our hill. While sitting outside resting our bones (...and muscles ...and tendons ...and that little spot on my foot that I'm sure will develop a blister by tomorrow...) we met a group of hikers also just returning from a trek up a different mountain: 4 Koreans and a very outgoing grad student from Prague. We asked how he knew these hikers and he said he just met them on the trail; English is not his first language, he doesn't know Korean and his new friends had a little English vocabulary, but overall the communication was good-natured guessing! His new guides were giving him a taste of the post-hiking formula: sit at a table outside, drink (soju, beer, or a fermented rice drink they insisted we try at our table too), and eat the wonderful things Korea has to offer. They brought kimchee, side dishes, and were working on a Korean pancake when we left. This is an amazing country and it was good to be reminded of how it feels when you first get here.

A Visual Update

Some views along the river path:

Allergies are easier to handle when these wild flowers are the cause-- beautiful!



Fishing?

Why anyone would fish here is beyond me, the water flowing into the river from town looks and smells like sewage! I've never seen anyone haul one in, but I hope it's catch and release!


That's my black bike -- these concrete things really caught my eye!-- Here's the artsy version: