Long-overdue Excursion

On Sunday, Dec. 19, I decided to take a much overdue excursion around Cheonan. I did not expect to be gone for so long (10:00-17:00), but it was much needed/worth it.

1st stop: random Buddhist temple I happened to spy.

Said temple with statue.

The enlightened one.

a priest I caught.

colorful animation, or . . .

. . . animated antiquity?

Buddha and his altar.

I think this picture is amusing. I look like a Muslim in a Buddhist temple, when I'm actually a Christian. The clash of religions continue . . .

Close-up of the altar.

Little bird hut.

That's one way to store your things . . .

Buddha in Korea (about as big as the apartment buildings).

I thought it looked cool.



2nd stop: interesting (and open) stationary shop.

You would be amazed with the variety of stationary that exists in these shops. That or I haven't really visited stationary shops before (since before college).



3rd stop: ransom cake/confectionary shop beside Nazareth University.

Just look at these edible works of art!

This was nearby. Apparently, something was here.

The view of traditional houses/roofs beside Nazareth University's campus.

Walking down a street.

Good ol' city time.


4th stop: this was by far my most exciting find . . .

Can you say, "Happy place"?

After months of deprivement . . . a library!

Ok, so it only has 4-8 shelves of books in English, I don't care! If anything, there's more of a chance that I can read them all before I have to leave Cheonan!

The reality of such a goal is not clearly defined, but there is no shame in trying!

As always, I had fun with the architecture.

This one is from the lobby.

As I leave and look behind.

5th stop: the KTX station in Cheonan/Asan.

(The KTX is Korea's bullet train)

The end of 1 of the platforms, looking back.

Same platform, looking ahead.

Don't let the picture fool you, this is pretty long.

I saw this after I got back from the platform. Oh well, it's not like I got on a trian without a ticket. I'm not that crazy.

This reminds me of an airport terminal.

6th and final stop: the new Galleria.

They call it a "department store"; I call it a "mall".

You know, rivers/streams are necessary.

See why I call it a "mall"?

Ok, I'll give in and say a "department store" . . . on steroids.

Me and plants; what can I say?

Some of the architecture.

The ceiling. I was on the 5th floor when I took this picture.

Anyone care to try?

From the roof of the Galleria. Now this is where it gets exciting for me. No, the merchandise for sale was not that appealing to me. At all.

The artwork, on the other hand . . .

Another skyscraper that's being constructed right beside the Galleria.

The apartments and a new Lotte Mart that will open on Thursday, Dec. 23.
(Lotte Mart = Korea's Walmart/Interspar--along with E-Mart.)

Reminds me a bit of Escher, only everyone is on the same level.

Reflextion of a couple

The KTX station, where I was just at (beside and behind the tall building).

Self-shot.

Dual-single stairs.

Hmmm, pianos, anyone?

Whoa.

That.

Is.

One.

Huge.

Fish.

Sushi, anyone?

Imported memories of beloved Austria and Deutschland (among others).

. . . and, back outside.

So yes, this is the end of my Sunday excursion. Feeling exhausted? Like I said, I had to make up for lost time.

Well, now I must be off, as I am in the institute and my time for working is coming rather quickly upon me. Until the next adventure!

Sabbath Dinner with Great Company

I was invited to dinner at a student/friend's home on Sabbath evening (18. Dez. '10). I was told she is a great cook, but I got to "taste and see" that she really is a GREAT cook! Her husband is indeed a very fortunate man.

Off to the pictures!

Living room/dining room are. Not only is Sunny a great cook, she is quite the interior decorater too!

The tables. The pumpkin soup was AWESOME! I didn't get to try everything, but what I did was . . . well, "delicious" would be an understatement.

Getting the last details ready, Sunny's husband is showing off a picture of when he went bungee jumping. Here, he is pointing out which person is Sunny.

This is the first (commercial?) bungee jumping place in the world (about 43 meters). The location? Kawarau Bridge in New Zealand.

My plate and the rest of the table, from my angle.

The 5 of us (you can see the photographer's reflection on the glass behind the curtain). The 2 ladies are my students. One was in my Religion class and the other passed to Level 2 (congratulations, Sunny!).

This was a very pleasant evening. It was an honor to be invited. I had a really good time.

Sabbath Lunch with My 7am Students

Today, just a little after 13:00, my 7am Level 2 students (5 out of 7) came to my appartment for lunch--as I had invited.

Before, I was really stressed and worried. I am not a cook--much less, a good cook. Yet, I invited them over for lunch (what was I thinking?).

The thing is, I had some of these guys in Level 1 last term. They wanted to come and see where I live for a while. So, I finally decided to let them come.

Now . . . what to do? The first thing that came to mind was to prepare a meal for them. I wanted to prepare a typical Latin American dish, but I had several problems:

1.Don't know how to cook meat (this was no time for trying a new recipie).

2. No plantains, so I couldn't fry'em.

3. Black beans, hard to find. When I finally found them, I had a new problem . . . I didn't know how to cook them well. I tried several times, using different methods that I've heard; but it ended up in epic failure. I wish I had learned to make black beans the way my mother did. That's my main regret, as far as culinary knowledge is concerned.

So, I just did what little I knew: rice with onions, scrambled eggs with tomatoes and onions, toad-in-hole (toast with fried egg in the center), and a random salad.

Fortunately, my coordinator/apartment-mate (who is a great cook) pitched in. She made scalloped potatoes and corn salad.

Then, my guys arrived. They brought pizza, pepsi, coke, and chicken. I think this was my 2nd Thanksgiving meal this year.

Everyone ate their fill and said all the food was really good and no one died after eating my food. See?! God still works miracles everyday!

Ok, enough story. On to the pictures.

My apartment-mate/coordinator helping my guys feel more welcome.

My 7am Level 2 guys (minus 2)

I love these guys. They motivate me to get up at 5:30 am. . . they just don't know it.

After the eating is done, clean up!

Just look at my sweet, diligent men.

Putting the coffee table back and everything.



Now, a personal portrait study of each present student:

Bob

Brian

Ki-Hwang

S.G.

Simon

After cleaning my place up a bit and before leaving.

My posture is better in this one. That, and I'm taller than 3 of my students (Bob is standing on his tiptoes--which is cheating).



I had such a great time with these guys, I was actually happy even when I was washing all the dirty dishes, utensils, etc. (which were many).

I really do love these guys. I am honored to help them learn English. If they count me as a friend, it would be an even greater honor.


Well, that's all for now. So, it's back to preparing for next week.