Korean War Memorial

The other day we took our kiddies to the Korean War Memorial in Seoul. Can you see the Canadian flag? :D
There were rooms and displays dedicated to a few different wars, but my class spent most of its time in the Korean War room, because it's most relevant to them, and important, considering this country is still technically at war with its northern neighbour. The kids were really great and interested in everything, despite their limited years on this earth. They already knew quite a bit of history about it as well.

There was a room dedicated to the countries that helped South Korea during its war, and I couldn't resist photographing our blond-haired, blue-eyed typical Canadian soldier. *wink*
I admit, I was surprised we sent over 25 000 soldiers over.

And lastly, what's a trip to a war museum if you can't play on the old tanks and airplanes?
By the way friends, I'll be heading to China early Saturday morning, so you probably won't hear from me for about 2 weeks. Hope you are enjoying your summer! Love and good vibes to you. xo

Advice

The following comes from the written exam of one of my grade three boys:

I think watching television for hours each day is a very poor way to spend time. First, the TV mostly has food commercials. Kids who watch them want the food automatically. So, they can be fat. Second, it makes you sick. You just sit on your sofa while you watch TV. You do not move. That makes cholesterol and too much fat. Then, you get ill. Now, I recommend you not to watch too many TV.

Kinder

I always said I wouldn't teach kindergarten...they're too young for my personality and I feel like I'm babysitting half the time. Last year I taught a couple of frustrating kindergarten classes a week. They couldn't understand any English, and so felt at liberty to bounce around the room, screeching and throwing things while I tried to maintain order. No thanks! However, these kinders are different. I only have 12 to a class; I see them every day for two 40-min periods, and then I switch to another kinder for 2 more periods. They can already speak wonderful English, and are generally very well-behaved and delightful. Seriously, I can never have a bad morning when I have these little munchkins to teach. They're great.

I'll have a money burger to go...

Yes, folks....this is McDonald's (in Korean..."Mack-Doh-Nal-Deh"), and as you can see, there are piles of money sitting in with the warming burgers, about $200 worth. Yum! Safe and sanitary, McD's primary concerns!

Weekend pics

Hi everyone,

I had a nice, relaxing weekend in the heat. Today, my friend E and I went to Yeoido (pronounced YUH-wee-doh), which is actually, technically, an island in the middle of the Han River, although you don't really realize you're on an island, particularly when you take the subway to get there. I love Yeoido. There are nice parks around the government buildings, and many large businesses have their main offices there, so it's quite built-up. But it's also quite modern and the buildings are glassy and clean-looking. For some reason, it just has nice vibes floating around it. It also has some random art along the sidewalks, like this tile-mosaic fish:

Cool, huh?

Here's E in the park just before we lazily laid around reading in the shade, dragonflies zipping overhead and cicadas buzzing:
Some of the big businesses:
Then I headed to Insadong for a bit. Here's the entrance to the main pedestrian street. I just love it there, in case you couldn't tell from all my previous posts. Very nice, happy vibes there as well:
And, I saw this church, and I thought for a second maybe I was in Eastern Europe:


Anyway, a quiet, happy weekend. I hope yours is going well. xo

Hope

May those who lose their way and stray
In misery, find fellow travelers,
And safe from threat, from thieves, and savage beasts
Be tireless, and their journey light.

~Shantideva

Heavy, harmonious summer

It's warm. Oh god, it's warm. That being said, the temperature itself would not be that difficult to bear on its own. It's the combination of tepid with a heavy load of damp that make Korea burdensome these days. Now drizzle, now rain, now grey smog, hanging, sitting, not moving. Making bodies greasy and unpleasant, boils appearing on once-clear skin, sweat pouring down necks and bellies, dampening clothes and hair and bedding. Making people thankful for the polluting air conditioners, for icy drinks, for sun's descent into dark night. Summer has arrived on the peninsula. Me, my pores, and my hair are not amused.

However, that being said, this autumn-loving Canadian feels well-fortunate and peaceful. I am surrounded by happy, beautiful life, even if some of us are a tad (ok very) uncomfortable these days. Roses climb walls, magpies glance skeptically, toads sit. Old ladies beckon and call at the market, give me extra pears and cucumbers for free, stuff me with noodles. Children call, "Nice to meet you, have a nice day!" from car windows, store keepers smile with surprise at seeing a foreigner, and the kind, good-natured wine seller down the street keeps giving me discounts and telling me I'm beautiful, despite aforementioned skin problems. This morning, a bicycle store owner calls, "Weh, weh?" loosely translated as "What's the problem?" as I walk by with dangling chain. He beckons me over and has me up and on my way in 5 seconds flat. The bakery and street vendors smile and try out their, "Thank you"s and "Where are you from"s on me. Arriving at work, my morning kindergarteners hop up and down, nearly bursting to tell me about their weekend picnics with mom and dad, their new baby cousins, their trips to the sea.

I spend the night at a temple up north, quiet, boring, beautiful. The outdoor candles flicker in the evening fog, the splashes of light from the windows and doors make patterns on the stone courtyard. Paper lanterns bob in the trees as monks sing their deep evening prayers. I read books, I sit for long, painful periods, look at the floor, think, and then try not to think. During dawn meditation, solemn, still, and quiet...the silence is broken by someone falling asleep, tipping over, and hitting the floor. I can barely contain my laughter. I jiggle on my mat and am reminded of all those times in church when me and my friends, beset with uncontrollable comic tremors, shake the benches quietly, hunch over and pinch ourselves, will ourselves with our all might to be quiet. In the end, (glares and threats notwithstanding) irrepressible mirth gets the best of us. God has a sense of humour.

And then, also, beauty like this...a monk, immersed in his art, on a shady sidewalk, surrounded by onlookers:

We are here in these Earth bodies for such a short time. Enjoy your stay, friends, wherever you are. ;)

Religion to the Rescue

Happy news from the Korea Herald today:

Religious groups, championing their non-violent principles, have come to the forefront of the rallies against American beef imports, to calm growing concerns about the violent nature of the protests.

Leaders of Christian and Buddhist groups are set to hold candlelight prayer vigils throughout the week at Seoul Plaza in central Seoul, which many expect will deter violence and promote peaceful protest. The warlike mood that had permeated in the protests was replaced by a solemn and peaceful one Monday and yesterday, with a group of priests leading thousands of vigil participants in Seoul Plaza.

"What keeps the candlelight alive is the power of nonviolence.
Should this principle be breached, the candle flames would die for good," said a member of the Catholic Priests' Association for Justice, a progressive priests' group known for its anti-dictatorship movements in the 1980s.

No violent clashes between police and protesters were witnessed Monday, in stark contrast to the previous day. A total of 400 people, including 112 police officers, were wounded over the weekend, causing skepticism in many citizens about the increasingly acrimonious rallies.

"We, as religious people, expect our participation in the vigils to help diminish violence and promote peaceful demonstrations."

How marvelous, how wonderful! ;)