Bikes, Beaches, and Buddies...

One of my favorite parts of Korea is the tea/coffee industry. There are many unique coffee shops and traditional tea rooms in the cities. Part of the drinking experience is the display and set up of the mugs and treats. They always provide a small snack or crackers to go along with the tea - it is all about the harmony of the flavors and colors. Below is a picture a in traditional tea room in Jeon-ju; we were sitting on the floor on mats at a beautifully carved wooden table and listening to the background music of the Gayageum (a traditional Korean string instrument). It felt like we were transported to a different time.



The days are getting warmer..slowly. Dan and I celebrated by buying bicycles!! They are second hand, very cheap, my brakes don't work, and Dan's wheel is falling off. Other than that - they are amazing! We thought about going back to the seller and giving him a piece of our minds about the quality...but we just couldn't formulate the right sequence of Korean words. Maybe next time.



With our bikes, we are like new people! We are able to go farther and faster, allowing our explorations of the Gunsan area to widen. We have a nice area to cycle along the river, and there are a few places to sit down and enjoy the water. Now all we need is warmer weather...(the weather is all I complain about...ask Dan!)



We found a nice little statue park that shows the timeline of the transitions of Korea into the modern world. At least - that is our interpretation of the statues. It could very well be just a bunch of statues grouped together with random meanings.


Nice day for a car ride...

We recently made some new buddies from New Zealand - Adam and Rebekah. They are also teachers and are very exciting additions to our daily and weekend routines! Lovely people. Here we were lucky enough to walk upon the Jinpo Maritime Theme Park in Gunsan - an thorough display of the might and glory of the Korean military and naval forces. We are posing with some of the famous war heroes of Korea past.



Dan and I ventured to the beach. In the summer, I've heard that this beach is packed...but in the freezing, windy winter (supposedly spring...don't make me laugh!) - we were the only ones there! We went to Daechon - only an hour bus ride from Gunsan!! We are extremely excited about the possibility of coming back here in the future. There is a beautiful, rocky coastline, and the water is clear. This is a famous beach in Korea because it is home to a therapeutic mud, and in July the city hosts a massive Mud Festival. We can't wait to return!!


A secretly captured photo of Dan on the coastline.


It was freezing...but we were on the beach, baby!


A picture of us with two of our friends - Sin-Ae and her sister In-Ae. They show us around Gunsan and order us food and drinks. They are very fun and have made our lives easier!

Another blog to be coming soon. Sorry for the large gaps in between. We love you!