School Days and Seoul Ways

The plan for Wednesday was for the three of us to get up early and have Joonwoo drop us at the bus terminal before heading to work himself.  That was the plan at least, upon waking up I realized that I really was not up for a trip to Gyeongju. I though tagging along wouldn't be too bad, I could skip the temple (seriously they're all looking pretty similar these days) and then join in for some afternoon bike riding and finish the day with dinner with some of my Gyeongju friends. But then I found out my friends were busy and I realized I was dead tired, instead I left my brother and Katie detailed instructions on how to survive on their own, made my way home and slept for another 3 hours :) it was lovely.  I met them back at the bus station that evening and it turns out they did just fine on their own.  Joonwoo must have liked us because he canceled the plans he had with a friend and joined us for dinner instead, Gamjatang yummmmm.  That night we took it easy, showered, set up a nice floor bed for those two in my shoebox of an apartment and prepared for school the next day. 

Group picture with class 1-3

오빠와 여친 한국에 왔어!

If you read my blog regularly (or more likely are a family member) you'll know that my brother came to visit almost exactly one year ago. I guess Korea made a good impression on him because he decided to come back for round 2, and this time bring his girlfriend Katie along for the ride.  Actually I think it might have been her desire to come that fueled their visit. Katie previously taught in Japan for two years so she's familiar with the foreigner teacher/living in Asia lifestyle. Unfortunately she didn't get the chance to stop in Korea while on this side of the world, but that worked out in my favor, more visitors!  Unfortunately my brothers boss wouldn't give him an additional Friday (very necessary for across the glob travel) so they duo arrived late on a Sunday night.  On the plus side they were able to score a RT flight arriving in Busan and departing from Seoul, maximizing the amount of Korea they'd be able to see. I'm lucky to work for an awesome school that allows flexibility with my schedule so I made the trip to Busan early Sunday to relax at the beach before going to meet my visitors at the airport. 

Gwangalli 'Diamond' Bridge 

A Few More Friends to See

After my whirlwind tour of Washington DC was over I hopped on a plane and made my way to Minnesota. Lucky me, another experience with the domestic airports I enjoyed so much the first time around. This time I was even luckier because I got to connect through Atlanta, which a few of my Korean friends were greatly confused by as it's nowhere close to being on the way.  On top of that, after I politely traded seats so a brother and sister could sit together, I ound myself next to a talker. Getting any reading or napping done on this flight was not an option, oh well, at least he shared his lovely joke about TSA: "Thousands standing around", now that I could agree with.

Welcome to the mid-west 

You Impulsively Buy Shoes? I Opt for Plane Tickets...

When I told my co-workers that I would be returning home for two weeks the first reaction I generally received was "oh so short!"  Which, considering how long and expensive the flight was going to be I tended to agree with.  I also had a lot of people I wanted to see and wasn't sure if time would permit to see them all. That's why when my friend Jared asked if there was any possibility that I'd make a side trip to DC I said most likely no.  But then a few weeks later, around 3 am (my normal high-thought process time) I reconsidered this decision, I mean why not?  So the next morning I searched, found and bought a ticket to DC, probably the best decision regarding my trip home I could have made. 

The Traditional and Not.so.Traditional Gyeongju

After our relaxing morning at around Geumosan we decided it was finally time to catch a bus and make our way to Gyeongju.  The bus ride was quite enjoyable considering we were two of maybe 8 passengers, it's nice being able to travel in the middle of the week. Normally on my trips to Gyeongju I fear having to stand or, like last time, have an ajumma half sitting on top of me. My mom didn't enjoy how the bus drivers "play games" with the aircon but none-the-less the ride was smooth and we were soon in Gyeongju, but unfortunately so was the rain.  We found our self a nice cheap motel, obviously a major step down from the previous nights accommodation, and made our way out to explore the city. 

Bring Your Mom to Work Day

After our busy weekend in Jinju it was time for the real fun to begin, time for my mom to come to school and meet the people who've become my second family. I left her to sleep in Monday morning giving her more time to get ready (in my shoe-box sized apartment) before being bombarded by my students and staff family, all 750 of them. After brief introductions in my office it was time for lunch, where I must say my mom got lucky, only spicy food on the menu was kimchi, and discovered that she loves quail eggs. We were done before the kids came down so back to the office we went, but only briefly, before I paraded her around the hallways to meet everyone.  Shouts of hello, lots of giggling, a few I love you's, and of course many students hiding behind each other is what my mom was met with. As I introduced my mom I could tell she was instantly falling in love, and who wouldn't?  

Some of my girls from class 2-1

No Really, He's My OLDER Brother

And so the whirlwind tour of Korea continues.  After our adventure through Busan I thought i'd let Beau take it easy and give him another day to lounge around - although I did provide instructions and recommendations for him to do the hike conveniently located behind my apartment. I also told him that he should join me at school by 3pm for one of my favorite and highest level classes - but that never happened.... As it turns out I returned from school around 5 to find my brother lounging on his makeshift bed - mattress on the floor (which he hated by the way) explaining that after hiking and showering he just kind of crashed, therefor never making it to school. I wasn't too upset but I couldn't say the same for the students of class 1-1 who were expecting him.  

Beau in Korea

Now that it's been almost a month since his visit I guess I can relive it all by sharing with you how I entertained my brother for a week in Korea.  The visit started with lots of waiting (for me) while Beau made his way from Incheon airport to Hongdae (where our hostel was).  Thankfully my brother was a big boy and caught the subway on his own - saving me close to 2 hours of subway riding and a few extra dollars.  Finally he arrived and we were ready to set out in Seoul.  My friend Sara was in town that weekend as well and already out grabbing dinner and drinks with our friend Daniel.  Beau and I wanted to check out the lanter festival on the Choeonggyecheon and get dinner but told them we'd meet up later.  I had no idea how crowded this festival would be, but I definitely underestimated it.  There was a line wrapping up and down the block that seemed to have no end - all just to walk down to the water and see some lanterns, we were satisfied with the view from above so we walked along eventually ending at a busy street where we decided to find dinner. 

Tom meet Geumosan

Saturday morning came and along with it great hiking weather, as promised we were headed for Geumosan. We caught the bus from my apartment to the station, grabbed a quick breakfast and some snacks for the hike; rather than waiting for the bus we opted for a quick taxi ride to Geumosan.  The base of Geumosan has a beautiful park area, lake and small amusement park - but we bypassed those pretty quickly, our eyes were sent on the mountain.  The first leg of the hike is pretty easy, clear paths and staircases, this is the part where you'll see small children and the occasional woman in heels. I'm telling you Korean woman never miss an opportunity to dress up, but this is one outfit/activity combo I will never understand. I'm assuming most of these woman are just making their way to the waterfall where they'll enjoy a picnic lunch with family, but really are the heels necessary? Do you hope to break your ankle, or do you just enjoy making things difficult for yourself?

A Taste of the Good Life

If you would've told my Dad a year ago, that he'd be spending a week in Buksam, South Korea he probably would have given you his typical "what the fuck look", but look where he wound up!

So after our trek back from Seoul we were on bus 115 for the grand tour of Buksam.  I asked my Dad what he though and his response was "that was it?"  Yeah, I don't live in the largest or most exciting area, but I still love it.  Monday morning came all too soon, seeing as my first classes of the week are never the most exciting my Dad decided to stay home and explore town. I was curious as to how he would survive without being able to read anything or speak to anyone (really no one here speaks English) but I trusted he'd entertain himself.  I got home from school and to my pleasant surprise he had cleaned my whole apartment!  I joked about it the night before seeing as he's now become Mr. Clean at home, but since I have no cleaning supplies (aside from a broom and sponge) I didn't think he'd actually do it. But, lucky for me he ventured out to buy some supplies and my apartment is now the cleanest it's ever been.  Since I left him alone all day I promised a good dinner - one of my favorites, dakgalbi (spicy chicken and veggie dish) so we made our way to Otae-dong for dinner.

Wandering Seouls

Let me just start with a warning - this will probably be really long, but trust me it'll be worth it. (Just like the rest of my posts).   Anyways, for those of you that were unaware (which should be no one),  my Dad came to visit last week!  I had originally thought i'd be stuck at school late on Friday but through a series of fortunate events I was able to sneak out early and meet him at the airport!

Incheon airport is basically floating in the ocean off the NW coast of South Korea so it took me almost all afternoon to get there, but oh was it good to see a familiar face.  As if 14+ hours of travel wasn't enough we started our venture with a 45 minute subway ride - welcome to Korea, Dad!  Being my fathers daughter I booked us a nice, cheap hostel in the heart of Seoul for the weekend.  My friend Sara had stayed there before so I trusted it'd be decent.  Aside from the fact that we couldn't find it and had to hike up an down a mountain of a hill 3 times [with luggage] I was pleased with the outcome. Friday night was on and off rain and we were both tired from our travels so we explored the nearby area and found ourselves at Namdaemun market (first check off my "to-see" list for the weekend).