Monday

Today has been a slower day. This morning we had a lecture that was supposed to be on "current issues in southeast Asia. It was given by a U.S. diplomat from Busan and when he introduced it it basically sounded like a lecture on U.S./Korean relations. Not really something that interests me very much since I am not from the U.S. His lecture touched on all kinds of diplomatic relations and the roles that diplomats play in the world so it was actually quite interesting (much more interesting than our last 2 lectures on economics and international development that were very heavy on numbers and stats.)
This afternoon was a "cultural activity" and we went bowling. I am not really sure how that fits into Korean culture but it was a fun time anyways. There were at least a few people in the group who had never bowled before, some unusual styles, some people that looked like professionals, and one of the girls on my team broke a nail but everyone I spoke to had a fun afternoon.
Afterwards, I came back to the dorm and relaxed for a bit before heading out to find something for supper. I wandered around for awhile and ran into 3 of the girls from Regina. We went to a restaurant called Oh! My Dak. The menu was totally in Korean and had no pictures so we muddled through ordering and ended up with what we were hoping for. On the walk home we saw two people dressed up as giant soju bottles handing out mini bottles of soju (I attached a picture but it is actually from our first night here.)
This was really about the end of my day. I relaxed in the lounge for a bit (my roommate was sleeping when I got back because all the Koreans were out late last night) and watched some TV (CSI Miami and Cold Case) and read a book. The lounge is really cold because the air conditioning runs pretty much constantly and for some reason starting yesterday our room's a/c is actually working fairly steady. I guess somebody must of turned down the thermostat on them.
That was my day today and although a rather boring update it was nice to have a slow day after such a busy week last week. Tomorrow afternoon our cultural activity is ice skating so I am thinking that it should be fairly interesting since the majority of the people here are from places that do not traditionally have snow.
Hope everyone is well. Take care.

Sunday Blog part 2 - Home Stay

I am still trying to catch up on my updates so I will try to finish another blog today so I do not fall any further behind. Friday was the day for our home stay. I have to admit that after a busy week in Seoul and a late night, the only thing I really wanted to do was spend a nice quiet evening at the dorm. The fact that I was nervous about going to someone's house and making a total ass of myself by doing something wrong was also added to my overall hesitation to about the home stay. I couldn't imagine what we could do from 1 PM Friday until 5 PM Saturday.

I was paired with a student from the University that will be travelling to Vancouver next year to study English. He arrived at the dorm just before 1 and I was introduced to him by my roommate. We headed out to the bus and made small talk (he had a list of questions written in a book). It was quickly evident that he was extremely nervous and he smiled and laughed nervously the entire time we were together. Although his English was not very good we were able to communicate fairly well but he kept apologizing for his English and I tried to tell him that we were in his country and it was me who should apologize for my horrible Korean (what little I know). We headed to Ilsan beach which was a little over an hour away by bus. The bus ride was interesting to say the least. I sat in a single seat right at the front of the bus and the bus driver (who was about the angriest bus driver I have ever seen) kept looking over at me like he did not trust me. His driving was very agressive and he would honk at cars if the other driver even thought about coming into his lane and speed up so he would not have to let anyone in. When pulling up to the stops he would open the door a half block away and you better hurry to get in because he was not very patient. Several times if someone was in the door too long he would scold them loudly and get them moving. We stopped at a red light near one bus that was at a stop and when I looked in it there was a woman in the doorway with her arms wrapped around a pole and the driver was trying to push her out of the bus. I made sure I was on my best behaviour and got off the bus quickly when our stop came. I have always appreciated the bus drivers in Regina but I now have an extra appreciation for them.

At the beach we walked up a hiking trail to a park that was up on top of the hill and then a trail that led out to a point made up of some rocks. the park was really nice but had the usual cluster of stalls selling food and other things and the park had speakers throughout that had a radio station playing. I guess Koreans do not like too much peace and quiet. The view from the point was very nice and I took quite a few pictures. The overall hike was also very nice except it was very hot and humid and considering I was carrying everything I needed for my home stay (including a book that I had brought for a gift) I was a sweaty mess by the time we were done. We then jumped another bus (this time the driver was not so bad) and headed downtown to meet some of his college friends. His friends spoke English fairly well and so communications became easier. We all went to a restaurant and had chicken soup (a small whole chicken filled with rice cooked and served in a pot of boiling broth). With my less than ideal chopstick skills it was a bit of a challenge to pick the meat off of the chicken off of the bones but I managed to do OK.

Afterwards we went to a pub and drank some beer and visited. It is kind of a different feeling being the center of attention. Everyone had alot of questions about what things are like in Canada. The communication was difficult at times but I learned to talk slowly and my home stay partner had an electronic Korean/English dictionary so this helped. I did feel kind of bad though because he did not say much and just let his friends do most of the talking in English but I think he preferred to just listen.

Afterwards we caught a cab back to his home which was on the 9th floor of an apartment building. His father had just got home from work and his mother was not yet home. After saying hello (his mother and father do not speak English) we watched TV until his mother was home and she cut up a platter of fruit for us to have. I had a shower and went to bed and that was the total extent that I seen his parents (his father had to go to work at 4AM and his mother at 6).

The next morning we had a breakfast of rice (rice is served at every meal), a pork and fish dish, an egg dish, and many other things, his cousin came to pick us up to go to Gyeongju, which was the capital of the Silla kingdom (ruled Korea between the 7th and 9th centuries) and has numerous archaeological sites.
We made the 1 hour trip in his cousin's car which is made by Samsung (he told me some of his friends do not like his car because it is not a Hyundai (probably 80% of the vehicles on the road in Ulsan are Hyundai. We visited the Bulguska Temple (which has a large number of buildings) and the Seokgulam Grotto which is on top of the mountain and has fabulous views.

The Buddha statue in the grotto is very nice and at one time (before a building was built to protect it from the elements) the sun would rise on the Buddha on the summer solstice.

We headed back towards Ulsan, stopping at a beach where we had lunch. By the time we were back at the University it was nearly 5 and I really wondered where the day had gone. Although the home stay was not what I thought it would be and I did not really experience home life in Korea, I felt it was a good experience and an opportunity to talk to people who were interested in using their English and finding out more about Canada.

Saturday evening a group of 15 of us went to a restaurant near the university for supper. We had a good meal with pork and rice and a tofu soup along with the various extras you always get at a Korean restaurant and it only cost us 3000 won each ($3). Afterwards we headed back to the dorms and a bunch of the students were headed out to a dance club but one of the guys in the room next to me and I decided to go for a drink instead. By this time it was raining so I was able to put my umbrella to use again as we walked down to the bar where we ran into 3 other students from the program. While having drinks, a table with 3 quite inebriated Korean men came over to our table and asked Danielle (a blond from Alabama) if she would join their table so they could practise their English. Of course they just wanted her to sit with them and could barely speak any English at all (especially in their state of drunkenness). In the end we all got a good laugh from it (especially when the one came over to our table a stood there swaying for 5 minutes trying to think of what to say) and they sent over a few beers to our table.

Quite a few of the people in the UIP program like to go to one of the many Karaoke places in the evening, so we decided to go. I am not a big fan of it but enjoy sitting with the group listening to the others sing (or try to). The karaoke places here do not serve alcohol (most of the people just bring a bottle of soju in with them) and you rent a room which means it is only your group which seems to make it alot more fun. We joined up with another group of students that were headed there and spent a couple of hours singing. On the way home we stopped at McDonalds which is my first american chain restaurant I have eaten at since I arrived. When I got back I checked the score of the Rider game and headed off to bed looking forward to spending today relaxing.

This week should be interesting as we go to a sports festival, ice skating, tour Hyundai Heavy Industries (ship builders), the Hyundai car plant, try traditional Korean folk music and make another trip to Gyeongju.

I hope everyone enjoys the remainder of their weekend!

P.S. If anyone is interested in seeing more pictures from the program, check out http://www.ulsan.ac.kr/eng/international/uip03.aspx?o=L . Also, I have been having a horrible time with the internet while writing this blog todya so if anything looks funny I am sorry but I am tired of trying to fix it. Thanks.

Seoul, the Countryside and the DMZ

Well, I am finally back in Ulsan after a quick and very busy trip to Seoul. Our trip did not start out very well as the buses were over an hour late picking us up at the University. The other bad aspect of the trip was that the Korean students in the program did not get to come to Seoul with us (We had 3 of the student staff that did accompany us). I am not sure why this occurred but it really is too bad. Once we finally started the 5 hour trip to Seoul, we had the opportunity to watch the beautiful countryside go by. It really is quite the sight. Small mountains dominate the landscape with lush green valleys filled with crops of rice, grapes and ginseng. Small villages filled with homes with blue roofs dot the valleys and larger urban areas are fairly common. All through the valleys there are small clearings above the rice fields that have a small stupa. It looks very nice.

When we were close to Seoul we stopped at a little traditional BBQ restaurant for lunch before heading to the Everland amusement park.

It is an interesting place. Kind of like a South Korean version of Disneyland. We had 5 hours to explore, go on any rides we wanted and find something for supper. I have to admit that I didn't go on many rides but just kind of wandered around with a small group from the program and looked at the place and scoped out the souvenir shops. After a week of Korean food we thought we would have some western food for supper and stopped at a burger place. It was definitely not the best burger I have ever had and in my opinion we should have stuck with some Korean food.

Following our time at Everland, we headed into Seoul where we were staying at the Seoul International Youth Hostel. The guys in the group had rooms that housed 6 people each and the girls had rooms that housed 10 people each (taking the Korean students out of the group there are only 9 males plus 3 student staff and the coordinator that made the trip along with 37 non-Korean females). I had a great room-full of people that helped make the trip quite entertaining.

After settling into our rooms, there was a group of about 20 of us that went out to have a drink to celebrate our first night in Seoul. Sean Park, the program coordinator, used to live in Seoul so he took us to an area that was about a 15 minute walk from the hostel. The walk ended up taking over an hour because we were waiting a long time at the hostel for people to be ready and then had to stop part-way to our destination to wait for some people who started out after us but were not sure of which way to go. Once we got to the area, it was much like the little shopping districts in Ulsan with the 4 story buildings full of lights creating caverns for us to walk down and explore. The main street we were at was fairly wide and was closed to traffic (for the most part) and had a row of carts full of items for sale. We ended up at the Wabar, which is the same as a place near the dorms in Ulsan, and to order a drink you push a little doorbell type thing on the table and your waitress/waiter is there inside 5 seconds. It is a really good system as you never get interrupted while in conversation or mid-drink but the service is still really good.

On Tuesday morning, we headed for the National Museum of Korea. It is a large (biggest museum in Asia) new museum that has a great deal of wonderful artifacts, of course mainly concentrated on Korea. Afterwards, we were hosted for lunch be the Asan Medical Center. This is the biggest medical centre in Korea and is the home of the University of Ulsan's medical school. The medical center was funded by Chung Ju-yung (the founder of Hyundai) and there was a small museum on his life. He was a very interesting person and I encourage anyone who is interested to read about this man who started out as a rice delivery boy living in poverty to building the biggest industrial empire in Korea. Our lunch was on the top floor of one of the buildings and it had great views of the river and Seoul. In the afternoon we were brought to a shopping area and given 2+ hours to shop. I am definitely not a big shopper but I wandered around for a bit. The walkway that went under the street was packed with stalls of people selling everything you could imagine. After emerging on the other side of the street where the large shopping malls were, the sidewalks were filled with more vendors in their little stalls selling their wares. The first mall I went into was a normal department store type of place but the second was absolutely packed with stuff. There was barely enough room to walk around and there were stall type areas set up and packed full of clothes. It was quite insane! After wandering around for a bit, I found a coffee shop on a patio on the second floor of the first store and grabbed am iced cap and sat with a couple of the people from the program and just watched the mayhem on the sidewalk below.

We were then dropped off near a theatre where we were destined to watch a show in the evening. We had a couple of hours free to look through the little shops and find some supper. I went with Jess, one of the girls from U of R, and we found a little curry rice restaurant and muddled our way through ordering off of a menu that did not have and pictures and wait staff who knew no English. This was our first attempt at ordering without any help from our Korean friends and with some help courtesy of Jess' knowledge of Chinese we made out pretty good. It was a nice change to muddle through things on our own for a change, after all that is what traveling is really about is challenging yourself.

The show was an off Broadway show called "Ballerina Who Loves B-boy." It featured a mixture of ballet and street dancing and I must admit that the dancing was very impressive even though the theatre was not (wooden bench seating.) I have never heard of b-boys before but many of the girls had and were very excited to have their pictures taken with them afterwards.

After the show some people stayed in the area because it had alot of dance clubs and bars while the rest of us headed back to the hostel. I plugged a few coins into the computers and caught up on my email before turning in for the night.

Wednesday was sunny and very hot. of course this was the day that we were scheduled to be outside the entire day. In the morning we went to Cheongwadae or the Blue House. This is the grounds and official office of the President of the Republic of Korea. We had to bring our passports and go through airport style security before entering the grounds. They were also very strict on where we could and could not take pictures. It was a very beautiful place with perfectly manicured gardens and well maintained buildings.

For lunch, we were brought to an area that has numerous art galleries. I walked around with another person from the group and had the opportunity to view 3 galleries including one that was featuring the work of Youngdon Choi, who is a photographer that spent some time living in Canada. His work was definitely my favorite of what I had the opportunity to view on this day. We also found a small cafe where several other classmates were having lunch. One thing we learned was that eating in this area is very expensive. I was able to find a cheap item on the menu (pizza) for only 12,000 won ($12), that I was able to share with another person. But had I decided to order a Coke, that would have set me back 7,500 won! Water it was.

After lunch we went to Gyeong Bok Gung (Palace Greatly Blessed by Heaven) which is a palace in Seoul. Most of it is actually a recently built replica but it was still a very impressive and interesting place. After a 2 hour guided tour in the heat of the afternoon, it is safe to say that the majority of our group was totally worn out.

Our next stop was actually only a couple blocks away to a tourist shopping district where we were given another 3 hours to look around and shop and find some supper. We also had the choice to walk the 45 minutes back to the hostel if we wanted (or take a cab). I decided that I would attempt to find my way back to the hostel and hopefully beat the rest of the group back so I could do some laundry, have a nice long shower and surf on the Internet. I made my way down the street looking in the souvenir shops and enjoying the action. When I got to the end of the street I made my way to the next shopping district where I was pretty sure we had been the first night and was able to find the WaBar that we had gone to for drinks. Knowing that I could make my way back to the hostel on my own I wandered around until I found a restaurant that looked good and went in to attempt to order on my own for the first time. I ordered some spicy bulgogi and a beer and sat down to enjoy the cold beer on the hot day and the spiciest meal I have had since arriving in Korea (it was excellent.) Eating out in Korea is a very interesting experience, you are always served many side dishes including kimchi, pickled beans, sprouts, etc.

I made the remainder of the walk back to the hostel and found that one of my roommates was already back and another 3 came back within ten minutes. Luckily they all had plans so after putting some laundry in the washer, I was able to have my shower and relax on the computer before the rest of the group came back. I was going to stay in but since it was my last night in Seoul, after spending some time on the rooftop garden (beautiful views of Seoul) I went to another WaBar with a couple of my classmates and we enjoyed a couple of beer before walking back in a light rain.

By morning the light rain had turned into a downpour. The only good thing about it was that it did not happen the day before when we were outside the entire day. Luckily, my first purchase when I got to Korea was an umbrella (since it rains nearly every day). We packed up our stuff and loaded it on the bus and then got on a different tour bus and headed for the DMZ (demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.) The North Korean border is less that an hour drive from Seoul. None of the Koreans in our group could come with us so they all stayed in Seoul to shop for the day. To get to the DMZ we had to pass 2 security checkpoints where the soldiers would come on the bus. At the first checkpoint they made sure that our clothing was appropriate. No tank tops, no sports wear (tight fitting type of clothes), and pants that covered the knee. The most unnerving part of the dress code was that you had to wear shoes that had at least a strap across the heel (no flip flops or shower shoes, etc.) This was in case something happened while we were there, then we would be able to run! We then had to sign a waiver that started "the visit to the Joint Security Area at Panmuhjon will entail entry into a hostile area and possibility of injury or death as a direct result of enemy action." It essentially stated that if something happened we could not hold the UN or Korea responsible.

Unfortunately, because of the heavy rain, we were informed that because there were only limited troops outside we would not be allowed to exit the bus (for our safety.) the drive through the Joint Security Area was still very interesting and you pass through and area that is only a few meters from North Korea. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures at the moment but I will post some on my facebook account once I do. After the tour we had time to stop at the gift shop (everyplace in this country has a gift shop) and pick up some souvenirs.

Afterwards we visited the Dorasan train station, which is the northernmost station in the country and sits right on the southern boundary of the DMZ. They hope that some day the two countries will be reunited and call the station not the last station in South Korea, but the first Station to North Korea.

We then stopped at the Freedom Bridge (called this because it is the bridge the 13,000 U.N. POW's crossed over to return to South Korea after the Korean war. By this time, the rain had intensified so most people did not even get off the bus and most of us who did were fairly wet by the time we got back on. One more stop at a Korean BBQ restaurant (I have to admit I am a little tired of sitting on the floor to eat) and back to Seoul. This trip back was quick until we were back in Seoul and stuck in traffic for almost an hour and I can say I am glad I don't have to drive one of those big buses around in the traffic in this country (or any vehicle actually.) We then transferred back to our original bus and headed back for the 5 hour trip to Ulsan. The bus we had been riding in was very "pimped out" and on the trip home we found out why. It is a total party bus. When we were close to Ulsan the driver turned on some REALLY loud music and turned on a light show that included flashing lights down the center of the bus and a little laser system that shot light towards the back of the bus. Most of the girls got up and started dancing and it was quite entertaining. It was getting late by the time

we were back in Ulsan and as we walked back to the dorm in some light rain we discovered they had erected a fence where we normally walk. It took awhile to finally make our way back to the dorms (bags in tow) and was well after midnight by the time we got to bed. Friday morning we had class and then off to our home stay in the evening. All I could think was I want a day or two to just relax and do nothing.

Dion

Quick Update from Seoul

I have a couple of minutes left on my internet here at the hostle, so I thought I would give a quick update on my week so far. Today (Wednesday) can be summed up as hot and humid. Korea is a very humid country and today was definitely one of the worst since I arrived. It was probably one of the few days that the sun was visable almost the entire day. We also spent the entire day outside so by the time we arrived in the area where we were going to find something for supper, pretty much everyone was worn right out.
Instead of filling you in on my last souple of days since my last update, I thought I would share a couple of quick observations and then give a full Seoul update tomorrow night when I am back in Ulsan. This has been an amazing experience up to this point. The funny thing is that even though the program itself has been very interesting and I find this country beautiful and so rich with history, it is not any part of the program that has been the most enriching, but the opportunity to become friends with so many interesting people from around the world. It is a great experience to meet and talk to and get to know so many interesting people from such diverse backgrounds. Definitely worth the trip in itself and everything else is really just a bonus.
I would like to elaborate more but I am almost out of time. We are heading home tomorow with a stop at the lookout over the DMZ, should be interesting. Until then, take care. Dion

Busan

Yesterday was my first free day in Korea. Originally I was planning on just hanging out around the campus working on my essay and doing some shopping near the campus. But, one of the Korean students came to my room on Friday night and asked if I would like to come to Busan because it is his hometown and he would like to show it to me. So I decided to go.

The Korean who asked me (Vandercamp is his English name) and my roommate went with a group of students on Friday night and I went with another group on Saturday.

This started out as the most frustrating day since I arrived and ended with some of the most beautiful sights and some good laughs.

The frustration stems from the difference between our culture and the Korean one. We come from a very individualistic society and the Korean society is very group oriented. It was insisted that we go with some Korean students (which is fine with me as it makes things much easier.) We were told on Friday that the bus picked us up right in front of the university and only cost less than $2. When we were ready to go, we had to take taxis to the bus stop downtown and then the bus was $6 (not a big deal but still???) When we arrived in Busan we took the subway to a mall (every step of the way we had to give our money to the girl in charge and then she would buy each ticket individually, very painful). We went for lunch and she wanted everyone to go to the same place but we eventually broke up into 3 groups and met back in an hour. I went to one of those sushi places that has a little conveyor belt with dishes going in circles. There are different coloured plates that correspond to the price of the sushi and you just take what you want. I accidentally took a display piece that shows you what you can order and was trying to take it out of the basket with my chopsticks and wondering what was wrong when the chef told me. Doh! Good thing there were some Koreans there to help translate!

Afterwards we went back to the mall. This mall had the longest corridor I have ever seen anywhere. Actually 2 side by side with little shops on either side. I walked down one way for about 15 minutes and it still went as far as I could see. I kind of felt like I was in a Flintstones cartoon though. Everything was the same - women's shop, women' shop women's shop, men's shop, women's shop women's shop, women's shop, camera shop, women's shop, women's shop, women's shop, electronics shop and repeat. After 15 minutes I had my fill, after all I can go to a mall at home and there are no stores here that I can buy a shirt that fits. I ran into my roommate with one of the girls who was chaperoning us and they said after this we were going to a different mall. That made me a little sour. I realize some people wanted to shop but I wanted to see something. I as politely as I could said that I wanted to go to the art gallery and I could find my own way since it was right near a subway stop. The conversation was kind of like maybe if we change the subject he will forget about it. I was not happy but didn't say much because the girl in charge was pretty stressed and I knew she was doing what she thought was right. After hanging out in the mall for another hour plus my roommate told me him and I could go to the gallery and meet up with the others after.

We only had an hour once we got there but that was enough time to see things there and made my day alot better. The gallery we went to was the Busan Museum of Art and they had several exhibitions on. it was nice to get somewhere quiet and relaxing if only for 45 minutes. I don't think my roommate had as good of a time as me but he said he was just tired because he was out late with some of the other students that went to Busan on Friday night.

Afterwards we went to a new mall that is the world's largest mall. It has 9 floors and there is a rooftop garden that is quite beautiful and has great views of the city. After walking around a bit we went to the food court for dinner. At the food court, you order at a central kiosk which sends your order to the place you want. Your number eventually comes up on a television screen and you pick up your order. In the food court, I finally met up with Vandercamp and he asked if I was interested in taking a harbour cruise to see the lights of the city. Once all the students were reassembled at the meeting point we took a poll and there were 9 people who wanted to go on the cruise. The rest headed back for Ulsan and we made the 15 minute walk to the boat launch. We walked along the beach and there were thousands of people on the beach and in the beachfront bars and restaurants. It was very lively. The cruise was a great way to end the

day. Ulsan is a beautiful city with large brightly lit buildings that surround numerous small dark mountains. It is very beautiful at night. Out boat only had about 20-30 people on it so there was alot of room to move around and enjoy the view.

Afterwards we made the hour trip back to Ulsan (unfortunately we missed the bus by 5 minutes and had to wait 45 minutes for the next one) and were back at the dorms shortly after 1 AM.

Today has been relaxing so far. I have chatted with Rebecca and got my laundry caught up. I am going to wander out for lunch shortly and then should probably start on my essay pretty quick. Tomorrow morning we head to Seoul for 4 days for sightseeing. I am looking forward to seeing more of the countryside during the trip and will be sure to take more pictures. I will likely not bring my laptop so I will not update again until the end of the week. I also posted more pictures on my facebook page if anyone is interested (I can only post 5 pictures at a time here).

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Take care all.

A Night in the Temple

Well, I can honestly say that the last day has been very interesting. Yesterday (Thursday) we loaded up on a bus after lunch and went to a temple complex of the Jogye Order of Buddhists. The temple is located up in the mountains (think Okanogan not Banff) near Ulsan. This had been one of the activities that I had been looking most forward to on this trip.

After we arrived at the temple, we were met by one of the monks who escorted us to the main temple where we would be staying in the basement (the basement was quite modern, not what I had expected.) We were given pants and a top to wear and my top was quite small. It was a vest and my arms just barely fit through the holes making it slightly uncomfortable for the entire time I had to wear it. We were then given a tour of the main part of the grounds and then taken in to watch and take part in a traditional Korean tea ceremony. This was followed by dinner.

Some of my friends had been warned by people who had done the program before that the food was terrible. This was an exaggeration but compared to some of the other wonderful food in Korea, this was definitely sub-par. We were given a bundle that had four bows, some utensils (chopsticks and a spoon which is a basic Korean table setting), and a towel all bundled in some cloth. We sat on mats on the floor and had a very precise way to do everything from unpack our bowls, to bowing, and eating. Every third person went a got a tray of "sides" (kimchi, large beans, sprouts, and yellow radish. The monks came around and put water into one of the bowls which we used to rinse each of the other bowls ending with the water in the original bowl it was in. Then the monks came around with a large bucket of rice and scooped you as much as you wanted into your rice bowl followed by the same thing but with a tofu soup into your soup bowl. You then took your sides making sure to take a yellow radish. After eating (you were required to eat everything you took), you portioned your water into each of the bowls and used your radish to clean the bowls. Then you eat the radish and drink the water. The monks then come around with the leftover water from making the rice and give you some which you must also eat. The point is that you are not supposed to waste anything. After this you wipe your bowls and utensils and repackage them for use the next day.

We then constructed some paper lanterns that we were going to use in a ceremony later that evening. The lanterns, when completed looked like lotus flowers and I think it was fairly easy but had a very nice result. Unfortunately, it began to rain rather hard and the ceremony, which was to held at an outdoor stupa containing relics from the Buddha, had to be canceled.

We then went into the temple where the prayer service was already underway. The service was very beautiful with the sound of the monks chanting and the sound of the nearby river flowing providing a very relaxing atmosphere. Unfortunately, due to the fact that they rushed us into the hall, some in the group were quite noisy going in and some people were taking pictures with their flash cameras. The head monk was not very impressed and gave the monk who was looking after us a good tongue lashing when the service was over.

Another monk then gave us a talk about Buddhism and we then headed to bed. We were each give a pillow and 2 blankets (1 thicker than the other) and we found a spot on the floor (guys in one room, girls in another) and that was our bed for the night (definitely Korean style). It was only 10 o'clock when we went to bed but we had to be up at 3 AM! We went to the morning prayer service (this time with strict orders on what to do and not do) and then had a meditation session. This was followed by breakfast, which was almost exactly the same as the dinner the night before.

We took a beautiful hike through the hillside and bush to another temple. It was a beautiful morning with a misty blanket of fog falling around everything. We followed a small river/stream and passed rice patties, places where the monks had lotuses growing, and a small pond with lotus growing in it. The temple, like the rest of the buildings around the complex, was beautiful and as we were at the temple, the fog lifted just enough to reveal some large mountains around us. Before heading back we spent some time in and around the stream and I have to say it was a great morning and probably my favorite part of the trip.

Once we got back, the monks took us for some ice cream and we had some time to look around and stop in some of the gift shops. We toured the temple's museum which had artwork and ceramics dating back over 1000 years and then headed off to our last meal at the temple. This one was in the cafeteria but the food was still essentially the same although there was some corn, potatoes and watermelon. After lunch, our temple stay was complete. The monks gave us each a scarf and bookmark before escorting us out (with another chance to stop at the main gift shop).

Overall, it was a really interesting experience. I am not sure how the monks can eat the same food day in and day out, 3 times per day and will never be able to spend as much time as them sitting cross-legged on the floor (my poor old knees and back just can't take it). I enjoyed the opportunity to take a walk in the countryside and have to say that this is a very beautiful country. It reminds me alot of the Okanagan but with the mountains in a more random placement (not a huge long valley), fields of rice patties instead of wheat, and a million plus people. As a side note, I was interviewed by a Busan English radio station at the temple, if anyone is interested in hearing it, it is on at 11 AM Monday (8PM Sunday at home), the interviewer is supposed to email me the radio station's website so if anyone wants to listen, let me know. lol.

Tonight I plan on taking it fairly easy. We have to do a ten page essay by the third weekend of the course so I may work on that. I will eventually wander out to the little business district in search of some supper and maybe buy a couple of t-shirts (I need something cooler to wear), do some laundry, and spend the rest of the evening relaxing. Tomorrow (Saturday) I am heading to Busan for some sightseeing and shopping. One of my classmates is from Busan and would like to show some of us his hometown. The bus to get there is 1700 won ($1.70) pretty good value for a place that is almost an hour away.

Anyways, I hope you all have a great weekend. Dion.

Happy Canada Day

Annyong haseyo (hello.) Happy Canada Day to everyone back home and most importantly happy anniversary to my beautiful wife Rebecca. I love you and I miss you.

It has been another busy day and a half since my last post. Yesterday afternoon our professor (on Korean life) was a New Zealander, named Polina Lipina, that has been living in Korea for the past 7 years. She is somewhat of a celebrity and after the lecture everyone wanted their picture taken with her.

After class I felt totally wiped out from a lack of sleep wince my trip began so I was in bed sleeping at 6 PM and only up for 2 hours all night when I took the opportunity to work on some basic Korean.

Today was a cultural activity day and Canada Day! In the morning we tried our hand at Hanji craft, which is the art of making things such as bowls, lamps and other things out of Hanji paper. The hand mirror and bowl I made actually turned out looking pretty good. In the afternoon we went to the Onggi museum. Onggi is the traditional Korean pottery and as you might know, Korea is famous for the pottery that is made here. We all had our turn at the pottery wheel and hand making some pottery. Mine definitely did not look like a professional made it and the piece I attempted to make on the wheel was a complete failure. Fun still though. Unfortunately, I forgot to take any pictures of what I did create but we will have it sent to us near the end of the program after it is fired. The place we were at had several large earthen kilns and there were several spots where you could buy the traditional Korean pots. I didn't buy anything but if I can figure out how much it will cost me to send it home I may do that.

After getting back to the school a group of us Canadian students organized a Canada Day party. In total there were 20 of us that went out for supper at a restaurant not too far from the school. We supplied everyone who was interested with a variety of Canada themed things such as temporary tattoos, flags, banners, stickers, and tape (like caution tape). the group was made up of 5 Canadians and people from Thailand, China, Japan, Korea, US, Romania, and Czech Republic. We made a pretty loud and celebratory group. At the restaurant we had a small room to ourselves and 10,000 won (about $10) per person gave us a fabulous spread of food plus several huge pictures of beer, mango juice and quite a few bottles of soju. The restaurant was even able to find a version of O Canada which they played a couple of times for us. Since all of the Canadians in the program are from Saskatchewan, we tried to find "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate" but were not successful (although from what I here they were able to find it at a bar we went to later). After eating the party spilled out into the main restaurant with dancing. Another group of 10+ students from the program joined us and even the 62 year old woman who owns the bar was out dancing. She told us that she remembers when she was a little girl during the war and the Canadian troops were there to help them. A fitting story, I think, for Canada Day. By the time we left the restaurant had several Canadian flags hanging in it.

As we were leaving, the owner chased us out into the stairway as we were leaving yelling in Korean. We were not sure if we had done something wrong but it turns out she had taken a shine to one of the girls in our group and would not let us leave until the girl accepted a shawl that the lady had made. Such is Korea, the people are incredibly friendly and generous.

Afterwards, we went to a bar that was only a couple of blocks away that served imported beer and had a pool table and a dance floor. On the way, the girls from Canada sang a very enthusiastic version of O Canada as we walked through the maze of alleyway-like roads that make up the business district near the University. We stopped in front of the bar for a photo opp before going in and had people all over waving to us with big smiles on their faces. We definitely made a good impression on everyone we came across.

The bar was loud and smoky (there are no public smoking laws here evidently) and the one bottle of Guinness that I bought cost me 8,000 won ($8) so after that, I left the younger people to their partying and walked through the neon lit streets back to the University and was back in my room by 10. The rest of the group (including my roommate) rolled in just before 12 (curfew time during the week). The next day there were some pretty tired people but I think it is safe to say that everyone had a great Canada Day.

I want to thank Paula and Laura whose idea it was to bring all of the Canada things and organized the party and Aimee who helped ensure the great turnout. Happy Canada Day to everyone!