Seoul Searching

When we tell people in the West that we live in South Korea, their first question is usually about our proximity to Seoul. One nice thing about Pyeongtaek is that it's really nice to be away from the overwhelming population and resulting traffic of such an enormous capital city, while still being able to take bus or subway up once in while. We live down the street from a train station, and after an hour and a half - and a transfer or two - we make our way to Seoul maybe once a month. Recently, though, we've ventured north 3 times within 20 days. Fun, yes! Exhausting, even more so!

Most people that visit South Korea beeline to Seoul for sightseeing and tourism, and though Tony and I are much more interested in the island and mountains and National Parks, even we can't deny the allure of this international city. One of my favorite things to do in Seoul is the themed cafés. There are so many types! Perhaps you've heard of cat cafés (my hometown of Pittsburgh just acquired its own!), but the furry creatures that accompany you as you sip a warm beverage don't stop there. No, not in Seoul. Here we have dog cafés, raccoon cafés, and even a sheep café! The dogs are usually pretty small but very comfortable and cuddly with customers; the sheep are aloof and standoffish, yet adorable; and the raccoons are lively, playful, and rambunctious - maybe you've read of them already at my previous post. Surprisingly, the cleanliness of these places is not a big issue. In some cafés, the animals are in a separate section from the "dining" area, but in the ones that have critters and coffees in the same location, the pups are well-groomed and employees are quick to scoop and sanitize.

Lulu the sheep at Thanks Nature café in Hongdae

If you're not an animal-lover, or if you're still not convinced about consuming products with creatures in such close proximity, there are other fun cafés to check out. One popular one in Insadong is the 또옹카페, or Poop Café. Childish, sure, but remember: everybody poops. Maybe it's time we embrace it. Personally, I wasn't particularly impressed by this theme, but the coffee was surprisingly good, as was the turd-shaped sweet bread. 

Bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "eat sh*t."

 
Wait! Now, before you give up on me entirely (Sipping alongside animals? Eating poop-shaped dessert? What's wrong with this girl?), let me tell you about Tony's favorite themed café: the Get & Show (Lego café) in Hongdae. This was a real treat! For about $30, you can get 2 lattes, a delicious sandwich, aLego set to rent for an hour (or pay a bit more to extend). This is such a fun date idea! Tony and I built a Batman/Joker vehicle set, and Fallon and Taylor build a Disney Frozen castle. Considering how expensive it can be to purchase new Lego sets from the toy store, to build them perhaps a handful of times, this was a much more cost effective and fun way to be like children again for the afternoon.

Lego café "Get & Show" in Hongdae

There are other themed cafés, such as a K-Pop café, a hanbok café, and a ring-making café, all around Seoul. The best part? The whimsy and fun is not bargained at the expense of quality. Some of the best coffees I've had were at these shops, and I'm honestly considering returning to the Lego café just for the chicken and basil sandwich. The cost is fair as well; of course, the novelty causes a bit of a price increase, but I think it's quite worth the extra dollar or so.

Besides the fun cafés, some of the highlights from my recent visits to the city include: 

 An incredible variety of delicious restaurants,

 a very talented tattoo artist (check her out on Instagram: @naleak_tattoo),

and the iconic Namsan Seoul Tower.

I am not afraid to admit I'm still quite a newbie at the Seoul life. Every time I step off the subway upon my arrival, the love-hate feelings return - the crowds and traffic are enough to drive you mad, but after twenty minutes, I can't get over the amazing and diverse sights, flavors, and activities that the city offers. But for now, I think I'm ready to kick back at home for a while, away from the hustle and bustle. What about you? If you were to travel to Seoul, what would you want to see or do first? If you've been to Seoul or read about it, what do you suggest we do next? 

Taipei - the Unexpected Gem

Happy Lunar New Year to you! The year of the rooster has already brought much happiness to us as we embarked on our first international voyage and explored the beautiful island country of Taiwan.

To be completely honest, a visit to Taiwan had never really crossed our minds when we began our year in Korea. We knew that we would want to visit Japan, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and hopefully Indonesia, among a few others, but Taiwan was never even in our top ten potential destinations. But, because of our limited travel time while working at a year-round private school, we had to be practical. We had a Monday and Friday off, and our next break isn't until well into spring. So, we weighed our options: we could travel to somewhere like Cambodia or the Philippines for over $1000 per ticket and a further flight, or we could look into Taiwan for a considerably lower price and less air-time. Can you believe we actually toiled over this decision?

Taiwan it is, we said! We booked our flights a mere 12 days before departure. On that Friday, January 27th, we woke up an hour late and barely made our flight (we won't go into the details of our continual "episodes" as our supervisor Sophie calls them - like sitting in three hours of Seoul traffic on the way to Gimpo for a flight with my family, or when I left my wallet on the bus before flying back to the USA). The point is, we made it (thanks to a helpful Eva Airlines staff member who scooted us through check-in and security and rushed us ahead of numerous crowds - thank you, D. W. Song!).

Two hours after take-off, we arrived in Taipei Airport, converted just over $200 cash, and took a bus to where we hoped our hostel was located. Finally, our traveling luck turned around. We managed to get off the bus at the right place and, without really trying, wandered toward the subway station and stumbled into a fair there. As we peered at different colored tags hanging from a string-light-lit tree, a local girl wished us a happy new year and told us how to hang our new year's wishes on the tree.

New year's wishes

After that, we boarded the subway toward our hostel two stops away, located a block away from the well-known Shilin Night Market. Happy Taipei, our home for the next two (and a half) nights, was a fine hostel, complete with comfy bunk beds, hot showers, quite a superior complimentary breakfast, and even hair dryers and a Foosball table; it did not leave us wanting. That evening, we wandered through the night market, trying about a half dozen street foods - sausage on a stick, marinated chicken, steamed dumplings - as our dinner as we meandered. After a game of Foosball, it was off to bed before our real adventure began.

In the morning, we caught a bus to the Yangmingshan National Park, and almost immediately realized that our trip to Taiwan was going to be more than worth it. We saw monkeys up in the trees! The locals were unfazed, but we were thrilled! Tony whipped out our zoom lens and took some Nat Geo worthy shots of one of the monkeys before he ran off with almost a dozen of his pals.

Soon, we wandered the maze of a park, seeing beautiful landscapes, waterfalls, green foliage, and enjoying the sunshine and warmth after too many months of cold air and pollution. The great outdoors on a beautiful day was a perfect remedy that we didn't even realize we had been needing after half a year of living in an urban area.

After the park, we headed back to another part of town to check out two neighboring temples: one Confucian and one Buddhist. The first gave off a more ancient, honorable, and historic vibe of reverence, while the latter was bustling with more worshipers carrying incense and offerings, bowing before the red and gold colored shrines. Both were absolutely stunning in their architecture and atmosphere.

Confucian temple

An ornately painted ceiling, evidence of enormous spiritual dedication

Buddhist temple full of worshipers ready for a new year of blessings.

On the way back to the subway station, we grabbed a to-go container of about a dozen sushi for just about $3 USD and chowed on it at a local fair. We checked out the products at the rows of tents and vendors - food, drink, tea, wooden goods, crafts, festival games. We returned to the Shilin night market near our hostel and it had exploded in popularity - vendors had multiplied, and visitors had accumulated exponentially. Truly, the difference from the night before made us gasp.

Bubble tea came to be in Taiwan in the '80s,
so I had to try some in its homeland!

We stopped for dinner at a restaurant that had graciously provided a menu in English after they sat us at a table for two. We ordered ginger beef rice, Taiwanese steamed dumplings, beef noodle udon, stir-fried vegetables, beer, and oolong tea, and they had to change our seats to a table for four because our small table wouldn't fit all the food. Everything was delicious, and we left with happy bellies.

When we woke up for our last full day - how was this trip already coming to an end? - we were torn on how to spend our limited time. We threw around ideas: the beach, the hot springs, the museum, downtown landmarks. We knew there wasn't time to do it all, so we chose the most exotic and most authentic experience - wild local hot springs. Tony found a blog written by a man who recorded his exact process to arrive at the isolation location, complete with shady clues including an passing an out-of-order outhouse, crossing a shallow brook, and trespassing past a warning sign. Technically illegal; totally worth it!

Oopsies

We arrived at the springs and enjoyed the variety of pools with different temperatures - from unbearably hot to bath water to chilling fresh water - and varying degrees of sulfuric egg-stench. We soaked, steamed, swam, and slathered our bodies with clay found in crevices between rocks, just like the locals. It was relaxing; it was paradise.

Too hot!

Too cold!

Just right!

A (sorta) secret, local gem.

Unfortunately, we didn't have the foresight to bring enough water or snacks to survive in that isolated location for more than a couple hours, so we began our journey back - after rinsing in the freezing waterfall to spare neighboring bus-riders the stinky egg smell that had surely seeped into our hair and skin.

After a shower back at the hostel, we prepared ourselves for one last venture out. We boarded the subway toward downtown, where we found Taipei 101 - a famous skyscraper that had been the tallest building in the worth from 2004-2009 until the Burj Khalifa in Dubai trumped its enormity. Its appeal for visitors: a high-end, fancy pants shopping mall. Gucci, Fendi, Prada, Burberry... So, we ate dinner in the food court because that's what we could afford!

Taipei 101

Afterward, we relaxed across the street at a block party complete with a variety of vendors offering craft beers, tapas, and international foods, while a DJ tried to get people to dance. There we stayed, chatting, people watching, and enjoying the music and warm evening air, until about 11 o'clock. It was there we realized that this was perhaps the best trip we've ever taken, and that Taiwan was a totally underrated vacation destination. There was so much we had to leave unseen: the National Palace Museum, largest museum in the world; Sun Moon Lake in the central part of the island, famous for its beautiful landscapes; the beautiful beaches; and surely more than we even knew.

We returned to the hostel for a 2 hour nap, woke up at 2:30am, caught a cab to the bus terminal, boarded a bus to the airport, and waited at the terminal - finally early for our flight, and this time, we were there three hours before boarding.

She was

Fiercely loyal

Exceedingly generous

Bright and spirited

Radiant

Adventurous

Loving and well-loved

Immensely faithful and God-loving

Positive

Selfless

Genuine

She was a collection of superlatives, the owner of the most enormous heart, the possessor of a personality that is hard to put into words, whose description requires too many adverbs.

She was fun. Her spirit, her laugh, and her smile were contagious. She transformed mundane events and daily life into joyous, thematic celebrations.

She loved her mother enormously; her brother unconditionally; her aunts, uncles, and cousins proudly; her friends fiercely. She loved children warmly. She loved the church intimately. She loved God devotedly.

There was something about her that made everyone near her yearn to gain her friendship.

I knew that I’d been accepted into the family when she accepted me.

 

You are so missed, Lyndsey.

!!! The Blumers Come to Korea !!!

We’ve had our first visitors from abroad! I’m thankful that I’ve never had to spend a major holiday alone – four years ago, I was in Chile for Thanksgiving, and Tony visited (and proposed); this year, my whole family came to Korea to spend some time with us. 

My dad, brother, sister, and nephew landed in Incheon last Wednesday evening. They spent Thursday touring the DMZ and seeing parts of Seoul, like Gangnam and Itaewon. The DMZ turned out to be one of their top highlights of the trip, and I can’t believe they beat us to it! We have yet to go, but now we know it’s definitely worth the hype.

After one night in Seoul, they taxied into Pyeongtaek, where we live, and Erica checked into her second hotel of the trip (Matt and Dad were crashing in our living room for a night). We met them at the train station and, after dropping their luggage in our apartment, treated them to dinner at our favorite spot across the street, which we visit weekly because it’s cheap, delicious, and somewhat healthy. There, they sampled a true smorgasbord of Korean cuisine: mandu (dumplings), kimbap (a sushi-like roll without the raw fish), bibimbap (a mixed rice dish), donkasse (pork cutlet with a barbeque-like sauce), tteokbokki (rice cake in spicy sauce), mandu ramyan (ramen noodle soup with egg and dumpling), along with the typical (and plentiful) Korean side dishes – dried fish, lotus root, kimchi, pickled radish, boiled quail egg, etc. They really enjoyed the dumplings and ramyan, though I was disappointed they didn’t like the texture of the rice cake – my favorite! I was pleased, however, to find that for the first time ever, my spice tolerance has surpassed that of my father! We were happy to welcome them to town by footing the bill – but it’s easy in Korea because the food is so cheap. All of that for around $30 fed five hungry adults and one picky child; not bad!

Next, we stopped at Paris Baguette, a ubiquitous bakery chain all over the country, for a birthday cake for Dad’s belated 60^th. They threw in some candles, matches, and party poppers for free, and we headed back to the apartment to celebrate. After some cake and plenty of catching up, Erica and Vinny eventually caught a cab back to their hotel and agreed to meet us in the morning for breakfast, so that we could take the family to school with us to see where we work, meet some of our colleagues and students, and so that Vinny could join us on our field trip!

Friday was the best – we arrived at school around 9:30, and the students were buzzing with excitement because we had told them that an American boy their age would be coming to Kids College to visit! He was initially so shy, he wouldn’t leave Erica’s lap. I was nervous he’d be too anxious for the field trip, but after touring the classrooms where Tony and I teach, seeing our office, and meeting our workmates, Vinny suddenly overcame his shellshock and nearly ran toward the bus without turning back to wave goodbye. He would be just fine.

Bus buddies

Vinny fit in perfectly with my kindies
His friends ate kimbap for lunch, but luckily his Aunt Meghan packed him a PB&J

How perfect are they!!

Vinny had the time of his life on the field trip, and fit right in with my kindergarteners, the Starfish class. He played and sang and snacked with them, and by the end of the day, when I said “Starfish, raise your hand!”, he raised his own as well. While we took the kids to a space exhibit and a palace, Erica, Matt, and Dad visited Main Gate, an area near the Air Force base, for touristy shopping. Our principal Heather, her parents, and head teacher Fallon took my family out to a barbeque lunch which they have yet to stop raving about. After that, they visited a superstore called HomePlus, checked out the markets near our apartment, where locals sell street food, produce, exotic (live) seafood, and other goods, and returned to the apartment and passing out.

But there was no time to rest! Soon we were back from school and threw our luggage into a van taxi, squeezed into the limited seating, and were on our way to Gimpo airport. This should-be 1.5 hour voyage cost us 3 hours and $130 USD, and if our flight hadn’t been delayed, we likely would have missed it. We ran through check-in and security and sprinted to the gate at 8:05, the cut-off for the 8:25pm flight. I’ve never been relieved that my flight has been delayed before, but there’s a first for everything.

Soon, we were island-bound. After our hour-plus flight, we landed in Jeju, the premier island destination in Korea. Heather had set us up with a student’s grandfather, Iwon Gi, who owned a beautiful, brand-new guesthouse on the island and offered to drive us to all the must-see points of interest for the whole weekend for a small fee. The accommodations and guide cost us about $700, split among 5 of us (plus Vinny). Especially after seeing how nice the house was where we stayed (though our expectations have been lowered since the pensions we stayed in in Ulleungdo and Deokjeokdo), it was a very fair price.

All day Saturday, we saw an EcoPark, a lava tube cave, and a forest, along with a delicious lunch and decent dinner. It was a chilly and damp time to be on the island, which is famous for its outdoorsy activities – beaches, hiking, sightseeing – but we certainly seized the day. The lava tube was amazing; it took about a half hour to walk from the entrance to the hardened lava column at the end, the source of the cave’s creation, where we learned that it is the tallest lava column in the entire world! By the time we returned to the house, everyone was exhausted. Within two hours, everyone had fallen asleep on the floor, although it was only 9 o’clock.

Half our gang with our leader and guide, Iwon Gi on the train

Serene landscapes at EcoLand

The awesome lava tube, Manjanggul Cave

Posing in front of the tallest lava column in the world, at the end of the Geomunoreum system!

Exploring the misty Bijarim Forest

The next day, we awoke early and packed up our bags once again. Iwon Gi, our guide, took us on our next round of sight-seeing, which began with an extraordinary visit to a modest home among an enormous expanse of tangerine trees. A friend of his had invited us to a morning tea, where she taught us the proper method of drinking tea and shared various treats with us. What an authentic experience, and such hospitality! After tea, the couple encouraged us to pick some tangerines off their trees and take them back to the mainland with us – we took home at least two dozen delicious and juicy Jeju tangerines. Next, we were on our way to stroll around a National Park and take in the sights of a cliff along the coast, which boasted geometric forms in the hardened lava rock. After a lunch of Jeju-famous black pork at a barbeque restaurant, we were back to the airport to return to Gimpo.

Enjoying the flowering tea, traditional snacks, and hospitality in a local couple's home

 

Stuffed sweet juju, frozen tea powder cookies, sweet radish flowers, syrupy rice cakes, and candied tangerine

An intimate, once-in-a-lifetime cultural experience

Picking tangerines

Found the summit at the Hallasan National Park

Amazing views of the Jusangjeolli Cliff

Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye again. It was 6 o’clock on Sunday evening, and we had to journey our way back to Songtan on the subway before returning to work the next morning. How those three days together had flown! It may seem silly that family spent almost as much time on an airplane as they did with us, but we were so grateful that they used their holiday time to travel across the globe to see us and learn first-hand what we do each day, and they were so open-minded about it all: the food, the customs, the language! My incredible dad had even been secretly studying Korean since we left the States, and I’m proud yet embarrassed that he knows more than I do! What an amazing and supportive family I am so blessed to have, I am reminded of how fortunate I am during this time for being thankful.

Tea Time: Our Trip to Boseong

Last weekend we were finally able to embark on a trip that we’ve had to reschedule several times, to a place that we’ve anxiously anticipated seeing: Boseong, a region in the very southern part of the peninsula, which is famous for its green tea!

The first time we saw that the organized trip was available was the first weekend of October, but we had a school event to host; the next time the trip was offered, I had a bad cold in late October. Finally, we managed to sign up for the last Boseong trip of the year through this particular company, in mid-November.

There are several companies that organize trips around Korea that are foreigner-friendly; that is, they take care of travel, itinerary, accommodation, meals, and an English-speaking guide for a fixed cost. The cost is quite reasonable, for all the planning involved and amenities included. When we went to Ulleungdo in September, we went with Adventure Korea; this Boseong trip was through Goh Travel Korea; and we’re planning a trip to a hot spring with WinK. We loved our trip with Adventure – it was easy and extremely well-organized. Our first experience with Goh left much to be desired, but Boseong was still breathtaking.

On Saturday morning, I woke up at 6 to the sound of water pouring. To our horror, we saw that our toilet had backed up and overflown – with dirty water. I won’t get into the details, but it was terrible and stressful. We had to leave our apartment by 7:15 to be at the station on time for the bus. Luckily, a co-worker took care of the issue and we couldn’t thank her enough. However, due to the fiasco, we nearly missed the bus that would take us to Boseong! Luckily, it seemed, the bus was delayed. Soon, though, we would find out that this was a theme throughout the whole trip.

"Maisan" = "two horses"

Selfie at Tapsa Temple

An hour late, our bus finally arrived at Maisan (a mountain named “two horses” in Chinese) and saw the Tapsa temple hidden amongst the peaks. We ate bibimbap at a local restaurant before taking an easy hike up a part of the mountain. It was a beautiful fall day, but the minimal hiking meant that we didn’t get to appreciate any staggering views from the top or gain any major sense of accomplishment. Soon, it was already back to the bus.

Delayed again, somehow, we were back on the road and headed further south. There were two more points on our itinerary for the day – next, we were to see the Suncheon Bay Wetlands and then explore the Naganeupseong Folk Village before dinner and retiring for the night in one of the huts there. Soon, though, the guide told us that it was too late to see the wetlands, and that we’d see it in the morning before going to the tea fields; instead of starting our day at 8, we’d meet at 7 to go to the wetlands. Ok, then – to the folk village we go.

When we finally neared our destination, the guide announced, once again, that the tour of the village wouldn’t happen because the sun had already set. We could meet at 6am to tour the village, if we desired. We grumbled. So far, on a day where three distinct activities had been planned, we’d only accomplished one. It was dinner time. We ate fish, rice, eggs, pork, kimchi, sprouts – typical Korean dishes – at the folk village before it was time for room assignments. The after-dinner process was chaotic. First, we were each to receive a muffin and tea bag for our breakfast (only to find, when we reached our hut, that there was no kettle to use  for tea in the morning…), and this took about 20 minutes. The room assignment process took far too much time and was poorly organized, but finally Tony and I were off to find our hut in the dark – there was little lighting in the village.

Our hut was tiny but cozy – we learned quickly how luxurious the heated floor system can be when you’re chilled. (Instead of central heating like in the States or stoves/estufas like I grew accustomed to in Chile, Korean heat comes from the floors. It makes sense – they sit on the floor to eat, and their beds don’t have frames, but rather they sleep on the floor as well.) Of course, I had to kill half a dozen spiders in the tiny (sink-less) bathroom, but these are the things we do for our loved ones J.

Once settled and having deposited our backpacks, we ventured out once again to explore the dark village, as it was only 8 o’clock in the evening. We wandered around the interweaving pathways and climbed up to the top of the fortress wall that surrounded and protected the entire village, which has survived since the 14th century! We managed to stroll the entire wall from start to finish, noticing the empty moat below on the outside, and seeing little else besides thatched roofs, indecipherable flags, and a pond or two. It was a serene, silent evening.

A foggy view at dawn

In the morning, we woke at 6:30 and took one more quick walk before reaching the bus with our cups of tepid tea-water. It was a pity we couldn’t stay just a half-hour longer to see the sun rise over the mountains from the fortress wall, but perhaps we would have had the time if the itinerary hadn’t been delayed the previous day.

Next, we were on to the Wetlands park in Suncheon, which is home to the only wetlands that connect directly to the sea. We wandered the planked, dock-like pathways through the reeds and munched our muffins, and spent about an hour hiking a small mountain within the park for outstanding, panoramic views from the top. On the way up, the pathway forked, and we had the choice of the “hard road” or  the “road of meditation.” I bet you can’t guess which one we chose…

View of the wetlands

Lunch - culinary tea!

Finally, we were on to Boseong, what we’d been waiting for all along! We arrived at a tea plantation – amid the peaks of stunning fall foliage, the infinite rows of Camellia sinensis. It was worth the wait, to be surrounded by such natural, healthful beauty. There, we climbed once again the steep incline around the bushes and through the cedar trees, and every view was breathtaking. After admiring our surroundings for some time, we had lunch on-site: Tony got jajangmyan (black noodles) which were made with green tea, and I ordered donkasse (pork cutlet) which was sprinkled with matcha and served with a side of green tea rice. Delicious! In the store, we purchased matcha and loose-leaf green tea, and surprisingly, though I originally had planned to buy a teapot (I mean, we’re in the TEA CAPITAL OF KOREA, can you blame me?), we bought two matching mugs – complete with steeping baskets and lids. We left very pleased with our purchase! We headed back to the bus with a green tea ice cream, ready for the last stop of the tour.

 

Simply spectacular.

Autumn is beautiful no matter where in the world it happens.

 



Traditional tea table-setting

Finally, we reached a smaller, family-owned tea farm. There, we partook in a proper tea-drinking ceremony, where the proprieter taught us the correct form of sharing tea with others in traditional Korean style. I assumed the role of the pengju, who serves the tea to those around him/her. We sampled a green tea and a black tea, as well as biscuits and breads made with the same ingredients, all of which were harvested at that same farm. After the ceremony and plenty of samples, we made handmade chocolates that we got to fill with nuts, cranberries, and, of course, green tea leaves.

Chocolate-making fun!

As always, when this excursion ended, we were behind schedule. After a jam-packed weekend and little sleep, we were ready to be home again. But, alas, we had to travel all the way from the southern coast up to Seoul before taking the subway home. The itinerary had promised we would return to Seoul around 6, which meant we should be home to Songtan no later than 8:30. Surprise! We arrived at our front door at 11 o’clock at night – without having eaten dinner. Exhausted yet relieved (especially when we saw that our bathroom was spotless, thank God), we turned in for the night. On the bright side we were able to check two things off our list: first, we checked Boseong off our Korea bucket list. Next, we checked Goh Travel off our future travel plans.