School lunch

Every day for lunch I eat at school, in the special teachers’ lounge with six tables, each with eight seats. With windows on three sides it’s possible to see the changing leaves on the trees that are nestled between the buildings. I’ve heard from many people that the public schools have the best lunches in town, and I totally believe it! At my school we have a devoted staff of maybe six or eight people who work all day every day making creative meals for us.

Korean food has so many side dish options that I doubt if we’ve ever had the exact same meal duplicated this whole school year, which is pretty impressive. There is always a kind of rice, a soup and four or five other options, be them meat, fish, or veggies. Oh and always kimchi. I love Korean food. I really do. There are some things that I generally pass on, like mystery meat or black stuff, but all in all I’m so happy to have a plate full of veggies and soup. Mmm. Not to mention I get this hot meal, served fresh and piping hot for less than two dollars a day. Here is a weeks worth of meals that I had recently so you can get an idea:  

Thanksgiving

....my favorite holiday! I'm quite happy that we could all work together to make a great feast and hang out in true t-day style! 

At the tailor shop

It’s a random place for a meet-up, but it worked. Nate had to stop to pick up his coat at the tailors in Iteawon, Josh and I were finished with dinner at a restaurant near by, so we planned to meet there. It was a cold night, the kind where you take any opportunity to go inside, even if just for a moment, which is how we ended up in the Tailor shop. Armed with my camera in hand I was able to snap some nice shots of this stylish place in the few moments that we were waiting. This shop is on a back alley across from some restaurants, one might never notice it if not specifically looking. I’m glad we were. There were hats and cufflinks and cool chandeliers and candlesticks…. Vintage wool coats and gingham blazers with elbow pads…. And shirts and ties of every color. 

thanks

Ten things I’m thankful for:

(In no particular rank or order)

1. things so easily taken for granted, like food and water and heat.

2. going to sleep and waking up next to Josh every day

3. health and the ever-passing youth that I still hold on to

4. this opportunity to be on such an epic round the world trip

5. music

6. family and friends, who are a comfort in this world

7. the internet for it’s vast library of knowledge and entertainment

8. my imagination and dreams and plans

9. the sun, that incredible life source

10. red wine and Bombay sapphire gin (not together)

Happy Thanksgiving from Seoul!

Love love love, Nicole

winter hike, sunshine, and minefields…oh my

Umyeonsan (san=mountain) is located in the southern edge of Seoul. A relatively small mountain that has a nice view of the city from above. We had our first freeze the other day and its cold cold cold in Seoul now, and this was the day we decided to go hiking! So we bundled up and met up with Ryan and Ida for the sunny afternoon hike.

 It was beautiful. The fresh air always feels nice after weeks of city smog, the sun was bright, the air crisp and cold. We stumbled upon a temple and a steep trail leading us to a lookout. We took a new way down, knowing that all paths down would eventually lead us to our destination.

 On our way down we saw several areas that were very securely barricaded off with elaborate layers of coiled barbed wire and gates, signs and posts, and even a system of speakers ready to alarm those who crossed. What was all this we wondered? Here on the side of the peaceful mountain. It became clear as we looked further and added up our collective knowledge. This mountain was a minefield.  Scores of years have passed since the battles were being fought in Seoul, but those mines are still there.

A few months ago there was a serious flash flood and a few deadly landslides in Southern Seoul (read here for my post on that), Umyeonsan collapsed in a few areas, closing roads and destroying homes and businesses. With the landslides was a major fear that the unknown location of these mines had changed, that they were washed down the mountain to new locations or even into the city. We all talked about this and kind of creeped ourselves out as we continued to carefully descend the mountain. We made light of the situation by saying “tread lightly, you tread on my dreams…” and other adages about walking lightly, but it was actually a tense experience! War is stupid. “Oops, there are leftover bombs lying around, hope you don’t just step on it and lose your legs!”

 Once we had a steaming pan of dakgalbi with rice cooking in front of us we forgot about the horrors of living in a recently war torn country and moved on to more amazing topics like traveling in Europe and making new concoctions with food and drink. 

Seoul Lantern Festival

North of the Han River, at the Cheongyecheon, there is the 2011 Seoul Lantern Festival taking place through the weekend. Every night from 5-11 thousands of lanterns, big and small and everything in between, are lit up along the water. The statue of Liberty, leaning tower of Pisa, scores of Korean fighters, traditional lanterns, and even a very large walk-through lantern of a gate are just some of the beautiful array of lights reflecting of the water.

We headed north to fight the crowds (isn’t it crowded everywhere in this city?) and get our glimpse of these festive fixtures. Here’s some of what we saw:

Hibernation:

Winter is pretty much here. We have officially turned on the heat! The style of heat most common to homes in South Korea is온돌 (ondol), which is the cozy heated floors that are in most restaurants and homes. They take a while to warm up, but they stay hot for hours and hours, radiating the heat from the hot water being piped below the wood floor. I like this style of heating.

It is a cozy time for hibernation. The air is turning cool, with the first freeze on the way this week. It is time for cooking and cuddling, movies and books, games and rest. I am deep into some good books these days, Gabriel Garcia Marquez and another Barbara Kingsolver, as well as The Botany of Desire, by Michael Pollan, which Josh and I are reading out loud to each other (a great way to spend time, by the way). I’ve upped my exercise regimen and downed my alcohol and cigarette consumption in an effort to make this the healthiest winter in years (after all I’m quitting those cancer-sticks in a few months…).  I continue to marvel at this crazy country in which I live, and dream and plan for the future that is always so close ahead.

Two notably strange Korean moments happened today, back to back. This morning in my office the heat was on and yet it was freezing because the window was wide open, a huge window, might I add. This is just one of those things I don’t get. Well everyone, and I mean everyone, in the office was super cold, making a noise and fuss about bundling up with coats and hats, turning up the heat, and grabbing refills of tea and hot water, well I just got up after about thirty minutes of watching this madness and closed the window! Crazy I know.  Everyone slowly un-bundled and seemed much happier and gave approving smiles or glances in my direction. Why didn’t they close the window? They can’t… they don’t know who opened it, or rather it’s just open, so they can’t close it. This is just the way it goes.

At lunch we had a tasty pork stir-fry with cabbage and carrots, onions and peppers, and a spicy red sauce. It is a common dish and I usually pile it on top of my rice, why not? I end up mixing it anyway. Well my coworker commented saying that it looked really good, what I had done. I asked why she doesn’t also do it and her reply was: “no, no I can’t” and a shy smile while glancing around, then quietly: “maybe I will at home”.  

The rules are set here. It’s not very cool to challenge them, but I guess I don’t care as much as many others do, so I seek my comfort and maybe in turn I influence those around me somehow for the better. Change is slow to happen, and I can’t imagine a place it would go slower than in this country. I have some faith in the younger generation; if only they could be granted some free time to explore what they wish, instead of those dreadful fifteen-hour school days!

We are here under unique circumstances. We are on a somewhat extended vacation as observers who get to play a simple, yet potentially powerful role in this society.

Josh said it so well in his post on Korea; that we can take what is good without feeling the need to change what is seemingly flawed. What a good attitude he has. I have lots to learn from such a good man!

 “what matters most is how well you walk through the fire”

― Charles Bukowski

love love love, n