Learning Korean

The first weekend of November, I started Korean language classes with a group called 'Talk Talk Korean'. My two friends from work, Mark and James, had started classes with them last spring, and by their recommendation, I started the beginner class. I have had two classes so far and I'm hooked! My teacher is Sunny, and she is so helpful and caring in her teaching. She makes learning fun. I also love the classes because I am meeting so many new people from Korean and foreign backgrounds. Both times I have gone, the entire group or at least most of it has gotten lunch together. As seen in the pictures below, the first time I went, I went with my friends Mark and James to study at a local cafe. Because the classes are in the heart of Seoul, it is a great opportunity to check out Seoul itself after class is over. Overall, this is turning into a great blessing and opportunity to build great friendships. I love learning Korean!

I love this picture. It seems as if the temple is bounded in it's own world of serenity and timelessness, and around it is the busy city where people seem blind to it's universe.

This was lunch the first weekend. I think they called it Kimchi soup. It was really good!

This is one of the funny looking skyscrapers in downtown Seoul. It seems to have an observatory deck on top.

When studying the first weekend, we noticed the Seoul Lantern Festival at Cheonggyecheon.

This is the cafe where we studied. Holly's is a chain cafe in Korea.

This was a really cool procession down the Cheonggyecheon.

On Wednesday of last week, I invited my friends over for ziti dinner. After dinner, we watched X-Men First Class. I had a lot of fun, and I think my ziti turned out ok, lol. Most of all, I love the fact that my friends in Korea are so cool. They have been such a blessing!

Yeah, it was after work so that's why I look like a zombie, lol. I'm not sure what Mark is doing, but I think it's funny, lol.

This was on my way to work one day. I was just thinking about how scared I would be if I had to climb that ladder to deliver the couch, lol. It was actually some sort of lift, but still, not my cup of tea.

So the second week of Korea class, my friend Eun Heay took me down to the Lantern Festival when it was lighted. It was so beautiful. Most of these pictures are from her camera. Thinking ahead, I left my camera...grrr... I think these pictures are way better than mine anyway. While I still think the Jinju Lantern Festival was well worth the trip, this was also a lot of fun and very beautiful. However, it was crazy crowded. There were literal lines of people waiting to walk to the lower level of the Cheonggyecheon. We stayed on the street level, and I actually think it was a better view than right up close to the over-sized lanterns.

This picture was from my cell phone... yeah... It looks like the whole thing is in some sort of radioactive meltdown, lol.

This is a traditional Korean marriage of wealthy families.

This is my good friend Eun Heay.

So there was a series of the lanterns that were classic Korean children games. This game is where you hop on one foot and try to push the other person over. I wish I knew about this game growing up!!

I have officially labeled this one 'Korean Shrek' while I think it is actually a Korean Folktale.

 

 This is how the lanterns look during the day. Superman: The greatest figment of our imaginations...

 I forgot his name, but this is a Korean robot hero. He is the original Optimus Prime.

So one more fun thing to share. Last Friday, (11/11/11) my friend Sarah, from work, and I entered an 11 kilometer race. To keep with the repetition of 11's, the race started at 11:11pm. My friend James and I had been training for the race, but James became really sick with tonsillitis a day or so before the race. I felt really bad that he was unable to participate. I had/have been fighting a sickness myself, but I was still determined to race having not competed for a couple years. While it was really late at night, I was really happy I went. I had a really fun time, and I beat my goal of a four minuet/ 1km pace. I finished just under 44:00 coming in fifth or sixth. I can't remember. The really cool thing was that a woman won the race altogether finishing with just a little over 40:00 minuets. She also lead the pack the entire time. Women never get enough credit for their amazing athletic abilities, and so it is cool when a woman can put even the men in their place. 

Well, with the holidays coming up and new adventures sure to come, I can't wait to see what the future holds. So, till next time ... Cheerios ~ I. L. Hathhorn