A Full Weekend

We were quite busy this weekend. We travelled to two small towns, as each was holding a festival. The first town was Hadong, which has an amazing apricot blooming festival every year. It's held on a farm outside of town and the views were amazing. The weather was warm and we had a blast. Next we took an hour long bus ride to an even smaller town:Gurye. We visited Sansuyu Village, where trees with yellow buds are blooming. We saw some good things here as well, although a lot of people had their cars and were speeding by us. On Saturday night we stayed in a hotel in Gurye, and got up bright and early Sunday to visit a famous Korean Temple. Hwoemsa was quite a place and we had a good time here as well. Traffic was stop and go for about an hour getting back to Tongyeong, but now we're home and happy that we made the trip. I've posted about 50 pictures on a different website, and you can click the link below if you want a peak at them.
The next festival is the cherry blossom festival, which should also be a good time. The weather is warming up, and the forecast is saying 60 by the end of the week. Spring is here for us in Korea!
http://uwrf.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2032731&l=2ec2f&id=184902869

With regret

We're sad to mark the passing of Brandon's cousin Rachael. She died at the age of 14 from astrocytomas of the brain stem and spinal column. She was much too young to have had to deal with such ailments but her courage and spirit were far beyond her years. Our thoughts are with her parents and brother in this time of sorrow. She'll be missed and fondly remembered.

Spring Rain

We haven't posted in a few weeks, but we really haven't done anything too exciting, either! Last weekend we got new glasses. We were amazed when the eye exam consisted of us looking thru a machine for 10 seconds and the machine judging our prescription for us. It was unbelievable (and free). That machine must be expensive, but totally worth the money. We had a more difficult time choosing frames, but ended up satisfied an hour later when our glasses were finished!
Yesterday we traveled to Busan for the day. We met up with our friend and her boyfriend, and saw the movie "The Pursuit of HappYness". It was a very good movie. We then ate lunch at TGI Friday's, which turned out to be spendy but tasty. The skies looked like it would rain, but it held off and we were able to walk around for a few hours.
Today the rain came, and came, and came. The wind joined in and it was pretty exciting for awhile. The temps are really warm lately and I'm not sure if this is normal or not. But, with weather these days, what's normal anymore?
March is the time when Korean school-children start new grades. So, our hagwons have been changing classes around to accommodate with new students. This week should be fun as we will most likely give out several western names to the newbies.
We hope everyone is doing well and look forward to seeing you in July :)

Feb. 18, 2007: Just arriving at Mount Seoraksan (in Northeast South Korea).


Hiking up to the waterfalls.

A different part of the mountain: we took a cable car up here. It was amazing!

B trying to tip over the rock. All of those little piles are good luck piles made by various people.

At the foot of the mountain stands a big Buddha!

Happy Lunar New Year! We're lucky as we get a 3-day weekend, so we decided to head up north. Last night (Friday) we stayed in Busan with H's boss at her in-law's house. Then this morning we went back to the eye doctor. H's eyes are returning to normal, so that's a good thing.
At 11.20AM, we boarded the bus for Sokcho. We roasted for 6.5 hours, and made it here with no incidents. We saw the East Sea, and were surprised to see barbed wire set up along the coast. This is to keep the North Korean's out. We found a really nice hotel and ate a good meal at a local restaurant.
Our first impressions of this city are quite good, and we can't wait to sight-see all day tomorrow and Monday!

Year of the Pig

One perk that comes with living in Asia is that you get to celebrate the Lunar New Year by skipping work. For our long weekend we're trekking to northernmost corner of South Korea to discover (ideally) snow covered mountains and temples. Mt. Seorak is purportedly the most dramatic mountain range in this country and we're hoping will be worth the 7 hour long trip up there. http://english.tour2korea.com/03Sightseeing/TravelSpot/travelspot_read.asp?oid=1822&konum=subm1_1&kosm=m3_6

Waiting for the ship to set sail, a nice man voluneered to snap a photo of us!

The beautiful sunrise, as seen on 2-11-07 on our way to Yokji-do.
The view of Yokji-do, an island town of 2,400 people.

One of the many awesome views! We were told that Korean movie stars come here for vacation, to get away from it all and enjoy nature.

A Good Weekend!

We had a very nice weekend; things started on Friday when my co-workers took me out for a nice dinner for my birthday. Saturday we ate my favorite meal: cream seafood spaghetti at the Italian restaurant in town. We walked around town for a bit, and when it started to sprinkle, we rented a movie and headed home.
Sunday we got up at 5am, as we had to be to the boat terminal by 6:30am. B, our friend Catherine, and I took a ship to an island about an hour from Tongyeong: Yokji-do. Another friend of ours just moved there, and she offered to show us around.
The island has 2,400 people, and has a really cool feel to it. Our friend seemed to know everyone we saw, and she's only been there a few months! She even borrowed a bottle opener from a restaurant, as she didn't have one.
The views were really amazing, and the sunshiny day was perfect. We had a great time, and by the time we got back on the boat at 4:30, we were all worn out! We slept well last night.
This weekend we're lucky as we get a 3-day weekend (Monday is the Solar New Year, and thus a holiday). We're still deciding where we'll go, but we may try to go up north to see some snow before it all melts!
Hope you enjoy the pictures, and thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes!!!

Brandon, Roxy, and Arnie at school. Tina, B's youngest (and smallest) student.

Brandon & the kindergarteners. Roxy, Lauren, H, B, and Arnie at our fave bar.

There is an amazing new program called Google Earth that everyone should try. With it you can see satellite images of anywhere on Earth. The more developed the area is the closer you can zoom in. I think in most of America you can get to street level and with larger cities abroad to the same degree. It's unbelievable and it's free. You can find Heather and I by doing a search for Goseong, South Korea, we're the urban area directly south of Goseong. While you can't get to street level in Tongyeong you can get an idea of the city. We're at 34^50'18.95"N, 128^26'08.09"E. If you've been to places like Washington DC, Paris, Caracas or Tokyo you'll love this program.

On the other hand Brandon's kindergarten graduated yesterday so he has one less class everyday. We also had eye exams to see if we're eligible for eye surgery yesterday afternoon. Brandon's pupils are too big and Heather hadn't stopped wearing contacts long enough for her eyes to return to normal so they couldn't make a decision for her. Today, Sunday, we'll just hang out at home and play with Google Earth.

Nothing Much New

We've been laying low these past few weeks. The weather has been a bit chillier than we like, and H also came down with a cold/cough combo. We've hung out at home, watching movies and playing games. We're looking forward to mid-February, when we have a 3 day weekend. It's possible that we will get Lasik eye surgery that weekend. H's boss has an uncle who is a famous optometrist and known for his surgical skills. We still need to go in for the initial appointment, and hopefully will do that this weekend. Otherwise, just waiting for warmer weather so we can get out and explore more! Hope all is well with everyone.

The view from our apartment 1-13-06.
The kids lining up at the entrance to the amusement park in Daegu.

WEE!! Lucy goes down the hill!

B and H at the bottom of the hill!

Amusing Day

On Saturday, we took a class field trip with B's school; we went to an amusement park in Daegu. Daegu is the 3rd largest city in Korea with 2.5 million people. Our 2.5 hour ride on the school bus was a bit loud, and when we stepped off the bus we were greeted with cold air (it's north of Tongyeong). Once we got moving, though, we had a very nice day. There were 25 students with B's school, and about 40 from the TKD school (it was a mixed field trip). We started at the sledding hill, and went down the hill with no problems. I (H) did bump into a lady halfway down the hill, but she didn't yell at me too loudly!
Next we were surprised to learn that we were going to enjoy some of the big rides. We took the kids on 2 rollercoasters, the pirate ship (twice), and even the bumper cars. It was fun since we were able to have the track to ourselves for one ride, so many of the teachers and most of the students got to crash into each other. It was pretty fun. We were even surprised to see that they had the water flume ride operating. The line to go on that one was the longest: about 40 minutes to get wet...I don't understand it!
We got to Tongyeong at about 6.30 in the evening. It's been cold here lately, so we've been using the heat. This morning, however, we were sad to learn that the oil that heats our apartment AND our water was out. Luckily, $175 bux and a half hour later it was delivered by a friendly employee (we thought we would have to wait till at least Monday).

A

Our 1st tuk-tuk ride!! WEE!
One Big Buddha!
A few shots from the gounds of the Grand Palace.

Back in Korea

We have arrived safely in Korea with no glitches; everything went smoothly for us and we are unpacking our stuff now. This morning Min and her parents drove us to the (new) airport; it's only been in operation for 4 months and it's a pretty nice place. Our flight was only 4 and a half hours, and it sure flew by! When we arrived in Korea, we got our luggage, took a taxi to the bus terminal, and by 7.40pm we were on the bus to Tongyeong.
We'll get some pictures on as soon as we can.

Safe

Maybe you have heard of the bombs that went off last night in Bangkok. We are fine; we weren't in the wrong place at the wrong time. We were, however, in the area of the bombs. We were just getting off the Skytrain at about 7.15PM to see the Siam Square all lit up. I noticed that all these people were huddled around a small TV and asked Min what they were watching so intently. She listened for a few minutes and then said that we better get outta there; that bombs had just gone off very near our location. We hurried out of the area and back to Koa-San Rd. We never saw any bloodshed. The details were sketchy last night so we didn't even know if it would make the international news, but it did. It's very sad to hear of the loss of life on a normally festive night.
My internet time is running out; we will let you know when we arrive in Korea on the 2nd. Best wishes to everyone.

Bangkok

We've made it to Thailand! There were no problems and we met up with Min at the airport. We're really enjoying it here; there's lots to see and do. Everything is cheap here, so that's kinda fun, too. The coolest thing I (H) bought was a fresh fruit smoothy for about 70 cents. We've seen many historical sites as well, including an Ancient city that was mostly destroyed by the Burmese army a few hundred years ago.
Tonight is New Year's Eve so we'll have to ring in the new year in Bangkok! It will be hard to go back to the cold weather; it's been in the upper 80's-low 90's here all week.
Hope everyone has a very Happy New Year!!!

Flight Info

This is our last night at our place for a few nights! We leave Tongyeong tomorrow evening, when we begin our journey to Thailand! We'll leave here on a 7:30pm bus for Busan. We plan on crashing at a cheap motel near the bus terminal. Then on Thursday morn, i.e. 6am, we'll catch a taxi to take us to the airport. Our flight flies out at 8:30am on 12-28. We are flying Thai Airways, flight TG 651 from Busan to Bangkok. Our expected arrival time is 12:20pm Thai time (2 hours behind Korea time).
Our return flight is scheduled to leave from Bangkok on Jan 2, at 11:50am. We get into Korea at 18:45. This is flight TG 654 (Thai Airways).
We are anxious and excited to get the show on the road! The local weather on Xmas and today was unseasonably warm, mid 50's and sunny. They say that tomorrow it's gonna drop way down and keep dropping for the rest of the week. That's all we know for now. If we don't get a chance to post before January, Have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Unexpected Test

Tonight at Taekwondo we were surprised to learn that we would be testing for the 6th chapter this evening. We had about 15 minutes to practice, and then we did our test with the other students watching. Normally all the students participate together, but since we won't be there to take the test on its normal date, we had to go alone. We have an Xmas party for H's work the night of the test, so our instructor was nice and let us test early. We think we did well, and hopefully the next time we go to class we will be red belts!
This week has really gone by slowly, but tomorrow's Friday! Saturday will be a busy day since we will both be participating in holiday programs. It doesn't seem like the Christmas season this year, as there is no snow and we're away from family. It really snuck up on us!

Change of Plans!

On Saturday, we visited Tongdosa, one of the three most important temples in Korea. It's said to hold important relics from Buddha. We took a bus from Tongyeong to Unyang, which was 2.5 hours long. Then we caught a city bus to the temple, which was about a 3o minute ride. The weather was brisk but we were dressed accordingly and had no problems. It even tried snowing once we got to the temple, but gave up quickly and the sun peaked out not long after that. We had a nice time and enjoyed the fresh air.
The ride home was less than desirable, as we ended up on a wrong bus and took an extra hour to get home. But, one bump in our transportation plan in 5 months isn't too bad, so no complaints here.
We're getting excited for our Thailand trip. We just learned today that we will be staying longer than originally planned! Instead of a rushed 3 days, we will have a solid 5 days in the Bangkok area. We now leave the morning of Dec. 28th, and get to Thailand at 12.20pm (no time change necessary). Our flight home doesn't leave until Jan. 2 at noon! We are so pumped, and are now researching more attractions to visit! B has found an ancient city that he's pumped about. I'm looking forward to seeing my friend the most! The warm weather won't be bad, either.
Both of our schools have Holiday programs on Saturday afternoon. We then have Sunday and Christmas Monday off; we may try to take in one more Korean temple in 2006! Hopefully everyone is doing well, we miss you.

Holidays

We bought a small white Christmas tree! It came furnished with cute lights and a few ornaments. The two kids are Jane and Sue, sisters who are also H's students.
Today (12-14), I had a party with one of adult classes. We went to a noray-bong, AKA karaoke room. They are very popular here and are everywhere. The woman on the left, Sandra, just opened one, so we went to wish her well and sing a few ballads.

Brown Belts

We passed our test last Thursday, and are now brown belts! This is exciting; we are moving right along. Our instructor told us that we will be testing for the black belt in March. I guess there are 4,000 students who meet together, and all test for the black belt. We have been learning "chapters", and we are on the 6th chapter now. There are 8 in total. When we get to the test, there will be a panel of judges, and 10 students are in a group together. The judges decide which chapter we must perform; they can choose any chapter between 4 and 8. Our instructor said they almost always choose 8, as it's the most difficult to do! After we perform that, we must do a sparring portion. Girls spar with girls, and boys with boys. You spar with someone who is the same height as you. According to our instructor, we only have to spar for 20 seconds! However, if you don't do any moves, you must begin again. So, basically, we have to go out kicking for 20 seconds. The test is 80% our chapter performance, and 20% our sparring ability.
Both our schools are doing holiday shows on December 23rd, and everyone is busy getting ready for them. It should be cute, however B's school has a lot planned. His may turn into a 2-day show! The temps are steadily falling, but the sun is usually out in the morning and afternoon.

Weekend Photos

Friday night at our place: L-R Anna, Alice, Lauren, Arnie, Jeff, B, and Roxy.



Heather with the birthday girl: her mom is B's director and her dad is our TKD instructor. Brandon with his medal after finishing the 5K.
Michelle's wedding. It's common to take large family photos, and then friends pose with the couple.

Busy Weekend!

Our weekend started Friday night with a party at our house. In all there were 10 people; mostly co-workers. B did meet a fellow foreigner from Indiana, and he also came. We had pizza, snacks, beer, fruit soju, and Jenga! Our last guest left about 3am! Saturday we walked to town and bought a present for B's director's daughter (her father is our TKD instructor). It was her 1st birthday party, one of the biggest birthdays celebrated in Korea (the other is the 60th bday). This was our 1st such party, and it was a good experience. The food was plentiful and tasty, and the festivities were interesting.
This morning we awoke early and headed to our 5K race. This was a first for both of us, and it was a very good time. It was a bit chilly today, but once we got going we were sweating. This marathon is a big deal, and a famous Korean actor even started the morning with an appearance. We didn't win the race, but we weren't dead last either! It took us exactly 35 minutes to run 3.1 miles. For not practicing at all, this is a decent time for us! After the race, we booked it home, showered, and changed into our "dress up" clothes yet again. One of my co-workers got married at 2pm, and we were able to see the ceremony. It was our second Korean wedding, and it was enjoyable.
One sidenote: 2 American guys introduced themselves to us. They are in the Army and stationed in Daegu. One of them, Marty, informed us that he was from Sioux Falls, SD! Wow, what a small world! He's been in Korea for 2.5 years and really likes it here. He's upset since he's being transfered in a few months. Well, I asked him how he did, and it turns out that he won the 10K!! That was pretty cool. I'm sure there was an award show, but we didn't have time to watch it.

A Wonderful Day in Tongyeong

Yesterday Brandon and I met up with our friends Arnie and Roxy. We started the day by renting two tandem bikes; we rode them down the boardwalk along the water. The view was amazing and the sun was shining so it was a great time. We stopped at a place along the path and had a nice lunch, too. After we returned the bikes, we drove to a Buddhist temple on Mireuksan (the mountain we climbed a few months ago). It was very peaceful there, and also beautiful. Next we headed to Gala Park, which overlooks many of the islands of Tongyeong. The view was incredible! We then headed back into town where we met up with our friend Alice. We all ate a light dinner and walked around window shopping.
Luckily we did all of our outdoor adventures yesterday; today it's rainy and cold. We have plenty of housework to do around here, so we won't get bored!
Also, it's official: We are going to Thailand at the end of December! We will be visiting my friend Min, who studied in the USA for a year when I was in high school. It's quite warm in Thailand, in the 80's, so that will be a plus also! We will be there for 4 days, but don't have any of the other details worked out yet! It will surely be a great Christmas present though!

A view from the bike trail that we took.

Arnie, Brandon, Roxy and Heather! We rode tandem bikes and had a picnic along the boardwalk.

Jinju

On Saturday, we visited Jinju, a town of about 350,000 people. It's about an hour from Tongyeong. We had been to this city one previous time for the Lamp Festival, but everything was crowded at that time and we didn't get to take it in. Yesterday it was pretty much deserted, and quite peaceful. The castle and its grounds are on a hill overlooking the city on one side, and the river on the other. The trees were beautifully colored and it was a great experience. There is also a huge history museum, but once we saw the size of it up close, we knew that we would not have time to conquer all of it in an hour. So, we firugre that we will be back in the future to walk through that.
Today we are going to get some grocery shopping done, and just relax a bit. It's hard to believe that we've been here 4 months already; time is really flying by!

1) B and H b y the big bell inside the Castle Park-Jinju.
2) Entrance to the Castle.
3) H and B down on the river bank.

TKD Festival

Last weekend we watched the Tongyeong Taekwondo Festival. Students from 15 or so TKD schools competed individually all day long. The youngest kids were about 6 or 7, and the oldest were high school students. There were many spectators, as TKD is a native Korean sport. We snapped a few photos in the process!
In the first photo you can see many floral arrangements. Whenever there is a grand-opening or a big event, friends and family bring flowers and/or plants to show support. The whole stage was lined with them!

Fall Photos

1 & 2-Halloween w/ the kindergarten class.
3- B and H at the harb farm.

4 &5- At the park (name unknown)

Halloween & Fieldtrip

On the 31st, both of our schools celebrated Halloween. As the holiday is not normally celebrated in Korea, the schools were the only places partying. Some students dressed up, and there was candy to be had by all!
Saturday we took a fieldtrip with H's school; it was for the kindergartener's and their parents only. We had a two hour bus ride to a famous park, which was peaceful and beautiful. Next, we visited an herb farm. We were treated to an herb lunch, we made herbal soap, and even an herbal candle! It was really a beautiful place and the colorful leaves only added to the scene! There was a pond at the farm, and of course one of the students managed to fall in. Other than that, there were no problems and everyone had a nice time.
We had a rainstorm today, but after it quit the weather was quite comfortable. There are no big plans for us that we know of right now. TKD is still going well, and we are working on getting our brown belts soon!