Saturday
Laura Teacher gets the airport WAY early, too anxious to sit in her apartment to wait for Beth's arrival. I end up being surprised by Beth sneaking up on me anyway because I was waiting at the wrong gate. We head straight to Incheon Bus Terminal to go to Boryeong Mud Festival to meet Sun and Tarah. Arriving at the bus station early we have a chance to catch up and catch our breaths. We walk around a park nearby the station and then hop on the bus for the short trip down to the beach. We get to Boryeong, grab a coffee, then attempt to get a cab. I figured, since it was the second weekend of one of the biggest festivals in Korea, all of the cab drivers would be very much aware if not expecting that foreigners would be asking to go. Unfortunately, after saying "beach" and "mud festival" in multiple languages and accents, our taxi driver and his colleagues had no idea what we were talking about. I was trying to call my Korean angel Sun when suddenly Beth made the astute observation that our driver was, in fact, wearing a "Boryeong Mud Festival" shirt. We pointed to it and said "OH! Mud-uh Pestibal!" Uhm....Yes...thank you....
So we make it down there to meet Sun and Tarah, grab some dinner (Beth's first Korean samgyeopsal) and hit the beach to listen to a K-pop concert with some famous dude, Sun-E. Made a lot of Korean friends who thought it was just natural that there were 4 of us and 4 of them, so we should join them for some drinking games and drinks. We were trying to keep it a girls night, so they left to find another lucky foursome of gals.
Sunday
The next day we woke up early to get all muddy! Decked out in old clothes, we entered the mud festival area. If you remember my post from last year, you might think that it would be crazy crowded where you had to wait in line for an hour to go down one slide. Au contraire- in fact, this second weekend is much more enjoyable! You can actually walk around the mud area and go on as many rides and inflatable entertainment areas as you'd like! Those of you thinking about which weekend to go, here are your choices. First weekend: SUPER CROWDED, don't expect to be able to go on many rides or let alone walk around the mud area. If you are down to party like crazy, however, then this weekend is for you. Second weekend: Less people, able to do anything in the mud area that you'd like! Less people. Less of a crazy party night life, although you can still find people willing to have a drink if you want, oh! and less people. (This seems biased)
Anywhoo- after getting well muddy, painted with colorful mud, and a sufficient number of pictures taken, we made our way back to our hostel to shower off and spend the rest of the afternoon before our train laying in the sun.
Coming home, Beth's jet-lag set in and after saying goodbye to a close friend here, who was leaving for the states the next day (xoxoxox) we curled up into bed.
Monday
Beth, still a bit jet-lagged, woke up earlier than me (crazy) and we wandered around the nearby park before a coffee shop opened up. After Beth's first authentic Korean bibimbap and energized with coffee we were off to the Han to enjoy the sun and our books in the grass. There we watched young kids run around (sometimes sans clothing) catching the monstrous dragonflies that swarmed the area. My friend Sean and his new coworker Amelia then joined us to play a new game called "Munchkin", which is a very detail oriented game involving wizards, dwarves, and robbers, as well as "Ducks of Doom" and "Snails on Speed". By the time we started getting the hang of it and stopped asking Sean questions about everything, the game was over!
After gorging ourselves on raw fish and scallops, we made our way to Hongdae to show Beth the nightlife. It was then that Beth received the best gift she will get in her entire life.....The Selfie Stick. This would be used throughout our trip so that we blended in with the Koreans around us.
That night we showed Beth my favorite bar in Korea- Suzie Qs. Where you can request rock and roll classics all night and eat popcorn. The owners there don't know I'm leaving yet...can't bring myself to tell them! That night we met up with Sun and Tarah again, met some fun French guys and Sun's Friend Sae-in to try some Makgeolli and play traditional games like- Never have I ever (which proves to be a bit difficult with those who's first language isn't English).
Tuesday
Waking up, feeling the Magkeolli from the night before, we did a quick workout and then met Bruce's sister Yunhui for a traditional Korean meal in Itaewon. The restaurant was this tiny place among the even tinier back streets that sold delicious Korean food. We had naengmyeon (cold noodles), kimchi pajeon (kimchi pancake), and grilled mackerel (eyes still attached). After stuffing ourselves with food we headed off to Anguk station to visit Changdeok Palace (or the queen's palace) which I hadn't been to before! Gotta love doing new things in the last month before you leave. This palace, as opposed to the kings' palace down the road, is gorgeous. So much more green and inviting than the dirt courtyards and bare open places. We snuck into the English tour that afternoon and enjoyed learning more about that palace and the history of it.
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After the tour we walked through a cute (yet expensive) shopping area called Samcheongdong, where we window shopped and grabbed a seaweed face mask, which will come in later in this post. Then we walked down Insadong street. We were a bit zombie-like after walking so much so we hopped in cab to meet Suzanne (a fellow Hoodlum) for dinner back in Itaewon.
After a TON of traffic, the usual for Seoul, we had some wine at Proste and then Beth had her first Bulgogi! So many firsts. On the way back to Suzanne's place we grabbed the best cookies in the world (Ben's Cookies, for those of you here in Korea) and then went back to shower and play with her puppy Toto until it was time to get to bed.
Wednesday
Today was something I was really looking forward to (not that I wasn't looking forward to other things)! I signed Beth and I up for a tour of the DMZ through the USO at Yongsan Military Base. Dressed in our conservative-shoulder-covering-knee-length garb we hopped in the bus on the way to the border between North and South Korea. For those of you planning on doing a DMZ tour, this one is great! Super organized and you get to see the JSA, which was the most interesting part of the tour in my opinion. We got to the JSA, had our passports checked for the 4th time and then had the fastest debriefing in the history of debriefs everywhere. Our guide spoke a mile a minute, where the group maybe caught 1/4 of what he said. I don't think anything was life-threatening, as we all made it out alive.
Getting into a military bus, we drove to the Freedom House, which was built with the intention of having families separated by the war reunite once more. Unfortunately the building has rarely been used for that purpose for fear of North Koreans defecting to the South. Walking through that building we get out to the area with the JSA building and other structures that lie across the border. We were told not to gesture or point in any way to the North Korean side- as they might use our picture as propaganda against us. This buildings are used to hold meetings between the North and South, and the one we entered is most famous for housing the meeting to implement the Armistice between the two countries.
We walked in and saw two guards in ready-position for whatever might happen. We were free to take pictures with them as long as we didn't touch them or keep them from doing their thing...It all felt a bit strange, making this experience such a touristy thing. Beth would later bring up whether North Korea thought we were making it into a kind of joke by bringing busloads of tourists through to pose with the JSA and other monuments.
The other stops on this trip include some monuments for acts of terror by the North Koreans (of which there were several), a view of the propaganda village complete with painted doors and windows as well as the tallest and biggest flag ever to beat South Korean's flag (Basically, every time SK put up a flag, NK made theirs higher, resulting in a monstrosity of a "flag" that can't even stay up during stormy weather let alone wave under its own weight), "The Bridge of No Return" (prisoners from both sides could chose to cross but they would never be able to go back to the side they came from. Turns out George W. almost crossed it when he visited the DMZ.), and the last train station from Seoul that leads into North Korea. The hope is to eventually have reunification leading to a connecting train system that leads from South Korea to Europe. That would make my trip to Germany pretty simple eh? Think it would take my metro card?
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| bridge of no return |
After lunch (more bibimbap) we headed to the 3rd tunnel found leading from North Korea to Seoul. This tunnel has been blocked off and made accessible to tourists to don a bright orange helmet and explore. The 45 degree angle path down into the tunnel is much worse coming back up. You definitely get a workout. With Korea and it's touristy nature (selling DMZ chocolates and t-shirts) I nearly expected a coffee shop or bar at the end of the tunnel to get a DMZ latte and reunification muffin. I joke, but they really do make this super gimmicky with gift shops around every corner. Honestly, before Beth came I wasn't going to put the DMZ on the list of things to do while living out here, but I'm really glad I went! I learned a lot about the history between the two countries, and got to actually step into North Korea!
We headed home after the long day to rest up before getting my favorite meal in Korea for dinner- ShabuShabu. For rabbit-food-lovers around the world, shabushabu lets you cook veggies in a pot of broth and make delicious rice-paper wraps with sauces and other goodies inside so that you can be rolled home after dinner. It is so delicious! For carnivores, there is meat there too....
After shabu we went on a wild-goose-chase looking for a local wine bar called "Moon Tribe" in Bucheon that I had been to a few times before, but forgotten where exactly it was. Consulting maps, naver, and blogs, we finally stumbled upon it and gratefully sat down to share some wine with friends before calling it an evening.
Thursday
This day, we vowed to not use the subway system the entire day. A day of relaxing, trying to find a yoga place, failing, but Beth and Vanessa still doing yoga on the roof in the blistering sun, eating kimbap and mandu in the park and then spending the afternoon with puppies in the puppy cafe was more than I could ask for! And then...we went to the jimjilbang nearby my house. Now, I've done the spa experience here before, but I usually try to go as far away from home as possible to avoid any possibility of seeing my students there- hence why I went with Kaitie in Busan. But today, I put my brave face on and headed to Sky Land down the street from school. Entering the spa area, I expected to hear "Laura Teacher!", but besides Beth trying to scare me, no one there knew my name. We both hopped onto a table for a scrub down, which was as magical as the last one. Feeling super smooth and tingly we relaxed in the various pools around the spa, while those ranging from 2 years old to 102 enjoyed the spa around us. I'm glad Beth could have this authentic experience while here visiting. It's definitely something that you all should try at least once in your lives! It's rather exhilarating.
Coming home we decided to finish off the spa evening by doing our seaweed face mask purchased earlier (see, told you it would come up later), as well as some under eye masks we got at the Korean version of the dollar store. Feeling super clean and cleansed we enjoyed some wine, homemade food, a nice night walk in the park and finished off with some episodes of Friends before bed.
Friday
To balance out our days of rest and relaxation, we have to have other days packed to the gills of excitement, adventure, and walking around in 100 degree weather. This day we headed back out the the palace area and checked out Bukchon Hanok Village (we didn't explore too much for fear of melting). We bought some touristy fans to help with this, but really it just made the hot air move a bit faster towards our faces. We walked back down to Insadong to find solace from the sun in the form of a vegetarian restaurant I had been to a few times before. The food is so fresh and green- It was nice to chow down on lunch without there being anything too fried or meaty.
We headed back out towards Gyeongbok Palace (the King's palace) to watch the changing of the guards. In the scorching sun, this ceremony seems to last a lot longer than I remembered, but it was interesting nonetheless. We walked down the main drag there, past the statue of KimSeJong to the Seoul Museum of Art where we walked through an exhibit showing gorgeous photography of Dokdo, currently a hot topic here in Korea. Both Korea and Japan claim that these tiny rocks in the middle of the ocean between the two countries belong to them. Who knows who is right. Whoever owns it, Dokdo is beautiful and looks like an incredible island getaway. Just don't wear anything that might point you to one side or the other.
We then learned more about General Yi Sun-Shin who fought valiantly in the war vs Japan. Got to walk through a replica of an old Korean turtle ship, which was...thrilling...honestly, anything to get out of the sun! From there we taxied to Namdaemun, where I hoped to walk through an outdoor market of food, clothes, and trinkets, only to find that the taxi drive dropped us off in an area I was unfamiliar with. Instead we grabbed coffee and then stumbled upon one of the best finds this trip! Beth saw a sign for "sports reflexology foot massage". Naturally, we went to check it out and we were not disappointed. This was one of the most painful foot and lower-leg massages ever, but afterwards my feet were being shined down upon by angels. It was like we hadn't just been walking around all day long. These women seemed to enjoy inflicting pain on us, also utilizing wooden torture devices, but it was all worth it in the end. They even gave us a little extra head/shoulder/back massage at the end too! Such an excellent half-way point to our day!
From there we walked around Myeongdong, getting some much-needed ajumma pants (the most comfortable pants in the entire world. I know they are technically 'refrigerator pants' according to Koreans, but 'ajumma pants' is so much more fun to say). We then subwayed to Itaewon to meet Vanessa and Sun for official Korean BBQ dinner and line dancing at the Grand Ole Opry. That night we ended up in Hongdae, dancing the night away and finishing off by introducing Beth to apparently the best pizza in the world (I have yet to try it), "Monster Pizza".
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Saturday
The next day, after a workout, Beth and I headed to Alex's house to get a personalized Korean cooking lesson! I was so excited to bring Beth here so that she could learn how to make some authentic dishes. On the menu that afternoon was Dalkbokkeum, japchae, potato jeon, radish rolls, and a few delicious veggie side dishes. Beth whipped up sauces and prepared the meal like a pro with Alex leading the way. I just sat back and watched, doing side jobs to help make the process easier for the chef and sous chef. The food tasted incredible. Knowing that we had just made it all fresh made it that much better as well! After enjoying it all we hung out, did some girly nail-painting and then headed to Incheon for a baseball game with a gaggle of gals!
Despite a few random showers, and our team getting trounced, the evening was a ton of fun! At one point we went over to the other side to get the feel for what a real Korean baseball game experience should be like. Beth made the great observation that she didn't watch any baseball while on that other side, but instead was entranced by the energy and pep of the cheering squad. Finishing off the game, as most of the stadium cleared out, we settled in to watch some fireworks- which actually, considering it was a smaller baseball stadium in Incheon, was pretty awesome!
Sunday
After a workout, Beth and I met Sean and Vanessa to head to the French Quarters near Express Bus terminal (walk out exit 5 through a little park then left ofter an overpass, for those of you living here!). Craving some good bread as opposed to the sweet, red-bean-filled stuff you find in bakeries nearby, we were basically drooling by the time we got to Paris Croissant. First, we took a look at cheese downstairs and chose some Brie, then we came back upstairs to pick our bread and other pastries. Loaded up on carby-heaven we sat on the top floor to enjoy our mini-french meal. The taste of good crunchy whole wheat bread after a long time of not having any is hard to describe....
Monday
First day back at work after vacation for me! I left Beth to do her thing during the morning while I planned for classes, then I came home for lunch where she made me a delicious salad! I could definitely get used to that. It was nice to have a break with her in the middle of the day to rest and relax before taking her in for the afternoon, where she met all of my elementary students. Teaching six 40 minute classes is nothing compared to watching six 40 minute classes. Beth enjoyed playing and talking with my students, but by the end of the day I told her to head home and we could meet later! My students loved meeting her and were surprised to hear the we were twins. My coteachers and boss got to meet Beth too which was really special for me. I want her to see the incredibly amazing people I've had the pleasure of working with for the past two years!
That night we met up with some friends to get Dalk Galbi which is meat, cabbage, and noodles cooked up with spicy sauce in a pan. Not my favorite meal, but one that Beth should try before she leaves. We then grabbed some icecream and sat in a park nearby to chat a bit before wandering home. Beth got along so well with all of my friends here. She fit in and I could definitely see her teaching here (wink wink) someday.
Tuesday
Another work day for me, Beth decided to take the jump and travel into Seoul all on her own! I showed her an easy route to the National Museum near Ichon station and off she went! Without consistent wifi- the other teachers were concerned about her getting there and back on her own, but I was confident. I got a few check-in messages from her throughout the day and she had a blast! She wandered through the public side of the museums, checking out the Buddha exhibit which was recommended by our friend Jeanine and then took the subway once more into Itaewon and grabbed some lunch there before coming back to Bucheon and meeting my middle school class. Seoul really is not difficult to get around! The subway is super well organized and there is English all over the place, so even if you know no Korean, you can't get lost easily. I'm glad she was able to get out and about instead of being stuck following me around work for another day!
That night, we had one of Beth's favorite meals once more (Shabu shabu) and then had our last twinsy night together back at my apartment.
Wendesday
Luckily for me, I work in the best place ever and they let me take the morning off of my duties (thank goodness I don't teach Kindergarten!) to spend with Beth. We worked out, and then went out to get some coffee and see the puppies one last time before shipping Beth off back home.
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| I'm a lap dog I swear! |
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| she tried so much stuff! (The top group) |
Korean Phrase of the Post:
"베스와 로라 한국 탐사헤요"
(baeseuwa lora hangguk tamsahaeyo)
Beth and Laura explore Korea
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