The Inside of Your Ear is Green

Catch up time! T minus 40 days until I'm in the air to Germany! I'm currently experiencing about 10 different emotions all wrapped up in one. On one hand, I'm feeling incredibly excited to start this journey. A new country with a whole group of new friends, foods, running routes, and students to experience. Not only have I never been to Germany before, but also this will be the first time I've lived on my own in a European country. I have a feeling it will be different than Korea. Just a hunch. So along with the incredibly excited-oh-my-gosh-jumping-up-and-down feelings, I also have this nervousness that is hiding in the background. Not only do I have to pack up all of my things here in the next month but I'm also saying goodbye to my home for the last 2 years. I've met some amazing people who I'm not ready to say goodbye to yet. The longer you live here, the more people you say goodbye to, but I'm not ready to be the one people say goodbye to...if that makes sense. Leaving a place of comfort and familiarity is always hard. While I've found that I have some people in Germany who will help me get settled, I'm still feeling a bit anxious, ready to be settled, especially at my school! Anywhoo- for my last few weeks here I plan on making the most of my time with the people, places, and food. Definitely going to miss the food.

Now, for the activity update- Last weekend Alex, Liz, Vanessa and I headed to the COEX (reference the Chocolate Festival and Book Fair from previous blogs) for the Handmaid fair, where people set up booths to sell their handmade creations ranging from artwork, to bags, to soap, and everything in between. First we grabbed some lunch together at a place called "Cafe Mamas" right near the COEX. This place has warm, freshly baked, ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT bread. Yep. You heard me. Not sweet bread like the stuff you find whenever you look for a good baguette. Nope, this is the real deal. It was life-changing. We enjoyed our sandwiches, salad, and smoothies then made our way to the exhibit hall.

 

 

 Now commences a bunch of random pictures of crafts- sit back and relax. Pretend you walked through the massive throngs of people with us.

 

<3 Beth

 While going to these fairs are exhausting and truly tests your ability to navigate through large crowds, the talent and range of artistic ability was awe-inspiring. We each picked up a few knickknacks for ourselves and loved ones. From there we wandered off to Hongdae to grab dinner together and then went our separate ways for the evening. That night Vanessa and I met up with some gals from Rooted camp and we had a mini Korea Burn reunion in the park there, where we gave out "Thank you" jello shots to the crowds. I must say people are much more willing to try their first jello shot for free than when we were fundraising. Although I suppose that is to be expected.

Fast forward through the week of Open Houses, dances, and lesson planning to this weekend. Yesterday I met up with Ian and Brent to run in the Color Me Rad Seoul 5K! While I decided to have my stuff shipped to the school to avoid having to pick it up later, the boys were not so lucky. The organization of the race could have been better. Booths were not labeled clearly and lines of people wrapped around the stadium parking lot creating a lot of confusion and line-skipping (which is what we did at least. shhh don't tell). Once we were all numbered up and prepped with our neon glasses we wandered into the race area to check out what all the hullabaloo about these races is. Greeted by a stage with zumba instructors and a large crowd of white-clothing-wearing racers, I realized just how colorful we would get during the run. I also realized that some people (most) were definitely not going to be running (mainly the girls wearing denim shorts and cute sandals). As the over achievers we are, Ian, Brent, and I ran from each color station. Ian is a machine and sped ahead, leaving a trail of colored corn-starch in his wake. He did burpees and other plyometric exercises while we jogged up to meet him at a normal-human speed. Once you reach a color station you are met with several race volunteers with fistfuls of the colorful powder to aim directly in your face, preferably in your mouth if their aim is on target. Luckily I learned to close my mouth and eyes and aim my camera (safely in my waterproof case) right back at them!

the boys doing pushups

This race was not one for running but it was one for having fun and getting absolutely covered from head to toe (and everywhere else) in color. Using baby wipes, we tried to get as much color off as we could. The subway home was an interesting experience. My hands were died a dark green with pink blotches going up my arm. my face and neck had a slight blue tint, and my hair was streaked with orange, green, and blue flaky powder. I can only imagine what some people thought as they saw the open seats next to me and decided on their next move.

Getting home about an hour later I scrubbed off as much color (and probably some skin) as I could. Later on when I met some fellow Korea Burners I would be informed of some color remnants in my ears and scalp. We spent the night walking around Itaewon, the National Museum, and Hongdae, at one point spending time in my all time favorite Suzie Qs. And now I'm procrastinating organizing my apartment by writing this blog post! Thanks for the momentary distraction!

Next week, Beth arrives on Saturday!!! I can't control my excitement. I tell anyone and everyone I meet! We are going to take the country by storm and I can't wait! <3

Korean Phrase of the post:
"독일어를 공부하는 시간"
(Dokileoleul kongbuhaneun sigan)
Time to study German!

Korea Burn 2.0

What an incredible weekend! It is a bit daunting to sit down and write this, as I'm not sure I will have the words to express just how wonderful it was. Bear with me as I take you through Korea Burn 2014!

After weeks of planning, Rooted Camp (that's us...) headed down to Taean, Cheongpo beach to finally implement our community art piece. Up until then it was unknown as to whether our idea was just a bit too complex and would fall on its face or if fellow burners would embrace it and run with it. Fortunately for us, we had such amazing support from the other festival attendees. I couldn't have asked for more creative, loving, and open people to contribute to our vision. I'll start from the beginning though! Getting a bit ahead of my self- it happens when I get excited.

So- the first wave of Rooted members left early Friday morning to get our camp set up, as the rest of us had to go to work. The whole day I was counting down the clock until we could join them. Luckily, they kept us updated with pictures as they set up. We hopped on the bus (which we almost missed even though we were there 30 minutes early....I'll save that story for another time) and arrived at camp around 11:30. After being welcomed in (hugging....lots of hugging...) we walked up to our canopy and our jaws hit the floor. Lysianne and Debe had outdone themselves setting up our camp. Not only was the canopy absolutely ginormous, but the inside was so cozy and inviting, covered with the fabric acquired from Dongdaemun, and we even had a beanbag chair! After installing some lights and organizing a bit we gathered together. The anticipation of the next few days created such a good vibe with our group we couldn't wait! That night the party was in full force and the music (dubstep mainly) didn't stop all night. Not an exaggeration...I went to bed and woke up at 5:30 to the heavy beat and people still dancing away. A bit weary, I got up and explored the camp. It seemed people had JUST started to get to bed, so I had a lot of the camp to myself. There were huge structures were build on the beach including the "man" that would be burned later that day, trampolines dug into the ground, DJ booths, and a jellyfish tent. Another big structure on the beach was the temple. Walking through a short maze, we entered the temple and found such a peaceful environment where you could write down notes, prayers, and words of wisdom. This was taken advantage of by some, but taken to heart by others.

Dana joined me and we walked along the beach, eventually finding a completely random Tortoise and the Hare statue in a rock structure in the water. Naturally this meant we needed to have a photo shoot. Don't tell me you wouldn't do the same.

That morning we spent prepping for the art activities. We had our table of scratch paper all set up, a Polaroid photo booth in the trees, ribbons, and room to draw. A large group went off with Kristen to participate in our yoga program on the beach together. From what I heard it was a huge success! People came by and the tree creation began. Our idea of having people write their mark on the world morphed into people writing their personal matras or words to live by, which was inspirational and so moving. They all put so much thought and effort into their designs, I loved watching everyone. At some point I walked over to Lysianne who was standing off by the photoshoot backdrop and we looked at our camp together. We both got goosebumps (super cheesy) seeing our vision coming alive and exceeding our expectations.

Captain America saved our tree

and then this happened

The whole day we helped people as they came by our camp, and we also wandered around to see other groups! Our area was part of the "earth" section of the burn (via earth, wind, fire....not the band...). Other groups in our section had amazing activities like painting postcards, making maracas, and meditations. We took part in a tantric heart drawing exercise where we shared our thoughts and feelings with complete strangers while not feeling self conscious whatsoever. The feeling of being completely accepted by those you've just met without any worry of being judged or laughed at is just so freeing. That feeling followed us all throughout the camp. Others felt it too- as shown with some crazy costumes and artistic displays, even a few people had the bravery to walk around naked all weekend! True freedom and courage albeit definitely optional.

The temple

Korea Burn from the beach

Anywhoo- That night it was time for the burn. The whole group gathered around the giant "man" and waited for the show to start. Skillful dancers played with fire around the structure as we watched in awe. We cheered as the man was set aflame and watched as it fell (we actually needed to move back rather quickly in order to avoid being in the way of that...would have put a damper on the trip). The rest of the evening was spend dancing, talking, meeting incredible new friends, and smiling from ear to ear the entire time. Until my body realized that it had only gotten an hour of sleep the night before and shut down relatively early (based on the nature of the festival, bedtimes usually occur once the sun has risen). I passed out woke up super rested the next morning, ready for day two of the festival. I woke up to the sound of rain sprinkling on the tent. Getting flashbacks of last year I cringed as I opened the tent. Cloudy skies and a light dusting of rain made me a bit nervous about this day, but I was hoping it was just a tease. That morning I also lost track of my camera. I know what you're thinking- you all would have had a very boring, word-filled, rambling-Laura post. Not so fun without the pictures. After walking around the festival, between tents, along the beach, and asking the main tent 10 times (the last few times I walked up and they told me it wasn't there without me even saying anything) I kind of accepted the fact that my camera was missing. Due to the nature of this festival and Korea in general, I was not actually worried that it had been stolen, just that it was sitting in the sand soaking up the rain. I then decided to look through Brent's bag in the tent and low and behold....there it was....After punching Brent a few times, then hugging him to apologize for the punches, the day (and weekend) became instantaneously better.

After waiting line with some friends for bacon (didn't partake), french toast (didn't partake) and an orange (given by a girl in line, partook) we headed back to the tent to play some games. A new friend Brian and his brother Jonathon got us all together to play a 3 round version of catchphrase. The first round is standard, the next round (played with the same clues) you can only say one word to describe the noun (let's just say "pickle weasel" was a tad challenging), then the last round you could only act it out like charades. For people walking by, they must have thought we were crazy hearing someone say "favorite"-"giraffe!" and "rodent"-"flying squirrel!". The game melded into spending the rest of the afternoon hanging out, talking, listening to music, and enjoying each others company. Soon, surrounding camps began clearing up. One of the main commandments behind Burning Man is "leaving no trace". Whatever you bring with you, you have to bring back out again. Unfortunately, Korea Burn attendees do not all follow this rule. Trash piles up and litters the camp site, leaving volunteers and other burners to clean up after them. We spend the afternoon with our camp full of people (mainly because we were one of the biggest camps still set up and functional). I met a couple guys who taught us about Vinegar Strokes (urban dictionary if you're intrigued), one guy telling me a story about how he almost died getting caught in a wave nearly pulling him into a cave where he would have drowned, and just getting to know the other Rooted Camp members even better. It was around 5:30 that we decided it was time to start the inevitable. We all were delaying it up to that point, not wanting to accept the fact that the weekend was over. Cleaning up was surprisingly easy. We had the help of a group of amazing people and also had a break for a photo shoot of our group (of course).

never too old for leap frog

FAVORITE

Vinegar Strokes

Cleaning up the camp site so it looked like we were never there, we brought out our trash (jumped out of the car due to a crab who wanted to come home with us) then walked down to the beach for the temple burn. The mosquitoes were out in force as we congregated around the temple. Members of the burn team lit it on fire together and it was beautiful. The heat and light from the fire kept us entranced as we all were thinking about the past few days and just how successful they were. At one point our group all jumped on each other creating a cuddle of people (similar phrases include "tower of giraffes" and "school of fish"). We then got the chance to light up a paper lantern and release it into the sky. It was such a relaxing way to end the night! We said our goodbyes, promising for a reunion in the next few weeks. The Rooted Campers jumped into our giant van and made the journey back home.

getting there

all clean

Overall, I couldn't have asked for a better Korea Burn round two (although anything would have been better than last year....Kaitie you should have come this timeeeee) I can't wait to look through all of the papers written by other burners and the photos on our tree canvas, which we didn't burn! Who knows what we will do with it...the planning for our decomposition begins <3

Korean Phrase of the post: (brought to you by two very funny South Africans)
"당신은 항상 더 나은 수 있서요"
(dangshineun hangsang deo naeun suisseoyo)
"You can always be better"