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. :)