Deoku Spa And Blueberry Pizza

A few weekends ago I braved the big, bad world and went on a trip sponsored by The Daegu Compass on which I knew no one.  This may not seem overly brave, but on a trip with only ten people going, most of which know each other, and you all have to ride in one van and sleep in one room... It was brave.  Trust me.

Turns out, it also happened to be an awesome time.

The plan was to go to Deoku Spa, aka Spa World.  (for those keeping track, this means I have now been to spa land, spa valley, and now spa world)  After the spa we headed to a pension for the night and in the morning learned about the blueberry farm in the area and the local and organic farming that was going on.  We were supposed to be taking a bus, but due to low numbers of people going, it was switched to a big van.  10 adults shoved in one van with overnight bags is a very packed trip, but It was  pretty fun.  We started out the trip playing a little would you rather, which was way way dirtier then I remember and served as a great icebreaker.  After all, if you can tell a person you would rather eat jam that had been shit out of a sheep's ass then clean a peep show floor with your tongue  there isn't much more you need to share.

After naps and a lot of driving through a very foggy Korea, we arrived at the spa.  I will miss few things in Korea as much as I will miss the spa here.  Indoor pools with water jets perfectly positioned to massage each part of your body separately, outdoor pools filled with various mixtures to make your skin as healthy as possible, and saunas that range from basic to sonic.  This place was a little smaller then some I have been to, but it was also my first time going to a spa without a fellow foreign female along to provide back up and a distraction from being the center of attention in the nude baths in the woman's locker room.  I must be getting used to it all though because I barely noticed the looks and the nudity didn't bother me at all this time.

After the spa we hoped back in the van and travelled an hour back the way we came to dinner, and our pension for the night.  The dinner we had was made from all local and organic foods.  It was one of the best meals I have had in Korea. The little old ladies who prepared it were very proud and were thrilled we all loved it as much as we did.  Then it was time for drinks and a little sleep before getting up for some traditional korean breakfast... Soup.  Again, it was amazing.


After breakfast, we went to the blueberry farm to make blueberry pizza.  I know, pizza.  I was not sure how this situation was going to turn out.  but it turned into a contest between guys and girls to make a better pizza, and they were really, really good.  We also got blueberry tea and blueberry juice.  Then we went back to the restaurant to learn the traditional way of making noodles (again with blueberries) from some little old ladies who have been making noodles that way for 60 years.  Let's just say, I was not quite up to their standards, but they still tasted great in the soup they made from them.  Then we headed back to the blueberry farm to makes cookies, and finally headed home.  It was an amazing time.  And it was nice to meet some new people.

The Recap

Well, it's that time of year.  The time when I look back at the previous year and comment on all the crazy shit that has happened to me.  I looked back at the blog and I notice how very little I wrote about. I neglected to mention a lot of what went on in the past year that was important, meaningful, and had a huge effect on my life.  And I am okay with it.  I was busy and I was doing A LOT of growing up as a person.  I learned to use the subway, to travel on my own with confidence, met a lot of interesting people, learned to be okay on my own.  I am completely (mostly) self sufficient. I can spend time with myself and not feel uncomfortable or like I want to run away from me.  I learned I am a kick ass teacher and I actually enjoy it.  I learned more about myself in the last year then I did all through high school and college and all that time before.

But I also had a lot of really shitty times this year.  Times I would love to go back and and request a do-over on to save myself some pain and heartache.  At the same time, I look back at those times and know deep down that, as painful as they were at the time, they were nothing I couldn't handle, and they taught me more then all the good stuff that happened.

I met some cool people I will never forget or stop being friends with, and I also met a lot of people who were completely awful and a waste of my time.  The friendships I have formed are some of the most amazing I have had, and the other people I encountered helped me to just say no.  I don't need other people around to be happy, especially if those people are making my life miserable with stress and drama and judgements made only because they hate themselves.  

Right now, I am sitting in a coffee shop in Seoul drinking coffee and talking to some friends from home.  I just went to talk about my new tattoo design with some amazing tattoo artists here, and to put a considerable down-payment on the design.  It is going to be absolutely incredible when it is done and will be a representation and a memory of the time I spent here and the many things that have made me stronger.  Once it is done I will do a little review of the place.  I am getting ready to head back out into the snowy cold to do some late holiday shopping and to just take some time to breathe and continue to be awed by that fact that I am even here.  Sometimes in the day-to-day, I loose sight of how crazy it is that I am here, living in South Korea.  It all becomes familiar and I forget to be awed and to appreciate how lucky I am to be here and to be able to have this experience.  I guess that is the biggest thing that last year has taught me.  To stop focusing so heavily on the details and daily bits of my life.  All that will work itself out.  I have learned to stop and smell the proverbial roses.  And after 26 years of always rushing and looking forward to the next thing, the next step, that is a big deal.

Happy Holidays Folks!!!

Home And Back Again

I know, I know... It is December.  In my defense, it has been a crazy busy few months.  Let's see... Since my last post, I left Hanvit, found a new job the day before I left Korea, went home for three weeks, visited with a ton of people and did a ton of shopping, got back on a plane and headed back to Korea, visited Busan, moved apartments, started to repaint my apartment, learned a new job and met all my new students, did more shopping, and now... now... I am FINALLY settled in enough to update the blog and all you readers.  Of course, now my internet sucks and I have trouble getting the computer at work to run long enough to do anything effective with it, but I solider on and update the best I can.

I will hopefully be able to add a few before and after pictures of the new apartment on here.  When I moved in it was pretty gross.  It was old, and the paint was stained and chipped, it had ugly decals everywhere, and was just plain dirty.  I started by trying to was the stained woodwork and doors, but the stains just stayed where they were.  I discover an old, rusty, dusty can of paint on a self near my washer and when I opened it up (and accidentally dislodged the dried paint clump sealing a hole in the side of the can) discovered it to be an almost full can of white paint.  After buying some small bottles of paint at the local dollar store, I had my very own paint store at my fingertips.  So I dressed up the apartment by adding bits of color here and there to the doors. It isn't done yet, but It is looking much, much better.  The white paint really freshens up the apartment.

For example, the before, during, and almost done of my bedroom door below:

Also the before and during of the door to my living room (I will add a completed picture when I finish):

I have also discovered the wonderful world of Korean decals.  I used them to add some interest and to cover a door that already had some on it, but the bright red flowers were not really my style...

And in a very, very ugly and falling apart kitchen, which had already been poorly covered in areas with a lovely farmhouse theme stick-on, I again used large decals to freshen it up and to hold the remaining tiles to the wall in some places...

My students will be coming in any moment and that is as far as I have gotten for now.  I will finish up later, and do a post about the area I am living in, a post about the new school, and a post about the Spa Tour I am going on this weekend.  Should be a good, and well deserved, time.

My Little Family In Korea

I think it is time to introduce you all to the little korean family I have put together here.  It consists of me, who you by now already know, Ginger and The Friar.  Lets start with The Friar, as he did come first.

The Friar

This little guy was so cute that I couldn't say no.  I found him when I went with Josh to an exotic pet store near Seoul.  Josh was on a mission to get a snake, which he did, and I was going along to look at all the animals.  When we finally got to the shop, there was rows of tiny turtles in tubs sitting outside the door, as well as a full sized alligator snapping turtle.  We went into the tiny, smelly, dark shop and the first thing I spotted was a raccoon.  Josh walked past it's cage and out shot a little paw to grab his pants.  I was entranced, and when I heard the price amazed.  The little boy who translated for us was just as surprised to hear how common they were back home.  Next to the raccoon was a baby skunk.  I never knew they were so cute.  As Josh looked at the snakes and discussed prices, I wandered the shop looking at the spiders, snakes, lizards, toads, and other creatures.  I went around a tight corner and kicked a tank that was shoved up under the stacks.  And something inside moved.  I pulled it out and inside were 10 little baby hedgies.  

I love hedgehogs, I gave one to a friend once, and these little guys were palm sized and friendly.  I was playing with them when Josh found me.  He had picked out his snake and was getting the tank and other things he needed.... And he took too long.  I was head over heels and missing my pets at home so badly.  The friar was the liveliest and friendliest and tiniest of the bunch.  So I payed the man and brought him back to Josh's where I worried about how I was going to get him back home when the next day meant a four hour bus ride back to Daegu.  Luckily, Hedgehogs don't mind sitting on a bus, and the koreans around me were curious and thrilled with my tiny companion.  

The Friar and I got along great, he ran around my apartment in his bal, ate, and slept, and was actually pretty friendly.  Then he quilled the first time and turned into the grumpiest monster I had ever seen.  But, warm soaking baths and leaving him alone got us through it.    He isn't as tiny now, but is still pretty friendly and loves to poke around the apartment and to tease Ginger.

Ginger

Ginger joined the family kind of suddenly.  A friend of a friend needed to find a home quick for a cat that she was fostering.  This little girl had been living on the streets with her mom and family and was not a fan humans.  The goal was to get her to warm up and to get adopted.  The girl who had her was moving and didn't have the time Ginger needed to get her to open up.  A thirty minute subway ride and Ginger and I met for the first time.  She was huddled in the corner of her cat carrier, unaware of the thirty minute subway ride back to my place she was about to take, or the walk through the rain.

Getting her back to my place, I knew the first thing she would do was hide and not come out for awhile.  I opened up my closet so she would have a place to hide and went to work.  Those first few days were not easy.  She was feral, very.  wanted nothing to do with me and wanted me no where near her.  She would wander the apartment at night crying and begging for affection, but wanted me no where near her.  I waited and stayed away, hoping she would come to me, but after three weeks of this, I had had it.  I opened the closet door and stuck my hand in, holding a very tempting treat... and was shocked when she tentatively took it from my hand and started to purr and even let me scratch her ear a bit before panic took over and she ran.   But, it was a little step that I felt completely thrilled over and brought me back from thinking maybe there was no hope for this little girl.

The next week was a lot of bringing her treats and trying to get her to let me pet her outside of the closet and to come to me on her own.  Then, I made ribs.  She came sniffing around and after a few tastes was rubbing against my legs and begging for pats.  That weekend, she went from not wanting me around to sleeping next to me in bed and since, has been my shadow.  She and the friar still aren't great friends, but she follows him around in his ball and sometimes get brave enough to swat him.  She is still just a foster though and she is still looking for a home of her own.  Next week, she goes in for shots and spaying and a checkup.  While I am back in the states, she will stay with a pet sitter, and so will The Friar.  I am happy to be seeing my own kitties, but I will miss them both a lot.

So that is my new little family.  As I write this, Ginger is snuggled next to me, forcing me to write one-handed because each time I stop petting her she starts to meow.  The Friar is rolling around my feet, fresh from a bath, ready to get back in his cage where his food and some mealworm treats are waiting for him.  All I can saw is, I am very content.

 

 

Thinking Of Home

I have a little over a month left here, before I head home for a month and then start at whichever new position I find here.  Knowing that I get to be home soon and that I get to see all the people, and animals, I have been missing so badly while I have been here, is making me miss them all the more.  Before I got my plane ticket settled and the actual time I am arriving home set up, all I could think about was how I was going to miss the people here and the place and my apartment.  As soon as that ticket was set and going home made official, I couldn't wait to get home to everyone.  Here is a rundown of how I am hoping to have things go...

I get to chicago at about 5 pm on Monday, And get picked up at the airport by my parents. That night I hang out with the fam and the fuzzy little monsters waiting for me.  I am hoping that Lucy doesn't freak and pretend she doesn't know who I am.  The cats will probably be indifferent or freaked out.  That night, I am taking a bath, making food in a real oven, and washing AND drying my clothing.  The next week, I will visit my friends in the area, hang out with family, and do some serious shopping.

That weekend I am hoping to borrow my mom's car and go to see Jess for awhile.  Need to get in some serious Jess time, with goodwill, wine, and watching random stuff on tv.  Super excited for that.  

The following two weeks will be shopping, seeing the rest of the family, Thanksgiving, and spending as much time as possible with my pets.  

In December I will be heading back to Korea, to a new school, new apartment, and new people for a year.  After I finish the next year, it is travel time for me for awhile then home and back to the real world of job searches and such.  

A Year In A Few Months

First off, obviously my plans to write more often have fallen through.  The past few months have been completely up and down in every part of my life.  Most of this will be kept to myself and a select few, but there are a few things I want to update my faithful readers on.

• I will be returning to Korea for a second year.  I have had a great, if sometimes emotionally draining, time here.  Anyone who is looking for a change with good pay, check out teaching here.  I was originally going to resign with my current academy, but due to a few disagreements about my contract, I am going to find a different school to work at for the next year. 

• I will be home for a month in November, and I have never been so excited for anything in my life.  I have so many people, places, and things I want to fit into that month that coming back to Korea will seem like a vacation.  If you want to see me, schedule some time cause I want to see everybody.

• I am now the proud owner of a wonderful little hedgehog named The Friar.  I am also the proud foster owner of a very sweet cat named Ginger.  After several weeks she is getting over her life on the streets and is opening up.  She is sweet and entertaining as could be and I can't wait to find her a good home.  I will also miss her like crazy.

There are other things going on and things that have happened, and I will touch on them in later posts, which I really do intend to keep up with.  But, I have a lot of stuff going on and to take care of so I will try to fit them in and keep everyone updated with how I am doing finding a second job.  First steps will be getting finger printed again so I can get my FBI check again, and locating some new jobs I can apply too.

Have a lovely day!

Level Tests - Day 2 And Elisabeth

The second day of level tests was hell.  Well, not really, but it was boring as shit.  Yes mom, I swore.  There is no other way to describe the hours I spent watching my poor students suffer through those tests.  But, now that they are done, I have new classes, new students, and new free time to adjust to.  I was happy that one of my very favorite classes, a group of 9 boys who are all 15 years old, will stay the way it is.  Normally, that would be a problem, but these boys are amazing.  They seem to actually like me too which is a plus.  They are one of the most fun classes I teach.  I still have my problem classes, but I think I may have worked out a way to deal with them.... Maybe.  I don't understand these kids.  I am a cool teacher (at least I think I am), which may in fact be the problem.  I want my kids to like me and like learning in my class.  I may need to except that this may not be possible in a place where they are at school 12 hours a day.

An interesting thing happened to me durning the level tests.  I was sitting in the last test, and falling asleep a bit to be honest.  I started to look around the classroom.  This is a class that I argue with every time I teach them, but I still like them.  Each time I made eye contact with a student, they broke into a big smile  and went back to work.  The feeling I got seeing that really got to me.  It was in that moment that I realized, I really love teaching these kids.  Even when I am down and homesick, wanting nothing more then to stay curled up in bed, and dreading work, the moment I walk into the classroom, my day is brighter.

Which brings me to my next big thought of the week.  I think I want to stay another year.  I really think I do.

Elisabeth

I went to go see the play, Elisabeth, today.  Again the whole thing was in korean.  It was awesome.  I am really glad I saw it.  I watched a little of the german version of it and I understood a bit more.  Then I looked up the synapsis online and now I really do understand what was going on.  I am really starting to fall in love with korean musicals here.  I have about 5 more I am hoping to see.  I don't have much else to sa about this one other then that the actors were hot and had voices that were out of this world.  And the set was absolutely crazy awesome.  Perfect.

Level Tests - Day 1

The next two days will be filled with my students level tests at Hanvit.  For my students, level tests mean hours of stress and lots of studying and then three hours of vocabulary, grammar, listening, and reading tests.  They have to give up their phones, sit up straight, behave way better then normal, and remain quiet the entire time.  For me, it means sitting at my desk in my classroom for about 5 1/2 hours straight watching the kids take their tests.  I get to push the play button once to start the listening, but otherwise, I am left with not much to do.  I have some essays to grade, but not very many since I finished most yesterday and this morning.  I also have journals to finish.  All that should take up the first three hours of the first day.

As for the rest of my time in these tests, I am working on a list I hope to complete.  So far the list includes, editing my story, writing three poems, and drawing one good picture of my students.  I will also write in my journal both days and prepare for the craziness that my classes will become in the next few weeks.  Not only will the students who level up be switching around, but we have Shannon coming back and one of the korean teachers leaving for awhile and that has created the need to rearrange the teachers again.  And, as if that isn't enough craziness, the next few weeks are exams for my students at school again, which means they will be in and out at random times, and it means we will be getting in a new crop of elementary kids.  It is going to be one super crazy month.

Homerun x4

I went to my very first baseball game in Korea last weekend.  Now, I may have said it before, but if you all have forgotten, I love baseball.  Not all baseball.  Pretty much, I love the Brewers.  But, I can't imagine a summer without at least one ball game.  So, when Chris asked us teachers if we would be interested in checking out a game for his birthday weekend, I jumped.  The original plan was to meet up and go to this restaurant by one of the lakes here that lets you rent a large barbecue grill and provides you with meat to grill and sides and drinks.  Eddie, Blaine, Dana, Jack, Chris, Keller, and I all met up at 12:30 and headed to the lake.  Sadly, when we arrived, the restaurant was no longer there.  Not something too unusual in Korea, but depressing nonetheless.  We then began to wander the area around the lake looking for someplace else to eat.  There were a lot of fish places, but Dana doesn't eat fish, so we kept trucking.  We found a place that specialized in duck, but Dana doesn't eat duck either.  We continued to search, coming across a lot of places that were closed for afternoon cleaning, until we came around a corner and spotted a galbi place that seemed to be open.  It was!!  We sat out on the porch, and ordered samgyeopsal and german galbi.  They were pretty amazing.  And the side dishes were not bad either.

After lunch we headed to the game at Daegu Citizen Park. Once we got there, the hunt was on to find tickets, chicken, and beer.  The tickets get bought up early by scalpers, so find a good price was not as easy as we had hoped it would be, but we eventually found some and some beer and headed into the stadium.  The seats were pretty much full, so we grabbed some stairs and settled in to the game.  Chris and I sat in water, which was okay because it was a hot day and the sun dried it pretty quickly.  Once the game began, I found it a little hard to follow, simply because I was looking all around me at all the stuff going on.  The game itself is very similar, but being there is totally different.  Koreans do a lot of chants, and I could only follow those that were player's names.  It was a lot of fun.  The food at this game was like nothing I have seen at a game before.  Besides fried chicken, there was sushi, ramen, dried squid, and more....  There was one familiar thing at the game besides beer and baseball,  The Wave.  It was like being back home.  The best part of the game??  Samsung Lions, my team, got four homeruns, two in the first inning alone.  What a game.  

After the game we went home to change and get to Blaine's Battle of the Bands.  As his band usually is, they were amazing.  By this time, I was super tired and all I wanted was to go home and sleep.  I didn't even want to go to the show.  But, blaine needed support from his friends and no way was I going to let him down.  I made it through his set, and got to see some of the Koreans I teach with who also showed up at the show.  I think that really made Blaine's night, as well as the rest of ours.  After his show, I went home to pass out.  I found out on monday that his band won and is headed to the next round.  Super happy for him and I can't wait for the final show.  

Now I must head to work to educate young korean minds in the mystery of the english language.  Actually, wednesdays are my best days.  Less classes, and I get to teach the supplemental class that I worked out a curriculum for.  I leave you with some pictures from the game.

check out the Korean scoreboard 

Not A Lot To Go On

Well, I am keeping up the writing at least once a week bit.  I don't have a lot of time right now, but tomorrow I will tell you all about my first korean baseball game, hunting for lunch, and Blaine's band's victory (thus far) in battle of the bands this weekend.  It should be a relatively extensive post.  So to make up for the short teaser-trailer I just gave you, here is a picture of a kitten.

Have a nice day!

Friends and Menthol

This last weekend, my good friend's sister came to visit me with a friend.  It was really good to see them and it was a great time.  I had fun showing off my newly cleaned and sparkling apartment and the rest of my fine city.  Even though the day was quite hot and sticky, we did some walking and shopping and exploring of the markets of Daegu.  For dinner, we dined on chicken and beer while sitting on the roof of my apartment and then juggled oranges and discussed a new invention in selling clothing.  After a trip to the bars to play some foosball, air hockey, and darts we wandered into Urban and we were lucky enough to witness a magic show and a Korean boy band dance off.  Good ending to the night.

While shopping we came across a shirt that baffled all of us...  One I opted not to buy because of the 16,000 won price tag, but I am now truly regretting it.  Three days later and I am still puzzling over it's possible meaning.  I share it with you now and if you figure it out..... TELL ME!!!!

A Promise and Palgongsan

The Promise

I have not been on here very much lately.  For the past month or three I have been dealing with some stuff that has been difficult and has made writing fairly low on my list of priorities.  But, the sun is stating to peek through and I am working to get back to focusing this journey on myself.  I came here to learn who I am and what I want.  In the first few months, I was really making strides in that department and then I got caught up in the drama and stresses the world inevitably throws in your path.  With the help of some of the best friends in the world (thank you, Jess and Kim!) and a lot of nights alone thinking about where my life is going, I have finally begun to organize the options I can consider possibilities and the ones that are simply wet dreams.

So.  My back-on-track, looking-forwards plan and promise to myself, and to others, is as follows:

1. Get back to focusing on me and no one else.
2. Get back to the working-out-regularly, healthy-eating, rarely-drinking life I was leading before I got here.
3. Make this rooftop garden work this summer.
4. Edit and write 4 more chapters in my novel and at least 20 new poems.
5. Fill my sketch book.
6. Get outside for an hour each day, even if it is just to read on my rooftop.
7. Read the books I have been meaning to read.
8. Work on my Korean a bit more.
9. Make a list of places I want to visit in Korea still and go to them.
10. See more plays.
11. Go to mudfest.
12. Make a list of places I want to see on my way back from Korea and plan the trip out.
13. Write in my journal at least twice a week, hopefully more.
14. Write on here more regularly, at least once a week as well.
15. Watch more documentaries, listen to more podcasts, and read more news.

So, those are the promises.  The most important promise I am making is only for me, and I will keep to myself.  Before I do any of these things though, I need to get my apartment in order and cleaned up.

Palgongsan

Yesterday, Dana and I bused ourselves out to Palgongsan and climbed our way up to one of the peaks. It took us about four hours to get to the top and about an hour to get back down.  When I woke up this morning, every muscle in my body was on fire and I could barely walk.  But the hike to the top was amazing and liberating and served as a little test to myself.  I let go of everything that has been bothering me and bringing me down on the way up.  When I get around the last stone and looked out from the top, I remembered why I came here in the first place.  I just let the negatives go, it was quite flower-child-like if I do say so myself. Coming back down the mountain, I felt refreshed.  Well, lets be honest, I felt dead tired and sore.  Emotionally,  I felt better then I have for a long time.  And I got to stop at a temple on the way down and pet the first cat I have touched in six months.  Total mood booster. I took lots of pictures on the way up and down, some artistic, some just pictures.  Have a look, and I will write again soon, I promise.

Suseong Lake

Walking along the lake

The lake in the late afternoon 

Cherry blossoms at night

Quickie

Only time for a short update.  Everything is great, I'm happy, it is finally warming up a bit, new teacher is a cool guy it seems, spent sunday afternoon at the lake with dana and the new guy and Nate, going to seoul this weekend for DMZ tour and a musical and shopping.  I shall elaborate later.

spicy chicken foot at the work party and two coworkers 

Haeundae Beach and Spa Land

A few weekends ago, St. Patrick's Day, Dana and I went to Busan so we could get out of Daegu for awhile.  Eddie, Blaine and a few other friends also happened to be in an Ultimate Frisbee tournament thing there so it worked out well.  We took the train from Daegu to Busan, the old slow train, which took about 2 hours and let us watch the pretty countryside go by.  When we got into busan, the first thing we did was look for an affordable motel.  In Korea, the cheapest and most affordable motels are the lovel motels which are everywhere.  We checked out quite a few before we found one we liked.  Some of these places were absolutely crazy and I remember one in particular that had mirrors all over the walls and the ceiling and where there weren't mirrors, there were giant prints of breasts.  Love motels are exactly what they sound like, a place you go and have sex then go home.  They don't provide the partner, you have to bring them with you.

Anyway, Dana and I found an nice cheap on that had a bed and flowers on the walls, and then we headed to the beach.  I hadn't seen the ocean in about seven years so I was very excited about this.  The beach was covered in little shells and even though it was kind of cold, it was beautiful. We walked around the beach for a bit and then we caught a cab to Spa Land.  Yes, it really is called Spa Land.  It was wonderful.  We spent seven hours relaxing and resting and restarting ourselves.  However, we did take a little time to adjust when we first arrived because the baths there are full nude.  We were pretty much the only foreign women in the place so we got watched quite a bit by the others in the bath.  It took some getting used to to be okay with being stared at by 50 naked korean women awhile you too and standing there in nothing but your birthday suit.  I also ran into an unexpected problem, tattoos were not allowed in the bath.  They were on a list of skin conditions that were not allowed.  After reading this sign, I looked around and I realized that of the 60 women in that locker room, I was the only one with a tattoo.  It was very different from the US where tattoos are becoming so common.  The rest of the spa was awesome.  they had about ten different types of sauna you could try, as well as a restaurant, spa, relaxation room, DVD room, and several other places where you could try out new age form of relaxation.  My favorite places were the foot pool and the massage chairs.  After seven hours of that, we went to a bar to find some people we knew, stayed for a drink, then went home and passed out at about 1 am.  Who knew that relaxing could be so exhausting?

The next day, we got up early and went to get breakfast then to the beach.  We watched part of the the boys games and then headed of to hike alone the edge of the shore along these wooden bridges and visited a lighthouse and several other historical sites.  It was absolutely beautiful.  The day started out kind of cool and overcast, but right as we got back to the beach, the sun came out and it warmed up.   So we kicked off our shoes, rolled up our pants, and strip down to t-shirts and walked in the water and then took naps in the sand while soaking up some lovely sun.  The koreans around us were all still in winter coats and gave us some odd looks, but we didn't care.  After about an hour the sun went away and it started to cool off so went walked down the beach to watch Eddies play in his last frisbee game.  After the game went left to catch the train home and ended up with standing room only tickets, so the trip home was not quite as enjoyable.  When we got home, I took a powerfully needed shower and slept.  It was a wonderful, wonderful weekend.