Easter Weekend in Korea

Happy Easter everyone!

 This Easter was a very special one for us since it was our first holiday in Korea away from our families. We wanted to make it a special one so we tried to do all the normal things we would do if we were at home. However, in Korea and especially in our town, it is very difficult to do things the way we would at home.. So instead, our Easter weekend took a different turn.

Fendi bags at Costco

It started with a trip to Costco because apparently on Good Friday we decided to buy in bulk and enjoy free samples (meat free, of course!). We went there with a purpose. We were on a mission to find two things: ham for our Easter dinner and cheese. The cheese wasn't really for our  Easter dinner, but it's just so expensive in normal grocery stores that we have to take advantage of the large sizes. Maybe this will help put it into perspective for you: A package of 24 processed cheese slices in Home Plus cost us about $7 Canadian. In Costco, a 1 kg block of marble cheese costs about $14 Canadian. With prices like that, how could we not?! After about an hour of roaming around the store, we climbed aboard a train headed back to Nonsan with 3 pairs of jeans for Mike, a 1 kg block of marble cheese, a 2 pack of feta cheese, 2 hams (one for Easter dinner and another to keep for later), 2 giant bottles of salsa and half of a large pizza. And when I say a large pizza, I don't mean a large frozen pizza to cook for dinner one night. I mean a LARGE pizza, with slices bigger than the biggest slices I've found in North America, fresh from the oven. We only brought half home because the other half we ate as our dinner. Looking back, we must have looked so Western on that train.. the only white people on the train and we are carrying a large pizza box.

Saturday we continued our Easter festivities by visiting a greenhouse near our building. Inside were the most beautiful orchid displays we've ever seen. Each stem had at least a dozen orchids and each arrangement had about 6-10 stems sitting in beautiful clay pots. The inside of the greenhouse radiated hues of purple, pink and yellow surrounded by lush green plants. Of course, no Easter weekend is complete without adding some new life to your home. So, we bought two potted plants: a gerbera daisy plant with at least 12 buds ready to bloom in a few days and

white and purple anenomes, which just happen to be my favourite flower. During the day, the blooms open to reveal the dark center and delicate purple and white stripes. As the day comes to a close, the buds slowly retract to get some sleep. Our little apartment is starting to feel more like home each day and these plants help to bring a little life back into it. After our trip to the greenhouse, it was arts and crafts time for me and iPad game time for Mike. The result of my arts and crafts were displayed around our house Sunday letting everyone know Spring is here!

Finally, Sunday was probably our first day since we have been in Korea where we didn't do anything. We each only left our apartment once: I left to get breakfast for Mike and myself and Mike left to get potatoes. When he returned, he found that the Easter bunny had come to visit and left him a trail of candy. Chocolates were tucked away in obscure locations such as inside my tea mug, my winter boot, on top of our air conditioner and even inside our paper towel roll. Luckily he found them all and was very impressed with the Easter bunny's hiding spots. Our day continued with some games of scrabble and taboo, hanging our laundry out to dry and listening to some Motown. Maybe the highlight of our Sunday was discovering that the pepper seeds we planted a few weeks ago had sprouted into a small green leaf! The finale of the evening was our lovely Easter dinner of glazed ham, mashed potatoes and salad, topped off with some sparkling rose wine. All in all, I would say our first holiday spent in Korea was a success and even though we were missing our families and the delicious food they usually make, it was a relaxing and enjoyable weekend. I guess it's time to continue our family traditions from home and start some new ones.

Our beautiful dinner and our hideous table cloth

A Weekend in Nonsan

Culture Street

A weekend in Canada is very different from a weekend in Korea. In Canada, my weekends were usually very lazy. I'd sleep in, watch TV in my PJ's until noon, slowly get ready and by 1:00 p.m. I was usually ready to go out wherever I needed to go. Mike's, on the other hand, were usually all business. He'd get up, go to work, come home and then get ready to do the same thing the next day. In Korea, our weekends are our time to explore, do some shopping and try new things.

It is hard to say what most Koreans do on weekends. Based on our observations we can say a few things with certainty.

Inside the market - total chaos

Every Saturday, everyone and their brother goes to their local open air markets to buy fresh produce, meat, fish and socialize with their neighbours. Old ladies sit at the stalls snacking on some kind of meat on a stick, rice cakes (not the Quaker kind we are used to in Canada) and kimchi, all of it covered in some form of garlic hot sauce. Next to them are children running up and down the aisles of the market, dodging men on scooters and carts delivering an assortment of goods. Further down the aisle are shoppers collecting the items on their grocery lists which usually include an array of cabbage-type vegetables, over-sized bags of onions, various meat not commonly seen at your local Zehrs store, and gathering leafy greens and nuts from bulk bins in the middle of the market. Surrounding this organized chaos are alley ways filled with teenage girls and boys shopping for clothing while seizing the opportunity to savour "street-meat" and confectionery items. Looking around this little part of the world we now call home, 3 weeks ago it would have been hard to believe that a place like this actually existed.

Entrance to the market

Just stopping for a snack

A typical meat stall in the market

On Sunday, Nonsan seems like a completely different city. The busy and chaotic streets turn into desolate walkways where pedestrians are free to cross the street without fear of being run down by a taxi. That is, until 2:00 p.m. when church-goers have returned to their usual business of getting where they need to go as quickly as possible. Sunday for us means walking around the city, finding new places to visit. Sometimes it also means taking the train to Daejeon for some retail therapy at Costco. However, if you aren't mindful of the dates, Sunday may mean taking the train to Daejeon to go to Costco only to turn back around once you find out it is closed on the second and fourth Sunday of the month, as was the case for us this past Sunday. Starting now, Sunday will no longer mean Costco trips... As the sun goes down and the last few hours of the weekend hang in the air, families gather for dinners at restaurants and homes where stories of their days are retold with a sense of melancholy for the return to the work-week. We know this because we have a sneak peek into approximately 300 kitchens from the comfort of our balcony. As they sit cross-legged on the floor, we watch and wonder: what are they cooking, what part of the animal are they eating...what animal are they eating, did it have a name?

This little piggy went to the market....

Dinner with the foreigners

This past weekend was our second in Korea. Overall it was a nice and relaxing weekend. Thanks to the wonderful advancements of technology, we were able to connect with foreigners, most of whom are fellow teachers, at a welcome dinner they held for us. They took us to a typical Korean restaurant where shoes are removed immediately upon entering. We were then taken to a room in the back of the restaurant where low tables are surrounded by pillows. This is where we sat while eating - yes, on the floor. The low tables each had a BBQ pit sunk into the middle of it surrounded by an array of condiments, side dishes and utensils. The food of choice that was samgyupsal, which is pork belly meat. Basically, it is western style bacon that hasn't been cured. It is then placed on the grill with whole cloves of garlic and eaten with spicy sauce, a sesame oil dipping sauce, kimchi and various other condiments. This is followed by at least one shot of soju which is a cheap Korean liquor, similar to vodka. And when I say cheap, I mean it is cheap. For a 4L jug, you will have to fork out a hefty 5,000 won - approximately $5 Canadian. The Koreans (and foreigners) love their soju. More will come on food and drink in Korea shortly. But for now, let us say this.. I don't think anyone goes hungry in Korea. Or has to eat alone. No matter where you are from or where you are going, someone is always around to keep you company and you better believe food is always involved. We have been very fortunate to meet some really great people in Korea and we can't wait to keep you updated with more stories.

Our first night out in Korea