Jeju-do #2: waterfalls

Day one in Jeju-do: Waterfalls and more waterfalls. We started the morning at Cheonjeyeon Falls. It was just down the road from our hotel. Actually, it was a series of falls, which meant a lot of hiking down and up stairs.

Our next stop was Cheonjiyeon Falls. For those of you paying attention, that's right, there is only one letter difference in the names. Imagine trying to hear the difference, especially when you have a hard time hearing the nuances in spoken Korean as it is!

Claire was asleep when we arrived at the 2nd set of waterfalls. But she woke up before we made it to the end of the trail. There, she and Sam entertained some schoolchildren on a field trip with their teacher (she's in the blue shirt, wearing a hat).

Claire and Maeve stop for a quick pose

Our final tourist stop for the day was at Jeongbang Falls. Just as we left the parking lot and started down the entrance steps, Maeve's reaction was, "ANOTHER waterfall?!" This one's claim to fame was that it emptied into the sea.

Jeju-do #1

We flew to Jeju-do for a short vacation while Grandma Mun and Papa David were visiting. "Do" means island in han-guk (Korean). We spent 2 full days seeing the island and enjoyed great weather. The only bad weather we had was the evening we arrived and then it started to rain a bit the morning we left. After getting off the plane, collecting luggage, and finally getting our rental van, we were off to see Jeju-do! Our first stop was the Dragon's Head Rock. Claire fell asleep so she and Sam missed it. Sam had already seen it so he stayed in the van with her. The rest of us trooped down to the shore to view it. The wind really started to gust and it started to sprinkle on us before we made it back to the van. Then, we drove to the south side of the island to find our hotel. It rained and then we found ourselves blanketed in fog as we drove over the mountain to get to the southern side. Fortunately, the weather cleared by the next morning.

While at the Dragon's Head Rock, we saw a woman by the water's edge, squatting down and obviously doing some sort of work. Mom climbed down the rocks to see what she was doing down by the water. Was she catching something from the water?

No, she was washing dishes.

Maeve's han-bok

I posted a picture of Claire in her han-bok some time ago. Maeve finally wore hers while Grandma was here. She liked putting her hands in her sleeves and walking around like that.

Korean Folk Village

We spent a Saturday at the Korean Folk Village in Suwon south of Seoul. While Papa David, Grandma Mun, Sonya and Claire saw the tradition side with the different houses and exhibits, Maeve and Sam experienced the amusement park side with all the rides. After leaving the Folk Village, Sonya managed to miss the entrance to the expressway so we spent a tense ride home hoping we were going in the right direction and would be able to find out our way home.

Claire

Sam and Maeve in the food court area getting lunch

Maeve riding a pony

Traditional farmers' dance

Traditional wedding ceremony

Claire strolls along with Sam in her wake

Roadtrip: homestretch

I'm not really sure why I took this picture of a service station on a two-lane road, but here it is for your viewing pleasure. On the expressways here, the rest areas are large, well-kept affairs with convenience stores, restaurants, cafeterias, and stall-type food vendors with the full-service gas station located some distance away from the main area on your way out of the parking lot back toward the expressway. This is not a picture of that.

Sam had to return to work so he took the train from Busan back to Seoul. That left me to do the rest of the driving! The next day we set off for Donghae, on the east coast of South Korea. It rained the short time we were there. One of Mom's brothers lives there which is why we were there. I took this picture of Donghae from our hotel window. It had stopped drizzling for a short time but was still gray and overcast.

As we left Donghae, it really started to rain. Then, because we had to drive over mountains to get back to Seoul, we encountered thick fog. I knew there was a truck in front of me because I'd seen it pass me in a tunnel. However, as soon as we emerged from the tunnel, the truck completely disappeared into the fog! I was just a little stressed by this driving experience. Eventually the weather began to clear and we descended into lower elevations. By the time, we stopped at this rest area where the girls could play on a small playground, it was warm and sunny and you'd never guess what I'd just driven through!
Of course, no drive back into Seoul would be complete without a traffic jam. Sure enough, there had been an accident and we were at a complete stop on the highway as we came close to the city and were trying to get on the main expressway leading into the city. So close and yet so far!

Roadtrip stop #3: Busan

It was dark, cold and rainy when we arrived in Busan. It continued to rain while we were there.

We met Mom's youngest brother and his wife. They took us to the Busan Exposition and Convention Center (BEXCO). Lucky for Maeve, there was a Barbie exposition at the time. I've never seen so many Barbies. I even recognized the one from my childhood that my sister had managed to remove its head.

After viewing Barbie in all her forms, Maeve and I joined the rest of our group for lunch. There was a very good buffet at BEXCO that my mom is still raving about.

After lunch, we went to Dongbaek (Camellia Island) and walked around in the drizzle. But we weren't the only fools walking in the rain! There was quite the line when we found our way to the APEC building and received a tour of the site where leaders around the Pacific (including our own Pres. Bush) had met for an economic conference.

Roadtrip stop #2: Gyeongju

We left Daegu and drove through Gyeongju on our way to Busan. Two things we wished we known before setting out: (1) it was the worst day for yellow dust so far; and (2) Gyeongju set records that day for sheer number of tourists coming because of the cherry blossoms. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper. As we tried to leave Gyeongju on our way to Busan, traffic was so slow that a group of bicyclists passed us twice.

Our first stop in Gyeongju was Anapji Pond. It was a beautiful place to get out of the car and stretch our legs. It was easy to see why the king who built it enjoyed it so much. I wish I could share more pictures but both my camera and mom's decided this was good place to have their batteries die.

Some of the famous, crowd-drawing cherry blossoms

Just down the road from Anapji Pond is a park with the large mounds of royal tombs and this ancient observatory, Cheomseongdae.

We left the city of Gyeongju and headed for the mountains and the Buddhist shrine and monastery of Bulguksa. It was late afternoon by the time we arrived. We missed closing time by only an hour or so. It was an uphill hike to the entrance and then another uphill hike to the actual shrine.

Roadtrip stop #1: Daegu

After driving from Seoul, we arrived in Daegu in the late afternoon. The first thing we did was hike up a hill to Apsan Park ("san" apparently means mountain in Korean) where we then hiked the walking/exercise trail at the base of Apsan. It was getting late and both little people and big people needed to be fed so we decided to go back to the hotel instead of taking the cable car to the top of the mountain.

L'il Sis and Mom coming off the trail

The next day, we found the hotel where my sister was born. (I tried to post a picture but it kept appearing sideways.) We had lunch at a kal-bi house. For some insane reason, we opted for sitting on the floor, so Stretch probably limped for 10 minutes after leaving the restaurant. Then it was off to Dalseong Park where mom used to take me when I was 2. There was a small zoo there and the cherry blossoms were beautiful. The girls each got a balloon but Big Sis somehow commandeered them both before it was over.

On the road

Big Sis had Spring Break, so on April 7th, we hit the road to see Daegu, Pusan, and Donghae, and other sights along the way.

Grandma M took this picture of us at a rest area on our way to Daegu.

Daddy's shoes...

L'il Sis is obsessed with shoes these days. We have to keep the shoe cupboard locked to keep her out of it. But she still manages to find shoes to clomp around the house. Here, she's got some really big shoes to fill... Hopefully, she won't grow in to Daddy's shoes.

Aquarium at the 63 Building in Seoul

Grandma M and Big Sis are set to watch a fish feeding at the aquarium.

Lil Sis petting a turtle.

pottery field trip

On March 31, Big Sis's kindergarten class went on a field trip to DooSong Pottery. After watching the Master make several types of vases, each child was able to pick a style and make their own. Big Sis was the only one to pick this particular style of vase. After creating their vases, the children were able to decorate them. After they are fired and glazed, we'll get their creations.

Princess

We're not sure if this means that Big Sis is passing on her tiara to her sister... or maybe we're now officially a 2-princess household. Big Sis let L'il Sis wear one of her dress-up outfits (that she never wears anymore). It came to L'il Sis's ankles. But Big Sis wasn't done. The outfit eventually included purple fairy wings, a long beaded necklace and a headband with a pink crown on it. But L'il Sis preferred just the dress and wore it for most of an afternoon, twirling around and dancing when the mood struck.

pictures

L'il Sis and Big Sis on Daddy's computer.

L'il Sis seems to be enjoying a good book. It doesn't matter that, technically, she can't read and she especially can't read han-gul.

the girls

me (never mind), Big Sis (5), and L'il Sis (22 months). We were struck by L'il Sis's pose, she was saying, "Hi, Daddy!" when he snapped the picture.

What is wrong with people?

I'm wondering if this story is getting any coverage in the States. I first saw a story in the Marine Corps Times about a motorcycle club called the Patriot Guard Riders that, by invitation, shows up at military funerals to chant patriotic slogans and wave flags in hopes of overshadowing another group. The other group is the Westboro Baptist Church led by Rev. Fred Phelps. These people picket military funerals, some go so far as to carry signs that say "Thank God for IEDs." Then, I read another article in the Stars & Stripes about this same group of people going even further. Police in Indiana had to boost security at a funeral of a soldier after his family had eggs thrown at their home and received a phone call from someone who said, "I'm glad your son is dead." The same family had garbage scattered across their property.

It doesn't really matter what their reasons are. What kind of person thinks it is okay to harass a bereaved family? What is wrong with these people? Not only have they ignored the rights of these families, they have shown themselves to be cruel and hateful people. I certainly hope there are more people out there like the Patriot Guard Riders, showing compassion and kindness to the bereaved families.

Broccoli

What a pleasant surprise dinner was tonight. Both girls ate multiple helpings of broccoli -- Big Sis (the pickier one) ate 3 or 4 helpings! L'il Sis, 21 months, even managed to say, "broccoli." Of course, she just beheaded hers and left the spears on her plate. But still! The sesame oil and soy sauce must be working. At least for tonight. But I'll take it!

Han-bok

L'il Sis tried on her han-bok, a traditional Korean dress, this weekend. It was just a little too long for her. She tripped and fell just before this picture was taken. Afterward, she insisted on wearing just the jacket part.

kindergarten scholar

Big Sis spent much of her long President's Day weekend studying. She memorized her phone number and mastered 40 sight words from a list provided by her teacher. She's studying them in this picture. Her teacher tested her on them when she returned to school on Tuesday and she got them all right!

She also had to work on a science project. Yes, a science project. In kindergarten. She made tags with sticky windows to catch junk in the air and hung them inside and outside the house. After 3 days, she took them down and looked at them under a magnifying glass. Then she wrote out what she did and what she found and put it all on a posterboard for school. Her teacher told us she did a great job explaining and showing her experiment to her class. Her project is now hanging up somewhere in the school for this week's Science Expo.

The weekend wasn't all work for Big Sis. We went to the ice rink at Lotte World on Monday. Big Sis and Mom skated while L'il Sis and Dad explored, found a bookstore, bought books...

Happy Valentine's Day

During Big Sis's kindergarten class celebration, the children shared different ways to say "I love you" and posted them on the board (behind Big Sis in the picture). Big Sis's was "I love to play with you." Several children brought in hearts that said "I love you" in Korean and Spanish. But the one that stole the show was brought in by one of the quietest little boys in the class. His heart was singed around the edges and said, in French, "My heart is on fire." It's always the quiet ones!