Boreong Mud Festival

Every year, there is a mud festival in southern South Korea. People come for all different reasons. There is the cultural experience, the nice beach, the party scene. But what seems to make the difference is the mud. It's just fun. People cover themselves in it, sling, paint with it, throw it, crawl through it, and wrestle in it. But at the end of the day, one way or another, you find it on yourself everywhere (even in your ears). Here are some pictures to show you what I'm talking about.

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to go down there with a couple of friends and hopeful expectations. There was supposed to be a typhoon coming in later in the day with wind and lots of rain, but we opted to take our chances. It turned out to be very memorable experience. And even though my pictures ended up being few, that was just because I feared for the safety of the camera. We did mud wrestling, Sumo style, where you try to get the other person out of the ring. We got hooked up to harnesses that were bungeed to each other, then tried to run in opposite directions to get to a target. We went swimming to wash off the mud. We did front flips and swan dives off of this giant, blow-up mud slide. We painted our bodies with colored mud. And when we got tired of it, we went into the Yellow Sea to wash off. It only rained hard on us for about 10 minutes, then passed over.

It was kinda funny to watch the news and see something on "World News Tonight" (with Charles Gibson) that I had been to. I think it was Monday night's program that ran a story on International vacations, and the mud festival was one of them. I looked for my friends and I, but didn't see anybody I recognized. Maybe you'll eventually see Rebs and I at some exotic location on the TV. Just keep watching.

Rebs decided to stay home and get some good studying in. I missed her a lot, and I know she was sad that she didn't get to go, but she's been putting studying off for the past several months, and intends to take the National Counselor's Exam when we get back to the states in November. So she trying to kick it into gear until then. And I'm proud of her for it.

Did you know that we are celebrities?

At least that's how I feel living here. I have gotten quite used to people starting at us everywhere we go, especially staring at me. Many Koreans are mesmerized by light hair and blue eyes. A few weeks ago, a bunch of my foreign co-workers and I were walking through a department store with a couple of our Korean co-workers. Jane, one of my Korean co-workers said to me, "Rebecca, what is going on? Why is everybody staring at us?" I thought it was funny because none of us foreigners even noticed anybody was staring. We're just so used to it by now. I told her, "This is what it's always like for us everywhere we go." She said, "Really. I can't believe it. It's so rude." I know it's rude to stare but people just can't help it. They try to be discreet but it's hard when you're so curious about someone. I know I stare at people sometimes too. Then when they catch me staring, I always look away. Koreans are the same way. As soon as I make eye contact with them, they look away. But as soon as I turn my head, I can feel their eyes on me again. Maybe some people enjoy this kind of attention, but I am not one of those people. I like to remain anonymous and blend in with the crowd.

Well last Sunday afternoon, Dusty and I were just wanting to get away for a few hours and spend some time alone with each other without having to be around a bunch of other people. Since we basically live in a commune and our living environment isn't conducive to peace and quiet, we decided to take a hike and try to find some good bouldering. We took the crash pad with us. For those of you who don't know, a crash pad is like a big mat that you lay at the bottom of the rock so that when you fall, you don't get hurt. They make them so that they fold up and can be worn like a backpack. This makes it fairly easy to hike with a crash pad.

Boy, did we draw attention to ourselves! First of all, we're weagooks (foreigners). Second of all, Dusty is carrying this huge square Sponge-Bob-ish crash pad on his back. Third of all, we went on a Sunday afternoon which is the busiest time of the week for Korean hikers. The crowds were horrible! I felt more like I was at Disneyland than hiking up the side of a mountain. I swear, every Korean who passed us on their way down the trail stopped and turned and pointed at us. Several of them spoke in Korean to their friends trying to figure out what the heck we were doing. A few of them even tried asking us what the crash pad was for. NOBODY walked past us without staring.

Well, then we found our boulder. A great big one with several problems on it to try. The only problem was that this boulder was right next to the trail and was part of a large gathering area where people could stop and rest. So, we had an audience. Probably anywhere from 10-30 Koreans at a time would stop to watch and cheer for us. Some of them would come try the problems. Some wanted to tell us how to do it, even though they had never bouldered before. One guy even came up to feel Dusty's muscles as he was getting ready to climb. What the heck! Mind your own business, people! Go away! I just want to climb in solitude and be left alone. Instead, I felt pressure to perform and make it to the top of the problems we were trying. And they were really hard problems. I could feel all the eyes staring at me. I just couldn't enjoy the bouldering experience knowing that everyone was watching. It was frustrating.

Sometimes, I feel like I'm suffocating in this place. There is literally, nowhere I can go in this city to be alone. There is no silence, ever. The city never sleeps. Even the mountains are crowded. I realize I'm being somewhat insensitive of the Koean people. I don't mean them any disrespect. They mean well and are very polite and hospitable. But with so many people crowded into such a small amount of square miles, there is no respect for personal space. Personal space just doesn't exist. I feel like I live in an animal exhibit at the zoo. I'm an animal trapped in this small cage and everyone comes to see me. And I just want to break free.

Three more months and we'll be home for awhile. I can't wait to be out of this environment. It's been a huge challenge for me this year. Living in a huge city, in communal-style living with other foreigners, in a tiny apartment with my husband, it's taken a toll on me, an introvert who likes her own time and space. I look forward to the day when we leave. Until then, I've just got to keep fighting for survival one day at a time.

New Camera!

Hey everyone, we finally got our camera. I know these pictures aren't too exciting. But truthfully, sometimes life isn't so exciting either. The above are of our apartment from sitting on the couch and Rebs doing what she does best. If only sleeping were considered an occupation.

Well life is very contrasting right now for Rebs and me. Or at least through this week it has been. Both SEV (where I work) and NEV are gearing up for summer camp, which officially starts this coming Monday. From what Rebs tells me, everyone who works in the offices at Nowon is dreading and not enjoying life for the next 2 weeks. They've already been working extra to prepare for the camp sessions, sometimes pulling 10 hour work days. All the grading for current classes continues, while they pile on extra work and preparations for next week. Sometimes it's just too overwhelming. Sitting at a desk grading homework becomes very monotonous very quickly. Then one feels lethargic and sleepy. Blah.

SEV's summer camp is very similar to Nowon, but for one detail. We have programmers who help to prepare for the summer camp. That means all the work that Rebs does, preparing for extra classes I am exempt from because there are other people whose jobs are just that. They've been having pre-summer camp for the past 2 weeks, which includes swimming in a very large swimming pool with about 75 kids at a time. There's no slide, and definitely no diving board because the water at it's deepest point goes up to my hips. Many kids in Korea cannot swim. There are plenty of large rubber ball good for volleyball, floating on, and pegging kids in the head when they annoy you. Hence, our form of entertainment. It's also very fun to throw the kids, especially the little ones. The fly quite well.

So yes, two very different worlds. While Rebs gets hand cramps in an office space from grading, I get to play at the swimming pool and get a tan. Something doesn't seem right. Do I feel guilty? Yes. But there's not a lot I can do to help Rebs' situation but pray for her and help out around the house more, which I've been doing. Hopefully, things won't be as bad for them as they're expecting.

Hot & Sticky

Soo... we went climbing tonight like we usually do, only when we got there, we found our basement climbing gym had been turned into a sauna. Okay, not really, but it was so stinkin' hot and humid down there that the floor and walls (where there wasn't plywood) were wet. Over the past week, South Korea has turned into a humidor for stinky, fishy things. When the new batch of kids came into the auditorium this morning, I noticed that many of the boys already smelled and there hair was slightly matted from sweat. They were unusually smelly for a Monday. Stench that doesn't normally waft until about Thursday after no showering most of the week. And anyone who tells you that Koreans don't sweat is a liar. In this hot, humid weather, it seems impossible to walk out your front door without feeling the perspiration. And in Korea, they don't seem to believe in or understand the necessity of deodorant. But lucky for us, our parents have stocked us up for the next 2-5 years with a shipment of deodorant and toothpaste (their toothpaste doesn't have fluoride in it). So this means that as teachers, we'll be the sweet smelling roses in the midst of the swamp pits--that is, swampy children's arm pits.

But, alas, the good news is that there is a local shop that sells ice cream at 50% off throughout the summer, which just so happens to be on the walk on our way home from the climbing gym. So after our swampy climbing experience, we cooled off our innards with some delectable sweetness.

Oh yeah, 4th of July

I almost forgot. It's hard to keep track of holidays and birthdays over here in Korea. There's not much here to remind us, so those days often seem to roll by without us really remembering. It's still raining. It stopped long enough last night for us and a few of our friends to have an evening pow-wow up on the soccer field here at SEV. A few even went for a dip in the pool, some with swimsuits, some in their birthday suits (this is completely normal behavior for some). Dusty and I opted to stay dry and keep our clothes on. Dusty played soccer and I enjoyed twirling around, dancing and doing some gymnastics on the field with my friend Kat from Australia. She went to a special college focused around circus performance and majored in contortionism and tissue. Thus, she is extremely flexible and can compete with me when it comes to tricks we have up our sleeve. Our friends watched, stunned and in awe, completely unaware of our talents. Then we watched as they tried to copy us. It's refreshing sometimes to feel the freedom to be child-like.

This morning we did a run to Costco and spent way too much money. But it's nice to have some Western comfort food in the house again. We were down to scraps. We took a new couple with us. They just arrived here last night from Portland, OR. They seem really nice and we've already found some things we have in common. Then we came home and Dusty and I took a nap. I'm really hoping that it doesn't rain tomorrow. We're hoping to go climbing outside. My finger tips are dying for some real rock.

BOO HISSY!!!!

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring.
Wait! Rather, the 28 year old woman named Rebs is snoring!
Yes, that's right people. It's monsoon season here which means, it is often pouring down rain outside. This is bad for the following reasons:

a. All I want to do is eat, sleep, read, and watch movies. This doesn't bode well for the diet and exercise plan I'm trying to stick to.
b. I can't lay in my beloved hammock unless I want to simultaneously bathe in acid rain.
c. My hair is a big ball of messy, frizzy curls. Oddly enough, Dusty seems to find this attractive. I tend to think I look like I stuck my finger in an electrical outlet.
d. I can't climb outside on real rock. This one almost brings me to tears.

Apparently, monsoon season can last several months. This is then followed by typhoon season which means we will continue to have frequent downpours for several more months. As my friend Rochelle would stay, "STINK!!!"

A peek into our everyday life

Well, I'm just sittin' here at work. The office is so quiet. I just said goodbye to three friends whose contracts just finished yesterday. One will go back to New Zealand, one to the States, and the third, a Korean, will start a new teaching job somewhere else in Seoul. Even though we have two new teachers, the office feels so empty. Last night, on their final night, a big group of us went and got fruit soju at a little place near our house. It was delicious.

Sunday was such a great day. I was just thinking about how awesome it was. It was long and full, but so much fun. In case any of you are interested in what our life is like in Seoul on a Sunday, here's a recap:
7:15: Wake up
7:15-8:00: Get ready
8:00-9:30: Travel to church. Yeah, it's kinda far away.
9:30-12:30: Church followed by fellowship and small prayer group gatherings with our Ooweh ministry. Borrow a couple spiritual reads from my new friend, Natalie.
12:30-1:00: My first motercycle ride in Seoul. And... I didn't die! Better yet, all limbs are still intact!
1:00-2:00: Korean style lunch with a bunch of friends. (spicy chicken, rice, and vegetables)
2:00-3:00: Shop around Ewha, buy some new earrings, spend waaay too much money on a caramel frappacino at Starbucks.
3:00-5:00: Meet up with my friends and Dusty at the soccer field at Ewha Women's University. Fight to keep Dusty from stealing my delicious drink. Sit on the sidelines and watch them play soccer while I read and talk with a couple friends.
5:00-6:00: Travel to Coex mall at Samseong. Become completely overwhelmed and overstimulated as we walk through to the movie theater. Coex is a HUGE underground shopping mall with everything you could possibly imagine.
6:00-7:00: Eat an awesome, AWESOME burger and fries. My first real burger in 8 months.
7:00-9:00: See the Korean film, "The Crossing" with English subtitles. It's the story of North Koreans leaving their families and risking their lives to cross the border into China. It's their only chance of hope for a future. I am deeply disturbed once again and I cry.
9:00-10:30: Get some drinks and talk with some new friends we've just met. They've worked with the North Korean refugees here in Seoul. This is a population we plan to start building relationships with soon. One of the guys we meet is Fijian, meaning he is from the islands of Fiji. He speaks five languages and has lived in lots of places. A real genuine person with an interesting life story. I'm fascinated by his life.
10:30-12:00: Trek home. Two subway lines, one bus, and a short 1/4 mile walk.
12:00: Collapse in our bed, exhausted. But a good exhausted. My heart is full again.