Spring Update 2012

Hello again it's been a long time since I sat down to write about my adventures in Korea.  I bet you wonder what amazing and creative trouble I might have been into.

The best quick answer is that we have been busy...
I usually plan a couple of travel adventures for us every month so that we can get out of our 260 square feet apartment and enjoy this interesting country. 
Let's see the last time I wrote It was April and I was celebrating my 51st birthday. 

Since then we have found a really nice place to retreat to in Busan. It's not that expensive when it's not high tourist season and it's only a few steps away from the finest beach in Korea; Haeundae is very famous with tourists, and has great access to many different foods; Korean, Italian, Vietnamese, and other types, even a Quiznos sub shop. So we can relax and order with confidence here. One of the problems that we have faced is not really knowing what to order when we go out to eat. Variety here makes it easy.

While we were there in May we had some relaxing time on the beach, watched some huge amazing sand sculptures be built and we enjoyed seeing some of my young friends from the EPIK orientation last year. One night we ventured to a major temple in Busan for the Lantern display that was there for Buddha's birthday. It was amazing and of course many people were there for prayer and religious observance but some of us just went to observe the amazing display of lanterns.  We returned very tired and happy to Chungju after the long weekend, and I returned to work on Monday.

Finally it was summer, June was here and my American body was telling me that teachers and students should be heading home for a couple of months soon. My American body wasn't thinking that it was now teaching in Korea where the people take education to an extreme. Students here attend classes every day until July 25, when they have a short 6 week break -- well they don't go to public school everyday during that time and they may have a week or two vacation with family but the rest of the time, they study at the academies and in their homes. They study stacks of books that they were assigned for their break, and when they return this work is turned in for a grade. Let me tell you that Korean parents, especially successful ones take these grades very seriously and their children are very respectful of this. 

I am too. in America too many students think that education is their "right", and it's one that they have learned that they can misuse. In Korea and other parts of the world, Education is still a privilege and one that they respect. -Low bow to serious students and parents. -

So... we have the weekends, don't we, and we can still have fun until our mere 3 week vacation at the end of August. Deep sigh... Yes! In July we saw a play that I have been trying to get seats for in the US for years. We went to see "Wicked".  Was really excited about going to this play because I had read the enormous book about 3 times and just loved it!

It was good, but you know what they say... The movie can never really do as well as your own imagination. It's true in this case as well. We enjoyed it, but not as much as the book. Aaahhhhh

finally the kids went home for their break! I have 2 summer camps to teach after our short 5 day adventure to Busan (we're on our way there now). I plan to enjoy the days in Busan fashion; food, friends, and beach. That's if the weather holds out. So far so good. After all it's rainy season here and a typhoon could also just as easily decide to vacation in Busan. Lol

We're also trying to decide just where to go for our mere 3 weeks. We though about Russia (that was way too expensive), so we tried for Beijing and Xian. Ben never saw those amazing places, but God had other plans. China just experienced another flood with a very high damage and death count. Maybe they can recover better without us, we'll see. 

The best news that I have right now is that I am having such a good time in South Korea that I have signed another contract for each of my schools. We'll stay another year. Another year means more teaching, more travel and more time to learn about Korean people, their culture, and how all of the changes can positively affect my life. I'm looking forward to all of it and writing to you about it.

Just one more thing...  Had an amazing experience that really made me appreciate the efficiency of the Korean systems. Ben and I went to Jeonju this July. Jeonju is an interesting historical city in Joellenam-do province. We saw the Hannok village and paper making process. Korea has a special hand made paper called Hanji. It was fun to see that, eat good Korean food and take a break at the cinema that night and see Spiderman. BUT... 

Just as we were getting ready to return to Chungju, I did a really typically Connie thing.  I Left my purse in the taxi, got out and screamed "Hey my purse!" He drove away. In the midst of my panic, I ran into a coffee house to ask where the tourist information was. Broken English was extremely ineffective at this time. I grabbed a British girl and she ran with me to the info desk about 300 meters down the street. I left Ben at the bus terminal where he knew to just sit down and "hug a tree" until I returned.

Meanwhile the information desk called the taxi companies, and the police. OMG! I'm thinking more now; I have no money, no ID, no credit cards, my iPhone, Nook and reading glasses... It was all coming back to me. 

This was a nightmare! 

I ran back to the bus station and got Ben who was right  where I left him, gratefully. We walked back to the tourist info to meet the police. They welcomed us with the ride to the station to fill out a police report. I was so hungry and so scared; how was I going to get back to work on Monday and how was I going to get something to eat? All I can say is that sometimes my husband is rather sneaky. Thank goodness! He had a secret 50,000₩ (about $45) that took care of all of our needs. The officers assured us that in the biggest city in Jeollanam a purse could be found and returned intact! 

We went home and 2 days later we had a good friend call the officers. My purse was indeed found and all of the contents were safe. 

Believe me I had my doubts, and I took good care of my credit cards and my ID but the very fact that I had my most precious items returned with no loss was a credit to the city and the country. Again, low bow to the honest Korean people. May they live long and prosper!

That's the end of my very long rant about this adventure.  Guess I waited too long this time. please enjoy the pictures and my crazy tales and write to me sometime or let me know you're out there on Facebook.
Talk to you soon, Connie. 

My 51st year clebrated in South Korea

Hello this is the first blog of my 51^st year. Yes that’s right, it’s my birthday blog.  I have to admit that sounding off about your birthday at 51 is not very popular, but I don’t care!  I really had a good time. So that leads me to tell you about my birthday this year.

It all started back in February when I knew Ben would have to be resetting his passport in April. I decided to pull a few things together for the week before my birthday. Ben could get his passport reset, cherry blossoms would be peaking, and I could plan a very short trip to Japan for my birthday. It was a short trip, and it was expensive but hey, it’s Japan.  I don’t mean to brag, but I don’t know anyone who takes off for the weekend to go to Kyoto, Japan for their birthday.  I did! 

While there, I stayed in a very nice hotel. It had a very warm pool with a fitness center, a bath with a sauna and a resting area for relaxing afterwards. It was very rich, and I took advantage of it after the very long and exhausting tour on Saturday. 

On Saturday I took a 9 hour tour of the major sights. It was a very good tour, but I wish it had included fewer sights and given us more time to really enjoy what we were seeing. That’s the problem with sightseeing tours. You don’t sit in the driver’s seat, you ride along. So we made the most of it. The sights were mainly of temples and pavilions and castles. The adjoining gardens were remarkable and of course Kyoto is famous for the way they planned the locations in such a way that mountains were easily seen from important locations. It was truly amazing and I would love to go back if I had more time.

The next day we had a 5:00 return flight from Osaka, which takes only 1 hour to get to. So, I went to the Kyoto museum in the early part of the day. It featured historical information about the city and the culture. There was a special exhibit about the textile designs that were used for costumes and traditional clothing such as kimonos. I found that very interesting. When we ready to leave the museum we went to find some lunch. However, we were out of cash and the ATM’s were not very accommodating to foreigners. So we used my credit card and ate at Starbucks. It was a very recognizable sandwich and a coffee.

It was getting late and time to head to the airport. We returned to the hotel to catch the shuttle back to the train station. We missed the shuttle, and had to wait for the next one. Then when we arrived at the train station we had to figure out which train to take. The lady at the counter was not very fluent and our Japanese well, it doesn’t exist. So we made do with the recommended train to Osaka.

Unfortunately it was the slow one, and we had a transfer that we missed and then had to take the next one. By this time, I was very afraid that I was going to miss my flight. In fact we did miss our flight.

We arrived at the airport at about 5:10, just 45 minute late to board the plane.  For the next 2 hours, we worked with the Jeju Air clerks to find another flight. The flight left the next day. Uh oh! 

           I was very afraid at this point. I was going to have to call my Ko teacher and explain. She had already been so accommodating and let me leave early on Friday. Koreans just don’t take days off like other people. I knew this was going to put a dent in her confidence in me.

Somehow, she understood and I went home the next day. 

I was glad that she wasn’t mad, but I was really angry at myself. Not only did I screw up the schedule, but I had to shell out about $400.00 more for an airport hotel room, dinner and penalties for the rescheduled flight. LIVE and LEARN! 

           The birthday celebration wasn’t over because I had a bad return; it just slowed me down, gave me time to think. I had Monday off due to my mess in Japan, Wednesday and Thursday off from my other school, as the students were off on a field trip.

SO I actually only worked 2 days that week, neither of them was busy or difficult. And then I had Saturday and Sunday to play again. Plus I got an early gift from my son Joe and a couple of cards that were sent early from family and friends. To get a birthday gift from Joe is great, but an early gift sent all the way to Korea, WOW!! It’s very cool to be getting older. He sent me a lovely small quilted purse that he said just called my name. How sweet.

           The weekend weather was beautiful and we took advantage of the weather and went for a bike ride each day. On Saturday we went to the Asian Olympic Rowing Regatta at the Tanguem river in Chungju. It was a nice day. Sunday we rested and went swimming. I made a delicious chicken soup.

           But finally it was Monday and it was April 30.  I got up quite gladly and came to work. When I got here I found out that I had no classes and my Ko teacher bought me a lovely present. It was bottle of rosemary bath gel and a card. I spent the day resting and reading. The day was over and I went home.

           Ben surprised me with a delicious vegetable and chicken salad with almond and walnut dressing. The table was set with a double orchid center piece. It is gorgeous! As I looked around the room, I saw colorful balloons blown up and floating on the bed and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY banner that he made. Ben said he had a lot fun being creative about making my day very special.

           He really went all out. After dinner he brought out a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and Baskin Robbins mint chocolate chip ice cream. We laughed because he had gone to a lot of trouble to find sparklers for my cake, but feared lighting them in the apartment. It might set off the smoke alarm and cause a scene. So the sparklers were lit later down by the river about a block from the apartment. We had fun playing like kids in the dark.

           Altogether, I think I had the best birthday ever!  It was celebrated 7,000 miles away from home, but I felt the love and joy from all of my family, friends in the USA and Face book friends from around the world. Thanks everyone, I am very happy to be getting older and yes, life is getting better!  I’m look forward to everyday being 51. 

          

Spring Break Surprise!!

Hi again, it’s really been six months! Wow, it’s really been six months?  It seems like I just flew in yesterday for this really fun and an incredible adventure!  February is the end of the school year.  I’m excited to be getting some new co teachers to work with and also some new classes.  There’s been some changes to the schedules and to the teachers because as always the number of students changed.  Also, the Korean Public school system is structured so that teachers only stay in one school for 4 years, and then they have to transfer.  This is an extraordinary compliment to the system. The teachers never get stuck in their ways. They never have an opportunity to develop too much political clout in the system. So, everyone has a chance to make a difference if they are so inclined. This is even true of a foreign language teacher, me.  I’ve had a couple of teachers that were less than cooperative and they will be leaving. 

 But the end of the school year brings me to this super gift that was given to me by my schools.  I had two extra weeks off with pay.  Time to travel or rest, they said.  Didn’t need to twist my arm. I made plans to travel to some historical places that I’ve been wanting  to see.Now I can tell tell you all about this amazing historical place in South Korea.  I see South Korea as a historical place anyway, but not all of it is as well preserved as Gyeongju.  These Koreans work very hard to establish a place for their children to come and find their roots.  This is home to the oldest dynasty, Silla (sounds like Shilla)  When we left, we were unsure what we would find. But, we’re always unsure what we’ll find. 

We decided to travel by train to Daejon and then take the KTX (speed train) to Gyeongju. Ben was eager to see what that was like. I’m not sure how impressed he was, but he did remark that a train moving 200 KPH is pretty fast. We arrived in Gyeongju, found a pretty nice room for 50,000 won per day and settled in.  

When I say a pretty nice room, I’m not kidding. This room was decorated nicely and had a tub with jets and a great shower, a couch and a pretty comfy bed.  The Tv screen was very large and it had a computer.  Oh and I have to add that everyday we had clean towels and silk robes. That’s really nice for 50,000 won. 

The bus terminal lends itself to lots of tourism, so there are many motels in the area just behind the terminal.  The neon is really stunning. I think it looks like Vegas or Reno. It seems that many of the motels cater to customers that prefer shorter stays, possibly an hour or two.  It’s not a secret, in fact the “working women” leave their business cards taped to the entrance of the motels. We were the unusual couple that actually stayed for a few days and slept there.  I like the difference, don’t you?  

The next day we went to the Gyeongju National Museum. I’m really glad we chose this first. It was full of history, archeology and art that helped explain all the things that we would see the next day on the tour that we took. The museum had many excavated artifacts from the kings tombs, like jewely, crowns and other adornments.  Kings were always buried with their possessions, so they had many of the necessary things that they might need to continue their lives in the great beyond, vessels for food and water and sometimes they were buried with their servants, who by the way were still alive. ugh!  Sometime later, human sacrifice was outlawed and they were forced to bring replicas of their servants crafted in clay. Ben and I were delighted that ancient Korea was not that different than ancient Egypt or ancient China in this way.  Humans tend to be human. They like their stuff, and even if it didn’t really transport with them, others believed they were special enough to bring some of it along, just in case.  

We found dinner near the hotel, and went to bed early. We had big plans for the next day.  On Friday we took the course 3 tour.  It was very full of interesting things, some of which would have been fantastic if the weather had been warmer.  

The tour bus left at 11:00 am. and started with a short visit to Poseokjeong site.  It was an area that had wooded paths and a water course. Because of it’s beauty it was used by the royalty for gatherings. At this time, the water course was dried up and the paths were muddy.  On to the next place... 

Cheonmachong is a burial place where I could really use the information that I got from the museum.  Korean people are buried in the ground in a wooden box, sounds normal.  After the box is put in the ground, they take field stones and cover the ground to make mound that later grows grass and is maintained by the family.  When the grave belongs to royalty, the box contains all of the possessions and the mounds are really huge.  As you might have guessed, there are many royals buried in the same area, so that when you visit this site, there are mounds everywhere. At Cheonmachong the grave was excavated and you could walk into the mound and look at the open box, where the king was laid.  Very interesting indeed!  

Next stop, Cheomseongdae observatory. The observatory was built with 361 stone slabs that represent the 361 days in the lunar year.  It’s a pretty short structure for an observatory, but I bet the stars were prettier from the top.  This was a little disappointing in itself, but it’s part of the museum without walls, and it is surrounded by beautiful gardens and trees that of course aren’t blooming in February.  Ahhh shucks!  I’ll be back for this and a few other things in the spring, like Anapji pond.  

Anapji pond will be amazing when it’s surrounded by flowering trees and shrubs. The pond is an excavation site as well. Many archeological finds were made when they dredged the pond that tell the story of the Silla royalty.  The buildings are no longer standing at the site, but the model of the original buildings speak to an amazing place and time when the prince held grand parties and celebrations. One thing that was outstanding about this place is the fact that there was evidence of wildlife, like deer, geese, and other animals and plants that I haven’t heard of or seen anywhere else in Korea. This is one thing that I cannot understand. Korea is 75% mountains and most of them are not inhabited. Where are the animals?

Finally it was lunchtime, and we were really hungry. Ben had Bi bim bap and I had bul gogi.  One must experience Korean food to fully enjoy. Sorry I will not explain! Back on the bus, we were ready for the final leg of the journey.  We were finally going to the Seokguram Grotto and the Bulguska temple. 

The Grotto was beautiful!  The ride was a steep winding road up a mountain that left me a little car sick, but fully anticipating some beautiful mountain scenery.  The bus let us off in the parking lot and we walked about 1/4 mile on a wooded dirt road to the grotto.  The stone carved Buddha was worth the walk, but unable to be photographed, as were so many other things along the way.  “NO CAMERAS”!

This included the Buddhas at the temple.  However, the temple was beautiful and we photographed some of the colorful details and the stone additions. They were unusually built and interesting.  

We were very very tired and hungry by the end of the day.  We asked to be dropped off at the grocery store where we could buy some pizza and Pringles for dinner.  The room was warm and inviting and the jetted tub, well... it was full in a jiffy. Man was it relaxing after a full day of tourism.  

Winter Vacation in Indonesia

Happy New Year!  I have so many things to tell you now, I just don’t know where to begin.  

The holidays were good, low key and we had a lot of time to explore Seoul.  Seoul is so large and  has so many interesting things to see and do that we will go back often. Our next adventure in Seoul is for our anniversary which is coming up in February.  I made dinner reservations for 2 at the Seoul tower.  The Seoul Tower is famous for it’s revolving dining room.  From it you can see the entire city in a single revolution.  Each reservation is made for 1.5 hours. Because we are a couple we will have special seating near the window, a bottle of champagne and a special anniversary cake that says, “I love you”.  This is especially sweet because our anniversary is on Valentines day.  Thats the future.

Ben and I just returned from a  9 day vacation on a small island resort in Indonesia. The name of the resort is Bunaken (island) Cha Cha.  I made the reservations for this wonderful holiday back in November before Ben was here in Korea.  I was taking a chance making the reservations that far in advance but it was even more of a risk, not really knowing anything about Indonesia, what to expect from the the resort and also the weather during January.  Each day I would look at the weather bug and it always said rain. Rain’s not unusual in the tropics, I’ve heard. (Especially in the rainy season, duh) I kept the faith, wrote a few e mails to the owner inquiring about the weather.  Sure enough, the weather was perfect everyday that we were there.  

We left for the airport on Thursday evening because the plane was scheduled for 10:30 am. Taking the earliest express bus to Incheon put us there at 9:30. That’s cutting it too close.

So we made a reservation to stay in the spa at the airport.  Spas in Korea are generally divided by gender. Men stay on one side and women on the other. The reason for this is that most people enjoy a hot bath before retiring and while Koreans are willing to bear it all to their fellow countrymen or countrywomen, they don’t mix during these sacred occasions.  Bathing is a big event in Korea.  Believe me when I say, they do this very well.  However, the beginning of our first vacation in awhile began with separate bedrooms. ugghh. 

Up the next day and off to Jakarta, Indonesia. This would prove to be an interesting evening as well, and another night in a hotel.  Jakarta is a hub for the rest of the islands and is very busy. While very busy shows productivity, here it merely emphasizes the lack of organization that exists in the airport. 

We arrived, picked up our luggage and finally found the hotel in the airport.  We were pleasantly surprised by the room.  At last, after 5 long months of sleeping on a very firm almost concrete mattress, I found myself sinking into the sheets. ahhh zzzzzzzzz This happened very quickly.

Breakfast was delicious! We ate and made it to our flight to Manado Island, where we found a taxi waiting for us. I’ve never traveled in a car with the steering wheel on the right.  I’d like to say  that the next 45 minutes was relaxing and enjoyable, but it was more like a game of chicken played with motor bikes, pedestrians, and other vehicles on a narrow dirt road all the way to the pier.  I was just happy to have arrived at the pier, and see our boat that was ready to take us to Bunaken Island and to the Bunaken Cha Cha resort.  

After all of this, we were pretty well ready for anything.   Instead we were welcomed by the owners, Raf, Reiko and Chico (the great dane).  There were several other staff members as well. 

We were given a welcome drink a few moments to rest on the patio, and then were shown to our room.  We had been hoping for a bed like we had in the Jakarta hotel, but no cigar. 

The room was lovely though, and was decorated with rugged, island elegance.  We found red hibiscus on the bed and on every surface. It was a very attractive, romantic touch. The bathroom was done in lava rock and natural wood. The shower was set apart and had an open style roof that let in the sunlight for some green plants.  It was delightful!

We took a day off before beginning our sea adventures. We were pretty tired and had been traveling for 2 days already.  We relaxed on the patio, ate good food and found ourselves pretty much alone for 2 whole days, until a family of other guests arrived. After that it seemed a new boat of vacationers arrived everyday until finally there were about 21 guests.  We had representatives from every continent and many countries at dinner every night.  The discussions were always lively, intelligent and fun.  

The second day, Ben and I hit the sea looking for the local reef, Cha Cha 1.  The water was very warm, sometimes like a hot spring was underground. We were impressed, but we knew that there was more and better territory beyond cha cha, and we were so right. 

What we found was an amazing living undersea garden or tropical plants and colorful corals of many species. The fish and wildlife were also as diverse as their habitat and in a range of sizes.  

I guess you could say, it was the very best snorkeling either of us has ever done.  Each excursion just got better!

There was a small village behind the resort that was about a 20-50 minute walk, depending on which direction you went.  The roads were lined with diving resorts in one direction and in the other direction, there were residences, churches and other signs of a community, like a library and a small stand for drinks. When I say the walk was lined with resorts and residences, please don’t think it was like your neighborhood.  Along the way I saw many large indonesian cows, sometimes chained to a tree, sometimes roaming around. There a few pig families running around and roosters followed by hens and chicks, all free roaming around the village.  I’m not sure, but I think that since this Island was a resort island, the families here enjoyed prosperity, as tourism, means work and income for everyone. 

Finally by the 8th day, I was getting tired of the isolation. Life on an island is interesting, beautiful and challenging for awhile, but we’re used to civilization and I was becoming ready to head back.  Remembering the freezing cold temperatures that I left in Korea was not ann incentive to head to back.  We wore our summer clothes all the way back to Korea and changed in the airport.  Believe me walking out into the Korean sunshine was like jumping into the ice cold Atlantic after a warm bath.  Now I’m home, I’ve put all my summer things away and am watching my tan fade everyday, sadly.  I guess you could say there were many bumps along the way, but we had a really good time, the timing was great. We met some interesting people, ate delicious food, had the best service everyday and saw some amazing sea life.  Most of all I was warm, rested and had some time to forget everything that was behind us.  
Enjoy the pictures! Notice they have captions to help you understand where and why.