Misc

This is the Korean church we go to in Umsa. At night the cross on the roof is neon red. All the churches have red neon crosses at night.

Thanks Mum for the parcel today. We have named the sheep Lambo. Notice the pictures on the wall behind Lambo. They are from one of the NZ calendars we took over of the South Island. It gives the apartment a NZ feel.

Lately the airforce have been training with their fighter jets doing low flying runs. I thought it was the start of the war and wondered why everyone wasn't jumping under their desks.

Today about 15 helicopters were out on a mission and I was able to get a shot from our apartment window. Its a bit far away because of our ancient camera but I like to call it the M*A*S*H shot.

Today the church gave us this beautiful hamper of Korean snacks for Chusok. They are all made from rice and are very beautiful to look at.

Happy Chusok

On the right is a container of Songpyeon I made with the ladies at church. It is rice cake with a sweet filling inside. An acquired taste but actually not too bad.

This lady is the headmistress of the kindergarten at church. She taught me how to make songpyeon and after 3 hours I was pumping them out like a pro ( I like to think so anyway)...

It is a time consuming exercise and the ladies of the house cook all day for Chusok like Christmas Day cooking. The difference is we sat on the floor doing it which I got used to after awhile.

These ladies have been making songpyeon for years and were amazing to watch. I tried to copy them but my ones looked like bananas which caused a lot of laughs throughout the day. We stopped and ate a yummy curry at lunch and I went and saw the kindergarten children in the next rooms. It was a great day preparing the songpyeon.

AAaargh the finished product. All piled up on a bed of pine tree needles and ready to be steamed. I lost count of how many were made. Hundreds. All little crescent shaped cuties except for my banana ones.

Chusok in September and Lunar New Year in February are the 2 biggest holidays in Korea. People travel back to their hometowns which are usually in rural areas to be with family and visit ancestral graves. They thank their ancestors for the good harvest and well being of the family. The roads up and down the country are always chaotic. There are traffic jams and trips take 2-3 times longer than usual. From Saturday until Wednesday are holidays and no school. Tuesday is the day of Chusok when most places are closed. Songpyeon is a traditional food for Chusok along with newly picked fruits.

We were going to go down south to Busan but all the trains and buses were booked out.

We will miss our family this Chusok as it is a time to be thankful for family and life. God bless everyone we miss you:)

Chusok Holiday at Kindergarten

Friday 21 September.

These are the photos from the church kindergarten. The children go from 8.30am - 4 .30pm. The ages are from infants until 5 years. Our church has 3 floors. The basement is the church and then floor 1 and 2 are the kindergarten. Floor 3 is for living quarters for the pastor. It was really fun being at kindy today when Chusok is beginning. The kids had a lot of fun singing and dancing. A Korean English teacher came for 3/4 of an hour and taught 3 classes. I went to her sessions and watched. She was very good with the kids, singing english songs and telling a short story. It looked very exhausting.

The teachers are getting the younger children to play a traditional game of kicking a toy as many times as possible.

The children wore their clothing with great pride. It was so colorful and fun to be around.

They got out a padded mat for some wrestling. I think it must be part of the fun and games at Chusok. Some of the kids went for it and missed the mat. Wouldn't like to see adults doing it.

The 3 teachers are doing a traditional dance for Chusok. After that we all got up and did it. I just hummed along as the words were a bit too hard for this kiwi girl.

The children love to wear the traditional clothing. They wear it on Lunar New Year in February and Chusok.

This wee boy was trying his best to kick the toy in a traditional Chusok game.

The young children in Hanbok looked so cute.