Wine Train & Easter!

First of all, this is a bit late, but - HAPPY EASTER!!

A few months back, Chris and I signed up to go on a wine train. The day for it finally arrived! We were supposed to meet at the Seoul train station early Saturday morning, so instead of getting up really early and leaving from Suji, we decided to book a hotel room in Seoul for the weekend - so fun! Maynah and Tatiana who were also doing the wine train, booked a room at the same place as us, so we all had a mini getaway.

The hotel we were originally planning to stay at didn't quite work out so at the end of the day Friday, we still weren't quite sure where we were heading to. We had booked on Agoda at U&I Hostel but were informed on Friday that there was a booking error. When I called we were informed Agoda no longer had a contact with U&I so couldn't fulfil the already paid for and confirmed booking. A bit ridiculous that they would still be confirming bookings but it happened. Thankfully they were able to get us into another hotel in the same area and we loved it! Since we were in the city, I went out in Itaewon for some drinks. One place that we went to was called Mi Casa. It was excellent. You put however much money on a white card, then along the wall there are bottles of wine behind a glass case. You put your card in and select the wine you want as well as how many ounces, put your glass under the dispenser then enjoy and go back for more. I think it's a cool concept and you were able to try any of the wines you wanted and however much you wanted, all self serve. It also had great atmosphere. Here is a picture found online:

Saturday we were up early and on our way to Seoul station, one stop away, for the wine train. The train was completely decorated in a wine theme. Grapes and vines painted on the outside of the train car, wine cork carpet inside. There ended up being five of us in our group as Noelia met up with us that morning, so Chris, Maynah and I sat at a table together, while Tatiana and Noelia sat at another table with two other girls. There was unlimited wine the entire day and they started pouring at 9:30am!

 Maynah and I on the train

Chris holding our snack platter - wine is often served with Kraft singles in Korea

We took the train all the way down to Dajeon (about three hours) enjoying our wine, snacks, chatting and playing cards. They offered a dry red, sweet red, dry white and a raspberry wine. All Korean wine of course. I have been getting more into red wines, but much preferred the white wine on this trip. 

Once we arrived in Dajeon, we got onto a bus and headed to our buffet lunch destination which also provided more unlimited wine. 

Tatiana, Noelia, Maynah, myself and Chris on the bus.

Where we had lunch!

After lunch, we headed to a cave that was filled with 500,000 bottles of wine! 

Afterwards, we were treated to a wine foot bath! So relaxing!

We were supposed to see a traditional Korean performance as well, but due to the ferry accident it was cancelled. Instead they showed us traditional Korean instruments and then we were able to try some drums ourselves. It was actually one of the best parts of the trip. We were all put into a room and got a drum, then a Korean women taught us how to drum and finally we were able to drum a song together in unison. 

After this, it was back on the train for more wine back to Seoul. I really enjoyed this trip. Some people weren't so happy with the wine, but it was clearly stated that it would be Korean wine, and I honestly didn't find it that bad. I found the whole day to be very enjoyable. That night, the four of us went out dancing with some new friends we met on the train. 

The next morning we slowly packed up our things from the hotel - after watching some live televised Starcraft on TV of course! 

It was a bit of a rush to head back on Sunday as we were planning to have a potluck Easter dinner. As much as I wanted to just relax, I knew I would have felt a bit sad spending Easter alone. Maynah, Tatiana, Noelia, Mel and Alison all work at the same school and their apartments are in their school, so they hosted a bunch of us. We enjoyed an assortment of food and beverages, drew on some eggs, and enjoyed some ice cream cake in the park.

Definitely not your typical Easter, but one spent in good company! I feel so blessed to have met so many amazing people here!

This past weekend, I went to a wine buffet at the Coex Intercontinental Hotel. The wine and appies were delicious and it was a great night, but most memorable was the cab ride getting there. The driver and I attempted to have a conversation in the little Korean I know, and the little English he knew. He asked where I was from and told me how he thinks Vancouver is so beautiful. Asked how old I was, what I was doing in Korea. Asked if I was married, then if I had a boyfriend and then asked why I didn't. Afterwards proceeded to tell me about his son who is 28 and all of his accomplishments. At a red light, he politely asked to touch my hair and then took a selfie of us together on his phone! While these conversations are no longer unusual, him asking to touch my hair and take a picture with me was hilarious and made for a memorable ride!

Saturday I went to Lotte World for the second time with Ben, Bo, Chris and Ben's coworker Ryan and his girlfriend. The lines were long as usual but we managed to get on a few fun rides! I never fully realized my love of amusement parks until coming to Korea. 

Hot Air Balloon - favourite ride of the day!

Chris and I in the hot air balloon <3 Everyone wears funky headbands like these at amusement parks here! 

The view from the hot air balloon. 

Group shot! Ben, Bo, Chris, Myself, Ryan and his girlfriend 

This past week I had to make my first ever trip to the doctors since being in Korea. I feel like Koreans se the doctor for everything. Any time I have the slightest cough my supervisor tells me to go to the doctor. I think that's ridiculous and fight it off naturally in time. I know when I need to see a doctor and won't go to a doctor here for something that I wouldn't go see one at home for.  Monday night I felt a sore throat coming on and I woke up at 5am to a car's alarm going off (for an hour) outside of my apartment building, as well as an even worse sore throat. I tried to get back to sleep but couldn't so in my preparations to gargle salt water I realized that I probably had strep throat or tonsillitis and would definitely need to see a doctor. Unfortunately, the only place I knew I could find a doctor was at the hospital next to my school, which is down the road from my apartment. Thankfully I knew the hospital was open 24 hours. So at 6:30am I headed to the hospital, in desperation for medicine to relieve the pain. It was a bit strange being in there that early as most of the lights were off and there wasn't really anyone around except another lady who I could tell didn't work there. Luckily a guy in a suit came out and took down my information but didn't speak much English and kept disappearing so I started to question if there was really a doctor around. Finally a doctor appeared, helped the other lady than a nurse brought me to the doctor. Overall it was quick and efficient. He looked in my throat, took a picture with my cell phone so he could point to spots and tell me that my tonsils were inflamed (as if I didn't know already). Thankfully for Google I was able to translate that I'm allergic to penicillin and he brought up all the drugs on his computer and showed me that they weren't penicillin - though none of the words meant anything to me, but it was thoughtful of him, he could probably tell I was a bit worried. Next I was taken away by the nurse and was given two shots in the butt (which they call "hip") which hurt! I almost cried. I have no idea what they gave me. This is what happens when you live in a country and don't speak the language. The total visit cost me $30 - not bad I'm told by my American friends, and was given two papers when I left that I couldn't read. I went back home and had two hours before having to get up for work but whatever they gave me sure helped me sleep! When I arrived at work I learned that one of the papers was a prescription! Hurray! I was a little bit worried that they didn't give me one. So at lunch, I filled the prescription (a whopping $7) and since they have been taking 18 mystery pills a day. 

I only have one pack of 6 pills left now and already feel almost 100% better - which to me is amazing as back home I'd be taken medicine for at least 10 days if I remember correctly. And I've had to work the entire time (no sick days) so these pills have been amazing. Just in time too since I have plans for this weekend (see below). A side note about the doctors/hospitals here, cleanliness is well, no a priority? A co-worker did a number on her finger cutting a frozen banana and had to go to the hospital for stitches. She had to return to get it cleaned and re-wrapped and finally this week she got to go back and get the stitches out. Not only was the doctor not wearing gloves or anything when he initially put the stitches in, the doctor (same or different - not entirely sure) was taking stitches out of someone else when she arrived. The doctor was not wearing gloves, nor did he wash his hands between taken out the other person's stitches and taking out hers. Why? Because, Korea.

Don't get me wrong, I love Korea and I am loving my time here, but some things just make you take a step back and have a huge question mark over your head. For example, like when we were told during our work meeting that we are going to do a fire drill next month to promote safety after the ferry accident. Only to learn that they do not know if we have a fire extinguisher, or where it is, or how to use it. UM ?! And we are responsible for how many children ages 3 and up?!

I'm glad I'm feeling better though because tomorrow is my Friday which means I have a long weekend ahead of myself, so excited! Monday is Children's Day and Tuesday is Buddha's Birthday so we have both days off. Chris and I are headed to Busan after work for the four days. Busan is the second largest city in Korea and it's on the coast so our hotel is on the beach! It will be four days of lounging, reading and relaxing. We are taking the KTX which is the "fast train" down there. I can't wait to just completely relax!

<3

Wax Museum & Trick Eye Museum

March was a bit of a whirlwind, lots of events, changes of plans, and some misfortune.

The weekend after the Jindo Sea Parting festival, Alison, Maynah, Chris and I decided we would rent bikes and ride along the Han River. This is something that I have wanted to do since I got here in Korea last year. We met at the subway station and headed to Yeouido park together. The plan was to have a picnic then get bikes. Unfortunately things did not quite work out that way. Finding food that we wanted ended up being a bit of a challenge. But what I think is very cool is that we were able to order chicken and have it delivered to us in the park! I feel like this should be a service offered in Vancouver, especially for events like the Celebration of Lights. People who work for various companies stand in the park handing out flyers, you call in and order, pay the man in the park and then return to him after however long and a delivery car has dropped off your order with him. It was very cool. Unfortunately the day got very cold and windy so our picnic was short. We were joined by Ben who suggested going to 63 Building which was nearby and has an aquarium and wax museum.

Chris, Maynah, Alison and I having lunch and wine in the park. 

Maynah and I with the cherry blossoms! I didn't realize we were so privileged to have so many in Vancouver. They are such a big deal over here. 

While most of the sculptures were not very realistic looking, the eyes were!

There was a section of Halloween stuff and even a mini haunted house which I loved. 

We all posed with Obama, Ellen style. 

Sunset walk in the park

That night, I went out dancing with Ben, Chris, Sy and his girlfriend. The majority of the night was awesome, until I lost both my phone and wallet. It was probably the worst day experience I have had here. Not to mention I was devastated as I have never lost anything important in my life before. I was supposed to meet a friend the next day which did not happen and having no way to communicate made things more frustrating. So that didn't happen, but my amazing friend Chris spent the day with me and it was nice to have her support as well as the support of those other people who were there for me - you know who you are and I appreciate it. Luckily and still to my amazement I managed to get both my phone and wallet back the following Tuesday night - while I know I am extremely lucky this is a bit of a testament to just how honest people can be here. The only thing missing was my Korean ID card, which is a pain (and getting a new one is proving to be a bit of a pain) but I really can't complain. So while I am a bit embarrassed by this fiasco, it is still a part of my adventure and I will definitely be locking everything up in lockers in the future!

We celebrated Isla's birthday at school!

The following weekend was a bit more relaxed. As I am still running a board game meetup group here, I hosted an event on the Friday night. We played games at a beer cooler which was fantastic. I ordered a new game called Saboteur and was excited to finally play it. Below we are playing Phase10.

Saturday I relaxed at home before going to a BBQ at Reid's house. He is super lucky and has a huge deck so we enjoyed some barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers. Instead of heading out for drinks afterwards, Chris and I went and saw The Grand Budapest Hotel, which was not as funny as we thought it would be but still very quirky. 

Sunday I met up with Matt and we checked out the Trick Eye Museum. The pictures and lighting are set up to create illusions and it was a fun day of picture taking and just being outgoing. 

There was also a separate smaller ice museum that we checked out and enjoyed a ride down the ice slide.

I'm still checking out new places, and checking things off my bucket list which is exciting!

<3 

Jindo Sea Parting Festival

Many of you have probably heard already that there was a very tragic ferry accident here in Korea recently. I have received several messages from people asking if I am okay, and I am, thank you for your thoughts and concern. Honestly this accident is heartbreaking for everyone in Korea. Something that I have learned about Korean culture though this is their solidarity as a country. Everyone - directly affected or not - comes together to mourn. All entertainment events (concerts, performances), field trips etc. have been cancelled out of respect to those who have lost their lives. I even read today that even movie theatre attendance has dropped by 40%. While some may say that this is a band-aid solution to prevent future tragedies, this is one country's way of dealing with loss and I am in no place to judge that. This has been in the news non-stop and is broadcast on almost every TV channel. How the situation was handled makes me feel angry and being in a country where something devastating has happened makes the reality of it so much more real. I just hope that everyone will be able to find peace. It's also crazy to think that I myself was on a ferry only a few short months ago going to Jeju myself, although not the same ferry. 

It's hard to transition from discussing the accident to my adventures over the past month, so I hope sharing my times of joy and fun doesn't come across as insensitive. 

It's been awhile since I last posted! In my last post I mentioned going away the upcoming weekend (end of March) which I did. My friend Mel (from the UK) and I went to the Sea Parting Festival in Jindo. We were getting picked up early Saturday morning, so we had a sleepover at my place on Friday night. This lead to us staying up late and booking the first flights for our trip to Malaysia in July! 

Saturday morning, Mel and I got onto the WINK (When In Korea - organizer) bus and we all headed to Jindo. Once we arrived we grabbed lunch and then headed to a traditional performance. Unfortunately there were so many people there that most people could not get a seat to enjoy the performance. But afterwards, many of the performers came outside and we all danced together as they drummed. It was so amazing to be a part of this huge happy crowd of people. Mel and  I were grabbed by the hands by another person and we started a circle chain of dancing and jumping around the drummers. These are a few photos taken from the group Adventure Korea - can you spot me in the second one?

From here, we went to a dog show. Jindo is famous for their Jindo dogs, both smart and beautiful. I'm not sure how I feel about the dog show as they had the dogs jumping through multiple rings of fire which just seems cruel. What was funny though is that some of the dogs just wouldn't do the trick if they didn't want to.

After this, we were dropped off at the hostel. We shared a room with our friend Martin, my friend Emmalee, her friend Tina and about five other people. Most people when down to the festival area for the live stage performance, but as I had started to get a cold the previous Thursday, I wasn't feeling so great and decided to stay in. Besides, we were getting up for the sea parting at 4am anyways - and it came quickly!

So this is a festival that occurs every year and I believe it is based on the cycle of the moon and the tide? But in this specific area, the sea parts so that you can walk to what would normally be an island in the sea. In previous years the parting doesn't happen until the afternoon, but this year it was super early in the morning. So at 4am we got up, dressed and headed down to the sea. We were warned in advance that the water may not part fully so we were prepared with thigh high rubber boots! We were also given torches to help us see when walking in the water.

Mel, Martin and I walking down to the festival

Martin and I with our torches and the mass of people entering the water behind us. 

Thankfully for the boots, we couldn't feel how cold the water was. For others, who decided to do the walk without shoes or in sandals, were quite cold. We joined the masses of people walking across the sea until the water came up to an inch below our boots. At this point, the lady on the microphone was telling everyone to come back out of the water because the tide was coming back in quickly. It was a bit unfortunate to not be able to do the walk completely but it was still a fun, unforgettable experience. Here is a shot of the three of us when we got out:

 You can see the boots more clearly in this photo. 

As we were getting out of the water, there was a fireworks show to top things off. Mel has a bit of a fear of fireworks, but she did well! We returned our torches after several more pictures then headed back to bed! Here is a photo from previous years to get a better idea of what we were doing:

After getting some more sleep we enjoyed the rest of the festival. There were a lot of food stands, you could try playing a traditional Korean drum, we wrote wishes, and we painted. 

Enjoying some Turkish ice cream

This is where we were standing in the rocks and sand just earlier that morning. The water rose high and quickly.

Putting up my banner of my wish

Mel and Martin trying out the drums. 

Jindo!

Painting on a banner - while I was doing this, a Korean man from some media source came up and took several shots of me painting. 

Martin and a Jindo puppy.

There was also a parade scheduled. Before the parade started, I found my friend Robin, and Mel and I were talking to him. Out of nowhere, we had three men with cameras approach and they started to take pictures of us chatting. We though they wanted a posed photo, but he said no and told us to put on our sunglasses and keep talking to one another. We were photographed for a good ten minutes by several people, it was a very odd experience. 

Here are a few photos from the parade, which was a community effort. We were even invited to take part!

 Probably the most memorable part of the parade - older Korean man dancing and behind him is a man dressed as Moses for the sea parting.

We represented the water.

Group shot of some of us who went on the WINK trip.

Finally, there was a performance on the stage and then they released a bunch of balloons that we were supposed to wish on. Afterwards it was back on the bus heading to home to Seoul.

<3