SNL, Rice Cakes, and Walk Around Jeonju Riverbank

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An-nyeong!

I was able to sleep in today. Mom and Dad decided to set up a T.V. at home by the web cam so I could watch Saturday Night Live with Michael Phelps. It was fun to get to see English T.V. for once. I have a T.V. here, but I haven’t set it up since Tom says it really doesn’t work and it’s all in Korean anyway. I usually watch YouTube episodes of shows - Scooby-Doo, Flintstones, Golden Girls, etc. I tried to watch my Arrested Development DVDs, but it won’t let me because I’m out of the country. For some reason, it knows and only lets me watch them in the US or Canada. Weird. At least I got to see some funny US humor from noon until 2pm on Sunday. It wasn’t the best picture, but I saw most of it and I really appreciated it.

During the show, someone knocked on my door and I answered it to find a young man with a tray full of bowls of rice cakes. He wished me a Happy Chusok and gave me a bowl of rice cakes. Mom and Dad wanted me to try them, so I did. They really didn’t taste like anything. They were really doughy and I could taste the sugar and sesame, but it wasn’t really for me, I guess. I suppose it is an acquired taste. I appreciated the kind gesture though. As I said before, people around here are so kind and go out of their way to make you feel welcome.

After SNL, I got off the web cam with Mom and Dad and had to figure out something to do because all of the stores were closed because of Chusok. So I put on shorts and a T-shirt, grabbed my water bottle and camera, and started walking toward the river. Of course I was getting stares as I walked, but I’m getting used to it. I got down to the river and I could go right or left. I chose to go right today and walked for about 25 minutes in one direction and then when I got to a gazebo where the river took a turn, I decided to turn around and go back. There was a lot of wildlife along the way and places for people to do push-ups and pull-ups. It was basically a little work-out area. There were a few other people out jogging and biking, but most were inside enjoying their holiday. I walked back and took a few other pictures for you to enjoy. There was a picture of a very ornate gate to someone’s house and one of the mirror thing on the back of an SUV. Remember how I said that Koreans can thread a needle with a car, but can’t park to save their lives? Well, I guess this mirror is supposed to aid in that, but don’t ask me how because I haven’t a clue.

I got back to my apartment and took it easy. I read some in a book and typed some blog entries. I’m just about ready to go to bed, so who knows what tomorrow will bring! Maybe a shopping trip! We’ll have to wait and see!

An-nyeong-hi-kye-se-yo!

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Photos

My Apartment
The stairs are in that doorway above the car's hood. My kitchen window is the tall one on the second floor and my bathroom window is the small one to the right of the kitchen window.

My Street
I live on the left side down the block

Comments

[Aunt Marshy]

walking...
It looked hazy... air clear? ... or just cloudy? Pretty along the river. HUGS!

[Stacey Mooney]

Rice cakes
You are braver than I am or the cakes look better in person. In the photo they look pretty nasty. I enjoy reading your blog. What an exciting teaching position!

[Miss Cramer]

Rice Cakes
Nope, as you expected, they weren't the best tasting thing. They were doughy with a raw flavor and then they tasted like wet brown sugar and sesame on the inside. Needless to say, one bite was enough for me! I'm glad you enjoy reading my adventures. I love it here and it's a great way to remember my experiences!

[Miss Cramer]

Clean air
It has been very muggy here lately and the air is heavy. The air is funny here because we get pollution from China that blows tiny sand particles over that settles in the city and country side. So, some of the other foreign teachers and I are having breathing problems and stuff in our lungs (two of us just popped Vitamin C tablets as I type). Usually it's bad in the morning because everything settles in the chest at night, but during the day it's not bad and the air is lighter in the evenings. The mountains on the other hand are always clean and fresh because of all of the trees over powering any bad air. Did I mention that I love the mountains here? ;)