Cains in the ROK: 09/01/2005

The Great Outdoors

Just minutes from our apartment are great hiking and biking trails. We went out last weekend in between rain storms to do a little hiking. As we hiked we noticed some burial mounds and some Buddhist burial sites. There are also several little snack huts for hikers to stop and get a bite to eat. We'll have to bring won the next time we go out.

Our Apartment

Here is the main living area. There is a small living room squished right in with the eating area. It's very cozy, but we're getting used to it. At the top of the stairs is a little landing where we have the kids' computer and a linen closet. The stairs are very steep and the carpet is dingy and stained - but we call it home! The two story design really gives the apartment a bigger feel. I wish all the bedrooms were upstairs, but Austin's room is right off of the living room.

The Bedrooms

Lauren's bedroom is probably the largest. She also has a very big closet, so she was kind enough to share most of her closet with us.

Austin has the smallest room, but with his loft bed it makes for quite a cozy, efficient space - when he keeps it picked up! He also has a large closet (one whole wall) which he also shares and we use some for storage.

The master bedroom is the least organized of the bedrooms, and has the smallest closet. Right now it seems to be the catchall for all the things we have left over after decorating the rest of the house. Some of it we are saving just in case we'll need it later. We are hoping to move into the new family housing that will open in April. The apartments are quite a bit bigger and nicer.

The Bathrooms and the Kitchen

We have two and a half baths - not bad for an 800 sq ft apartment. Two bathrooms are upstairs. One has a bath/shower combo and the master bath has just a shower. The half bath is on the first floor. The kitchen is small and pink! The kitchen also doubles as the laundry room- the washer and dryer are just around the left corner in the picture, but you can't see them. It's nice to be able to fold laundry and make dinner at the same time!

Chusok Holiday

This weekend Koreans celebrate Chusok. It is somewhat like our Thanksgiving. Koreans from all around the peninsula travel to be with their families and give thanks to their ancestors for a good harvest. We were advised not to travel at all this weekend because the roads are jammed with travelers. They say that a trip that might normally take 2-3 hours will take 8-10 hours due to traffic this weekend.

Austin and Lauren each had a Chusok celebration at school. They each have quite a few Korean and Korean-American kids in their schools. The Korean parents all made traditional Chusok festival foods to share with the American kids. The food was delicious and very different from anything I've had here before. One of the most interesting foods was the rice cakes. Rice is steamed and then mashed into a rice paste and made into balls. They are then rolled in different flavorings and some have a filling inside. (see picture) Many of the girls in Lauren's class wore the traditional

Hanbok dress. They are beautiful dresses, but a bit hot. Of course I forgot to bring my camera so I'll try to download a picture of a Hanbok dress. When our Thanksgiving comes around it will the be American parents' turn to provide the food for the Korean kids and their parents.

More Korean Folk Village

Korean Folk Village

The Korean Folk Village is like Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. The grounds are beautiful and there are traditional Korean homes of all kinds. We saw a traditional Korean wedding, we saw traditional performances by musicians and acrobats and we were able to eat traditional Korean foods- yum! Lots of cow organs and entrails.