I am back at school from my Chuseok adventure. This year, I had about five days off, so I spent three days in Seoul with the Wasmunds and then visited Busan for two days. It was quite a whirlwind, traveling from the northernmost point of the country to the southern tip. It was definitely a great display for me of the beauty of this country I have called home for over a year.
I hadn't seen the Wasmunds since I left for Taiwan, so it was great to catch up with them and share stories from my trip. I also received updates from Lily and Olivia about VBS from summer, school, and Lily's new Ballet class. I stayed at the Wasmunds home, so I got to be a part of the family for a few days. It was nice to have homecooked meals and the play with the girls. They taught me some of their dances from VBS, played games, and read a lot. I am amazed by how curious the girls are about everything, constantly asking questions that I would have never thought of at their age. I think it will be very interesting as they grow to see how they learn and develop. They are very smart and love to learn, which makes me believe that they will do great things.
One of the coolest things for me was when Lily brought out her completed Explode the Code book, the same book that I learned phonics and writing. Talking with her about combining letters to create words by "sounding it out" brought back so many memories for me of writing my first letters very carefully with my mom sitting beside me. I feel like that journey of learning that I started at my kitchen table with that first book continues to this day as I study here in Korea. It is a pretty cool concept to think of how far you come from those early steps, yet the love for learning continues.
While at the Wasmunds, I also had the chance to visit Jongmyo Shrine and a Hanok Village. Jongmyo is the Confucian shrine where the ancestral tablets of the Kings and Queens of the Joseon dynasty are kept. It is that last East Asian nation where this Confucian tradition of caring for the deceased royalty remains. Every May, the Korean government carries out the traditional ceremony that would have been continued by the king. It consists of scholars bringing the tablets out of their shrines, preparing food for the kings and queens, and placing it for them "eat." After an assigned span of time, the food is consumed by the scholars, indicating that the deceased leaders have blessed the coming year for the nation. It is an interesting perspective on filial piety: the king would carry this out in gratitude to his ancestors and in return they would bless his coming year of rule. It was an interesting place to be sure. There were two buildings that looked like large Asian style warehouses that are used to house the ancestors. It displayed for me again just how much Confucianism is embedded and embraced in this culture.
I went to the Hanok Village with Matt and the girls. It consisted of relocated traditional houses and several traditional games to try in celebration for Chuseok. It was fun to see the festivities for the holiday and watch the girls curiously explore every corner of the village.
After my visit with the Wasmunds, I went to Busan. I took the slow train, which still only took five hours to travel from the top of the country to the bottom. For this Midwesterner, I found that quite amazing. Busan was lovely: warm weather, hostel right on the beach....doesn't get much better than that! I had the chance to visit one of my dad's old colleagues from New Jersey, Les Miller, who now teaches at a university in Busan. He has lived in Korea for twenty years, so we had a lot of stories to swap! It was neat to meet someone in Korea who could relate about cultural differences and knew my family.
While in Busan, I also went to one of the larger fish markets, a temple located on the cliffs overlooking the ocean...GORGEOUS, and one of the nearby islands overlooking the city. The temple was a beautiful display of architecture and nature combined with such grace. It was the first temple I have visited since travels to Taiwan and Hong Kong, so it was a nice reminder of the nature of Korea Buddhist temples: places of calm serenity, reflections of the Korean Buddhist philosophy.
After a great break, I made my way back to school Thursday for class on Friday. I came back to my dorm to find my roommate had moved in. I had been told my roommate may move in late, but I was beginning to wonder two weeks into class if this roommate was a figment of everyone's imagination. I was happy to find that I had a roommate, it is very strange to be in a room alone with half the space empty, awaiting the existence of that second person. Her name is Hajeong. She is a Senior, 22 years old, meaning that for the first time here in Korea I have a roommate who is older than me. She is very nice, but like many seniors preparing for graduation (which is in February), she is quite busy.
Next week I start exchanges and my Korean Listening class. I am looking forward to finally being in the full swing of things.
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