Absentmindedness

I have returned from a most beautiful trip to Gyeongju. The only 3 day trip we take and I manage to forget my phone--not that it was entirely necessary, but my family was a bit worried since we didn't have internet access there either! Needless to say, if my head wasn't attached, I'd lose it. Plus, the one and only time we went to the major mountains and the beach in the same day...I forgot my camera! I will have to post pictures later.

We had different roommates for this short trip and that was quite enjoyable. I got to room with Emma, who I haven't really gotten a chance to get to know yet. She's very dramatic and has such an honest, out-going personality. Forget her wearing her emotions on her sleeves...she's covered in them! It was a lot of fun, because our room seemed to be the "go-to" room. Everyone came and went as much as you can imagine. The first night, we learned that the "hotel" had a traditional Korean staging, which meant that we were sleeping on the floor with mats. When we went into our room, there was no furniture except a coffee table and a television. We had a very small kitchen, one bathroom/shower and one bedroom--all to five girls (very funny)! We agreed to all stay in the livingroom, because there was air conditioning. It was like a three day sleepover with friends, though. :)

The second night, we had a very interesting night. Four of us were out by 1130 and our fifth girl came in a bit later with some others in the program. I would say about 15 minutes later, if that, someone was walking the hall ringing our door bell and trying to get in the door. Thankfully, it was locked and Emma (our Korean buddy assigned to us) called the front desk for security.

Today, we arrived back safely, at about 230pm. It's raining here, but that's okay. I stayed in this afternoon to catch up, and wait for McDonald's tonight! Woohoo! I've done well so far...this is the first time I've gone for true Westernized food. Lunch today was chicken fingers, but even they had spices in them, so they were still Korean :) (especially since I'm IN Korea...ha ha).

Here is was our view.

Also, while there, we caught a glimpse of the weather on TV. Good thing, because there is a Typhoon headed for Japan. It's likely we'll get the remnants of it afterwards, but I don't know how fast its moving or when it might arrive. You can track it as well, here: http://www.weather.com/weather/map/interactive/Seoul+South+Korea+KSXX0037

We visited Andong, a village of traditional Korean houses that people currently live in. They have some of them open for viewing, but not many. It was very interesting! We also got to visit the 600 year old tree! They say that a goddess lives within it, and if you touch the tree, you will not be barren. It's also tradition that you write down a hope and tie it to the tree so it will come true. The tree is a symbol of hope and sustenance, since it is so old.



We also visited a couple of parks that house the tombs of kings. The tombs were built within hills, and the higher the hill, the more important the person. Really neat, especially from a far distance.

After we walked through all the parks, we went to the riverside for some relaxing.

Restful weekend, then back to the grind on Monday. Tuesday is a Baseball game! I can't wait!

Until next time, God Bless! Have a wonderful Friday/Weekend!