Last Day in Seoul

On our last day in Seoul, those of us who remained from the study abroad decided to check out the show at the Banpodaegyo where they have water show to music along the bridge. It was neat, and a beautiful way to close the program.

Templestay

A couple weeks ago, we had the opportunity to spend the night at a Buddhist temple in what is called in Korean a "Templestay" (all one word). You dress, walk, behave, eat, pray and meditate like a monk for a night. First thing we did when we arrived was have a quick chat with the monk who was going to be our guide for the stay. We were served green tea by one of the female employees and as soon as she left us alone we were in scramble mode to make it look like we drank the tea (so as not to offend our hosts and make a big deal about it). It was shear madness trying to pour ten steaming cups of tea into three empty water bottles and then have to clean up the inevitably massive spillage. But our hosts came back and seemed none the wiser, even though there was still a sizable puddle of tea on the floor.

Next came the outfits. We were given grey novice "templestay" attire that made us look kind of like we were escaped convicts. On our way to the dining hall, we were asked to walk like monks - which means single file, hands clasped in front of you, and no talking. It looked like we were in a chain gang! Once in the cafeteria we followed the Buddhist manners for eating, which is to eat in silence and eat everything that you take. Inside the empty cafeteria with metal trays and complete silence we all had the same thought running through our heads: "It's like prison!". Eventually the monk came by to check on us and broke our silence (after that we were all more relaxed in our manners and talked out loud to each other).

After washing our trays we went to one of the Buddhist shrines and did some bowing. Then back in the templestay hall area, Dr. Peterson lead us in meditation time which we did for about a half an hour. And then it was bed time! Lights out at 9 PM. Which made sense considering that morning prayers began at 3 AM. Which we participated in (at least for a little bit). The rest of the morning involved some lecture from Dr. Peterson, free time, breakfast, and then getting ready to leave. By the time we left it was only 7 AM. Needless to say, the rest of the day (which included visiting a shipyard and getting treated to a VIP lunch) was a very long one.

Korean Poetry

As part of the study abroad, Dr. Peterson wants us to memorize two different Korean poems. One is a shijo poem (시조) which is reminiscent of haiku (which is Japanese) in the fact that each line has a certain number of syllables, etc. But this one is written by Kim Sowol (김소월) in the early 20th century. It has a similar feel to the folk song "Arirang"...the English translation is pretty rough and is close to a literal translation save for the second verse with which I took some liberties. I memorized this poem a few weeks back and "passed it off" by reciting it while on the road to Dr. P and the rest of the group. Yay! Only problem is I don't think I have more than the first verse memorized still...heheh...

The photo is of a pink azalea - I didn't know this before, but azaleas are part of the rhododendron family. I'd been walking past them all the time and didn't even know it!

Best & Worst Day Ever - Part II

After going to Gupo head out to Ulsan to see the two sets of petroglyphs there. There was a museum there shaped like a whale that we walked through, which wasn't that much fun, but as the sun was setting we set out to find the actual sites that we had just learned about. It was a beautiful day but we were coming up empty on finding historical things to look at. There was a sign saying there were fossilized dinosaur foot prints by the river, but we couldn't find any of them (the first photo is of some of us looking around for them). Then we walked down the path some more to see the the Bangudae (반구대) petroglyphs. We found them on the other side of the river on a broad rock face. In the past, the water level was lower and there was a stepping-stone walk way across the river to the other bank so visitors could look at the carvings up close. We were all disappointed that we could only try and see them through some of those sight-seeing binocular stations. They had good magnification, but none of us could see any carvings in the rock! They were too faint. Bummed at having been ripped off twice, we moved on to the next set of petroglyphs called Cheonjeonri (천전리). We ended up going on a pretty decent hike up the side of a hill/mountain, only to have Dr. Peterson and others at the front say that the path was a dead end that wouldn't lead to the petroglyphs we could see down the hill and across the river. So we back tracked all the way to the car only to find a map that showed the trail we were on would have curled around and crossed the river to the petroglyphs. Luckily, there was also a road that would take us right to it, so we hopped in the car and drove out to the river. Exhausted we all got out and took a look at the rock. After FINALLY having seen something we'd intended to look at, we all unwound and had a great time skipping rocks in the stream and enjoying the rapidly fading sunset in the valley.

Yes, I made a clover chain. And yes I'm wearing it as a tiara :)

Best & Worst Day Ever - Part I

This last Wednesday was a crazy day. Because Kenwood and Victoria (whose "couple name" we've decided is Kentoria) stayed home to get Victoria some medical attention, there were only seven of us and Dr. Peterson. We all piled into the rented van and stopped at the bank to get some money for Dr. Peterson. Two hours later we were still sitting in the van outside the bank. There was some problem with the bank not letting him withdraw money from his account. FINALLY we got out of there and went to Home Plus for lunch. I had Toast (토스트) which in Korea means a toasted white bread sandwich with egg, cabbage, jam, savory sauce, pickles, and your choice of other fillings (ham, bulgogi, cheese, pizza sauce, vegetables, etc.). It's delicious and cheap! It was just a super ironic morning because we spent a good 3-4 hours just a few minutes from the hanok where Kentoria thought we were going all the way to Yandong (얀동) which was a 3 hour car ride away. Because we blew our morning with financial issues, we decided to head up to Gupo (구포) and Ulsan (울산) to see some nearby sites.

Our first stop was to Gupo where we saw the remains of the old Japanese fortress used during the Japanese occupation of Korea. The photo with the rock wall is most of what remains.

A Trip to North Korea

Not to worry! We didn't actually cross the border to N. Korea!

Dr. Peterson showed us these apartments down the street from where we're staying that reminded him of being in N.K. It was like being teleported! Except for the greenery in the distance we could have been north of the DMZ. It is insane that there is an apartment complex that not only looks like this but that is also inhabited.

Gimhae - panorama

English Fail

Can you find it?

*HINT: It starts with a 'W'*

Escape to the Beach

I'm almost all caught up!

Last Saturday we bought bus tickets and rode all the way out to Busan and Haeundae beach for a weekend of sand and sun. It was a nice day, but most of us definitely got more sand than sun. After chilling on the beach for a while, four of us decided to walk around the beach to the other side of the mini peninsula. We found a lot of awesome views (and the boys managed to climb down to some rocks close to the water), eventually crossing a suspension bridge to get to the building where the APEC conference was held several years ago. I don't remember when it was, but Bush was still president according to all the photos. It's pretty surreal seeing him wear a hanbok (traditional Korean clothing) over his suit and tie.

After walking back to the others we all went out to a cheap dinner before riding the bus back to Gimhae. While the weather wasn't amazing, I'm glad that it wasn't typical summer - Haeundae beach is very popular with tourists and locals and on a nice day they come like a swarm to the beach.