KIA TIGERS!

Rain Delay... Boo

Tigers 6 Eagles 2

We embarked on our first excursion to a professional baseball game in Korea this evening. We were accompanied by my parents and our boss's family. It was so much fun. I have never been to a baseball game that had cheerleaders. And even more impressive, a game that had enough songs and cheers to go through the whole game without having any silence. It was awesome. Being a Tigers fan in Gwangju is like being a Yankees fan in New York. Last year, the Kia Tigers won the equivalency to our world series for Korea. Jack and I of course acting the part of the tourist immediately bought a couple of jerseys and a hat. They are pretty sweet if I do say so myself. The game was fun and I think I ate enough food to kill someone. haha

The day started out at our English church service. Since my parents are in town, we asked my dad to speak. He did a great job. (only a few things lost in translation to the kids) After service, we walked to the subway. As soon as we were getting on, Mr Han called us to see if he could take us and my family out to lunch. We met downtown and got a great lunch. I was stuffed. Shortly after we all took a stroll down art street and looked into some of the korean pottery and fine art stores. Mom got a few gifts. They are really beautiful.

From there we headed to home to don some more comfy clothes for the game later in the evening. We changed and relaxed a short while and the left again to go to the game. The game was going mediocre at best for the first inning. No one was really doing anything. It was tied one to one. Then somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd inning it began to poor. They quickly delayed the game and covered the infield. About ten minutes or so later the rain let up and we were looking at a completely different team. Kia began to kick butt. There were some great hits. It was great! I hope you enjoy the pictures and check out a few thumbnails and some of my video clips below as well. :)

Damyang and Daetongbap

Our trip to Damyang was great. We made our way through the bamboo forest, Jack finally found his panda (although it was made of plaster), We took a fun ride around the river of=n Meta-sequoia rode, and made our way to grab some food at one of the most famous restaurants in the city. Over all it was a great day. For full pictures check out our album

We have guests!

After a grueling 17 hour set of flights with sporadic flight in Chicago and Tokyo my parents have finally arrived. They came into Gwangju last night around one in the morning. They had to take a three and a half hour bus ride to our city from Seoul/Incheon International airport before we could meet them.

They finally showed up at our gate and we helped them and all their luggage to the line of cabs outside of U Square terminal. After a short five minute taxi ride, they finally were able to get comfortable. We unpacked and were very excited about the goodies they brought us. We asked for some essentials. You know, like ABC's and 123's, ranch dressing, and some clothes from American Eagle. Well they are essentials to me anyways. After they unpacked and I was on the brink of passing out from sleep deprivation, they decided they couldn't sleep, so off we went. We went for a walk around Sang Mu and grabbed a coffee at Tom and Tom's.

The walk was nice. The weather has been especially nice in the evenings the last few weeks here. It gets a little too hot for my taste during the day, but every once in a while we get a cold day to remind us it is still Spring.


I am really excited they are here. We have lots of adventures planned for them during their trip. The first is an excursion to Damyang on Saturday to see the legendary bamboo forests and walkways as well as grab some bamboo flavored soup . Here are a few highlights. :)

Bamboo Food- Damyang restaraunt preview

Foreign Propaganda or Truth?

Recently we have received an overwhelming amount of warnings and cautions from our friends and family back home. Through emails, phone calls, and facebook, we have learned that we should be terrified of the escalation between the North and South as of late. With a more conservative president in Seoul who takes a harder stance against the north and the recent developments regarding the sinking of of the Cheonan warship in March we should be shaking in our boots right? While talks seem to be heated in American circles, you should know that the many attacks of the past have not caused the country to go back to outright war. It almost seems as though the international media is trying to escalate the situation into something more than the South Korean people want.

Jan 1967 - attacks South Korean warship near border, killing 39 sailors
Jan 1968 - commandos storm presidential palace in Seoul in a failed attempt to kill President Park Chung-hee
Jan 1968 - captures USS Pueblo - one crew member dies and 82 held hostages for 11 months
Dec 1969 - hijacks South Korean airliner taking dozens of passengers hostage
Oct 1983 - bombs hotel in Rangoon, Burma in failed attempt to kill South Korean President Chun Doo-hwan - 21 people die
Nov 1987 - bombs South Korean airliner, killing 115
Sept 1996 - sub carrying 26 troops disabled off South - some land in South sparking deadly manhunt
Mar 2010 - torpedoes Cheonan warship, 46 sailors killed

It would be a better assumption that the South will simply gain international support from the UN, US, and others because of the incident. With the opinions of the Korean president and the trigger happy american allies (led most recently by Hillary Clinton and her exploits to rile up everyone with her recent trip to Beijing) all under consideration, we are still relatively unconcerned. The Korean people have illustrated for us that there are still some governments who care about what their people think. We know that most off all in our city. Gwangju is known for its active role in politics. This was best of all illustrated in the famous Gwangju protests in 1980. Gwangju was at the forefront of the democratic movement within the country and still is known for its involvement in any major political upheavals within the country.

Though the world is buzzing with news of the ship being sunk I assure you that as for now it is not as high of a concern as it seems. Of course any loss of life is a big deal, but to expect the south to go to war tomorrow is highly unlikely. A response of some sort is warranted, but the South Koreans do not want to go back to war. We assure you that if anything does conspire between the two countries there is a swift and well organized plan to send all the foreign expats home. Also, we are located near several US Army bases, so we are covered. :) For more details check out the BBC website (it seems to be a little less involved in the scare tactics of FOX news... hahaha)

*Edit* UPDATE:
There has been press released that quotes the Korean president as saying:
"We have always tolerated North Korea's brutality, time and again. We did so because we have always had a genuine longing for peace on the Korean peninsula," Lee said.

"But now things are different. North Korea will pay a price corresponding to its provocative acts," he said. "I will continue to take stern measures to hold the North accountable."

He has vowed to take the situation to the UN security council so that the north will be held responsible. As Lee spoke Monday, North Korea's main government run, fear based newspaper, the Rodong Sinmun, called the investigation results an "intolerable, grave provocation" tantamout to a declaration of war.

Even with all of this, South Korea wants peace. They want justice, but they are going through the proper channels with the UN instead of rushing to arms. We are confident things will settle down.

Happy Birthday Buddha!

석가탄신일 (Seokga tansinil), meaning "the day of Buddha's birthday" or 부처님 오신 날 (Bucheonim osin nal) meaning "the day when Buddha arrived". Lotus lanterns cover the entire temple throughout the month in anticipation...








We decided to check out the temple that is located about a mile from our apartment. We originally had plans to go down south and visit one of the oldest and biggest temples in the country, but we decided not to at the last minute. We were thinking we should save the money for next week when my parents arrive from the US.

The temple was decorated beautifully. The whole park that encircles it was covered in lanterns as well and in the distance you can hear the concert and fair at City Hall. As you walk in the lanterns illuminate the korean folk musicians in their traditional garb. Unfortunately we arrived just as they were finishing their concert so I do not have video. Monks are sprinkled about the crowd with shoes off and seated on the ground. Hundreds of people observe the singing and tour the temple. The main temple where many go to pray is open to the public to enter, but only if you take off your shoes. I went in to take pictures and was able to observe several families and some monks bowing and praying. It was interesting to say the least.


I hope you enjoy the pictures we took. You can find more in our online gallery, but here is a sampling. :)

Loving the local harvest

I am loving the local harvest this week. Those who know my tastes would know I do not like watermelon. This afternoon, after much convincing from Jack, I tried some of the watermelon that Gwangju was famous for. It is the sweetest watermelon I have ever had. It was amazing! SO here is a shout out to the watermelon from Mudeungsan Mountain. If you are ever in the area, check it out. :)

STARBOX

As promised, here are the pictures...







So far so good. The gym has been great!

STAR BOX 스타 박스

After a rather embarrassing mix up due to pronunciation, Jack and I finally stopped scouring the Starbucks building and headed across the street to the star box (스타 박스) building. We have been looking for a health club to join. We looked all over. We discovered one directly across the street from our apartment building. It is Fitness FM located on the second and basement floor of the building Tom and Tom's is in. Tom and Tom's is the coffee shop of choice for all the young hip Koreans. As such the prices of the health club establishment are higher priced to attract them. Granted it is a beautiful gym and you get a member ship at both the gym and sauna, but you pay for it. It is 130,000 a month. We ventured down the street a bit to the less cool gym (where we honestly fit in better) and paid 130,000 for three months. Not a bad change. It was a lot cheaper.

Also we can pay a little extra and get a sauna membership as well, but I didn't think we would go enough to need it. You can pay 5,000 (approx. $4.41) to have a day pass to all the baths, steam rooms, and massages you could possibly need. It is a nice deal as long as you don't mind being publicly naked with members of the same sex. They split up the guys and girls, so there are no worries that way, but if you are super modest, this is not the place for you. The Jjimjilbang (찜질방) is no place for the shy. They offer massages, body scrubs, hot rooms, cold rooms, air rooms, hot rock rooms, etc. You need it, they got it. Just keep in mind all the women around you will be naked. It is a nice idea, but I would say go with a group (preferably with someone who knows Korean) so you don't accidentally wind up in the coed room butt naked.

The gym is nice. It is four floors up from the sauna on the seventh floor. The changing rooms are equipped with towels as well as clothes to work out in. When you are done you simply go in for a shower toss your clothes in the laundry and change back into your work clothes. The only thing you are expected to provide are your shoes. Also, the membership entails free aerobics and yoga classes. I figured while in Asia, do what the Asians do. Yoga it is. They have a million machines for cardio and a full weight machine and free weights section too. I am very excited to begin the training. Jack and I have set up a rewards program if we both reach our goal weights. His prize of choice was a PSP. Mine is a new ipod touch. Wish us luck. We have a long way to go.

A side note: Jack has already lost twenty pounds. Stupid boys: they skip a meal and lose a pants size. I diet for weeks and lose one pound. Somehow I have a feeling he will have his PSP long before I get my ipod...

Eungang Presbyterian Church (short unfinished promo)

This is the church we hold our English services at. Here are a few clips and pictures to give you a look inside! :)

I am not sure how to fix the fact that it is cutting off part of the video. To see it wide screen visit this link. Sorry for the formatting. As soon as I figure out how to fix it, I plan to. :(

Boseong: Daehan Dawon Green Tea fields...

May fifth around the country is a beautiful thing. At least it was to me. It was a school holiday so I got off of work. :) It is celebrated annually as Children's Day. On this day parents are supposed to do something special with their kids. Most opt for the zoo or aquarium. Also, it is customary to give gifts.

Since Jack and I don't have any kids and the one that we would consider ours, Eli (our black lab), is in the states. As a result, we just took a vacation day for ourselves. We traveled about an hour and a half by bus to the beautiful city of Boseong. As you travel to the city you make several stops to pick up other passengers along the way. You take the curvy endless roads and pass by beautiful rivers, terraced riced fields , and wild flowers running across the fields nearby. With the occasionally peak at a traditional house or even a temple tucked into a quiet mountainside, you begin to wonder if you are ever going to arrive.


Finally we arrived at the Boseong terminal. It was a bit run down and a bank of taxis waited patiently nearby. In my best, yet still terribly broken, Korean I managed to get out green tea festival. We were off. The W9,000 ride was well worth not boarding another bus. We arrived and drove right past the festival. We were unsure as to why, but our taxi driver signaled that we should walk up this secluded path. We stopped to get out a water bottle and he started honking at us until we made our way down the trail. Lucky for us we did. About 200 yards away it opened up to a gate and ticket booth where we purchased two tickets. As we entered we were underwhelmed. It was cozy and there were quaint restaurants, but I failed to see what the big deal was. As we walked a bit further, we came upon the most beautiful site. The trees opened up to a huge field planted alongside of what I consider a mountain (as I am from Florida) though others would consider it a very large hill. It was gorgeous. Jack and I spent the whole afternoon exploring up and down the mountainside taking pictures. We even took an unauthorized excursion up the side of a different mountain to see another one of the fields blocked off to the public. Shhhhh... Don't tell. :)
Overall it was well worth the trip. The pictures say it all. If you would like to see them all you can check out the direct link to our websites gallery. To end the day, we went into the gift shop and looked around and tried our luck at the restaurant where everything is made with green tea. (ie. green tea pasta, ice cream, meat, you name it) Sadly, we did not get to go to the rumored bath house (Jjimjilbang) where you can experience what it means to be in a teabag. There is a natural spring where you can bathe in green tea along with natural hot spring water. Maybe next time as we will definitely be going back. :)

Baloons=uprising?

Recently a batch of balloons were released by South Koreans and many North Korean defectors who wished to provide information to the North Korean people. The balloons were attached to bags full of pamphlets of hope, DVD's, world news, and even some money(about $3,000.00 worth to be exact). This was a bold move by the south. North Korea has already responded to the balloon release strongly urging the South Korean government to punish those involved in the release.

This is not the first attempt of its kind. There have been many outreaches to the North Korean people from the South. While the world looks at the North as crazy and cruel, they must understand the opinions are quite different here. Sure, the leadership is nuts, but the people themselves are only victims and, in all truth, prisoners of their unfortunate situation. The South Koreans view the people simply as disconnected friends and family. Many have been separated for fifty years or more without any news passed between them. Parents and children were separated, brothers and sisters, and family friends all were victims of an untimely split. While the world views a terrorist nuclear threat, South Koreans for the most part just see them as relatives.


It seemed crazy to me that the North would actually think that the South would agree to punish those involved. Many of those involved were former North Korean citizens who were smuggled out of the country or who escaped through China and made their way back to their homeland. Inside the balloons all they wanted to convey was a message of hope and freedom and it was seen as a criminal act by Kim Jong Il and his associates. Liberation is such a dangerous idea for the people, that it will be silenced at all costs by the government. There are already reports coming in that the North Korean government has tried to intercept the balloons.

Luckily there is no way they could intercept all of them. At least a few messages of hope will be received by those who are suffering in North Korea. Hope is a valuable asset. Sometimes we forget just how valuable. We should count ourselves lucky to have the opportunity to even hear about freedom, much less live it out daily.

Food for thought. To see a video of the release provided by BBC click here