So let's see, when I left off last we had spent the day in Seoul looking around. The next day we decided to go to Suwon to see the fortress and look around. The pollution was bad that day, too (shocker), so 2 of us wore masks and one of us was brave... and also couldn't figure out how to wear his mask and also see.
A couple nice shots outside the gate.
I'm so ready to audition for Hollywood Undead - I'd be great at rapping.
The replica of the sun dial that King Sejong invented - it tells you the time, the time of year, and a whole bunch of other stuff.
Low doors are a hazard.
Mo in Korea.
I didn't feel like climbing this... but we did climb the big hill... lots of stairs.
HAHA! I caught her lagging behind!
This part was closed off last time I was here.
I love the trees.
At the top of the hill - I like how I framed this shot.
We found the big gold statue this time! But it looks like someone drew a mustache on it!
Me being concerned about the mustache.
Pretty temple area.
Mo again.
The river by Chicken Street - which Mo had to see cuz she likes fried chicken. Also, she says that Koreans know how to do fried chicken, which is 100% true.
We stopped for dumplings at this place, which seemed pretty popular and/or famous.
So good.
Then we went home and... well, here's the pic of my apt with them and all their stuff and my air mattress on the floor. Funny thing about in-floor heating, btw - it's tricksy. They told me that I was freezing them out... so I turned it up... and nearly cooked myself alive on my air mattress!! It was a HOT night. So then we turned it back down and have been living fairly comfortably since. I guess when you have heated floors, it's best to leave them on all the time in order to live comfortably.
And this is strawberries bound!
Of course we had to stop for coffee first.
At the strawberry farm - O.M.G. the SMELL of the BERRIES PERMEATED the WHOLE PLACE!!! It was so awesome!!!
Mo freaking out about the BERRIES!
And carefully selecting the best ones. So before we headed to the berries, the lady told us that we needed to just see with our eyes the best, red berries. Then we pick. Don't squeeze or touch a bunch because the next day the berries would be dead. Also, don't touch the flowers, because bees buzz, buzz, bad. LOL - she really said that. I'm happy to report, none of us were stung.
Yep, that's us in a bunch of strawberries!!
The bees are the real stars of the show, and boy can you hear them, buzz, buzz.
Look how pretty! We didn't even need to bend over or fight the birds!!
Happy berry Monga.
Another bee - they had the cutest little white butts.
BERRY MADNESS!!!
Even Michael enjoyed... tho he did say that he was conscripted into forced labor cuz he had to pick them himself.
Look at him, being all discerning for the bestest berries.
So happy
SO MANY STRAWBERRIES
Happy Mandi
Hehe... got 'em
Look how cute they are... I loves my family.
She has big smile, but trust me, the mad eyes were about 2 seconds before the pic was taken.
Cleaning our berries - which, BTW is not good for keeping them fresh... all the berries were gone within 2 days.
How pretty, tho!
Jam making.. first, you squeeze the berries...
Then you cook the berries... being sure to stir lots.
Then you sugar the berries - using brown sugar since they were cooking. The berry lady said that if you use white sugar and heat, the jam is bitter.
Mo stirring the jam
Berry lady made sure she did a good job.
I have NO CLUE what Michael is looking at, but he seems concerned.
More stirring... see that froth?!
Berry lady took care of the frothiness.
Then came the canning part (yes, Mo had to check that bag).
Hehe... I love that look... we were being all team-mate-y-ness.
After the canning, they gave us bread to finish off the jam left in the wok.
JAM SAMMICH! OM NOM NOM!!!
Mo likes the jam sammich... she likes it good.
We decimated the leftover jam.
All gone
Mo with her jam and sticker
We had to take the photo... in the designated photo area... and I realized that the flannel is not the best look, but I don't care cuz is warm and comfy.
The sign outside.
On the way back we found this and I had to take a pic... and a Korean dude smiled when I made them pose. Fun for all.
Going over the bridge - it's such a cute area.
How pretty, right?!
And we enjoyed the wildlife. Hehehe... comfy kitty.
Then we went to Itaewon where we enjoyed more strawberries - this is a strawberry cheesecake frappe.
My peeps.
Then we went to an Indian restaurant since Vatos was closed. We asked for SUPER spicy for Michael... he said he'd give it 3 peppers... out of 10.
So Dongtan has these hearts. The quote here "Come on, Michael. It looks silly if it's only ME!"
He is such a trooper.
LOOK HOW CUTE THEY ARE AFTER ALMOST 20 YEARS OF MARRIAGE!!!! No wonder I have high standards.
Us on the last day enjoying the end of our time together...
Then showing how we really feel... before we went for one last waffle and coffee.
So I took them to the airport. We took the bus then the airport line and got them there in plenty of time. We found their check-in, and their gate, and I waved goodbye to them as they went thru security. I'm not gonna lie, I nearly cried about 3 times during the day while we said goodbye. First when we went for a waffle and I got Monga hugs... then at the airport as we hugged before we found the open security door... and finally when they went thru and I could no longer see them. I knew it was going to be a hard goodbye... it always is... but... just having them here was so incredibly nice. I have a SMALL apartment, and yet, having them here wasn't an inconvenience, it wasn't like we got annoyed with each other, we just fell into our old habits of teasing, terrible puns, and goofiness. For instance, at the bus stop, Michael was playing a tune with his carry-on, and I was dancing to it. It's so rare to have people who I can be goofy around... I truly treasure that part of our relationship.
It was so hard to get on the bus back home... alone... and walk home... alone. I know that this is the life I've chosen, nothing has MADE me be this far away. And yet, sometimes I'd like to kick my own butt for choosing this over living at their place and figuring out something for work so that I could see them when they are home. However, I know I need to forge my own way, figure out my own life, and as lonely as it can be, I can at least respect myself if I'm not living under my sister's house and attaching myself to their life like some kind of parasite. I know they wouldn't see me like that, any more than Jess and Doug did when I was living with them, but that's how I would see me and I can't live like that. So I'll stay in Korea, apply for jobs, and look to coming home in 2021... not sure if it'll be spring or fall that I come back... that kind of depends on the job situation. Also, now that we've figured out the computer issue (the hard drive isn't dying, I've been shorting it out cuz I'm apparently 'rough' with my equipment... don't know where I get that from *cough, DAD*) I can apply for jobs and possibly use the CD and book I got to learn Korean. I'm almost to the point where I feel like I can teach myself things again and apply for jobs without having some kind of PTSD. I just need to trust that I'm where I need to be, I'm doing what I need to be doing, and it will all work out the way it's supposed to. I love my family, and I'm so glad that 2 of them were able to make the trip to see me. It was nice to be able to show them around to say 'This is why I'm liking living in Korea, I'm not crazy, and I will come home eventually.' It was also kind of funny to have our tour guide say that she's seen a lot of foreigners who said they came over for a year and... stayed. Technically I have too, and if the job situation in the US doesn't totally work out, I'll be glad to come back. However, I do miss my family... and friends... and driving... and some of the food... and talking to people in the same language... I wonder how long I'll be home before I stop bowing to people. LOL
