A Big Day Out

look Mum finally conquered that mountAin

What an adventure today turned out to be. Liz finally achieved a bucket list item and led us out to Suwon Fortress. Although it is still on the Seoul Metropolitan Railway network, suwon is technically a separate city. It took over an hour and a half to get there and not simply because we were on the stopping all stations train.

on Guard at Sowon Fortress

Liz originally thought we'd have a couple of hours exploring the fortress, surrounds have lunch and return home. Well we spent every bit of the two hours and then tripled that.

Our three wishes for the Family

Our initial arrival included a visit to the tourist information office outside the railway station. The gentleman there could not have been more helpful. He gave us a map the. Proceeded to write all sorts of suggestions of what to see, how much it cost, where to have lunch and what activities are worth doing.

We too,a taxi down to the first gate. Fro ther hung a left to scale the fortress battlement. At this point gazing up an endless flight of stairs to the top of the hill, we really missed Mother; I'm sure she was glad to be back in Australia. The whole fortress wall is just under 5 klms so compares favourably with Lake Wendouree back home except that is flat.

Up top we paid to ring the bell of filial piety. Once for your parents, twice for family health and thrice for you own wishes and goals. I've kept mine secret, but am sure you can guess the general content.

Now where was that darned Apple?

Next cama long walk to have a go at Archery. What good fun that turned out to be, although we told a White lie to allow amelie to have a turn. the minimum age is 8. technically in Western terms, she is 7 as we start birt as zero. but in Korea, the tradition is to count age from 1 so at birth a child is one. sing the Korean method we to.d the truth, Ame.ke is 8.

Next we boarded the Trolley for a ride around Bout half of the fortress.it is nothing much more than the proverbiL train at an amusement park with a internal combustion engine up front pulling several carriages. however what made the trip was the setting. weaving its way around the sights and inside and outside the fortress wall all to a mixed commentary in both Korean and English made it quite enjoyable.

the Fortress and Palace within date from the joseon dynasty, most work seems to have been completed somewhere towards the end of the 1700's. by the. Fortifications I Europe had changed dramatically due to the proliferation of Gunpowder and this fortress reflects many such considerations.

the Royal Palace area is nowhere near as grand as the palaces in Seoul as it never served as a permanent Royal Home, but I have the i pression that King Joseon showed quite a liking for this location.

Outside the palace area ther was a great little festival underway. I couldn't read the signage, but the activities and vibe came through that this was some form of Family Festival. I think it was due to the fact that ther were lots of family groups participating in the. Artois activities that gave it a way.

Amelie quickly spied another fan painting station and Kelly chose a wonderful Blossom Branch as the subject. Between the master calligrapher, Liz and Amelie taking turns to paint parts of the scene, the resulting work looks quite spectacular. the caligrapher took great delight that we asked for Amelie's korean name be written in Hangul and Liz write it for him whe he could not quite understand her Aussie Korean accent. After completion, they had the nerve to ask us to pay 1000won. Yep about a buck for this impressive souvenir. I guess Ghanaian was for inclusive activities, not profit. How well they succeeded.

We very nearly made a break for hom, but I spotted a screen painting activity. They had a series of stencils to,choose from, but the one of Amelie, the Audrey Tatou head shot csoght our eye. Amelie joyously chose to make an Amelie T-Shirt and Liz case to make an Amelie carry bag. Having completed the screen printing and drying the paint we thought that we all. No way! We were then shunted towards the artist herself that created the stencils and other items on display. she proceeded to,add free hand embellishment s to both works,turning watch into an individual one off creation. So,how much for an original piece of fashion art, yep you guessed it 5000won or a fiver. the smiles on A elites and Lizs face proved the festival had achieved its goal....Family Fun.

All the fun meant we were late heading for home and the train which proved to be the most crowded suburban train ride ever experienced. the fact that it seemed to empty only to completely reload every station added to my stressed fascination. It seemed one had to time each breath with arrival at a new station platform. As the crowd alighted came a brief moment for a couple breaths before the commuter constriction crushed the ribs unbearably once more.

We knew we were late to try to catch dinner, but I couldn't find any meeting details from any of the fellow "Han Ho" travellers in Seoul. We tried a coup,e of,numbers we had all to no,avail. Leaving it to Sod's law, we gave up,hope of making dinner and were well on our way home when Charlie called us just moments from our door. turning tail, it took a few calls and the despatch of a search party before were reunited with .ost friends for a most enjoyable dinner despite being quite late. Thankfully the restaraunt were very obliging too. Plans were hatched for a future trip to Everland, Koreas version of Disneyland, so keep any eye out for news to come.

 

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Caught up yet?

Thought last night that I'd actually catch up but after doing the previous day I kinda ran out of steam, so to catch up this will cover two days, Wednesday and Thursday.

The Dowager and the Princess

With Wednesday being Muvvas last ful, day,it was all about her. We headed over to Bukcheon to investigate the craft activities. In a part of the traditional village, there are a series of houses that allow you to try some of the traditional crafts that would have been there to support the industry that was royal government.

The masters Apprntice

First we visited the embroidery. To Mums dissappointment there was not some embroidery to try. The museum and displays were quite spectacular. Imagine a 9panel screen entirely made of embroidered panels. However they did offer dressing in hanbok. The kids jumped at the chNce and how splendid the girls looked. the dress mother wore had quite exquisite embroidery. They allowed us pretty well to,take unlimited photos, I'm sure at least one worked!

not the Sistine, but pretty nifty just the same

We left mum and amelie to go to fan painting, while Liz went to the knot workshop. Curiously it cost more to make your own knotted trinket than to purchase it already done....go figure. it took only a few minutes instead of the half an hour suggested. Liz simply can't last the distance. at least Amelie and Grandma took quite a while with the fan painting. Judging by the results, they did pretty well too.

Lunch was Mandu dumplings on a mixed platter at locals restaurant. Some were beef, some kimchi, some fried and some boiled, even some were naked, actually more like meatballs. All very nice.

The afternoon included a last trip to Namdaemun market to allow Muma last chance to buy souvenirs and gifts for the family. The market was packed, busier tha I have experienced in the past. this ti e we got Mum inside some of the buildings where some of the best naff is. She managed to spend the last of her allowance before three of us, headed back to the apartment for a rest and to pack. Liz remained to do a little of her own shopping. Actually a little for her and more for amelie and her friends at school and .ballarat.

We realised one of the dish Mum hadn't experienced was the bbq pork. For her last meal we set out to find a restaurant specialising in this withn the local area. Low and behold on the ground floor of our very own apartment exists an establishment that specialises in Pork. How coincidental was that!

A nice meal this close to the flat as perfect for Mum still awaiting news about the result of Dads operation. Thanks to Amanda staying bedside all day we got the news that after 5 hours, he was finally in recovery and doctors are optimistic with the results. It seems his existing artificial knee joint had to be replaced as the bone had shattered where the previous joint joined to bone. Apparently dads main grip is they did not take the opportunity to raise him a couple of inches to give him a little extra ground clearance.

The Last Supper. I'm the angelic one

It was good to be able to Skype and see him. still a little groggy form the previous day, but under the circumstances quit chirpy considering he has been I. Pain all week waiting for the swelling to reduce enough to allow the operation. He still has considerable rehabilitation to go through and do what I can understand there is a stand off between bean counters and medical staff. One realises he has a home in victoria and this is the best place for recovery, whilst the other twit wants to return him to Whayalla where the accident occurred cos it would be marginally cheaper. We will find out who wins later beauty or the beast.

I reckon he'll be in hospital still when we return Oct 4th, so I'll be able to help,out then. Hopefully Dr McCoy will win over Spock,on this one.

mums last official sightseeing of the trip was a quick dash to Gyeonbokung Palace to see the Changing of the Guard one final time. why not it is so close, only 5 mins walk by the new super fit granny scale. I think it proved to be a nice colourful way to end her visit to Korea.

The big event of Thursday was to see Mum to the airport. I left Amelie and Liz to their devices and escorted Muvva to the airport. Incheon is about an hour drive from Seoul Central and costs somewhere around 90 bucks Australian by limousine and taxi. there are several standards of Bus that run, but there is also a wonderful train right to the terminal door.

Beating The Drum, Gyeongbokgung Palace

we took the private limo on the way in To Seoul with .mum in tow as with tired daughter and Grandmother it required little stress and thought, but in future honestly the train System is so good. There are two services, the regular train which stops all stations between Seoul and the Terminal. All or pat of thenjourneyncould be standing, but it is cheap, about 6 bucks. For a little more there is an express service that runs to Seoul station. It used to cost 14,000 Won (about 14 bucks) but they have reduced this to 8000 won. Yep 8 bucks for an express of around 45 minutes and a guaranteed seat.

It really highlights the madness of Melbourne where very little investment in public transport to the airport continues to be such an embarrassment. instead we have car parks so huge that they warrant their own postcode and all the resulting accidents of tired fatigued drivers at the end of a ridiculous long haul flight. I lay the challenge to our state government, build a bloody railway already!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amelie and Liz went to buy tickets for Bibap this evening. Unbeknown to us the promotional giveaways continued. Because by now we are on first name basis with the Half Tix Staff, they were keen for Amelie to receive one particular 'prize'. they told her they had a hello kitty gift if Mum could get a picture on Face book. it was harder said than done. Liz's iPad is a bit temperamental so it does not talk to wireless in Seoul and the Internet at the nearby KNTO office was in Korean so Liz gave up and went back to our apartment. appear entry this was the fsstest Amelie has walked all trip. after all there was a prize involved.

Liz thought it would be some small trinket, but look at the soft toy they received. We are so pleased the staff there were keen for Amelie to win one. We had been there so often this trip and seen far more show than we would have if this promotion dis. To coincide with our trip. Well done KNTO and Korean performing artists. I hope this promotion proved to be successful and encourages you to run it again.

Promo gift at Seoul Half Tix

Our evening minus Mum involved another show. this time to a show called Bibap. it is loosely a battle of two chefs, red and green vying for top honours. the show is a. Is of hip hop dance,singing and vocal beat box. It is perfectly aimed at the seven year old with plenty,of fart jokes and humour at that level. Of course Amelie loved it! she fell right into the de ographic. It suited our. Olds perfectly, light entertainment. Good fun without challenging too many brain cells.

Proof she did buy the t-shirt. With the cast of Bibap.So Far Amelie's favourite

yes we bought the T-Shirt.

so there you have it, if I am not mistaken, officially up to date.

Muvvas pre flight workout. From the rooftop of our apartment block

HoPe all is ok with your trip mum. Dad we hope the recovery goes well and they help get you to Bendigo. don't fret though we'll manage of they don't. Give Dad our love when you finally arrive too.

 

 

 

 

 

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Still trying to catch up

Anyone for a little Soju, Andong, Korea

Ever since we received news of Dads accident, I've lost some incentive and/or run out of time to get up to date. I'm still a day behind.

How about soju on tap? Andong, Korea

Firstly news on Dad, we las headed about an hour ago he had been in surgery for four hours. Since the injury is above the artificial knee joint, there is probably some extensive rebuilding to be done around the join from metal to bone. Our thoughts are with him as he will likely be quite sore after surgery.

Now Tuesday proved to be quite emotional for those that went to pyeontaek, especially if you read Monday's blog where those seeking to view files were disappointed not to learn anything new.

Some of the donation made to Pyeontaek. We also made donations to ESWS Seoul. thanks to Karina at work for your contribution. It was gratefully accepted.

One thing learned from our observation of today is that ESWS file in head office may not necessarily be the complete file. After some gentle insistence that two families wanted to see the files held at Pyeontaek where their boys were born. They found some extra information at Pyeontaek that was not held or recorded in head office ESWS. In one case it was a letter from the birth mother. The other family found out that there was. I letter, but the birth mother had made contact with ESWS on a couple of occasions to enquire how her child was. There was some extra information the families found that in respect to their privacy I will not disclose, suffice it to say the information is very significant to the two boys concerned and the families are respecting the privacy of what was learned.

Fish at the Aquarium still nibble your fingers

What we learned is that like Australia, the paper trail does not end at the head office. The advice at ESWS. for adoptive families and children, is respectfully dig further. As you may find there are several locations where records are kept and the data within is not always duplicated faithfully. Seek the location where the child was born, there may be some part of the record there not kept in Seoul. If the child had some relationship,with another department, or health provider, go there and ask if it is possible to access records as long as you respect the laws, and rules of Korea and ESWS.

For me the hardest spa spect of the trip was to see the turmoil that the facility is experiencing. In part it is much like Australia. Funding and laws regarding how social services are controlled and delivered seem to be undergoing major restrutual changes. Often these changes are driven by ideals and it is left to the institutions to somehow adapt. Often. New laws and procedures cause conflict, demand facility closures, demand major reform with little guidance to achieve the ideals set out by legislation.

dinner anyone?

As I state, this is not unique to Korea. We in Australia have many dilemmas brought about by recent budget changes and legislative controls that greatly affect our delivery of social welfare services. Sometimes I with the Inuit approach of considering 7 generations ahead and 7 generations behind, may help negate the brashness of ideal driven decisions, especially those based on religious fundamentalism of any persuasion. Here ends my rant.

I feel for those at Pyeontaek. The single mothers home faces eminent closure as it is deemed a conflict of interest to offer support and counselling whilst being an adoption agency. The home for special needs children is now deemed over crowded. Sheltered workshops face cost pressures as those working are now meant to be getting above minimum wages. The facilities them selves are becom,I g dated and in need of expensive rebuilding and maintenance.

the staff at Pyeontaek are recognised as highly skilled, dedicated and well respected. I am sure ESWS wil exist well into the future, but like much of ?Korea will undergo huge transformation in the process. Some may feel a little sad to hear we have learned of the problems they face, but fro my perspective it only increases my respect for the work they have done and continue to do.

The day ended on a celebratory note as two families rejoiced in new knowledge about their children and their origin. A toast was raised to the good news and plans made for upcoming days when more families arrive from Melbourne and events coordinated whilst all together in Seoul.

Meanwhile for Liz i unwittingly sabotaged her plans for a day with Amelie. she was a little tired fro. The previous late evening, so Liz thought to take her to try some of the craft activities around the Bukcheon district. I reminded Amelie of the previous trip to Coex and the Aquarium. There were little fish that nibbled at her fingers and all sorts of naff places to put fish like toilet bowls, telephone booths and refrigerators.as I headed off with Mother to catch the bus to Pyeontaek, I'm sure I heard Liz mutter "thanks" through gritted teeth.

Turns out the best bit, according to Amelie was the Penguins. She could have watched them for hours.... And almost did. She is now officially taller than a penguin having finally surpassed even the lagers of the species, The Emporor Penguin.

Unfortunately for Liz, much of Coes is undergoing major, major renovation. This means she could not even console herself with a ,title self indulgent shopping. Two-thirds of the complex is currently off limits to consumerism. I think I'm not quite yet forgiven.

 

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The emotional roller Coaster Monday

Family portrait with President Kim, formal ESWS visit

Yesterday was the time for our formai visit to ESWS. Three other families from Victoria ( Bradbury, Triscari-Hunt & Merakis) were there on separately organised trips. However as we know each other well from Han-ho back home, it has been great to share the experience with them.

Amelie making gift to President Kim, ESWS. Note the respectful bow. We were so proud of her.

As their kids are thirteen, there was an opportunity for them to view their files. Unfortunately for the boys and their families there was nothing really new to learn. What was shared from the files at ESWS contained noting more than what families already new. They came away a little despondent.

Amelie is only 7 and we already knew her Foster mother could not meet due to ill health, for us this was not a fact finding visit, merely a chance to show Amelie's grandmother her home country. The girls were so happy to spend all the time possible looking in the nursery at the babies in ESWS. We are having such a great time in Korea, so no opportunity to meet foster family is disappointing, but our wishes are with her to get well.

After lunch we went home for a Nana in preparation for an attack on Lottee World. We don't have the likes in Australia a shopping complex so big that it sports department store, water park, amusement park and hotel all under one roof. It's kinda like Disney under lights... Oh did I mention there's a full size skating rink too?

I thought I was cheeky asking for a seniors discount, but we got one! Well when I say discount, ?Muvvas ticket actually said CHILD..... Who are they trying to kid? That ship has sailed, returned and been sold off for scrap long before the Vikings.

Once inside we realised why. On many rides there is both a height restriction and an age restriction. The upper limit is 65yo and they would not budge, no matter how much I tried to suggest her driving is far more dangerous than any ride. That argument probably would have worked to get dad on as he is mainly a passenger nowadays,

Even amelie had more trouble than expected all the outside rides had a 130cm height limit. Unfortunately she is not quite there yet. Still she loved the roller coaster with a loop, got drenched on the flume ride and had nightmares after the Sinbad ride, ok for kids but much too graphic for many. It should have a M rating at best.

It was at Lotte World that we had one of the weirdest meals possible. amongst the dishes ordered was chips that looked more like it was presented like wedges with sour cream, guacamole and tomatoe nachos sauce. Instead it was chips with bolognaise sauce and a sprinkle of dry Parmesan dusted on top. And the answer is yep about as good as it sounds.

We ended staying till stumps, about 10pm weekdays. Right up till then Amelie had plenty of energy, but as soon as she lost the glass slipper, quickly became sleeping beauty. We very nearly had to drag her home on the train asleep.

What surprised Muvva was the crowd. No matter how much we tried to convince her otherwise 10pm is the real rush hour in Seoul. It is when many office workers finally go home and students finally finish homework club, or second school too. It makes me wonder just how productive 14+ hours at work could possibly be. Still the look on her face at crowded trains at that hour brought more than a wry smile.... Told you so.

On return home we found messages on Skype, email etc that dad has some form of broken leg. He didn't want Muvva returning home prematurely, but as communication is brief to date, one is still greatly concerned. We are grateful, Amanda & Jon could get to Adelaide where he was flown by RFDS. Brother Peter has been involved too, so Mum is respecting Dads wish to stay till Thursday as originally planned. Hopefully more news will filter through and Skype will be possible. Our thought are with Dad for his operation tomorrow to pin the fracture.

 

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All the emotions

Just got news via email that Dad has had some sort of accident whilst in SA and is now in hospital,in Adelaide waiting on an operation for a broken bone in his leg.naturally messages like this are light on detail, but if any friends reading this blog and have my sisters mobile number can you please text her and advise we will keep,Skype on as much as possible to hear from her esp from 6pm AEST each night.

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The Whole 9 falls

Please note: we have returned to Seoul after 3 days largely without Internet. I have posted text for the 3 lost days and will add a few pics tomorrow when we have had tine to download and review the files from our cameras.

 

We woke to Muvva complaining of the beds. I have to admit the beds were harder than the floors at the Hanok. Amelie and Liz proved smart by sleeping on top of the doona for t tiny extra padding. Me I had drunk most of a bottle of Soju supposedly shared with Liz.

The biggest hit about the rooms was each had a spa..... In hindsight that is probably why we saw no more of mother, although I wonder what would have happened if she could not get out. We would have had another Whitney death in the bathtub, I guess.

 

Much to my disgust, but Amelie's delight, Liz suggested breakfast at Dunkin Donut. It sounds every bit a sickly sweet as you could imagine.... And that's the coffee.

 

I think that is why Muvva decided to provide the entertainment. Heading towards the bathroom, she became fascinated with the figures advertising male and female. It was about a metre tall silhouette split in half with each side displaying the sex one is to aim for. In her stupor she missed the little step hitting the ground like a sacked quarter back. Luckily neither skin or bones were broken. Perhaps a bruise or two, thankfully that was all.

 

A short walk followed to wear off some of the sugar. We visited the Andong Hemp shop. Fascinating. They appeared to be mainly outer Han bok garments, much like Formal Kimono in the rich decoration. The other abundant clothing seemed to be priestly vestments. Again the embroidery and decoration was impressive and lavish.

 

No trip to Andong, for a home brewer such as myself could resist visiting the home of Andong Soju. It is not rice wine, but I had thought it may have been made from starchy vegetables such as potato. The soju at Andong does seem to be made from a wheat mash malted and concentrated/dehydrated. This is then ground, mixed into a wash, fermented, then distiller.

 

The result is a clear liquid with a hint of sweetness to the spirit unlike whiskey that has less flavour until stored in oak barrels. This cask storage provides flavour and the golden colour of whiskey. Most soju is a colourless liquid served at a variety of concentrations depending on quality and age. Alcohol concentrations are roughly 45, 25, 12-15 percent concentration. at this stage I do not know how the Soju is aged as the higher concentrations are still clear. They simply have more of a gentle burn due to the higher alcohol content.

 

The. Used at the Soju Distillery, also covered food. Muvva observed that much of Asia has placed importance on the aesthetic presentation of food. It can have a high ceremonial value so presentation becomes important. It may cause interest that making "fake" food has become a big industry too. Replicas of famous dishes are replicated faithfully, usually in some form of resin material. The models are uncanny and loom as inviting as the real deal.

 

A mask started at the Mask ?Museum, HaHoe village and completed on the bus to Seoul

Most commonly these fake dishes are used as displays I. Restaurant windows making is very easy for dumb tourists, or illiterate people every opportunity to order from a visual menu. I am sure the display acts as good as any advertising, with the quality of display inducing people to come in. In museums it helps make displays very realistic, so you could imagine how impressive the feast presented to Queen Elizabeth II on her visit in 1999 was both I reality and recreation.

 

Our visit to Andong was completed by a trip out to the Hanji, or paper making area. Like many specialist paper areas in Korea, paper is made from Mulberry bark. Depending on how the cellulose material is treated, a great variety of products can be made. Fine paper, as we appreciate back home, hand made versions with a marbling effects, watermarks and decorative elements make very elaborate displays. papers amused in everything from screens, to wrappings.

 

A high grade form of board is also produced I. A huge range of products. dare I say it is a high grade papier mâché, but this does not do it credit. Very thing from figurines, to strong furniture is produced by this board. Many jewellery boxes, serving trays/tables and elaborate sideboards can be made for this material.

 

Finally elaborate materials and threads can be produced. From rough hessian like fibres to fine materials resembling cotton, or hemp clothing. Most commonly one sees, socks and underwear on sale as they are light and cool to wear against the skin, but at the Hanji centre some spectacular designer wear was on display in rich hues of naturally dyed fabrics.

 

Amelie really wanted to make paper as we did during out last trip. Unfortunately being a Sunday no paper making was in progress. Instead we contented ourselves with some of the manual crafty activities. We made scroll posters from scratch, making collage pictures and adding our own calligraphy. Finally the wooden scroll ends were added to allow display. Muvva ambitiously chose a water Lilly pattern that proved quite elaborate and showed just how long it has been since art class at school.

 

Judging by the fun all of us had creating our pieces, the activity easily made up for not making our own paper.

 

Our day finished by finally climbing aboard the bus to head home to Seoul. Again the bus trip is not as daunting as first thought. Much of the trip is on high speed expressway but there is enough to see of the countryside as we travel. If a mountain is encountered, no problem.... Tunnel through so no sharp bends or slowing down is required. such is the Korean way.

Return to Seoul was not to the Gangnam (yes, just like the song) bus terminal, but the other. We had already determined rather than depend on the subway, we should take the taxi. We were not fully cognisant of where this bus terminal is, nor could we easily see the rail link as at Gangnam so it turns out a taxi was the best option.

Mother still had the address card in her wallet so it proved no problem for the driver to enter thus into his ?gPS an off we went. The trip took about 39 mins and at least 15 kilometres, perhaps closer to 20. So guess how much the fare was as we alighted.... Yep 15000 won or a little over $15 Australian.

 

 

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A night on the floor

Well Muvva did it. Spent the night on the floor without a single drink.... That we know of, who knows what she smuggled in with her.

 

A night on the floor in the traditional Hanok proved not to be too much for mother we had the usual thin bed mattress and supplemented mother with a little camp mattress and she managed to sleep the entire night and stand up I. The morning. Perhaps that was the secret. She didn't have to get up I the middle of the night.

 

The Hanok owner proved to be most helpful and allowed us to leave our bags in the room while we further explored Hahoe village. We took the ferry across the river and climbed the cliffs overlooking the town to gain a wonderful early morning view of the village and surrounding area.

 

On return to the village a real wedding was almost beginning. Although Hahoe is a tourist village, it is also a living village. This time the wedding was not staged for tourists. Judging by the cars rolling in and parking in the village, not a kilometre away I the public area, I'd say this was a prestigious wedding too. The catering alone had all visitors hoping for a secret invite.

 

Soon it was time to leave. Catching the shuttle bus to the mask museum. Upon learning we were from Australia the ticket lady instead we head up to level 2. There turned out to be a display of Aboriginal Australian objects.

 

The lovely lady at tourist information wrote down instructions to the bus driver that we wanted to stop at the paper museum. He even nodded knowingly when shown the note. That knowing nod turned out to be, I won't let these foreigners tell me what to do, cos when we thought we saw the sign to the paper, he sailed last full throttle, obviously ignoring or request to stop. A pity for Amelie as this was the one place she wanted to see in Andong.

 

Instead we ended up in the centre of town, trying to locate the hotel Liz booked when no one around spoke English. Eventually we found the hotel, dumped bags in rooms and took a taxi back out to Bongjeongsa Temple to cross another off Muvvas bucket list. Bongjeongsa is not the biggest or most elaborate template, but it does boast the oldest building on Korea and features early I. The list of national treasures.

 

It was there that yet again we came across the disbelief that Amelie is with us after all we are westerners and she is obviously Korean. People were keen to learn that she is our adopted daughter and amazed that my mother is travelling with us. That are thanking us for adopting her. For us it is the opposite we thank Korea for allowing us to become parents.

 

Back in Andong city cam the opportunity to try the beef. Andong is rightly proud of the beef they produce. I'm sure the cattle here gave walked less than 50 steps in their entire life. The beef is heavily marbled with fat, tender and flavoursome. We chose the restaurant however because of the tables. This turned out to be the only one with chair height tables as mother could not cope with eating off the floor this time. It turned out to be just fine and a most beautiful "galbi" or Korean beef BBQ.

 

That proved to be the last we saw of Mucva. We have two rooms at the hotel and she has one all to herself. I think she relished the idea of a big bed and TV both under her exclusive control, not to mention a spa. If there are aching bones, they'll all be forgotten tomorrow.

 

 

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