Our last day in Korea, at least for now. The first of us back will probably be Jeff. :) This morning we took a "family photo" in our host home and ate breakfast all together. The girls gave me and Samantha candy and a four-leaf clover from Hanul's collection. I also got a video of Sarang's special walk. She is too cute! We exchanged addresses and email and then all met at the church for one final meeting. Pastor Won presented us each with a gift. Todd, Jeff, Luke, Robert and Anthony were also presented Korean Bibles. Each of us was also given a CD of the week's programs. The ladies made sure we each had whatever drink we wanted from the cafe. These people are amazing. We held hands and Pastor Won led us in "God is so Good." And the Americans all cried. Pastor Won asked Todd to pray and then he also prayed in Korean. The church members came around and gave hugs and said good-byes that were more like "see you soon." Twice I've been asked to pinky-promise that I will be back next year. When Hanul left for school this morning, she said, "See you next year." It is not a possibility in the minds of these people that we won't be back.
This morning in the elevator leaving the house, a neighbor asked Sarang who me and Samantha were. She looked up at Isaac and he told her something, which she repeated and then she smiled. Sayone told us the word meant "sisters."
After leaving the church, we drove to the DMZ. (The "de"militarized zone that has more soldiers and land mines than anywhere in the world.) There is a river that runs parallel to the highway from Seoul to the north. The river is "fenced in" with tall barbed wire and manned guard stations. The reason? The river runs south from North Korea and the guards and fence are protection from small groups of soldiers trying to enter by water. In the van I sat up front with Isaac and Caleb. (Caleb works with the youth at Calvary.) Caleb told me of his time in the military. In Korea, young men are required to serve for three years; Caleb served 40 months in the navy and is classified as a lietenant-general grand. He said he traveled to twelve countries, including his time stationed in Guam. He told me that once he had come face to face with the North Korean enemy, but that's all he said about it. When we arrived at the DMZ, we were surprised to see a carnival. I guess they are taking advantage of the tourism, so there is a 'restaurant' (we chose not to try the cooked bugs) and rides, including tea cups. From the outside it looks like fun, but once you step inside you know this is a serious place. Your passports are checked before you can get on the tour bus. We went through a guard station where our passports were checked by a soldier who came onto the bus. We asked Caleb is these were all South Korean soldiers. His response was, "yes. If they are North Korea soldiers, we are dead." Driving up to Dorasan Station we passed signs to remind people of the presence of land mines. At many places (most actually) we were not allowed to take pictures. At Dorasan we were able to look out over an observatory area into the neutral zone. We may have been able to see North Korea if today had not been so cloudy. Inside a small auditorium there was a map of the area. While we were studying the map, Caleb told us that sometimes it floods in North Korea and bodies wash down the river into the South. (Caleb was my personal tour guide--he translated announcements on the bus and pointed out US army bases, etc.)
We went to a gift shop or two before visiting the 3rd tunnel. The tunnel was incredible. I had no idea we'd actually go in. We were given helmets (but had to leave cameras and phones in lockers) and rode what was like a roller coaster car down into the tunnel. We rode through the part South Korea tunneled to reach the actual 3rd tunnel. We were able to walk once we reached the actual tunnel. It's crazy to think that 1) men dug that tunnel for so long without anyone knowing, 2) they dug that far underground, 3) we stood today where soldiers had once prepared to ambush a country and break a peace agreement. Throughout the tunnel are yellow paint markers--the spots where dynamite had been used to further the tunnel.
When we returned from the tunnel, we were able to tour a museum outlining the relationship of the North and the South from the 1950s until now. Then we watched a video that portrays the DMZ as a happy, hopeful place. You could walk away from the video thinking that tomorrow you will go back to the DMZ for a picnic with the North. Today we heard again of the desires for reunification. On the bus, Caleb pointed out to me buildings under construction to be used when the military is united. South Koreans really seem to desire reunification. Only the outside, apparently, considers Korea divided into seperate countries.
We were at the DMZ for about 3 hours. "The ninja" stayed with the van carrying our luggage the whole time we toured. From the DMZ, we drove straight to Incheon International Airport. Pastor and Ms. Won met us there to say good-byes and pray together one last time. Isaac hugged me and Samantha good-bye ("my little princesses"). Isaac is quite a character, always joking. Never believe a word he tells you. His family may be in Knoxville in May. Pastor Won's daughter will be graduating and he and Sayone plan to be there. He asked to see pictures of our homes and dinner menus so he can decide who he wants "home stay" with. Then he told Todd all he needed from him was an email address, a bank number and a pin code.
We said our last good-byes a little before 5 pm (4 am in Knoxville) and headed through security, which was not nearly as involved as in Knoxville. We found a Hagen-Daas store. A man overheard that I couldn't get a wireless connection and pointed me toward a book store with computers for free internet access. So I was able to at least email my parents that I was on my way. We exhanged our wons for dollars and, after taking pictures of the most incredible toilets, boarded the plane for Knoxville.
At 7:40 pm Seoul/6:40 am Knoxville we flew over Tokyo. It was amazing!! As we first flew over Japan we could barely see lights when the clouds lifted. But once we reached Tokyo you could see the outline of Japan's coastline in the city lights. Amazing, amazing, amazing.
I fell asleep for about an hour or so and woke up at 11 am Knoxville time (midnight in Seoul). It was completely dark when I fell asleep. When I woke up it was sunrise time over the Aleutian Islands. It's beautiful, but hard to believe I am coming from midnight on my way to noon and watching sunrise.
I know I've only had experience flying for a little over a week now, but this group of flight attendants is not going to be my favorite. And the food...well... the Chick-Fil-A at the Atlanta airport was delicious!!
We left Incheon at 6:05 pm Friday June 13. We landed in Atlanta at 6:20 pm Friday June 13. We had to remind each other exactly how long it had been since we had gotten up. At the time we landed, it had been about 25 hours for us. Our flight in Atlanta was scheduled to leave at 9:35. We spent a while on the runway and actually left at 9:55. We were in Knoxville by 10:20. The actual flight time from Atlanta to Knoxville is about the same as my drive from home to church. Luke and I were seated on the back of the plane, but the group waited for us outside the terminal so we could all enter the airport together. As we turned the corner we saw a group of people with "welcome back" posters. . . and then realized they were for us!! Thank you so much to all of you who came out to the airport late on a Friday night to welcome us home. It means so much!! Also, thank you so much for the positive feedback on the blogs. We will be sharing more about the trip during the Sunday morning service this week. I know it will be great...Robert started working with the video on the plane and Todd has already begun collecting copies of our pictures. I'm a little sad that this will be my last blog of South Korea '08. Thanks for being a part of the experience!!
More (pictures) later. . .
Friday, June 13, 2008
Trip Updates #8--Thursday
In the cafe this morning we got to talk to Robin and Ashley face to face on the computer. I took a picture of the screen so they can be in our trip pictures too!
Today is Isaac's birthday. We sang in the cafe and the van.
Every morning with breakfast we have had incredible fruit. Sayone told us this morning that apples are only good in the morning. She said Korean mothers do not give their children apples at night, because it is bad for them.
English Village was short today. The kids came through "immigration" and went downstairs for songs. Todd talked to them about David and Goliath. Then each team worked on songs for the presentation time. I missed the preparation time. One of my team's kids spilled her milk, so I went upstairs to get napkins. I cleaned it up and went back upstairs to find a trash can. (Trash cans are tiny and elusive in Korea.) I still had the wet napkins in my hand and someone grabbed me to go share outside. We shared with a woman who had lots of questions. At one point she decided to pray to receive Christ, but stopped the interpreter in the middle of the prayer to ask more questions. I couldn't understand the conversation, but I wanted to stay, to pray and to see the ending. But someone pulled me away, I think to share with someone else who had left when we got inside the cafe. Pastor Won then sent me back downstairs, because parents were already there and presentations were starting. The kids sang the songs for the parents by sections. Then the parents were asked to sing one of the songs ("I am the Music Man") for the kids. Again, "Behold the Lamb" was the last presentation. Sue, one of the teachers and part of Todd and Leeanne's host family, told me that Pastor Won asked her if they could begin learning the dance too. While we were in presentation time, I saw the lady I had shared with outside. Her daughter was actually on the yellow team, my team. Later I found out that her name is Grace and that she chose not to accept Christ. But now she has a tie to the church through English Village; Calvary Church, I'm sure will follow up and not give up.
After English Village we again were "celebrities," taking picture after picture with kids. But this time we were tired and sitting down so the kids would sit on our laps for pictures. No longer Mickey Mouse, now we were a room full of Santa Claus!
We ate at the church and then left for another afternoon of being tourists. Isaac, Caleb, and the man we call "the Ninja" (long story) took us to a palace in Seoul (no longer occupied) to tour and watch the changing of the guard. It was stupendous (our word for the day). And, even there away from the church, people wanted to try out their English on us. So many people would ask "how are you?" but it may have been all the English they knew. Leeanne, more than once, was surrounded by a group of girls asking her name, where she was from, what she does and if they could have a picture made with her. And Jeff, of course, had a group of women from the church with him most of the time. You've probably seen most of their pictures on Todd's blog. :)
From the palace we went to a shopping area. Kellie and me rode with two of the girls in a car. Korean cars have so much technology, including talking turn-by-turn GPS. And yet we passed our starting point twice, asked two taxi drivers for directions and went the wrong way down a one-way street. And it seems that remembering where you park in the garage (or even in which garage) is very low priority--for all Korean drivers, really.
We shopped at an outdoor market area--shops down both sides of the street. It's funny that so much of the stuff said "made in China" just like at home. There were some high school girls doing a school project there. They would video foreigners saying in Korean that they loved the school. (I can't remember the name of the school.) They told you how to pronounce it and had a homemade cue card with the phrase written phonetically. Samantha and me both took part and they gave us each a small gift. They were really impressed when I said "thank you" in Korean. I may only know one word, but I know it well. Ha! Acutally, I've picked up a few more, but "thank you" is still the easiest to remember.
Then we went to dinner. . . Outback!! We had passed Outback several times during the week and each time Todd would say how much he wanted to be there. And then we got to go! It's a little different than ours. If you don't ask for a drink, you may not get one. They did, however, bring an orange drink to our table. The waiter put two straws in each glass and set a glass beside every other person. For a society that prides itself on cleanliness, there is a lot of food sharing and eating from the same dish. But the most important part, the Outback bread, was very much the same. Stupendous!
We were hoping to go to a fabric shop and Isaac had arranged for us to after dinner. . . but then it rained so we went straight to the indoor mall. (Still a little sad we didn't get any fabric from Korea. Rain seems to affect activities more than at home. Sunday night it rained before we drove to dinner. Isaac said the reason the restaurant wasn't crowded was because of the rain.) This mall stays open from 10:30 am until 5:00 am! What an experience. Our malls are seperated by stores; theirs are seperated by products. Each level had a different theme: children's, souvenirs, home, etc. Each person works for a certain area, but how you tell where one area begins and ends I never figured out. Most don't have check out lines--they come to you. "You ready?" And some things don't have price tags; they tell you the price once you look interested in something. When you pass people you know in the mall, it is apparently normal to say "let me show" (which must mean both "show me" and "let me see") and pull items out of the other's bags. (Glad I didn't buy any underwear.)
The young women here have given us all Korean names. Some have special meaning, like Todd's "blessed man" and Leeanne's "love." Some of us share a name with an actress or model. Leah's namesake is a model. The girls spotted her on a lifesize carboard cutout advertisement for a phone, so Leah had her picture made with her. "The ninja" bought for me, Kellie, Robert and Luke pictures of our namesakes.
When we got back to the church, Samantha and I stopped at Leah and Kellie's "home" for a few minutes. When we left I sat off an alarm. So there we are around midnight trying to turn off this alarm. The doors are different than ours. They may have a deadbolt, but they also have a button to unlock. Guess I picked the wrong button.
When we got back to Isaac and Sayone's house, they had gifts for us. Sayone had printed pictures from the week and put them in an album for us. They gave us some other things, including chopsticks, with the warning that we better be experts when get back to Korea. Isaac talked to us about his vision for the church to have a school with English-speaking teachers and that he included us in those future-teacher hopefuls. (Don't worry. Not feeling that calling.) He also told me to bring my boyfriend next year and told Samantha she couldn't; she should just keep studying hard.
More later. . .
Today is Isaac's birthday. We sang in the cafe and the van.
Every morning with breakfast we have had incredible fruit. Sayone told us this morning that apples are only good in the morning. She said Korean mothers do not give their children apples at night, because it is bad for them.
English Village was short today. The kids came through "immigration" and went downstairs for songs. Todd talked to them about David and Goliath. Then each team worked on songs for the presentation time. I missed the preparation time. One of my team's kids spilled her milk, so I went upstairs to get napkins. I cleaned it up and went back upstairs to find a trash can. (Trash cans are tiny and elusive in Korea.) I still had the wet napkins in my hand and someone grabbed me to go share outside. We shared with a woman who had lots of questions. At one point she decided to pray to receive Christ, but stopped the interpreter in the middle of the prayer to ask more questions. I couldn't understand the conversation, but I wanted to stay, to pray and to see the ending. But someone pulled me away, I think to share with someone else who had left when we got inside the cafe. Pastor Won then sent me back downstairs, because parents were already there and presentations were starting. The kids sang the songs for the parents by sections. Then the parents were asked to sing one of the songs ("I am the Music Man") for the kids. Again, "Behold the Lamb" was the last presentation. Sue, one of the teachers and part of Todd and Leeanne's host family, told me that Pastor Won asked her if they could begin learning the dance too. While we were in presentation time, I saw the lady I had shared with outside. Her daughter was actually on the yellow team, my team. Later I found out that her name is Grace and that she chose not to accept Christ. But now she has a tie to the church through English Village; Calvary Church, I'm sure will follow up and not give up.
After English Village we again were "celebrities," taking picture after picture with kids. But this time we were tired and sitting down so the kids would sit on our laps for pictures. No longer Mickey Mouse, now we were a room full of Santa Claus!
We ate at the church and then left for another afternoon of being tourists. Isaac, Caleb, and the man we call "the Ninja" (long story) took us to a palace in Seoul (no longer occupied) to tour and watch the changing of the guard. It was stupendous (our word for the day). And, even there away from the church, people wanted to try out their English on us. So many people would ask "how are you?" but it may have been all the English they knew. Leeanne, more than once, was surrounded by a group of girls asking her name, where she was from, what she does and if they could have a picture made with her. And Jeff, of course, had a group of women from the church with him most of the time. You've probably seen most of their pictures on Todd's blog. :)
From the palace we went to a shopping area. Kellie and me rode with two of the girls in a car. Korean cars have so much technology, including talking turn-by-turn GPS. And yet we passed our starting point twice, asked two taxi drivers for directions and went the wrong way down a one-way street. And it seems that remembering where you park in the garage (or even in which garage) is very low priority--for all Korean drivers, really.
We shopped at an outdoor market area--shops down both sides of the street. It's funny that so much of the stuff said "made in China" just like at home. There were some high school girls doing a school project there. They would video foreigners saying in Korean that they loved the school. (I can't remember the name of the school.) They told you how to pronounce it and had a homemade cue card with the phrase written phonetically. Samantha and me both took part and they gave us each a small gift. They were really impressed when I said "thank you" in Korean. I may only know one word, but I know it well. Ha! Acutally, I've picked up a few more, but "thank you" is still the easiest to remember.
Then we went to dinner. . . Outback!! We had passed Outback several times during the week and each time Todd would say how much he wanted to be there. And then we got to go! It's a little different than ours. If you don't ask for a drink, you may not get one. They did, however, bring an orange drink to our table. The waiter put two straws in each glass and set a glass beside every other person. For a society that prides itself on cleanliness, there is a lot of food sharing and eating from the same dish. But the most important part, the Outback bread, was very much the same. Stupendous!
We were hoping to go to a fabric shop and Isaac had arranged for us to after dinner. . . but then it rained so we went straight to the indoor mall. (Still a little sad we didn't get any fabric from Korea. Rain seems to affect activities more than at home. Sunday night it rained before we drove to dinner. Isaac said the reason the restaurant wasn't crowded was because of the rain.) This mall stays open from 10:30 am until 5:00 am! What an experience. Our malls are seperated by stores; theirs are seperated by products. Each level had a different theme: children's, souvenirs, home, etc. Each person works for a certain area, but how you tell where one area begins and ends I never figured out. Most don't have check out lines--they come to you. "You ready?" And some things don't have price tags; they tell you the price once you look interested in something. When you pass people you know in the mall, it is apparently normal to say "let me show" (which must mean both "show me" and "let me see") and pull items out of the other's bags. (Glad I didn't buy any underwear.)
The young women here have given us all Korean names. Some have special meaning, like Todd's "blessed man" and Leeanne's "love." Some of us share a name with an actress or model. Leah's namesake is a model. The girls spotted her on a lifesize carboard cutout advertisement for a phone, so Leah had her picture made with her. "The ninja" bought for me, Kellie, Robert and Luke pictures of our namesakes.
When we got back to the church, Samantha and I stopped at Leah and Kellie's "home" for a few minutes. When we left I sat off an alarm. So there we are around midnight trying to turn off this alarm. The doors are different than ours. They may have a deadbolt, but they also have a button to unlock. Guess I picked the wrong button.
When we got back to Isaac and Sayone's house, they had gifts for us. Sayone had printed pictures from the week and put them in an album for us. They gave us some other things, including chopsticks, with the warning that we better be experts when get back to Korea. Isaac talked to us about his vision for the church to have a school with English-speaking teachers and that he included us in those future-teacher hopefuls. (Don't worry. Not feeling that calling.) He also told me to bring my boyfriend next year and told Samantha she couldn't; she should just keep studying hard.
More later. . .
Trip Updates #7--Wednesday
Mornings in the cafe are amazing. Leah and Aaron are on the phone with Karen. Robert and Kellie are on the computer talking face to face with Jill and Dutch. Anthony is on the phone talking face to face with Alyson. Todd and Leeanne are on the phone with the kids. And we are all together.
School is still in session here. The kids that went to English Village are required to do a report and take pictures to get an excused absence. (That explains the first "take a picture with my child," just not the next seventeen.) At breakfast this morning (bacon & eggs) Sayone showed us Hanul's homework. She has written one page about English Village and has one page of pictures. She is taking pictures of her and Sarang with me and Samantha at her home and walking down the sidewalk together. She is also taking a picture of her and Jeff at English Village. So now our pictures will be all over school. Hanul's backpack could have been Kortney or Rylee's--a Hello Kitty bag with notebooks and folders, a pencil box and even a fundraiser form.
English Village today was for kindergarten, which means ages 4 to about 8. And, yes, in America that's ages 2 to about 7. "Immigration" was a little different this morning: at the end of the line were the kids who still had a good hold on mom's leg. Once we were downstairs in the sanctuary for the opening, kids were running everywhere. One of my yellow team kids ran past a few adults to the stairs and no one seemed to notice. So, yes, I got to chase kids up the stairs. While I was trying to help get the kids in the right teams, the rest of "the Americans" were up in the cafe sharing "steps to Peace with God." Todd later got to share with the other American girl there who is a Mormon. She did not make a decision, but what a seed could have been planted.
After lunch Leah and I were going back to our classrooms to get ready for the second class. One of the Korean workers chased us down. "Where are you going?!" Leah told him we were getting ready for class and he seemed okay with that. The funny thing is that while he was chasing us up the stairs, there were little kids all over the stairwell with no teachers. He didn't even seem to notice them. Leah and I were both pretty frustrated. There could be kids unattended all over the building, but by all means know where the Americans are at all times. Our classes were very different than Monday. The Korean teachers translated more since the kids were younger. And we got to use coloring sheets--the magic of crayons!
After English Village, we went "home" to change and meet back at church. About 10 minutes before we were to meet back, some of us got the message that we were supposed to be dressed nice. So we then were trying hard to come up with nice outfits. (It was the shoes that posed a problem: we weren't supposed to wear sandals, but some us had to and it was fine.) I was kind of frustrated they wouldn't tell us until the last minute. And when we are getting ready we are in 6 different houses and can't just call each other to spread the word. Todd had a good perspective on it though. They are used to an older group who comes to work with adults. We are a younger group who is working with kids. We are dressed like everyone else at English Village, so we don't think about being dressed wrong in the evening.
They took us to tour Voido Full Gospel Church--the largest Christian church in the world. Twelve thousand in a service, seven services each Sunday (translated during the service into several languages), twenty-one churches that receive video broadcasts and 765,000 members.
Then we went to 63 Square. Until recently, 63 Square was the tallest building in Korea. There are 63 main floors and three basement levels. Pastor Won told us the building was designed by a Christian man: designed in the shape of praying hands with 66 floors for the 66 books of the Bible. 63 Square is a world in itself. First, we went to an Imax Theater and watched a film about the history of Egypt. The fun thing was watching the actors' mouths: I don't know what the original language of the film was, but it was dubbed in Korean and we had headsets for English. The words never matched the actors or even happened at the same time.
After Imax we went to the 59th floor for dinner at "Walking on the Clouds." Again, the fanciest restaurant I've ever been to, where the waiters push your chair in and your meal comes in courses. First comes the appetizer...French pastry. If you think French pastry implies snails, you'd be right. I ate only the pastry crust. I've eaten a lot here, but the snails helped me find the line not to cross. Samantha, Aaron and Luke ate them and Todd tried one. The next course was French onion soup. I was so excited! Ms. Won sat across from me. It was the first time she had ever tried onion soup and the look on her face said onion soup was as appetizing to her as sushi to me. Next was the main course, your choice of steak or fish. The fish and veggies were amazing. Then came a salad with kiwi dressing and a fruit plate. Total cost for us, the pastor's family, the two men from the church who drove and the man from the church who paid was $900! After dinner we went back to the main level and went to "Sea World." The aquarium was great! (I'm telling you, 63 Square is a world of its own!) Then we went to the Sky Deck on the 60th floor and took pictures of the city at night. There is one area where the floor is clear, so you can see the ground. It was an incredible evening!
The church has given us the site-seeing trip of a lifetime. It has been amazing, but we are itching for a chance to shop, to bring something home with us. I don't love shopping, but this could be once in a lifetime.
More interesting facts: U-turns are not illegal here. In fact, intersections have left-turn lanes and u-turn lanes. Elevators in America hold 6 to 8 people. Elevators in Korea hold about 20, even though they are the same size.
More later. . .
School is still in session here. The kids that went to English Village are required to do a report and take pictures to get an excused absence. (That explains the first "take a picture with my child," just not the next seventeen.) At breakfast this morning (bacon & eggs) Sayone showed us Hanul's homework. She has written one page about English Village and has one page of pictures. She is taking pictures of her and Sarang with me and Samantha at her home and walking down the sidewalk together. She is also taking a picture of her and Jeff at English Village. So now our pictures will be all over school. Hanul's backpack could have been Kortney or Rylee's--a Hello Kitty bag with notebooks and folders, a pencil box and even a fundraiser form.
English Village today was for kindergarten, which means ages 4 to about 8. And, yes, in America that's ages 2 to about 7. "Immigration" was a little different this morning: at the end of the line were the kids who still had a good hold on mom's leg. Once we were downstairs in the sanctuary for the opening, kids were running everywhere. One of my yellow team kids ran past a few adults to the stairs and no one seemed to notice. So, yes, I got to chase kids up the stairs. While I was trying to help get the kids in the right teams, the rest of "the Americans" were up in the cafe sharing "steps to Peace with God." Todd later got to share with the other American girl there who is a Mormon. She did not make a decision, but what a seed could have been planted.
After lunch Leah and I were going back to our classrooms to get ready for the second class. One of the Korean workers chased us down. "Where are you going?!" Leah told him we were getting ready for class and he seemed okay with that. The funny thing is that while he was chasing us up the stairs, there were little kids all over the stairwell with no teachers. He didn't even seem to notice them. Leah and I were both pretty frustrated. There could be kids unattended all over the building, but by all means know where the Americans are at all times. Our classes were very different than Monday. The Korean teachers translated more since the kids were younger. And we got to use coloring sheets--the magic of crayons!
After English Village, we went "home" to change and meet back at church. About 10 minutes before we were to meet back, some of us got the message that we were supposed to be dressed nice. So we then were trying hard to come up with nice outfits. (It was the shoes that posed a problem: we weren't supposed to wear sandals, but some us had to and it was fine.) I was kind of frustrated they wouldn't tell us until the last minute. And when we are getting ready we are in 6 different houses and can't just call each other to spread the word. Todd had a good perspective on it though. They are used to an older group who comes to work with adults. We are a younger group who is working with kids. We are dressed like everyone else at English Village, so we don't think about being dressed wrong in the evening.
They took us to tour Voido Full Gospel Church--the largest Christian church in the world. Twelve thousand in a service, seven services each Sunday (translated during the service into several languages), twenty-one churches that receive video broadcasts and 765,000 members.
Then we went to 63 Square. Until recently, 63 Square was the tallest building in Korea. There are 63 main floors and three basement levels. Pastor Won told us the building was designed by a Christian man: designed in the shape of praying hands with 66 floors for the 66 books of the Bible. 63 Square is a world in itself. First, we went to an Imax Theater and watched a film about the history of Egypt. The fun thing was watching the actors' mouths: I don't know what the original language of the film was, but it was dubbed in Korean and we had headsets for English. The words never matched the actors or even happened at the same time.
After Imax we went to the 59th floor for dinner at "Walking on the Clouds." Again, the fanciest restaurant I've ever been to, where the waiters push your chair in and your meal comes in courses. First comes the appetizer...French pastry. If you think French pastry implies snails, you'd be right. I ate only the pastry crust. I've eaten a lot here, but the snails helped me find the line not to cross. Samantha, Aaron and Luke ate them and Todd tried one. The next course was French onion soup. I was so excited! Ms. Won sat across from me. It was the first time she had ever tried onion soup and the look on her face said onion soup was as appetizing to her as sushi to me. Next was the main course, your choice of steak or fish. The fish and veggies were amazing. Then came a salad with kiwi dressing and a fruit plate. Total cost for us, the pastor's family, the two men from the church who drove and the man from the church who paid was $900! After dinner we went back to the main level and went to "Sea World." The aquarium was great! (I'm telling you, 63 Square is a world of its own!) Then we went to the Sky Deck on the 60th floor and took pictures of the city at night. There is one area where the floor is clear, so you can see the ground. It was an incredible evening!
The church has given us the site-seeing trip of a lifetime. It has been amazing, but we are itching for a chance to shop, to bring something home with us. I don't love shopping, but this could be once in a lifetime.
More interesting facts: U-turns are not illegal here. In fact, intersections have left-turn lanes and u-turn lanes. Elevators in America hold 6 to 8 people. Elevators in Korea hold about 20, even though they are the same size.
More later. . .
Trip Updates--Friday
Haven't had time to blog the past couple of days. Will update when I am home.
It is now 5:15 pm in Seoul (4:15 am Knoxville) and we are at Incheon International Airport preparing to board. See you soon. . .
It is now 5:15 pm in Seoul (4:15 am Knoxville) and we are at Incheon International Airport preparing to board. See you soon. . .
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Trip Updates #6--Tuesday
I am 26 years old in America. I am 28 here. (Lost 13 hours, gained 2 years.) Here you are 1 on the day you are born, and gain another year every January 1. So I was 1 on November 28, 1981 and 2 on January 1, 1982. Crazy, huh? If you are born on December 31, you turn 2 the day after you were born.
We've figured out how to get time together. We meet early before English Village and have the cafe almost to ourselves. We can talk and get online. Sometimes we aren't as early as we'd like to be because our hosts want to cook breakfast for us. This morning...bacon and eggs!
As the kids lined up in "immigration" this morning, one of the ladies told me, Todd and Robert to go outside and say "hello" to the kids. When we walked out there the kids looked and waved and smiled, kind of like 3 Disney characters had walked through the door in our place. And the kids have pictures of all of us on their phones.
While Todd was doing Bible Story time with the kids, Kellie and me went to the cafe to get something to drink. (Not that we didn't want to hear the story; you just have to take breaks when you can.) We were getting ready to go back downstairs and Pastor Won stopped us and told us there were 2 ladies who wanted pictures made with us. I don't know if we had even met them before then.
Today we didn't have story telling time, so in the morning I got to stay with the yellow team. Our first station was a time to prepare for the group presentation in the afternoon. My team was given the story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet in John 13. Me and the teacher I am working with decided to let the kids play while we talked through the story together. We each turned to John 13 in our Bible and sat the Bibles side by side: English and Hangul/Korean. The kids thought it was pretty neat, but they didn't know why some of the words in my Bible were in black ink and some were in red. When they heard the translation of "the red words are when Jesus is talking" they got so excited!
There were 2 main stations today: the police station and the clinic. Before lunch Jeff, Robert and Aaron were the cops and Leeanne and Anthony were the doctors. After lunch Luke, Leah and Samantha were the cops and Kellie and me were the doctors. The clinic taught food vocabulary and which foods are good/bad for teeth. (Pizza and hamburger are on the bad list here.)
After the afternoon stations there was a presentation time for parents. It was insane. At home everyone would be completely focused on their child's performance. Here people talked and moved around the whole time. Most of the time you couldn't hear the kids' parts. The last 'group presentation' was "Behold the Lamb." People seemed to really enjoy it. Even if I did get completely off at the end. But the solos were good and it went really well.
When the presentations were over and we had sung "And We All Go Traveling By" for the 57th time (rough estimate), the kids continued taking pictures of us and with us. It got crazy. People were actually lined up to have their children's pictures taken with us. We probably spent at least 30 minutes doing nothing but smiling for the camera. And they weren't taking pictures one at a time. There would be 10 people standing side by side, all taking our picture. I held my camera at my waist and started taking pictures of them taking our pictures. One mom came up to me and said "Oh, my daughter loves you" like she was talking to Hannah Montana, not me. Then Leah and Kellie took a picture with one of the men from the church. One of the ladies yelled "he's single." Leah heard "he's singer" and got really excited. "Really? He is?!" Leah thought she'd met a country singer, but she may have another fiance.
After English Village we went into downtown Seoul (the oldest part of Korea). We drove part of the way and then rode the subway. First an airplane, now a subway... It's amazing how crowded the subway is, even when we came back around 11.
Dinner was originally at a pasta restaurant, but Isaac didn't think we had time, so we went to . . . McDonald's!! On our way, I joked about there being something crazy like shrimp burgers. . . yes, it was value meal #4.
After dinner they took us to see "Nanta." Nanta is basically a broadway show. It's hard to describe, but picture a comedy version of Stomp, set in a Korean restaurant kitchen, with audience members--including Aaron--pulled into the scenes unexpectedly. It was amazing. And tickets are not cheap. The church has had this planned for us. Between tickets, subway rides and dinner, tonight's price tag would be close to $1000. And that's just tonight. I still have not paid for anything here.
When we left the show there was a parade going on. It was for "Memory Day." People were walking down the street with flags and candles. It was really cool once we knew for certain it was a parade and not a protest. We can't read the signs, you know.
The Nanta stage was in with a movie theater. I got a Korean movie poster for "Indiana Jones" and "Prince Caspian."
Lunch today was not my favorite, so I didn't eat much. McDonald's took a while to get all our orders ready. Actually, I just ate fries. My chicken wasn't ready until we were getting ready to leave and literally run into the theater beside McD's. So I hit my food stash. :) I was really excited about sitting in my room and eating "dinner." I had set out a powerbar, cheese crackers, dried fruit and the goodies Karen sent. I was so excited. . . and then I got busted. Isaac wanted to try the things Karen sent. They ate all but 2 of the peanut butter cookies. They want me to give those to the girls tomorrow. (sniff, sniff.) I think they feel like we were holding out on them not offering up our stash sooner. I don't think I'm a selfish person, but this was my stash. (Although, they didn't see it all. :) Karen, Isaac said in 2009 he will pay the extra bag fee if you will fill a suitcase with peanut butter cookies.
More later. . .
We've figured out how to get time together. We meet early before English Village and have the cafe almost to ourselves. We can talk and get online. Sometimes we aren't as early as we'd like to be because our hosts want to cook breakfast for us. This morning...bacon and eggs!
As the kids lined up in "immigration" this morning, one of the ladies told me, Todd and Robert to go outside and say "hello" to the kids. When we walked out there the kids looked and waved and smiled, kind of like 3 Disney characters had walked through the door in our place. And the kids have pictures of all of us on their phones.
While Todd was doing Bible Story time with the kids, Kellie and me went to the cafe to get something to drink. (Not that we didn't want to hear the story; you just have to take breaks when you can.) We were getting ready to go back downstairs and Pastor Won stopped us and told us there were 2 ladies who wanted pictures made with us. I don't know if we had even met them before then.
Today we didn't have story telling time, so in the morning I got to stay with the yellow team. Our first station was a time to prepare for the group presentation in the afternoon. My team was given the story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet in John 13. Me and the teacher I am working with decided to let the kids play while we talked through the story together. We each turned to John 13 in our Bible and sat the Bibles side by side: English and Hangul/Korean. The kids thought it was pretty neat, but they didn't know why some of the words in my Bible were in black ink and some were in red. When they heard the translation of "the red words are when Jesus is talking" they got so excited!
There were 2 main stations today: the police station and the clinic. Before lunch Jeff, Robert and Aaron were the cops and Leeanne and Anthony were the doctors. After lunch Luke, Leah and Samantha were the cops and Kellie and me were the doctors. The clinic taught food vocabulary and which foods are good/bad for teeth. (Pizza and hamburger are on the bad list here.)
After the afternoon stations there was a presentation time for parents. It was insane. At home everyone would be completely focused on their child's performance. Here people talked and moved around the whole time. Most of the time you couldn't hear the kids' parts. The last 'group presentation' was "Behold the Lamb." People seemed to really enjoy it. Even if I did get completely off at the end. But the solos were good and it went really well.
When the presentations were over and we had sung "And We All Go Traveling By" for the 57th time (rough estimate), the kids continued taking pictures of us and with us. It got crazy. People were actually lined up to have their children's pictures taken with us. We probably spent at least 30 minutes doing nothing but smiling for the camera. And they weren't taking pictures one at a time. There would be 10 people standing side by side, all taking our picture. I held my camera at my waist and started taking pictures of them taking our pictures. One mom came up to me and said "Oh, my daughter loves you" like she was talking to Hannah Montana, not me. Then Leah and Kellie took a picture with one of the men from the church. One of the ladies yelled "he's single." Leah heard "he's singer" and got really excited. "Really? He is?!" Leah thought she'd met a country singer, but she may have another fiance.
After English Village we went into downtown Seoul (the oldest part of Korea). We drove part of the way and then rode the subway. First an airplane, now a subway... It's amazing how crowded the subway is, even when we came back around 11.
Dinner was originally at a pasta restaurant, but Isaac didn't think we had time, so we went to . . . McDonald's!! On our way, I joked about there being something crazy like shrimp burgers. . . yes, it was value meal #4.
After dinner they took us to see "Nanta." Nanta is basically a broadway show. It's hard to describe, but picture a comedy version of Stomp, set in a Korean restaurant kitchen, with audience members--including Aaron--pulled into the scenes unexpectedly. It was amazing. And tickets are not cheap. The church has had this planned for us. Between tickets, subway rides and dinner, tonight's price tag would be close to $1000. And that's just tonight. I still have not paid for anything here.
When we left the show there was a parade going on. It was for "Memory Day." People were walking down the street with flags and candles. It was really cool once we knew for certain it was a parade and not a protest. We can't read the signs, you know.
The Nanta stage was in with a movie theater. I got a Korean movie poster for "Indiana Jones" and "Prince Caspian."
Lunch today was not my favorite, so I didn't eat much. McDonald's took a while to get all our orders ready. Actually, I just ate fries. My chicken wasn't ready until we were getting ready to leave and literally run into the theater beside McD's. So I hit my food stash. :) I was really excited about sitting in my room and eating "dinner." I had set out a powerbar, cheese crackers, dried fruit and the goodies Karen sent. I was so excited. . . and then I got busted. Isaac wanted to try the things Karen sent. They ate all but 2 of the peanut butter cookies. They want me to give those to the girls tomorrow. (sniff, sniff.) I think they feel like we were holding out on them not offering up our stash sooner. I don't think I'm a selfish person, but this was my stash. (Although, they didn't see it all. :) Karen, Isaac said in 2009 he will pay the extra bag fee if you will fill a suitcase with peanut butter cookies.
More later. . .
Monday, June 9, 2008
Trip Updates #5--Monday
We now have trouble make complete sentence. . . talk each other slow and little words. Need remind each other we do speak English fluent.
I woke up today feeling your prayers. Thank you so much (especially those I've talked to through email.) Before I tell you about the day, let me just say that I do feel right being here now.
English Village: Day 1
English Village began at 9:30. The kids lined up outside the gate--church door--with their 'passports.' They passed through 'immigration'--Leah, Luke and Samantha asking them simple English questions. They passed through 'security' where Aaron 'scanned' them. And then Jeff stamped their passports and allowed them into the 'airport' where Anthony directed them to the sanctuary. When we began we were asked to introduce ourselves (names and hobbies) for the kids. If only you could have heard the collective gasp when Leeanne said she was a mother of four. :) Then some of us were taken back to share "Steps to Peace with God". I talked with a woman who had questions and chose not to pray to receive Christ, but asked me to pray for her. I paused for translation and realized it wasn't coming. (Many of our translaters aren't really translaters; we follow with our finger when reading the English side so they know where to read on the Korean side.) So I finished praying and used the one word I know; that and "amen" may be all she knew.
Leah, Kellie, Samantha and me stayed in the cafe to talk. The Korean workers in English Village have matching t-shirts. (Todd loves his hot pink shirt. Just kidding.) While we talked, a group of women started holding shirts to us to size us and then handed us shirts and motioned for us to put them on. If they didn't think they fit well, they'd just try to take them off for us. (Picture Kellie: "It fits! It fits! Really it does!")
Then it was time to teach. My first class went well because the Korean teacher speaks good English (she lived in Utah for two years while her husband finished his degree.) and she is very good with kids. I read the book and asked lots of questions. We practiced the song with the cd and her guitar and with the dance. The funniest moment was when I took a group picture then tried to explain a silly group picture. I tried to explain 'silly' by making faces at them. So then I said "You make silly face" and took a picture. . .of them just staring at me. Then one of the helpers told them to put hands on side of head and wiggle fingers--that's a silly picture.
Then we had an American lunch--salisbury steak (maybe), shrimp, fruit, roll with strawberry jelly that comes from the most amazing jelly packet that we definately need in America, and coke. I'm not a big meat eater at home, but here I'm like "bring it on."
Then the kids watched a movie about Moses. Then the second class started. This group had older girls who speak good English. We had a great time, except that I sang the song so many times with the dance that I was all out of breath most of the time. Twice today the American teachers have led the song--the very long song that will forever be in my head--in front of everyone. Don't worry that you won't see it--Todd has it on video.
When my second class left I told them "thank you" in Hangul--my one word. Their faces all lit up and they started talking to me all at the same time, all in Hangul. Then the teacher taught me how to say "I don't know". It was almost snack time, so the kids taught me to say "I am hungry." Snack was amazing! It was a cold waffle topped with a banana slice topped with ice cream topped with a gummy bear. Try it! So good!
All day the kids have been asking to have their pictures made with us and we've been signing autographs. I started a collection of signatures too--the kids have been writing their names in my journal in both Hangul and English. One boy also wrote "I love you" in Hangul.
Some things to know before you visit Korea: 1-floors can have a step-off at any time. Be careful. 2-In some public restrooms, ladies, the toilet paper is outside the stall. Don't forget.
While I was sitting here writing, one of the ladies pointed to me, walked over and pointed to her friend at another table and said "Erin, she not believe Jesus. Come. Talk." And yes, she prayed to receive Christ. And they are sitting and talking while the woman's kids play in the cafe and I'm okay being the American who just draws people in.
All the host families and Americans were treated to a dinner at Venice Seafood tonight. It is a very nice buffet with salad bar, soup bar, main bar, Korean food bar, sushi bar, bakery, pizzeria, a whole dessert area and ice cream!! Oh my goodness! One of the deacons paid for us to go and reserved the main room for us. The floor was a dance floor with clear panels and lights underneath that change colors. There is a design drawn in sand in each panel as well. We had a great time. (This may be the meal that makes me sick though. I ate way too much. I tried some new stuff and had broccoli soup with a croissant which was amazing and then about 10 different desserts and a plate of fresh fruit. The desserts, by the way, come in almost bite-size servings so you aren't crazy to have 10 desserts. At least I'm telling myself that.)
Tomorrow we will perform "Behold the Lamb" for students (and maybe parents) at 3pm (that's 2am to you.) Please pray for us. Samantha and I are doing new solos, that we began learning just this afternoon.
Todd had a realization today that gave me perspective. This church is used to "the Americans" being a group of older adults. So they haven't thought that we'd like to stay up late to hang out with each other. That, for whatever reason, helps me when are made to go home. And today we had more time together; probably the most since we were on the plane. The next 3 evenings we will be doing things as a group (shopping, site seeing, etc) so we are feeling better just knowing we have time to be together.
Oh, don't forget to go to Todd's blog and help choose a wife for Jeff. :) Turns out matchmaking in the church is universal.
More later...
I woke up today feeling your prayers. Thank you so much (especially those I've talked to through email.) Before I tell you about the day, let me just say that I do feel right being here now.
English Village: Day 1
English Village began at 9:30. The kids lined up outside the gate--church door--with their 'passports.' They passed through 'immigration'--Leah, Luke and Samantha asking them simple English questions. They passed through 'security' where Aaron 'scanned' them. And then Jeff stamped their passports and allowed them into the 'airport' where Anthony directed them to the sanctuary. When we began we were asked to introduce ourselves (names and hobbies) for the kids. If only you could have heard the collective gasp when Leeanne said she was a mother of four. :) Then some of us were taken back to share "Steps to Peace with God". I talked with a woman who had questions and chose not to pray to receive Christ, but asked me to pray for her. I paused for translation and realized it wasn't coming. (Many of our translaters aren't really translaters; we follow with our finger when reading the English side so they know where to read on the Korean side.) So I finished praying and used the one word I know; that and "amen" may be all she knew.
Leah, Kellie, Samantha and me stayed in the cafe to talk. The Korean workers in English Village have matching t-shirts. (Todd loves his hot pink shirt. Just kidding.) While we talked, a group of women started holding shirts to us to size us and then handed us shirts and motioned for us to put them on. If they didn't think they fit well, they'd just try to take them off for us. (Picture Kellie: "It fits! It fits! Really it does!")
Then it was time to teach. My first class went well because the Korean teacher speaks good English (she lived in Utah for two years while her husband finished his degree.) and she is very good with kids. I read the book and asked lots of questions. We practiced the song with the cd and her guitar and with the dance. The funniest moment was when I took a group picture then tried to explain a silly group picture. I tried to explain 'silly' by making faces at them. So then I said "You make silly face" and took a picture. . .of them just staring at me. Then one of the helpers told them to put hands on side of head and wiggle fingers--that's a silly picture.
Then we had an American lunch--salisbury steak (maybe), shrimp, fruit, roll with strawberry jelly that comes from the most amazing jelly packet that we definately need in America, and coke. I'm not a big meat eater at home, but here I'm like "bring it on."
Then the kids watched a movie about Moses. Then the second class started. This group had older girls who speak good English. We had a great time, except that I sang the song so many times with the dance that I was all out of breath most of the time. Twice today the American teachers have led the song--the very long song that will forever be in my head--in front of everyone. Don't worry that you won't see it--Todd has it on video.
When my second class left I told them "thank you" in Hangul--my one word. Their faces all lit up and they started talking to me all at the same time, all in Hangul. Then the teacher taught me how to say "I don't know". It was almost snack time, so the kids taught me to say "I am hungry." Snack was amazing! It was a cold waffle topped with a banana slice topped with ice cream topped with a gummy bear. Try it! So good!
All day the kids have been asking to have their pictures made with us and we've been signing autographs. I started a collection of signatures too--the kids have been writing their names in my journal in both Hangul and English. One boy also wrote "I love you" in Hangul.
Some things to know before you visit Korea: 1-floors can have a step-off at any time. Be careful. 2-In some public restrooms, ladies, the toilet paper is outside the stall. Don't forget.
While I was sitting here writing, one of the ladies pointed to me, walked over and pointed to her friend at another table and said "Erin, she not believe Jesus. Come. Talk." And yes, she prayed to receive Christ. And they are sitting and talking while the woman's kids play in the cafe and I'm okay being the American who just draws people in.
All the host families and Americans were treated to a dinner at Venice Seafood tonight. It is a very nice buffet with salad bar, soup bar, main bar, Korean food bar, sushi bar, bakery, pizzeria, a whole dessert area and ice cream!! Oh my goodness! One of the deacons paid for us to go and reserved the main room for us. The floor was a dance floor with clear panels and lights underneath that change colors. There is a design drawn in sand in each panel as well. We had a great time. (This may be the meal that makes me sick though. I ate way too much. I tried some new stuff and had broccoli soup with a croissant which was amazing and then about 10 different desserts and a plate of fresh fruit. The desserts, by the way, come in almost bite-size servings so you aren't crazy to have 10 desserts. At least I'm telling myself that.)
Tomorrow we will perform "Behold the Lamb" for students (and maybe parents) at 3pm (that's 2am to you.) Please pray for us. Samantha and I are doing new solos, that we began learning just this afternoon.
Todd had a realization today that gave me perspective. This church is used to "the Americans" being a group of older adults. So they haven't thought that we'd like to stay up late to hang out with each other. That, for whatever reason, helps me when are made to go home. And today we had more time together; probably the most since we were on the plane. The next 3 evenings we will be doing things as a group (shopping, site seeing, etc) so we are feeling better just knowing we have time to be together.
Oh, don't forget to go to Todd's blog and help choose a wife for Jeff. :) Turns out matchmaking in the church is universal.
More later...
Trip Updates #4--Sunday
I ended up staying up until 12:30 last night journaling (blogging on paper :) We had time to sleep this morning except that is it completely light here by 5:30, so I was wide awake by 5:45 with no hope of going back to sleep.
Last night Sayone gave us a pizza menu to look at. I wish you could see it!! The featured pizza is "Seafood Island" with seafood toppings and shrimp, wrapped in a dough, standing upright in a ring around the crust. And the large pizza is 34 us dollars. Many of the other toppings I didn't recognize. I finally saw something that looked like pepperoni on the last pizza. I've never been so happy to see a pepperoni in my life! (Robert, Jeff, Luke & Aaron had Papa John's Sunday night. They said it tasted just like at home. Mom--Papa John's and a pillow when I get home. ")
Leeanne and I are discovering some things that are universal. 1-Teenagers here also make peace signs when you get out the camera. (Except here we think it might mean "victory over North Korea" not "peace") 2-The team we were on during game time last night appeared to be mostly middle schoolers. And guess what? They text during youth too! It's a universal epidemic!! Someone please find a cure!!
There is one thing I am very confused about. We take our shoes off when entering homes. We took our shoes off before sitting down at the restaurant. We take them off when we enter the children's area at church. But we don't take them off when we enter the sanctuary. I mentioned it to Leeanne and she said "there's a blog in that." And there is. Could it be, like us, that they do some things just out of tradition and don't think about the meaning or significance of it? Like when we skip service because "it's only the Lord's Supper" or "the pastor's out of town"? this culture seems more deliberate in their traditions, so I think there may be a better explanation. I hope to be able to ask Isaac about it.
From what I understand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Seoul are the safest places in the world. We have been told several times they we are perfectly safe to walk down the street by ourselves even at night. Laying in bed awake (early) this morning I realized I haven't heard a siren since we've been here.
Last night at dinner we were told "only one American at each table." We think the students may have been assigned to talk to us. I sat with the English teacher (who brought back memories of the 'Korean stalker' for those of you who know what that means). Anyway, he told me that many young people want reunification with North Korea. That really surprised me. It was the first time I'd heard North Korea mentioned. Flying here we seemed to go pretty far out of our way to avoid flying in North Korean space. Then he asked me if I was interested in the fall election in the US. I told him I very much am. He asked me who I will vote for. I told him that I will be voting for John McCain. He said, "Oh, you are a Republican! I bet you are also of conservative mind." I said yes, but was thinking, 'this guy may know more aobut our election than many voting Americans."
For breakfast this morning...frosted flakes!! Then me and Samantha went to the church to practice "Behold the Lamb." Except that we missed the memo that we aren't doing it. It's frustrating because that is the one thing I can bring. The communication (lack there of) in our team is more frustrating than the language barrier. There are times it has felt like me and Samantha are here by ourselves, because we just haven't seen the others when we have down time. We waited at the church for a while and then walked back to the house (apartment) to ask Isaac to call the people Leah and Kellie are staying with so we would be able to talk to them. People don't take your cell phones for granted!! I would have given all my money to be able to talk to Todd this morning, and he's only two floors away. (Isaac and Sayone asked if we would dance at least for them. So we'll do it sometime, just not in the expected way.)
Calvary has services at 9 and 11. We attended both, but the first was very hard for me. I'm struggling with "being thrown into things" without really knowing what is going on. After the service I was able to talk to Leeanne for a few minutes and that helped so much. The first service is for people who will work with the kids, etc, in the second service. The second service is the main service. Jeff sang with the praise team. They sang mostly in English today. When they did sing in Hangul they asked Jeff to continue singing in English. Robert prayed with translation. We were each given a rose. Pastor Won had us stand while the people sang to us. (Don't really know what they sang.) And Todd preached with Pastor Won interpreting. (Maybe the first time ever Todd has been stationary while preaching. Ha!) As the service ended Pastor Won motioned for us to go upstairs quickly. We didn't know why then, but we were to greet people as they came upstairs. While I was greeting, one of the ladies grabbed my arm and told me to get my "Steps to Peace with God." (When they want our attention, they just grab us and push us where they want us. That is very hard to get used to.) With an interpreter I went through the presentation with a man who prayed to receive Christ. I went back downstairs to get our stuff from the sanctuary. I had not put them down yet and someone yelled "Erin! Come! Now!" So I dropped the bags and went through the presentation with a woman who also prayed to receive Christ. Then I was able to eat lunch with Luke and Jeff.
After lunch we ran "home" to change clothes and meet back at the church to go share on the streets. While we were waiting, Leeanne and I were talking. One of the ladies grabbed my arm and pulled me to the team she wanted me to be on. A little warning and the chance to end a sentence would be great. Anyway... Samantha and I were on a team with people my age. We talked to a few people. I think 3 prayed to receive Christ. One man we talked to was a Buddhist and didn't want to talk so much. Our team stopped to rest in the park. The guys bought us bottled water and chocolate bars. And then one of the guys asked me to be his girlfriend. Awkward!! ("Er-in. . . how do you think of Korean men? . . ")
We went back to the cafe and looked forward to time together. . . except a storm was coming so Sayone had us go back to the house. Another hour of opportunity to be together was gone. It really is so hard. I know my attitude about this is not right, but sometimes I feel like they let us be together when they want to show us off and when we feel like we finally have some time together they pull us apart. I want so much to finish a conversation with Leeanne and Leah would probably like to see Luke sometime.
American television and movies are very big here. Friday was Veteran's day here. Isaac knew our independence day is July 4th because of Tom Cruise and "Born on the Fourth of July." Many people have told me that Aaron looks like Scofield on "Prison Break" an my "family" thinks that Robert looks like Sean Connery. (Some also think Samantha and me are sisters and that Todd is Jeff's short brother.) A danger of American movies--not knowing what words in English are curse words. Pretty interesting conversation though.
We went to dinner with our hosts families tonight. This is the first time we've been in the family car--no car seats, don't have to wear seat belts, little ones sit up front too. And even though we drive on the same side of the road, don't think driving here is the same as in America. We went to a Korean Barbecue. The food cooks on a "grill" in the center of the table. They put sweet potatoes (small and yellow) in the coals so when you are finished with the meat, the potatoes are ready. The barbecue was pork and duck. The duck was really good. Again we had kimchee and noodles. I'm doing a little better with chopsticks but have a way to go. We took many pictures there.
We then went back to church for "English Village" meeting. English Village is the Bible School this week. First we had to learn motions for songs. Some of them acted as though we'd have a hard time learning, but the point of English Village is for the kids to learn some basic English and Bible stories, so the songs are all in English. Tonight was very confusing trying to figure out exactly what their expectations are for us. We were split into two groups--Crafts and Storytelling. Leeanne, Robert, Aaron, Jeff and Anthony are craft teachers. Samantha, Luke, Leah, Kellie and me are storytellers. (Todd comes in to action whenever the schedule calls for "American Pastor." Monday and Wednesday he will be teaching the Bible story. We didn't know that until today.) I assumed that in the story-telling group we helped with story time. Nope. We teach, they help. The songs they are learning come from books, so we are to read the book, ask questions, do word activities and then teach the song. Basically it went like this "Here's your lesson plan. You teach tomorrow. But it's English, so no problem." The Korean teachers (and some of our group too) don't see why we would be nervous about a 40-minute English lesson with 15 Korean elementary students who don't speak English. They are expecting 150 kids for Monday and Tuesday (elementary) and another 150 Wednesday and Thursday (kindergarten). The kids will be broken into 10 teams. (Go Yellow team!!) The meeting was frustrating. We asked if we were supposed to sing the song with the kids. "No. No. A Korean teacher will do that." Then at the end of the meeting "You will each have a cd to teach the kids the song." I guess we'll find out tomorrow.
We were able to broadcast to West Lonsdale. There were some glitches (about an hour and a half's worth) but the guys worked them out and had us rolling just in time. Kudos to Leeanne for remembering that the computer was on mute.
We are now supposed to do two dances Tuesday and Thursday. I'm not optimistic the four of us will be able to get away long enough to practice and without someone taking one of us right out of practice to do something else.
Todd said there is a dinner Monday night for all the host families and us. Hopefully we will be able to talk to each other. One of the things I miss the most is being able to end our day praying together.
More later...
Last night Sayone gave us a pizza menu to look at. I wish you could see it!! The featured pizza is "Seafood Island" with seafood toppings and shrimp, wrapped in a dough, standing upright in a ring around the crust. And the large pizza is 34 us dollars. Many of the other toppings I didn't recognize. I finally saw something that looked like pepperoni on the last pizza. I've never been so happy to see a pepperoni in my life! (Robert, Jeff, Luke & Aaron had Papa John's Sunday night. They said it tasted just like at home. Mom--Papa John's and a pillow when I get home. ")
Leeanne and I are discovering some things that are universal. 1-Teenagers here also make peace signs when you get out the camera. (Except here we think it might mean "victory over North Korea" not "peace") 2-The team we were on during game time last night appeared to be mostly middle schoolers. And guess what? They text during youth too! It's a universal epidemic!! Someone please find a cure!!
There is one thing I am very confused about. We take our shoes off when entering homes. We took our shoes off before sitting down at the restaurant. We take them off when we enter the children's area at church. But we don't take them off when we enter the sanctuary. I mentioned it to Leeanne and she said "there's a blog in that." And there is. Could it be, like us, that they do some things just out of tradition and don't think about the meaning or significance of it? Like when we skip service because "it's only the Lord's Supper" or "the pastor's out of town"? this culture seems more deliberate in their traditions, so I think there may be a better explanation. I hope to be able to ask Isaac about it.
From what I understand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Seoul are the safest places in the world. We have been told several times they we are perfectly safe to walk down the street by ourselves even at night. Laying in bed awake (early) this morning I realized I haven't heard a siren since we've been here.
Last night at dinner we were told "only one American at each table." We think the students may have been assigned to talk to us. I sat with the English teacher (who brought back memories of the 'Korean stalker' for those of you who know what that means). Anyway, he told me that many young people want reunification with North Korea. That really surprised me. It was the first time I'd heard North Korea mentioned. Flying here we seemed to go pretty far out of our way to avoid flying in North Korean space. Then he asked me if I was interested in the fall election in the US. I told him I very much am. He asked me who I will vote for. I told him that I will be voting for John McCain. He said, "Oh, you are a Republican! I bet you are also of conservative mind." I said yes, but was thinking, 'this guy may know more aobut our election than many voting Americans."
For breakfast this morning...frosted flakes!! Then me and Samantha went to the church to practice "Behold the Lamb." Except that we missed the memo that we aren't doing it. It's frustrating because that is the one thing I can bring. The communication (lack there of) in our team is more frustrating than the language barrier. There are times it has felt like me and Samantha are here by ourselves, because we just haven't seen the others when we have down time. We waited at the church for a while and then walked back to the house (apartment) to ask Isaac to call the people Leah and Kellie are staying with so we would be able to talk to them. People don't take your cell phones for granted!! I would have given all my money to be able to talk to Todd this morning, and he's only two floors away. (Isaac and Sayone asked if we would dance at least for them. So we'll do it sometime, just not in the expected way.)
Calvary has services at 9 and 11. We attended both, but the first was very hard for me. I'm struggling with "being thrown into things" without really knowing what is going on. After the service I was able to talk to Leeanne for a few minutes and that helped so much. The first service is for people who will work with the kids, etc, in the second service. The second service is the main service. Jeff sang with the praise team. They sang mostly in English today. When they did sing in Hangul they asked Jeff to continue singing in English. Robert prayed with translation. We were each given a rose. Pastor Won had us stand while the people sang to us. (Don't really know what they sang.) And Todd preached with Pastor Won interpreting. (Maybe the first time ever Todd has been stationary while preaching. Ha!) As the service ended Pastor Won motioned for us to go upstairs quickly. We didn't know why then, but we were to greet people as they came upstairs. While I was greeting, one of the ladies grabbed my arm and told me to get my "Steps to Peace with God." (When they want our attention, they just grab us and push us where they want us. That is very hard to get used to.) With an interpreter I went through the presentation with a man who prayed to receive Christ. I went back downstairs to get our stuff from the sanctuary. I had not put them down yet and someone yelled "Erin! Come! Now!" So I dropped the bags and went through the presentation with a woman who also prayed to receive Christ. Then I was able to eat lunch with Luke and Jeff.
After lunch we ran "home" to change clothes and meet back at the church to go share on the streets. While we were waiting, Leeanne and I were talking. One of the ladies grabbed my arm and pulled me to the team she wanted me to be on. A little warning and the chance to end a sentence would be great. Anyway... Samantha and I were on a team with people my age. We talked to a few people. I think 3 prayed to receive Christ. One man we talked to was a Buddhist and didn't want to talk so much. Our team stopped to rest in the park. The guys bought us bottled water and chocolate bars. And then one of the guys asked me to be his girlfriend. Awkward!! ("Er-in. . . how do you think of Korean men? . . ")
We went back to the cafe and looked forward to time together. . . except a storm was coming so Sayone had us go back to the house. Another hour of opportunity to be together was gone. It really is so hard. I know my attitude about this is not right, but sometimes I feel like they let us be together when they want to show us off and when we feel like we finally have some time together they pull us apart. I want so much to finish a conversation with Leeanne and Leah would probably like to see Luke sometime.
American television and movies are very big here. Friday was Veteran's day here. Isaac knew our independence day is July 4th because of Tom Cruise and "Born on the Fourth of July." Many people have told me that Aaron looks like Scofield on "Prison Break" an my "family" thinks that Robert looks like Sean Connery. (Some also think Samantha and me are sisters and that Todd is Jeff's short brother.) A danger of American movies--not knowing what words in English are curse words. Pretty interesting conversation though.
We went to dinner with our hosts families tonight. This is the first time we've been in the family car--no car seats, don't have to wear seat belts, little ones sit up front too. And even though we drive on the same side of the road, don't think driving here is the same as in America. We went to a Korean Barbecue. The food cooks on a "grill" in the center of the table. They put sweet potatoes (small and yellow) in the coals so when you are finished with the meat, the potatoes are ready. The barbecue was pork and duck. The duck was really good. Again we had kimchee and noodles. I'm doing a little better with chopsticks but have a way to go. We took many pictures there.
We then went back to church for "English Village" meeting. English Village is the Bible School this week. First we had to learn motions for songs. Some of them acted as though we'd have a hard time learning, but the point of English Village is for the kids to learn some basic English and Bible stories, so the songs are all in English. Tonight was very confusing trying to figure out exactly what their expectations are for us. We were split into two groups--Crafts and Storytelling. Leeanne, Robert, Aaron, Jeff and Anthony are craft teachers. Samantha, Luke, Leah, Kellie and me are storytellers. (Todd comes in to action whenever the schedule calls for "American Pastor." Monday and Wednesday he will be teaching the Bible story. We didn't know that until today.) I assumed that in the story-telling group we helped with story time. Nope. We teach, they help. The songs they are learning come from books, so we are to read the book, ask questions, do word activities and then teach the song. Basically it went like this "Here's your lesson plan. You teach tomorrow. But it's English, so no problem." The Korean teachers (and some of our group too) don't see why we would be nervous about a 40-minute English lesson with 15 Korean elementary students who don't speak English. They are expecting 150 kids for Monday and Tuesday (elementary) and another 150 Wednesday and Thursday (kindergarten). The kids will be broken into 10 teams. (Go Yellow team!!) The meeting was frustrating. We asked if we were supposed to sing the song with the kids. "No. No. A Korean teacher will do that." Then at the end of the meeting "You will each have a cd to teach the kids the song." I guess we'll find out tomorrow.
We were able to broadcast to West Lonsdale. There were some glitches (about an hour and a half's worth) but the guys worked them out and had us rolling just in time. Kudos to Leeanne for remembering that the computer was on mute.
We are now supposed to do two dances Tuesday and Thursday. I'm not optimistic the four of us will be able to get away long enough to practice and without someone taking one of us right out of practice to do something else.
Todd said there is a dinner Monday night for all the host families and us. Hopefully we will be able to talk to each other. One of the things I miss the most is being able to end our day praying together.
More later...
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