PLANTING RICE

I've been fasinated by the landscape of rice fields in this country. The rectangular fields of water that cover the countryside at the foot of the mountainsides are truly beautiuful. I've been very curious about this grain which is so necessary to the Korean diet--along with KimChee. It grows in water (in mud)and is planted in straight rows. How do they do that? Well, now there are machines that do it, but you still see it being done by hand occasionally. I thought that would be an interesting experience. As it happened, I got to try just that on a recent trip to the DMZ.

I first tried wading out in the mud with tall boots on. That became too difficult very quickly. My boots literally got stuck so far in the mud that I felt like I was in quick sand. I couldn't pull it out, and I was losing my balance. I was told to pull my feet out and leave the boot--go barefoot. At first, I thought, "Is this man nuts?" But it was so much easier, and I quickly got used to the squish of mud through my toes. I made my way into the field and positioned myself along a string that was strung across the field and attached to two poles. There were tiny red strings attached along the string at about 6 inch intervals. People were lined up along the string. We were given little squares of grass looking plants (like sod). You would tear off the sod with 4-5 tiny plants and plant them in the mud at every red string marker. When that was done, you stepped back two feet while the poles at the end of the field were pulled up and moved forward two feet. The process was then repeated. So it goes until the field is planted!!

RECYCLING

Hey, they have it down here in Korea! It's taken me awhile to get organized in this department, but you have to--out of guilt. They don't give you bags at the grocery store--or bag it for you. If you don't have your own, you have to buy a plastic bag. However, you probably won't accumalate too many of those because you can use them in your trash or garbage can. They don't use these big trash cans here. They have these small little cans in the kitchen that are perfect for that plastic bag you get at the grocery store. In the kitchen, you separate your paper trash, plastic, glass and food garbage. You carry this all out everyday--no large cans or bags--to the collection area at the apartments. There you find a place to throw away plastic, boxes, styrofoam, glass, and yes, food (which goes to the pigs). Trash is picked up everyday at the apartments. Pigs eat pretty well too.

SEOUL--FIRST TRIP

Big City, lots of traffic, polution, noise, lots of interesting people, and lots of interesting things to see! Oh yes and the subway! Lots of subway! I'm just a country girl--love that peace and quiet. I did, however, have a great time in Seoul. Traveling with women under 40 can be a challenge now--I just don't have the same stamina. I retired early on Saturday evening while the rest of the group continued on. The King's Palace, Gyeongokgung Palace, was absolutely incredible with over 100 buildings on the grounds in the middle of Seoul. The Beautiful architecture just amazes me--so intricate and colorful. This was evidentally a second home! We enjoyed seeing the changing of the guards with their colorful uniforms and flags. It was diffinantly worth the sore ankles.

We ran into David, another teacher friend, at the palace. Across the street we found a great little English bookstore/coffee shop and stopped in for a latte. We had a good time there with the owners. We played a Korean game and bought some books in English (which are hard to find, by the way)

Other adventures included: the wholesale fashion world where you shop through the night until 4:00am when the wholesalers close. Eaun Hui, our Korean friend, sales clothes in Iksan to clients. I obviously didn't do the all night shopping thing. An hour was enough for me. It was interesting to see all the designer knock off vendors lining the street. They are very popular here. The subway!!!--yes the never ending subway. And my favorite place...Insadong!! Great shopping, lots of foreigners, lots of characters! I loved it!

Visit to Simgoksa Temple

We drove up into the mountains near Iksan to visit a old Budhist Temple located along a beautiful peaceful mountainside. The priests were in prayer for Budha's birthday, but we were allowed to go inside the temple and photograph while the priest was in prayer. This includes chanting for hours. The chanting was beautiful and very soothing. The view from the temple down the mountainside was so tranquil. The breezes were soft and cooling.