Censorship required
Our first night in Korea we slept at a traditional spa. But before we could get there, we had to check into the hostel and drop off most of our bags. We then took our overnight bags into the market down the street. This was a mistake. We were instantly targeted because of the luggage and some guy tried to get me to follow him away from the group. Thankfully I, along with the rest of the group, saw what he was trying to do, and Tristan and Dr. small came to assist me. Finally this guy left us alone but I was creeped out for the rest of the time we were in the shopping center. It was such a cute hipster area and after dinner we went into some stores. I ended up buying this coral colored dress on sale for $19!
We met up after dinner and took taxis to the spa. Taxis are so much cheaper in Asia then they are in America and I just don't understand. How can a taxi ride be cheaper in a place where gas is more expensive? I don't mean a few cents more expensive...gas is around $8 a gallon! I soon forget my puzzlement when we arrive at the spa and we are given an over sized t-shirt and gym shorts. The men and women head in separate directions to change into our new outfits. Us women had to head up in the elevator and once the doors open we were in the locker room. Most of my peers had never been to a spa before and I don't exactly know what they were expecting but they were not expecting the amount of nudity that they saw. I think that this is a normal spa locker room practice. You just avert your eyes and go out your business. No big deal. We had a wrist band with a key and a swipe card on it that told us our locker number and we found our lockers to change and then Dr. Kang gave us a brief tour and we were left to explore. It was 8pm so that means we had 12 hours to roam and enjoy this Korean paradise.
I wanted a massage but it was a bit pricey so I needed time to think about it. I had many different rooms to explore and 6 floors of terrain to cover. There were coal rooms, salt rooms, jade rooms, bamboo rooms, sleeping rooms, relaxation rooms, clay rooms, little convenience stores, massage rooms, tv rooms, and so much more. I went in all of them! My absolute favorite was the Jade room. It is a room made from natural jade and the ceiling was shaped like a pyramid. There were gold bolts in between the blocks of Jade and when you lied down on the floor, with one of those small pillows, it looked like stars on a patchwork of dark green sky.
I decided I would spend the extra money on myself and get a massage but there was a wait. I scheduled a sports massage for 11:15 and Tristan decided to join me. We then decided that while we waited we would go into the pool. It was freezing cold and I didn't stay for long. I didn't want my muscles tensing back up before I could get the knots worked out. So I went to the locker room and thinking all of my peers are horrified to partake in the culture, and they are all still out in the pool, so no one will see me, this is my chance to enjoy the full experience. I peel of my wet bathing suite and pitter patter down to my locker but low and behold I pass the only other person I know in the entire country, Dr. Kang. Thankfully I am not a shy person, but what is the proper social standard here? Should I say hello and stop to talk? should I hide behind my small hand towel? Luckily Dr. Kang knew the protocol and we ended up talking about where she was headed, down to the shower room. She asked if I had gone down yet and I said no. You see, you have to be naked to go down to the shower room so we both headed that way.
This floor was glorious!! And I am the first of the students to discover it so I felt like Christopher Columbus discovering a new land. There are steam rooms and 5 different temperature hot tubs and an exfoliating scrub room. This was where all the secret good stuff was hidden. I knew exactly where I was coming after my massage and it didn't matter that the other students were too square to join. Still I thought I would give them the option. After the massage which was delightful yet painful, I met up with everyone in the jade room. Most of the rest scrunched up their noses and wouldn't be seen naked but Julia and I went to adventure. We discovered that there was not only the 5 indoor hot tubs but 5 more outside. One of them was even a hot ginseng tea bath!! It was the perfect temperature and we could look up at the stars AND bathe in tea. It has to have been one of the coolest thing's Ive ever done.
Trying to find a place to sleep was a challenge. All of the sleeping rooms were full and all of the massage chairs were as well. I'm not a big fan of sleeping on the floor without some sort of mat and it was a little hot inside so we opted to sleep on the pool chairs outside with a rented full sized towel. We dozed off and on but none of us really slept. My hand towel that Bomi had folded into a hat that looked like princess Leia hair kept my head warm and the full length towel protected me from any stray splashes from the pool. It was soon time to leave the spa and now well relaxed, start our adventure in Seoul.
We met up after dinner and took taxis to the spa. Taxis are so much cheaper in Asia then they are in America and I just don't understand. How can a taxi ride be cheaper in a place where gas is more expensive? I don't mean a few cents more expensive...gas is around $8 a gallon! I soon forget my puzzlement when we arrive at the spa and we are given an over sized t-shirt and gym shorts. The men and women head in separate directions to change into our new outfits. Us women had to head up in the elevator and once the doors open we were in the locker room. Most of my peers had never been to a spa before and I don't exactly know what they were expecting but they were not expecting the amount of nudity that they saw. I think that this is a normal spa locker room practice. You just avert your eyes and go out your business. No big deal. We had a wrist band with a key and a swipe card on it that told us our locker number and we found our lockers to change and then Dr. Kang gave us a brief tour and we were left to explore. It was 8pm so that means we had 12 hours to roam and enjoy this Korean paradise.
I wanted a massage but it was a bit pricey so I needed time to think about it. I had many different rooms to explore and 6 floors of terrain to cover. There were coal rooms, salt rooms, jade rooms, bamboo rooms, sleeping rooms, relaxation rooms, clay rooms, little convenience stores, massage rooms, tv rooms, and so much more. I went in all of them! My absolute favorite was the Jade room. It is a room made from natural jade and the ceiling was shaped like a pyramid. There were gold bolts in between the blocks of Jade and when you lied down on the floor, with one of those small pillows, it looked like stars on a patchwork of dark green sky.
I decided I would spend the extra money on myself and get a massage but there was a wait. I scheduled a sports massage for 11:15 and Tristan decided to join me. We then decided that while we waited we would go into the pool. It was freezing cold and I didn't stay for long. I didn't want my muscles tensing back up before I could get the knots worked out. So I went to the locker room and thinking all of my peers are horrified to partake in the culture, and they are all still out in the pool, so no one will see me, this is my chance to enjoy the full experience. I peel of my wet bathing suite and pitter patter down to my locker but low and behold I pass the only other person I know in the entire country, Dr. Kang. Thankfully I am not a shy person, but what is the proper social standard here? Should I say hello and stop to talk? should I hide behind my small hand towel? Luckily Dr. Kang knew the protocol and we ended up talking about where she was headed, down to the shower room. She asked if I had gone down yet and I said no. You see, you have to be naked to go down to the shower room so we both headed that way.
This floor was glorious!! And I am the first of the students to discover it so I felt like Christopher Columbus discovering a new land. There are steam rooms and 5 different temperature hot tubs and an exfoliating scrub room. This was where all the secret good stuff was hidden. I knew exactly where I was coming after my massage and it didn't matter that the other students were too square to join. Still I thought I would give them the option. After the massage which was delightful yet painful, I met up with everyone in the jade room. Most of the rest scrunched up their noses and wouldn't be seen naked but Julia and I went to adventure. We discovered that there was not only the 5 indoor hot tubs but 5 more outside. One of them was even a hot ginseng tea bath!! It was the perfect temperature and we could look up at the stars AND bathe in tea. It has to have been one of the coolest thing's Ive ever done.
Trying to find a place to sleep was a challenge. All of the sleeping rooms were full and all of the massage chairs were as well. I'm not a big fan of sleeping on the floor without some sort of mat and it was a little hot inside so we opted to sleep on the pool chairs outside with a rented full sized towel. We dozed off and on but none of us really slept. My hand towel that Bomi had folded into a hat that looked like princess Leia hair kept my head warm and the full length towel protected me from any stray splashes from the pool. It was soon time to leave the spa and now well relaxed, start our adventure in Seoul.
Mythical Beast
The mascot of Seoul is everywhere. It is a tiger of sorts that guards the city. We walked everywhere in Korea. It was more exercise than climbing the Great Wall but it gave us a chance to really take in the city.
These are my brothers
We stopped at the Korean War museum and I teared up. War always makes me cry and in particular this monument. The statue is of two brothers being reunited after fighting on different sides and begging each others forgiveness. The crack in the middle represents how Korea is still divided and inside is a plaque with all the countries that helped fight in the war. It was touching and tragic and my heart went out to those two brothers. I hope they forgave one another.
Inside the museum we had a tour guide. His perspective on the war was one I found distasteful. This man was old enough to have had lived through the war but at the time he was so young he did not remember how bad life was before. He also hinted at some things he believed the Americans did wrong but gave no suggestion as to how it could have been done better using what limited resources were available. I know I am too young to know much about this war and that it is still very fresh in the lives of all Koreans, but I find it a bit off putting when someone asks for your help and then complains about the help they receive. Maybe that is just how I feel.
The rest of the day I spent lying in bed. I got so sick that I had no other option. I felt horrible for making one of the professors stay with me, but Dr. Teets kept reassuring me he wanted to stay anyways. So I slept and woke up in time for dinner, then slept some more.
Inside the museum we had a tour guide. His perspective on the war was one I found distasteful. This man was old enough to have had lived through the war but at the time he was so young he did not remember how bad life was before. He also hinted at some things he believed the Americans did wrong but gave no suggestion as to how it could have been done better using what limited resources were available. I know I am too young to know much about this war and that it is still very fresh in the lives of all Koreans, but I find it a bit off putting when someone asks for your help and then complains about the help they receive. Maybe that is just how I feel.
The rest of the day I spent lying in bed. I got so sick that I had no other option. I felt horrible for making one of the professors stay with me, but Dr. Teets kept reassuring me he wanted to stay anyways. So I slept and woke up in time for dinner, then slept some more.
To the street for food!
Feeling better and ready to go, I hopped on the Bus tour of the city with everyone else in the morning and we headed to a popular shopping destination. In each of the seats there was a pair of headphone connected to an audio player that tells you information about each stop. The language options are, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, French, or English. I thought it was so bizarre there was no Spanish! Everything in America comes in the optional Spanish. It felt a little weird to be some place without that option.
We got off at stop 24 and were allowed free range of the place and we had our bus tickets. We were allowed to do whatever we wanted for the rest of the day. I should have been thrilled, ecstatic, but I was slightly terrified. I don't know why. Maybe it was the fact that I hadn't done whatever I wanted to do on any sort of trip in a very long time. My moment of panic vanished and us students decided to stick together. We went to lunch and ate amazing ethnic food then took to the streets. The cookies you see hanging on the left were delicious. A little dry and it tasted like Captain Crunch and it left me craving some milk but it was a good choice. Not as good as the pancakes though. these are hard to describe. they are fried dough filled with cinnamon and walnut syrup. it is fried right in front of you and comes so hot they hand it to you in a paper cup. Just remembering it now gives e a craving. We shopped for about two hours then I was getting tired. It must have been whatever took me out yesterday or the sheer amount of food we were eating but either way i was ready to move on. Dr. Kang had mentioned a waterfall at stop one and I really wanted to see it.
Julia was ready to move on as well so we went back to the bus stop. After being turned down by the wrong bus we waited for the next one and were on our way. We stopped and got off at 1 and looked around. We were surrounded by concrete, there was not a single sprout or sign telling us which way to go and no one knew what we were talking about. We asked three or four different people and then decided it wasn't worth it. Plus I needed a nap. We went back towards the hostel but stopped at a Krispy Kreme for a snack. They were playing one of my favorite songs and I gave me the pick me up I needed to make it up the hill to our bedroom. With pistachio (yes I know pistachio) donuts in hand, we climbed the mountain to nap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1Bs9_k3kVc
We got off at stop 24 and were allowed free range of the place and we had our bus tickets. We were allowed to do whatever we wanted for the rest of the day. I should have been thrilled, ecstatic, but I was slightly terrified. I don't know why. Maybe it was the fact that I hadn't done whatever I wanted to do on any sort of trip in a very long time. My moment of panic vanished and us students decided to stick together. We went to lunch and ate amazing ethnic food then took to the streets. The cookies you see hanging on the left were delicious. A little dry and it tasted like Captain Crunch and it left me craving some milk but it was a good choice. Not as good as the pancakes though. these are hard to describe. they are fried dough filled with cinnamon and walnut syrup. it is fried right in front of you and comes so hot they hand it to you in a paper cup. Just remembering it now gives e a craving. We shopped for about two hours then I was getting tired. It must have been whatever took me out yesterday or the sheer amount of food we were eating but either way i was ready to move on. Dr. Kang had mentioned a waterfall at stop one and I really wanted to see it.
Julia was ready to move on as well so we went back to the bus stop. After being turned down by the wrong bus we waited for the next one and were on our way. We stopped and got off at 1 and looked around. We were surrounded by concrete, there was not a single sprout or sign telling us which way to go and no one knew what we were talking about. We asked three or four different people and then decided it wasn't worth it. Plus I needed a nap. We went back towards the hostel but stopped at a Krispy Kreme for a snack. They were playing one of my favorite songs and I gave me the pick me up I needed to make it up the hill to our bedroom. With pistachio (yes I know pistachio) donuts in hand, we climbed the mountain to nap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1Bs9_k3kVc
Love N Tower
The theme for the North Seoul tower or N Tower is "Love N Tower" and it is a hotspot for couples. I missed Chris more here than almost anywhere else on the trip. On the right, I am standing in front of one of the many trees that hold wishes. commitments, vows and locks of lovers from all over the world. I sent him a love letter from the top of the tower and looked over all of the city. Inside there were walls covered in tiles signed by lovers. In this moment I finally understood what my mom means when she says "it's no fun to travel alone" I wasn't alone, I was with classmates, but I was alone. I didn't really know these other students, it was the first time we met, and while we became close, I wanted to be with loved ones. I want to someday bring them to this tower and sign a tile and put a lock on a tree.
The 38 parallel
Our visit to the DMZ was a little different than the previous year. Due to unfortunate accidents no one is allowed to have family meetings so we were unable to go to the building where north and south Korea meet. We did however get to go to the South Korea side of the DMZ and crawl through a coal covered tunnel. This is not a coal tunnel though. It is a tunnel dug by the North Koreans in the hopes of invading South Korea. They covered the tunnel with coal dust and claimed they were mining coal when the tunnel was discovered. It is so sad. It made my heart heavy to be here. The South Koreans are so hopeful for unification that they have already built a train station to North Korea. Julia asked me if I thought they were doing the same thing on the other side, looking over at us. I realized that they probably were not. I don't know how much freedoms they have in North Korea and if their people are even allowed near the boarder anymore. My heart wept for all the broken families and people left behind. I kept thinking about my friend Brian Vickers and how he is going to be there in a few weeks and if he feels the same. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQkBeOisNM0&ob=av2e
The US embassy debacle
After the DMZ and lunch on the floor, we had some free time and I was determined to find this waterfall. Luckily for me Dr. Small, Julia, and Alyssa were determined to as well. We got lost for a while and passed the beginning of some sort of demonstration. All four of us were dressed in khaki pants and looking particularly American and as we passed the embassy, some man started screaming at us in Korean. Thankfully he was in the median of the road and we were surrounded by police because when he was through screaming and gesturing at us he dropped his panst to the ground and flashed us. At this point the police were handling the situation and we decided to get far away from there. It turned out we had passed the waterfall on the way to the embassy and it just took a second look to find it. They were filming some sort of soap opera down my the falls and we stopped to watch it for a bit. There was also an art show.
I play the drums
Later that night we visited the CoEx Mall and Samsung d'light. In Samsung you can play video games and play with all their high tech gadgets. It was like a free arcade! To the right you can see me playing the walls which are actually light up drums! We didn't stay long but I had a blast!
Buddha burns me
After dinner at the mall we went to the Buddhist temple to see all of the lanterns for Buddha's birthday light up. We ooh-ahhed our way through the temple and saw the massive amount of lanterns. Some of them very big and elaborate and others simple and elegant. People were still stopping in to make wishes and pay their respects and there was an alter set up to make a wish and bow to Buddha. I wanted to pay my respects and make a wish so I made sure it was ok with Dr. Kang first. I didn't want to offend anyone. I lit my incense and made my wish. then I went to stick it in a pot of sand so I could bow to it as tradition dictates, and I burn my hand. Clearly I am not meant to be a Buddhist.