Monday in Korea

Today  wasn't as busy as yesterday. 

We had breakfast  on the patio of the bakery close to David's place.  No rain today--it was very pleasant.    David had to finish up a few things at the university, so I went along, and met several of his friend there.  As soon as he opened the door to the office area, a fellow immediately gave me a big hug, and said, "Welcome, David's mom!"  That was my introduction to Leon--a very good friend of David's.  He is from Nova Scotia, and has been here for about 12 years.  A number of other friends were there as well-the semester is finished, but they all had to complete their paper work.

 While David was completing his work at the university, Leon gave me another tour of the city.  The fountain is at the school.  The whole area would be very nice, but it is not well maintained.  I found that very disappointing.  There are a lot of trees like the one about.  I don't know what they are--the leaves look like small maple leaves, and have little keys on them right now.

 We went to a very old Korean village.  Many years ago, the villages were walled, people lived inside the walls, and went out each day to do their farming.  Above is a picture of bamboo trees just inside the walls.

 The gate that everyone had to pass through to get inside.

There was an additional wall around the residence of the king.

 The king's residence was very ornate.  The entire building was made without nails--all the parts were cut to fit together tightly.  The village reminded me a lot of the pioneer villages that we have  at home.

 I was disappointed in the flower beds--I thought there would be more exotic flowers, but they are just petunias,merigolds, and dusty millers!

 A gazebo on the sidewalk where 4 very old trees are twined together and provide the shade overhead.  The men here are playing a Chinese chess game.

 A man dressed in traditional garb.

 David and I went to an interesting place for lunch.  It was a food court.  There were sample pictures of all the meals you could order.  You made your choice, paid for it, and then picked it up at the various food stands at the food court.  Very efficient!

 Spam is very popular here--the grocery stores sell a lot of it!

I'm catching up on my sleep finally--had a long nap this afternoon.  This evening we are going out to dinner with some of David's friends.  I guess I'm going to have to learn to be more proficient with chopsticks!  I remember Stephen saying that David had a great group of friends, and I am finding that out!