Out and about in Korea

Freedom at last! We finally escaped our quarantine in Wando and made it out to see some of the country. It was the first time in a while that I had to wake up early in what seems like a long time. Nevertheless I was up and ready to go in time to eat breakfast and hit the road by 9am. We all got on to our respective buses (there are 3). Our bus is purple inside and out with little dangles everywhere and a big flat screen tv. It made me really happy. After only about an hour drive we stopped at the DaehanDawon green tea farm. The farm spread out over all of the visible hillsides in long green rows. We climbed to the top of the largest hill where we had an amazing view of all the nearby hillsides and the ocean. There were many Koreans there as well, it is fun to say hello to them and they try to say the things they know in English like "See you tomorrow, hehehe." After some great photo opps we hiked around a little and ended up in the gift shop. I found a really cool ceramic mug that has a little insert that filters tea leaves. I also bought some of their most famous green tea and got a green tea latte, mmmm. After that we rounded up all 70 of us back on the buses (I feel like a big time tourist on this trip!) and drove another half hour to eat at a Chinese food restaurant. It had some interesting options including raw octopus (a lot of sashimi) and grape doughnuts. I got a few really questionable items that I ended up having to spit out but most of what I got (it was a buffet) was edible. The next stop on the tour was at a traditional Korean folk village. It remained intact after the Japanese invasion and many Koreans were there visiting as well. We had a small tour and then we had a couple hours to wander around on our own. It was very beautiful in its simplicity. Only grass roofs are allowed with stones and mortar holding up the walls. They are not allowed to have televisions but telephone wires have been placed under the ground for the many people who still live there in the traditional style. Many of them are farmers or do a craft such as ceramics or a blacksmith. The wooden bridges were hand painted and maintained with the utmost care.
At one point Christine and I found an area (probably for children) that had a teeter totter-like board so each of us got on and rocked back and forth slowly (standing up). Finally after staring at us a gentleman came over with the intention of helping us play the game correctly. He stepped on my end and tried to get us to jump up and down. It was so funny because every time I jumped Christine would "WoooooP!" and get really scared. I guess we're not meant to master the game. It was funny though. The Koreans are all so helpful and interesting. There have been people all day who just want to talk with us and help us in any way they can. I ended up accidentally stealing Aly's parasol and felt like a Korean princess, hehe. I got to hold a tiny puppy--soooo cute!
As we were wandering through the beautiful ceramic crafts tables and admiring the vases and bowls and things we came upon a table filled with ceramic penises. Each one was a little different in size and shape. It was odd. I thought they would at least be salt shakers or something. We also saw another table in a different area that had little people with very enlarged organs. Seems like you see the same types of things when travelling to Mexico or Hawaii. Interesting. After a couple hours we were all very ready to leave and got back on our bus to head to dinner. Dinner was the best meal I've had in Korea so far, we all had to take off our shoes and sit on the floor. The waiters brought out several different bowls of kimchi and other items. They then turned on a little grill in the middle of the table and a large plate of sliced pork (it looked like bacon). We cooked our own food with onion and garlic and then put all the sauces and pork into a leaf of lettuce like a taco. It was sooo yummy. Afterwards, smelling of cooked bacon, we all checking into our motel rooms and went out on the town. I have to pause here to explain what the motel situation is like. It's called Motel Lexus (yes, like the car). It was all very dark and mysterious as we walked down the hallway entrance. The place where you pick up the keys is a small window where one can remain anonymous and the elevator is filled with mirrors. As Christine and I entered into the room everything was dark and obviously placed with a couple in mind. In the other rooms condoms were left on the table next to the bed. On the floor above us there is a vending machine selling paraphernalia. Margaret informed us shortly thereafter that we are staying in a hotel that charges "by the hour." The lights are very low and remote controlled, as we walked in we placed out key in a slot which automatically controls the mood lighting and turns on the tv (naughty channel). We cracked up laughing and are now sitting in the room thinking about how gross and uncomfortable it is to stay here. Oh well, it's all part of the experience, right? Btw there are only rooms with queen sized beds so we all are sharing...which is fine and dandy with me but makes me giggle that all the boys are in the same situation.
We got free time to explore the city and go shopping so we made our way to the "home plus" store where I finally got to buy the hairdryer I've been dreaming about. I also got to buy some t-shirts with nonsense English phrases on them. We've all been laughing about some of the shirts we've seen since they don't make any sense. I bought two, one of them says "Peaseful world" and the other says "American tourister: You make a fabulous jack." On the downside I tried to use 3 different ATMs and none of them are accepting my debit card. Uh-oh! Hopefully we can stop at a bank soon. I really wanted to buy some sunglasses but the cheap ones cost $50 USD! No way! The only pair I brought was a cheap pair someone left in my car once and I accidentally stepped on them and broke the temple. Bummer.
We ran into Quinlin and our Korean hosts afterwards drinking a traditional rice wine and so we joined them for a small snack (egg/fish omelet style dish) and some of the drink (I wish I could remember the name, it was milky in color and tasted somewhat like saki). After an hour or so they headed out to sing at a karaoke bar and Christine and I decided to head back to our motel (not hotel) room to try and sleep. We found some English tv channels which helped make us feel a little less uncomfortable. I am going to try and sleep while imagining I am somewhere else. Oh well...this will be funny later. Christine pointed out how odd that they are such a reserved culture in terms of their dress and actions yet it is perfectly acceptable to bring a group of tourists who've never seen Korea to a "by-the-hour" hotel the first time they go out to a city. Tomorrow we go to the beach and to visit a temple. Then we stay over at one of the other camps called Damyang. Hope all is well back in OR. Hugs to you all!