Vacation Resurrected!

The most amazing thing happened today. First, there was this brilliant light from the sky. Everything suddenly felt warm. Then I looked up and noticed that the sky was starting to turn the most incredible color--BLUE! Can you believe it? It took me almost no time at all to get outside to enjoy my last day of vacation.

I decided to use my little bit of sunshine to go to the top of Namsan Mountain, really more like a big hill, located in the southern part of Seoul. On top of Namsan is the Seoul Tower. I didn't go to the top of the tower because the clouds returned and visibility wasn't very good. When I do go to the top of the tower, I want to be able to see! Here's a view of the tower (foreboding black sky in the background) from close to its base. I'll post photos of Seoul from the top of Namsan when I figure out how to edit them together as a panoramic view.
This is a door to a shrine on the way up the mountain. I thought it was pretty cool!
After walking back down, I went to the Myeong-dong Cathedral for worship. Many Koreans, Catholic and Protestant alike, do not consider Catholics to be "Christian" so it is very uncommon for a Protestant to visit a Catholic church for Mass. I really enjoyed the experience and plan to go back when I can walk around the inside without disturbing worship. Here are a couple photos of the cathedral:
After worship, I walked around Seoul for the evening. Here are a couple photos I took from the middle of intersections. Don't worry, Mom, I had a green light!

Seoul Tower:
Namdaemun Gate:
Finally, one of the things I love about Korea is that they have these terrific fountains in public places, and kids are encouraged to play in them! There is one in the center of my town that is always full of kids. This one is in front of the Seoul City Hall.

Vacation Aborted

After spending today in a torrential downpour, I decided to abort my vacation plans and head home. I spent today walking from a town called Kangchon to the Gugok Falls. The umbrella served nothing more than psychological purpose. By the time I made it to the park entrance after walking about 3 miles, I was completely soaked. The plastic bags I tied around my feet kept as much water in as out. My backpack was soaked clear through. Nothing was dry.

Despite being the only visitor at the park this afternoon, I decided to walk up the trail toward the waterfall, only to "chicken out" once I got close to the base of the falls. It was mid-afternoon and had been pouring all day. It's a huge waterfall anyway, and the rainfall fueled it all the more. The stream below it was very close to the trail and exceptionally forceful. Since I was the park's only visitor, I didn't want to risk slipping on the slick walkway. The falls created such a strong wind that it was hard to walk and keep my balance, and I couldn't hold the camera still for the close up photo below. I can only imagine how strong it was closer to the falls. I'm definitely planning a trip back in nice weather.

Click on the photos for a larger image:

Above: The North Han River, looking upstream (east) from Gangchon in the direction of Chuncheon.

Below: Gugok Falls, just southwest of Gangchon. That's as far as I was brave enough to walk. I could hardly hold my camera and umbrella and stay standing to take this photo.

Vacation Update

They've changed the weather forecast from 100% chance of rain to 50% chance of rain for today, and guess what. It's pouring! 50% change of rain my foot!

On Vacation

I have the rest of this week off, so I've decided to go out of town. I'm in a city called Chuncheon, which is due east of Seoul. It's a nice city in a lovely mountain valley. If the weather cooperates with me, I'm going hiking. There are a couple waterfalls and mountain temples nearby. Unfortunately, the forecast is for rain, rain, and more rain. The trip here this afternoon was beautiful as the train wound up the river valley through the mountains. I'm staying overnight tonight in a "jjimjilbang" or public bathhouse. Where else can you sleep for $6 a night?! I'm about to run out of time here in the computer room, so I'm signing off for now.

"Blessings to Share"

Since I know several people in the Galena/Dubuque area read my blog, I thought I'd put a plug in here for the musical Blessings to Share, presented by the Main Street Players. One third of the box office earnings will go to Riverview Center on opening night, Thursday, July 27th. There is also a benefit dinner at Fried Green Tomatoes that night. Riverview Center provides free and confidential services to sexual assault survivors, a 24-hour hotline, and community education.

Co-writer/director Carole Sullivan offers this description of the show on her website: "Blessings to Share is a moving story of adoption in the 21st century, a story of non-traditional families and vulnerable children. Experience the rollercoaster of emotions as this tender musical unfolds, renewing our faith that when blessings are shared, love can form new bonds."

Ticket information:
Dinner and theater ticket: $35. Dinner is at 5:30 at Fried Green Tomatoes, show is at 8 PM at Turner Hall. Seats are limited. Call Riverview Center, Inc. for a reservation, 815-777-8155.
Theater ticket only: Adults $12, children $5. Show is at 8 PM. Tickets are available at the door and in advance at Dubuque 365 (First and Main, Dubuque), Dick's Supermarket, Elizabeth State Bank, and Galena River Wine and Cheese.

New Students and You Want to Put a Washing Machine WHERE?

I started working with two new students this week. I'm tutoring a high school boy for two hours every weekday for the next month. He's preparing his university entrance exams, which are a huge deal here in Korea. Think SAT/ACT/AP times a zillion. That's the kind of pressure Korean high school students are under to get good test scores. I'm especially helping him prepare for the writing portion of the exams.

I'm also tutoring an 11-year-old girl for the next three weeks. Her mother is Korean, and her father is German. Although she's only been studying English for 18 months, she's a near-native English speaker. She also speaks German, Korean, and French. The lessons I'm doing with her are essentially what kids her age are doing in American schools. Today we had a geography lesson on Asia, specifically China. The only time she stumbled using English was when she was trying to come up with the word "parade" to describe the Chinese New Year.

So this week I've met two absolutely incredible, intelligent, not to mention polite and personable, kids! I'm hoping their motivation wears off on me enough to get me back to school one of these days! Like the members of the Galena UMC youth group, these kids give me great hope for the world.

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I don't have a washing machine, and Korea doesn't have laundromats. I've been washing socks, undies, and a few other things by hand, and the directors of my school have been taking my dirty laundry home with them once a week. I think they must be getting tired of it because they've started talking about purchasing a washing machine for me. Great idea! It feels WEIRD giving my dirty laundry to boss, but the question looms:

WHERE DO I PUT IT?!

It turns out that the only place it can go, since it has to have both a water source and a drain, is in the bathroom. And the only place that has enough space in the bathroom is under the showerhead. There is no shower stall, just a small tile bathroom with a showerhead coming out of one wall, which results in the entire bathroom being soaked whenever I take a shower.

The receptionist at my school was telling me this plan, that they were going to purchase a washing machine and put it under the shower in my very small bathroom.

"There isn't room," I argued.

"Yes! I think here is okay!" And she drew a map of my bathroom and pointed to the only empty spot of floor, directly under the shower head.

EMH: "I won't have room to take shower." (Translation: "I don't like this idea.")

RECEPTIONIST: "I think washing machine moving is okay!" (Translation: "You can simply move your washing machine when you take a shower. Just get inside the bathroom, close the door, push the washing machine against it, blocking you inside, so you have 2 square feet to stand in to take a shower. It's all okay!")

E: "It'll get soaked every time I take a shower." (Translation: "I really don't like this idea.")

R: "Washing machine wet is okay!" (Translation: "The washing machine can get wet. It's all okay!")

E: "There's no outlet on that wall. I'll have to run a cord across my bathroom." (Translation: "I don't like this idea, and I'm a little worried about the potential water-electricity hazard and don't really want a cord running from one corner of my bathroom to the other.")

R: "I think you not using unplug is okay!" (Translation: "Unplug it when you're not using it. It's all okay!")

E: "I'll have to climb over it to get to the sink." (Translation: "I really, really don't like this idea.")

R: "I think you and washing machine is HAPPY TOGETHER!" (Translation: "No matter how silly it sounds to you, I really want to put a washing machine in your tiny bathroom so you have to climb over it several times a day. You'll learn to love it. HAPPY TOGETHER!")

E: "IN THE SHOWER?" (Translation: "I can't even begin to explain how much I don't like this idea.")

At this point we both started laughing at the utter absurdity of being happy while sharing a shower with a washing machine.

There’s a dry cleaner/tailor in my building. I think we’re going to work something out to see if they can do a load of wash for me each week.

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It's still a little drizzly here, but the bad thunderstorms have stopped for now. I heard that in the past week over 50 people were killed or missing in the floods and landslides in South Korea and over 100 in North Korea. Over 1,000 had to be evacuated from their homes in South Korea. Everyday on the news they show people returning to homes and farmland that have been destroyed. Please continue to keep the people affected by the floods and landslides in your prayers.

Funny "Konglish" and Too Much Rain

"Konglish" is the made-up term for funny sayings when Korean and English get a little confused. I encounter something in Konglish everyday, but today I heard a particularly funny example.

Today was my second Sunday at the Daerim Methodist Church in Seoul. I taught children's Sunday school and middle/high school Bible study and read the announcements from the bulletin for the English worship service. After the service, a church member told me "Your announcements are very good. You are a refreshment!"

So my question is, "What kind of refreshment am I?"

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I don't know if any of this has made the news in other parts of the world, but we're experiencing lots of rain and flooding here in Korea. Tropical Storm/Typhoon Bilis, which caused a lot of destruction in the Philippines and China last week, crossed the Korean peninsula this weekend. My immediate area is not affected, but there have been at least 12 deaths in the country, and 17 people are missing so far. Thousands of people have been evacuated. There have been landslides and broken dams. Houses and farmland have been destroyed. Please keep the people of Korea in your prayers. Thousands of lives have been affected by this already, and the rain is supposed to continue through Thursday of this week. Click on any of the photos below for larger images.

Here are some photos from Yonhap News:
And here's one from the Korea TimesAn article from the Korea Times can be found here.

Finally Some SNAPSHOTS

Hello everyone! After several days of rain, the sun came out this afternoon, so I decided to head on up the mountain with my camera after school. It was hot and extremely humid, so I was literally dripping with sweat before I made it to the top. This photo is about 2/3 of the way up. (Do you recognize the hat, Aunt Mary Ellen? It has served me well in the U.S., Mexico, the Philippines, and now Korea! I forgot to take it to Germany with me last May and was very disappointed at the oversight.)

The view was beautiful. In one direction are green mountains and valleys all the way to the horizon. In the other direction is my city and neighboring suburbs. I could even pick out my apartment building!

Here are a few more shots.

Just a Matter of Black and White?

I haven't written about my classes in some time because nothing particularly noteworthy has happened. I teach four classes of kindergartners: two meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays and two meet on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Today, one of my very bright little boys announced, "My black hair. Ellen-Teacher white hair." I thought it would be a good opportunity for a new vocabulary word.

"No," I said, "I have blonde hair, not white hair."

He held a black crayon up to his head. "Black hair," he said. Then he pointed a white crayon in the direction of my head, "Ellen-Teacher white hair."

"White? No." I held up a yellow crayon. "Blonde hair."

He shook his head. "Okay," I thought, "my hair isn't yellow. Maybe brown is closer." So I held up a brown crayon.

"You have black hair," I said. "I have blonde hair."

This time I could see the frustration in his face. He thrust the white crayon in the direction of my head. "No!" he shouted at me. "Ellen-Teacher white hair. Ellen-Teacher OLD!"

Thanks, kiddo!

Other than that, there is nothing to report. It's still the rainy season here, which means it rains almost every day. I can usually find some time when it's not raining to get out for a walk, but it has been raining all day today, so I'm feeling a little cooped up. On Monday, Tropical Storm Ewiniar hit the Korean peninsula. For me, it amounted to nothing more than a lot of wind and rain. It had been downgraded just the day before from a Category 2 Typhoon which would have been much worse. Typhoon season continues until September. Gotta love Korean weather: winter, yellow dust, rainy season, typhoon season. I hear fall is nice. Come visit!

Mission Update

The bishop of the Northern Illinois Conference put me in touch with a pastor at a large (1,500 member) Methodist church in Seoul. I will begin working with them next week. They have an English-speaking congregation of about 30 members, most of whom I met today. I will help lead worship, preach on occasion, and lead a weekly middle/high school Bible study, along with some other responsibilities. They've decided to call me "Missionary Herbert," despite my insistence that "Ellen" is just fine. It makes me laugh. Titles are really important here, so I can understand the formality, even if it feels a little unusual to me. I'm really excited to be in mission and ministry again; I've felt a little lost the past several weeks without that church connection. Thank you all for your prayers during this transition time. I feel them carry me through each day.

National Declaration to Address Violence Against Women

I'm just bumping a previous post back up to the top. The FaithTrust Institute has recently written a "National Declaration by Religious and Spiritual Leaders to Address Violence Against Women."

I'm drawing your attention to it again because I noticed that some signatures were lost from it, including a couple from Galena. I encourage you to take a look at it and sign it again if your name disappeared.

Among other things, this declaration is a chance for faith communities and their leaders to support victims of violence and lend faith as a tool for safety and healing. Click here to read my post from June 12, 2006 and why I think this is so important.

Please take a moment to read over and sign the declaration by clicking here, and pass it on to other religious leaders.

EMH (now signer 1099 from 1104 due to lost signatures)

"You're Very Dirty and Smelly"

I started teaching two new kindergarten classes today. One class has three boys and the other has four girls. The kids were good for the most part, though the boys got a little out of hand toward the end. I interpreted it as a signal to wrap things up and return them to their mothers. I'm really glad to be teaching 5 days a week now.

This past weekend I went to church with my coworker Katherine and her boyfriend Mark. Their church started an English language service about 6 months ago. It's a small congregation, all of whom speak English as a second language or grew up in bilingual (Korean-Canadian, Korean-American) homes. Mark and I were the only two solely English speakers. It was a nice service, and the people were friendly and welcoming. I'll probably visit there again, though I'm hesitant to make a commitment at this point since I'm still arranging my new mission work, which might involve church responsibilities on Sundays.

So now for the dirty and smelly part . . . there is a lovely park with a mountain and trails near my apartment. Today was a beautiful day, though a bit warm and humid, so after my classes, I headed to the park to hit the trails. The map at the park entrance indicated that the trail I had chosen was about 3 kilometers long and ended near the top of the mountain. I set off up the trail. It was steep, and I'm out of shape, so it was quite a workout. The view from the top was superb. Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera with me, but I'll take it with me next time. In one direction, I could see my entire city and then some. In the other direction, there was nothing but mountains for as far as I could see. It was getting to be evening, and I didn't want to get stuck up there in the dark, so I headed back down.

It was a hard climb up but an easy run down, so when the trail was safe enough (i.e., not too steep, no rocks or roots or mud to avoid, no cliffs on either side), I ran. I slipped a little on one part of the trail and ended up with mud on my legs, and I was sweating considerably. By the time I made it back to my apartment building, I was a certifiable mess. I got on the elevator with two clean, nicely dressed women. One looked me over and said, "Hello, I'm Carmen. Are you new here?"

"Yes," I answered. "I've been here about two weeks."

"You're very dirty and smelly," she said.

What could I say but "Yes, I just climbed the mountain."

"I'm clean and smell nice," she answered.

Just then the elevator stopped and the eleventh floor, so I had to excuse myself from that exciting conversation. I was kind of curious about what else she might point out: that I'm dripping with sweat, that my hair is a mess, that I have a zit on my chin, that I have a big nose? Thanks, clean, nice-smelling Carmen!

I find conversations like this pretty funny. The comments complete strangers will make never cease to astound me. It seems that Koreans are not as reserved as Westerners are when it comes to commenting on a person's appearance. I've never heard anything said maliciously, just matter-of-factly. "You're very dirty and smelly." Well, yes, I was. I can't deny it or hide it, not on an elevator at least.