Halfway in Korea

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We’ve crossed the halfway point. During these long winter months we brought the New Year in on a fantastic night in Seoul, Kagan turned into an old man of 23 and our second season of Frisbee has come and gone in a flash. We finally feel a bit seasoned at month seven of this yearlong adventure. It’s hard to imagine this post-graduation endeavor is steadily approaching its end. Soon we must face the daunting task of finding jobs in America but for now we choose to postpone that reality and stick with a little more silly fun with our Asian life.

Firstly, happy four month belated New Year, Valentine’s Day, Passover and Easter to everyone! We have not kept up to date through these holidays but thank you to everyone who sent us wonderful care packages and cards. For our first New Year’s together we were looking for something epic. We decided to head to Seoul for the ridiculous crowds and fireworks. For the countdown we were jam packed in a crowd so large it would have made Times Square whimper. With us were an amazing group of Mexican students from Shanghai whom we had met earlier at an Outback Steakhouse. They shared their traditions from home and a bottle of tequila. Together we shot off roman candles for the most glorious fireworks show I’ve ever seen on New Year’s Eve. It was made complete with Buddhist dancers dancing in the street taking anyone within arms reach for a spin. It certainly was one of the most random and glorious New Year’s we’ve had.

Part of our delay in writing has been due to on and off bouts of illness. The winter months in Daegu were brutal. They left both Kagan and I with cases of bronchitis, tonsillitis, and what we are reasonably sure was a stint of Swine Flu for Kagan. After having the doctor who works through our school call each of these things a generic cold we are left quite skeptical of the health system here. Teaching young kids while sick is hell on earth.

These days we have been occupied with Frisbee. Sadly the short spring season came to an end yesterday. It has been wonderful to be outside again with our foreign entourage of Frisbee players. Luckily we’ve also started a book club and there is a Softball season around the corner so the winter days which kept us cooped up are finally long gone. Now that spring is here we hope to see some cherry blossoms up close and personal and spend some more quality time with the monks for a temple stay. We will have more exciting stories soon!

Love,
Lauren & Kagan

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Photos

Photo 16
Your friendly blog writers at a palace in Seoul

Photo 14
Light festival in Seoul

Photo 11
Temple on a mountain near Daegu

Photo 6
Palace in Seoul

Photo 3
Gatbawi Buddha snowman sitting on a statue