first full day

I can vaguely remember the beginning of this day - a faint sound of raindrops on the window, Kristy's alarm clock's BUZZZZZZ, and wondering what to wear on our first full adventure day in Korea...it has been grey, slightly warm (70s) with sprinkles of rain through the afternoon - turning into heavy rain and fully sheltered skies by 5pm. It is now 8pm and, Carolina, Margaret, Jairo, Jeremy, Kristy, Megan and I are busily typing away at computers on the 3rd floor of Cyberland - one of the many (5 in one block!) locations to access the web. We're pretty tuckered out today and I'm feeling my age and then some. Sun is neatly tucked away in the room while Paula, Jim and Dave are back at the ranch.

Back to the day gone by...today we went to the Korean Folk Village (visit the website: http://www.koreanfolk.co.kr/folk/english/), accompanied by three lovely graduate students from Hanyang University who were a pleasure to have as our hosts/company/friends. The Korean Folk Village is a tourist site (think Disneyland meets the Hunnington (sp?) Gardens), from what we know (& right now we're pretty tired) it is a recreation of a traditional, historical Korean village including houses, a jail, gardens, livestock, Korean dogs and games/activities. We watched a dramatization of a traditional Korean wedding and some trick-riding on horseback. There is also an accompanying theme park flanking the village where you can take a break from tradition and go straight to kitsch, bumper-stuffed-animal-cars, rides, a merry-go-round, and then some. We tasted rice wine, potato pancakes, fresh blended fruit juices, and a plethora of pickled vegetables (familial off-shoots of kimch'i). We walked !
!
through the lush green pathways by the river and of course, like the good consumer's we are, did our best to give back to the Korean economy through shopping at the many scattered stalls of stuff. It was truly a lovely day (thank you Dave!) and timed perfectly, because just as we got on the bus to return to our abode, the rain really kicked in. Tonight, I think we're leaving here to go and have a little get-together in Jeremy & Jairo's room (they have moved in a second couch) and tomorrow we're off for a full day of walking during our Seoul tour.

Right now, I'd love you to meet the students and read a little directly from them...

Q: What are you studying at CSUN?
Margaret: I'm studying Graphic Design and I'm finishing my junior year.

Q: What has been the most interesting thing for you in Korea thus far?
Margaret: There are marts and PC places everywhere! But I think the most interesting thing for me so far was visiting the Folk Village. I think I can say for the most of us that it was a great way to see traditional Korean living. It was also pretty cool to run into a family from Seattle, WA who've been living in Korea for three years. It goes to show how small the world really is.


Q: Favorite foods in Korea?
Margaret: I can eat Kimchi any day, but my favorite so far has been the potato pancake. The sauce that accompanies the dish is perfect.


Q: The deep questions...your dream future/opportunity/career?
Margaret: I'm going to continue to work on my portfolio and start looking for internships during the summer or fall. I can use the experience that will help me later on. I'm very interested in branding and corporate identity, and editorial design.


Q: Random thoughts...
Margaret: Can't wait to go to Seoul!