My first two photos in Seoul.
Day 1
I left Seattle on Saturday June 14th at 12:18pm and arrived in Seoul on Sunday June 15th at 3:35pm.
My friend dropped me at the airport after a morning of checking and double checking what I had packed. After checking in, going through security, and finding my gate, I called my parents and I started to cry. Big, runny nose, puffy eyed sobs. It was the release I needed after 2 weeks of panicking about this trip.
My parents were so supportive and careful with their words. They told me they were there for me and that they had read the blog I wrote and that it gave them a greater understanding about what being adopted meant to me. Those were the best words I could have heard before boarding the plane.
The flight was a 10 hour direct flight from Seattle. Flying direct was such a lifesaver. Once I was on the plane, I had no fear I'd miss a connection or that they'd lose my baggage. I flew Delta and have no complaints. They fed us well and had a great selection of entertainment. I didn't sleep on the plane in order to adjust to the time change better. It worked out for me but Saturday/Sunday was a long day.
After landing in Korea, customs was easy and I met up with my group. Two boys had arrived on earlier flights. They took us out to a restaurant near the water. We had a seafood soup with big thick noodles. It was a tiny restaurant with floor seating and windows looking out on the water.
After arriving at the hotel, all the group members finally got to meet. We ranged in age from 18-34. 4 men and 7 women. 4 countries- US, Sweden, The Netherlands, and Australia. We all had different jobs, different backgrounds, different relationships back home. Despite all our differences, we did a great job of supporting each other and enjoying each other over the two weeks.
Day 2
Monday, June 16th
After breakfast, we traveled to Gimpo to see Aegibong Peak. This was on a Korean Marine base that over looked North Korea.
This is the very, very handsome Marine who explained the history of Aegibong to us. Swooooon.
I couldn't take any photos looking towards North Korea, but I will tell you, it was fascinating.
North Korea was less than a mile away with only a river separating us. If you put coins in a view finder, you could look across to the other side with more detail. On the North Korean side, they built a fake village to try and show to South Korea that their people were ok. They force something like 200 people to live there.
After putting coins in the viewfinder, I could see 3 people walking around in the village.
It was so crazy to think that they were so close and so far away at the same time.
After leaving my very handsome marine at the base, (I was informed I was NOT allowed to take him with me...) we had lunch at a small restaurant. I had Korean cold noodle called Naeng Myun. It is one of my favorite Korean foods. It's buckwheat noodles in a cold broth with cucumber and pear and egg- seasoned with vinegar and mustard. It is traditionally served in the summertime.
After lunch, we drove back to Seoul to be a part of the opening ceremony. We were welcomed by the company that brought us to Seoul. After the ceremony, we were sent home with our host families to spend 3 nights with them.
Everyone had very different experiences with their host families. Mine was a perfect fit for the experience I wanted to have. My only regret was that I didn't speak more Korean.
I was with a husband and wife that had 2 sons: ages 19 and 24.
The husband worked for the company that sponsored the trip- as a director of printing, and the wife worked at Home Plus- a large Korean grocery store. The two boys were in school. One in high school and one in college.
The boy in high school went to school from 8am-10pm everyday. 8AM TO 10PM! Can you believe that?????
The boy in college was studying engineering.
On the way home from the welcoming ceremony, we picked up Andrew, a former Journey member that is now living in Seoul. Having him at dinner that night was a blessing. He had done a 2 year language intensive in Korea so he acted as a translator for me and my host father. I was able to express my gratitude to my host father and explain my feelings toward the trip more articulately because of Andrew.
Also with the help of Andrew's translating, I learned that my host father wanted to give me an authentic window into Korean daily life.
They cooked me traditional foods.
He and his wife both worked hard, often having opposite schedules.
They had a nice, yet modest apartment, in an interesting part of Seoul.
Both sons worked hard at school.
They woke up early (6 or 7am) and went to bed late (1 or 2am), with very little sleep.
They spent a lot of time together- enjoying each other's company.
That was what I wanted to see. What might my life look like if I had stayed in Korea?
It was sweet to see how close they were.
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