what an adventure this has already been!
upon disembarking the plane at 5:15 am into the shuttered Seoul airport and making my way over to the massive windows at the edge of the terminal to watch the sunrise over the mountains - i fought the urge to pinch myself... it was such a dynamic span of 2 hours, to watch the airport transform from a ghost town to a bustling international hub!
i had a lovely breakfast of bulgogi and rice wine and enjoyed the people watching from the 2nd floor perch in the food court. I walked the length of the airport several times and found the Korean cultural center where I was able to make an ink print following the ancient practice and special paper. I had a 6 hour layover and found the airport was quite equipped to support the travelers with time on their hands!
my friend Julie Giodano, (who introduced me to this program and has been teaching here for 1.5 years now) came to the airport to pick me up, which was such a welcome entry into a new country! we came to the hotel where i'll be staying and studying for the next 3 weeks (while i obtain my certification) and dropped off my stuff and went out on the town!
we went to a wine bar (red wine is served cold here.... i'll stick to beer, thanks) and then met up with some other English educators who also live in Bangkok and had a great dinner from the hawkers (street food vendors) and went to hear a cover band do hits from the 60's... i was finally getting tired so we headed back towards the hotel and found a spot to get a Thai massage, this is very different from the western styles of massage http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_massage and just what my body needed after the previous days! there are countless opportunities for Thai massage everywhere here and they cost about $7/hour..... i'm also hoping to take courses in learning the technique as well.
we slept like babies and woke this morning for a nice breakfast provided by the hotel and set out to explore the neighborhood. on the next block is a large Buddhist temple compound, i can't believe my luck! we were invited to say prayers and bang the 7 foot gong and the bells... the sounds and vibrations were immediately comforting and centering.
this afternoon i will meet with the administrator of the program for the introduction and our certification course begins in the morning.
stay tuned!
i hope this finds you all well and enjoying your day.
take care,
karen grace
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| this little machine was in the bathrooms at the Seoul airport- push the button and 30 seconds of flushing sounds emerge.... for when you need some etiquette |
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| bulgogi and shoju |
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| this is next to the water fountain in the food court what a concept... reusable drink cups |
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| the print i made in the airport |
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| Julie and me in the orchids |
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| temple view |
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| temple view |
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| the gong and bells |
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| all the plumeria is in bloom! |
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| there are stray dogs and cats everywhere, this little guy had some bucked teeth |
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| so many hawkers |
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| waterway just behind the temple |
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