A few classroom pics

H's kindergarten class:the girls singing a song for the class.
B's class: a little cutie.
H's favorite Tues/Thurs class. Notice that the boy on the right is picking his nose.
B's class: good work buddy!

Our teacher explaining something important.
Since we are one of the lowest belt colors, we stood toward the back.

Blue Belts

It's official: we passed our Taekwondo test and have moved up to the level of blue. The next section we are learning is a big step up in the difficulty area, so our next test should be interesting.
There's nothing exciting happening this week, although we are getting ready for Sunday as we will be attending a wedding. It will be an interesting event I am sure.
The weather is starting to get chilly; it seemed like it just changed overnight, but the cold is definitely on its way in.
Next week for Halloween our schools will be having little parties, so we are still searching for costumes. I will be sure to add pictures!

Chuseok Meaning

A few weeks ago Korea celebrated Chuseok, which is their Thanksgiving holiday. It differs from the American holiday in many ways. First, the big part of the holiday centers around giving thanks to ancestors who are thought to have provided the harvest for the year. Family members visit the graves of ancestors, providing food for the spirit to eat. This ceremony lasts as long as the family deems appropriate. Many of the ancestors are buried in the mountains, so families travel long distances sometimes just to reach the grave. When we were in Andong, we traveled on a fairly rural road in order to get to a famous shrine. We saw dozens of cars parked on the side of the road, and many people carrying large dishes and heading up the hills and mountains.
After the family has given thanks to their ancestors, they bring the uneaten food to a home and everyone partakes in eating a huge traditional meal. This is the same concept of Americans chowing on turkey and yams, but they have different foods. The preperation for the meal can be quite time consuming, and I have been told by all women here that many suffer from "Chuseok Syndrome." They dislike preparing for the holiday as it takes a lot of time. There are also many traditional Korean movies on TV, and many people relax and watch movies.
We have a friend who actually ate so much during Chuseok that she made herself sick and had to go to the hospital. The food is just so amazing that people eat as much as they can. I (H) had the opportunity to eat some leftovers at my director's house, and I can see how they overeat! The foods were quite tasty!

Lazy weekend

We're taking the weekend off to relax in peace and quiet. Nothing exciting from the last two or three days to report. The temperature only gets up to the mid-70s so it's almost too cold for shorts... almost. But since the sky is usually clear we get plenty of sunlight to keep warm. Did I mention it doesn't snow in Tongyeong? The rest of the country does get snow so we'll be able to see it at our leisure. Next week we'll test for blue belts in Taekwondo. That's all for now

B+H

Japan

On Tuesday morning we left for Japan and took a high-speed boat. Our trek lasted three hours, and the water was smooth as ever. Fukuoka, Japan was our destination, a city of 1.33 million people. We made it to the Korean Embassy, to take care of our visa issue, and from there we attemted to see the sites. We've been to many foreign towns, but this one was difficult for us to manuever. There were a few nice souls who offered help, but the layout of the city was not user-friendly, and after about 4 hours of walking and seeing little, we gave up and headed back to our hotel. We did manage to take in an amazing shrine, and the map claimed there were more out there, but they were out of our reach.
This morning we went back to the Embassy bright and early to fetch our visas. Then we had a bit of time to kill so we walked around a mall, got some lunch, and got back on The Beetle (our small ship). We made it back to Korea in just under 3 hours, and our bus from Busan to Tongyeong brought us back home. We've traveled quite a bit lately and we plan to lay low this weekend!

A Few Pictures from our Adventures!

The Lantern Festival at Jinju. That dragon spat real fire by the way!






This shot was in Andong. Seoul Shrine.











Seoul City Gate: We didn't know that we would stumble upon the changing of the guard ceremony! (They are to the right in the yellow garb!

Great Vacation

We have returned home from a most excellent holiday vacation. On Wed. we boarded a bus in Tongyeong at 7am. After over 6 hours on the bus, we arrived in Andong, an historic and 'cultural' town. We were able to see such countries as Poland, Malaysia, Costa Rica, Latvia, Mexico and India perform their traditional dances. Also, we saw the Hahoe Dance, famous in Korean history. The weather was sunny and warm, and B captured many great photos. We were even asked by some Koreans to be in the photos with them. At the festival, we were given balloons and traditional snacks by strangers.
Friday afternoon we boarded another bus and headed to Seoul. We thought the ride was a 3 hour ride, but it turned out being closer to 5 with the horrible traffic. We stayed in a hotel downtown, and really loved the great location. We took in two palaces, some city gates, and also a few parks with historic artifacts. Also, we enjoyed seeing the city. The first night, it was a ghost town, as many people were in their hometowns for the holiday. Last night, however, was a different story. There were people everywhere and there were many things to see.
Today we checked out some of the open-air markets, where souvenirs are everywhere. On our way to check out the south city gate, we were lucky enough to see the changing of the guard.
Tomorrow we work a full day and on Tuesday we leave bright and early for Japan. We will be back Wednesday night.

Jinju

Today we ventured to Jinju for a lantern and fireworks festival. We went with one of Heather's directors and some of her friends. The lanterns were more like parade floats, floating on the river in front of the castle. At night the lanterns were lit, the castle was covered in flood lights and then the fireworks came. It was really amazing but we have to take a 7am bus so you can't see the pictures just yet. Depending on the internet situation the rest of the week and our schedule we may get to putting some on but maybe not. Tomorrow we leave for Andong for a mask dance festival, Friday to Seoul for the weekend, Monday classes and then Tuesday to Japan. Busy, busy. We'll write when we can. B+H

The Entrance to the Geoje POW Camp.

The Pebble Beach in Geoje.

Brandon, Heather, and Arnie on the beach.

Arnie enjoying some raw fish at his father's restaurant. It's common to place meat/fish in the middle of lettuce, with various sauces.

Anticipation

This weekend we visited Goeje, a popular tourist island about 30 minutes from Tongyeong. We went with Brandon's buddy from work. Our day started with us visiting the POW Camp from the Korean War. The site was set up quite well and we learned and saw many interesting things. Next, we took a crazy ride down a windy road, to find a beautiful pebble beach! The plan was to board a small tour boat and head to another island. The problem was that when we got there, the wind was too strong and the coast guard restricted tour boats. So, we shot some pics and headed back to Tongyeong. Arnie's father owns a raw fish restaurant, so we were treated to our first raw fish eating experience. Heather enjoyed it much more than B, who ate approximately one bite before throwing in the towel! At least he tried it!
Today we met our friends Anna and Alice downtown Tongyeong and had some lunch. Then they found a place for Heather to get a haircut, as she was getting quite shaggy. She got a haircut, wash, blowdry, and style for 10bucks (tip included). Later we were invited to her director's home for a nice dinner. One of the students' fathers gave the teachers fresh shellfish as a Thanksgiving gift, and we ate them in a tasty stew.
Monday is the only day we have class for our first week in October, and our plans include going to Jinju for a lantern festival on Tues., the Andong Mask Festival Wed and Thurs, and Seoul Fri-Sun. We will inveitably have some great stories and pictures to share soon!
PS- Our first TKD test was Friday, but the teacher only told us, "good." We will find out in class on Monday!