Seoul Survivor

We were invited to meet some of Randy’s co-workers and their kids to go to “Seoul Land” which is equivalent to Great America. The people we were meeting were driving, but being the public transportation pros that we have started to become, we decided that we would take the train…little did we know it would be a LONG day!
We took our time getting out of the door so at about 10:30 am we took the bus to the train station. From there we jumped on the next train which we ended up waiting a half an hour for. While waiting for the train we noticed our seat numbers were in Hangeul so we tried to decode them using Randy’s travel guide…we failed at this attempt so we just waited to ask someone once we got on the train. Apparently the pictures we were trying to decode meant we would be “STANDING”. Randy had a rough night at a Hail and Farwell ceremony which means he had a slight hangover. Being the awesome wife that I am I decided that I would hold Anderson the entire 1 hour train ride to Seoul. Shortly after the train took off, Anderson fell asleep which made it easier to hold him because usually I am fighting to keep him from escaping. About 45 minutes into the trip my back felt as though it was going to give out and thankfully a man was getting off the train so we had one seat. I gave it to Randy and he held Anderson the rest of the way.
Once we arrived at Seoul Station, we had to take the subway. On this particular trip we decided to forego bringing a stroller, since there are usually opportunities to rent one for a reasonable price and it is easier than lugging the stroller around all day. However, we did not anticipate all the walking we would be doing prior to arriving to our final destination. As we stepped on to the subway we were thrilled that in just 7 stops we would be at “Seoul Land”. On our 3rd stop, everyone was ordered to get off the train and I instantly had flashbacks from our trip to Italy when they had a transportation strike. Thankfully, they were just stopping to clean the train and we were able to get on the next one about 10 minutes later…you would think I would be frustrated at this point, but really I was just pleased to find out that they clean the trains.
We arrived at Seoul Land and after walking about a mile to get to the stroller rental office we were spent and the day was almost over. It was past 2pm and we had left the house at 10:30am! Anderson loved eating dippin dots and playing in the Children’s play area. There was a huge ball pit, slides, ropes to climb, jump houses, and much more. We also took Anderson on his first carnival ride which we soon decided would be the last for a while. As the ride was spinning and lifting higher and higher off the ground, we both thought we were going to lose our lunch. Anderson seemed to enjoy it for 10 seconds then he wanted off! His favorite part was the battery operated animal that he was able to drive around. Around 6pm we decided to start our long journey home….yep just read this post backwards to get the rest of the story….subway….train…..bus oh wait…we took a taxi instead of the bus home. We walked through our front door at just about midnight!!! We were all exhausted and took the rest of the weekend to rest!!!

Anderson Update

We finally got down to only having one chuchie so we decided that we would start the process of eliminating it all together. In fear that we would lose our only one we decided that it would be a good idea to keep it in a safe place and only allow him to have it when he was sleeping. When I say we, you must understand…Anderson did not agree to this at all. It has been 6 days and it seems to be going well. Every 2 hours he has a meltdown wining and requesting his chuchie, but I just give him a snack or some ice (he loves ice) to take his mind off of it. I think I had an easier time quitting smoking! I am pretty glad we decided to do this now; I could not imagine what it would be like when he is talking more and trying to reason with me. Since we took the chuchie, he has been talking a lot more….still don’t know what he is saying but he is talking.

Anderson Update

Anderson Update:
So Anderson’s new word is Ball…and everything round is now a ball! He threw a fit in the grocery store when I would not let him throw a honeydew melon on the floor. I would let him hold it and he would try to chuck it over the side of the cart and I would have to grab it…this went on for a long time till he yelled at me and said “ball” and pointed to the ground. I had to keep telling him that it would not bounce but he didn’t care. I think we may have to buy a cantaloupe and let him smash it on the ground in order to figure it out!

MOTHER'S DAY BEAT DOWN

Mother’s Day Weekend
My Mother’s Day weekend was great! I woke up Saturday morning after sleeping in a bit and I found two cards for me…one from Randy and one from Anderson! They got me a day at the spa…Anderson got my manicure and pedicure and Daddy got my facial and massage. I left for my 2pm appointment in utter bliss…so I thought!
The manicure and pedicure was pretty typical to what I would get back in the states, however my facial and massage was more than interesting….

As I am directed to lay in a chair at the corner of the salon the facial began…in front of everyone getting their hair done which I thought was weird. As my facial proceeds I am beginning to feel relaxed and clean…and then it starts…the woman begins to slap me in the face and dig her knuckles into my forehead. As she presses on my temples I fear that my skull will crack…at one point I swore I heard it pop. I laid there wondering if Randy knew about this procedure and if this facial was payback for something. ..I was glad that it ended and ready for a relaxing massage…so I thought.

I was instructed to flip over on the chair and that is when it all started…My Korean “beat down”. Mind you I am still on the salon floor where all clients can see and hear me. Blankets were placed over my body and then a woman began to rub my back. Then a man started rubbing on my legs…which was all really relaxing, I could have fallen to sleep. Just as I am about to drift into sleep, the woman starts to pound on my shoulders and the man is using his elbows to put pressure on my butt. As this goes on, another woman joins the team and takes over my lower back…pounding, beating, kneading, slapping, and tugging my body in all directions. At this point I was praying that one of the clients getting their hair done would come save me, but this was not the case! Just as I feel I can no longer take it...about an hour….the woman near my head begins to chant and they all pat and pound my back and as they count to 3 in Korean I fear my life may end. One, Two, Three…one pulls my arms, while the other pulls my legs. I am a human tug of war……………..and finally done! I flip over feeling as though I just got jumped and look at everyone looking at me and simply say, “that was interesting”. Although it was painful, I think they know what they are doing because walking out of that place I felt really good!

I walked home from my appointment and took my time walking in and out of the little shops in the Ville. Since some of them are too small for a stroller or for Anderson’s grabby hands I am unable to go when we go on our walks.

Randy cooked an amazing meal: Cajun pork chops with fresh green beans.
We took Anderson to his new babysitter’s house where he met Aida. It was nice being able to walk to the babysitter’s house and to the bars that we were going to for our night out. Anderson seemed excited that Aida had a small dog but sat on my lap knowing that we were leaving him there. Aida being the professional that she is,
took Anders out of my lap and told us to be on our way he will be fine. With that we snuck out of the door and as I waited to hear if Anderson would cry, I began to cry…and not a peep out of Anderson!

It was nice to hit up the night life in our town and play some darts with Randy. We decided to hit up Randy’s old stomping ground the “Drunk Bus” where he was greeted by the owner Chang! He seemed to miss him quite a bit as well as the bartender and his poker friends. We sat and had a few drinks until we left before midnight to go and get our sleeping baby! I thought that I paced myself pretty good, but then the next morning told me otherwise…what a headache.

All of Mother’s Day, I was in recovery mode! We pulled out the bed in the couch and Anderson, Randy, and I watched movies and read stories all day!!! Anderson was pretty excited that there was a bed in the couch.

We did have a minor injury on Mother’s Day, Anderson cut his big toe on a sharp piece of glass on our table that we were unaware of. After a lot of bleeding and a make-shift band aid we were able to get a good look at it and it was the size of a deep paper cut. He healed quickly and we invested in a good first aid kit.
Note: Make a Bandaid
So my homemade bandaid was a piece of an Always pad…it worked great …super absorbent…go figure

Ceramic Festival in Yeoju, South Korea

Sunday May 2nd:
Despite the fact that my body was stiff as a board from the 5K and me, Randy, and Anderson were so cozy in bed….we woke up and got dressed after the alarm went off. Randy and I kept saying, “should we just stay home today?”…well we didn’t and we were so glad that we got out of the house. To the Ceramic Festival!!!
We treated Anderson to a Burger King Breakfast picnic as we waiting for the bus that would be taking us on our 1.5 hour ride to Yeoju…”the Ceramic Capital of South Korea”. Anderson did great on the bus, he played and then slept the rest of the way. Again the sun was shining and it was the best day to be walking around shopping for pottery and soaking up some culture! On this trip Anderson was able to make a coaster out of clay! I was hoping to be able to spin my own vase on the wheel, but there was a long line of children ahead of me and Anderson was losing his patience so I settled at watching the demonstration. The Festival allowed children (and adults) to paint pottery and make pottery for purchase…we mostly watched since the tables were really full and Anderson was more interested in watching the other kids instead.
Part of the trip was supposed to include a ride on a sailboat! If you know Randy, you know that this is how I sold him on the idea of taking the trip, however; after viewing this so-called “sailboat” we decided against the ride. The sailboat looked like a ferry with one sail and a motor. Supposedly, it was depicted from some of the early designs of a sailboat ever made. We decided to make our way to the Buddhist Temple instead. Here we had to be quiet since there were people praying. I thought it was so interesting to see how they pray. Some of the woman laid with their heads down, while others were more active posing in a kneeling position and then to a standing position almost resembling a form of Yoga. At the Temple, Anderson loved seeing all the colorful lanterns hanging!
A sketch artist asked if he could sketch Anderson, informing us that it would only take 10 minutes. Twenty minutes later after trying to keep Anderson still and looking at the artist, with a bunch of bystanders staring and offering Anderson candy, the portrait was complete. We paid 30,000 won for a portrait that looked like Anderson with some Korean flair, but I figured it would make a great keepsake in his baby book.
Shopping in all the pottery shops, I couldn’t stop thinking about how much my mom would have loved it there! Some of the pottery was really expensive…the green ceramic pots and vases as well as the handmade china sets they were in the 200,000won range which is just under $200. Randy and I settled for a piece for our office since he is always collecting things from our travels. I wanted to load up on so many gifts but knowing that we would have to carry them as well as Anderson, I quickly decided against stocking up!
Anderson found refuge in the windmill park. They had a display of windmills of all different colors and sizes that the kids could run through…he loved it! A group of young girls came over to give him a sucker and take pictures with him…Anderson thanked them by blowing kisses! When Randy took Anderson’s hat off the girls reacted as if he was a male stripper ripping off his pants…something about his blond curls gets them hooting and hollering…Randy and I were cracking up!
At lunch, as we devoured some chicken on a stick, a young man kept bringing us free food. He was excited that we were from Chicago so he must have been there before! I was not impressed with the food but it is impolite to turn it down so I was glad Randy was there to eat it! He was chasing it with the chicken and a coke.
Things learned: Corn on the cob looks good but feels like wax and tastes like fishy water…yuk! Try to avoid eye contact near food tents in hopes that a friendly Korea doesn’t offer you free food you may not enjoy but are forced to eat! And when spending the day eating things that seem less than satisfying…a coke becomes your best friend and is easy comfort food!

Oh a Running we will go!!!

Ok so I guess I have a lot of catching up to do…well I wouldn’t normally, but we have done so much since I have made a post. Let’s just say we have been taking advantage of everything South Korea has to offer.

Saturday May 1st:

We woke early in the morning in order to run our 1^st 5K as a family! Since Jenny has gotten me hooked on running, it has been a vision of mine to recruit Randy and Anderson as well! When we arrived on post at the registration booth I began to panic as we notice we did not have any reflective gear which is essential when running on post, despite the fact that the sun was shining bright! Turned out they were supplying the vests for those who did not bring their own so we things were looking up! Well until we were told that we could not use headphones…right there I thought I was going to die. I had just reset my running playlist on my ipod and I rely on music to get me through the run. Feeling a bit defeated, I looked at Randy, who runs every morning and would not have minded sleeping in instead but was there for me, I decided to suck it up and use him as my motivation. Although there were many hills (even Randy said it was a tough course), and a group of soldiers singing behind me…I stayed with Randy for most of the time. We finished and I beat my last time by 2 minutes! Anderson slept through the whole run!

We went home after the race and got ready to leave for the bus stop in order to get to the train station! Anderson loved his first public bus ride, train ride, and taxi ride. Probably due to fact that he didn’t have to ride in a car seat! Our train tickets were double booked so we lost our seats so we decided to go into the dining car (which reminded us of when we were in Italy and during the transportation strike, we lost our seats then too). The dining car ended up giving us more room so we were pleased. I found it interesting that they had computers, massage chairs, and a karaoke booth on the train. When we got off the train we had some trouble getting a taxi to take us to Camp Garrison for the Wine Fest, but finally found one that understood and agreed to take us. The Wine Fest was lots of fun and Anderson slept through the beginning allowing Mommy and Daddy some time to enjoy tasting! Then we took Anderson outside to the Children’s festival they were having! He had a really good time. Then we bought some wine and took Anderson to the playground. Then hit rewind…taxi, train, bus and home sweet home! Oh but wait…before home we ate dinner and a Chinese restaurant we ate from the buffet and Anderson was over tired and I was not thrilled about the food, but the fried dumplings were the best! During dinner we were asked to move tables so that a family could sit together and as a sign of thanks they sent a box of French desserts over as a gift…how sweet!

Things learned: Taking public transportation with a toddler can be a great experience. I loved seeing Anderson get excited about what he was seeing. I am sure he does the same thing in the backseat of my car but I never get to be with him to point things out to him!

Anderson loves quiche…we had it at the Wine Fest.

Running without headphones on really allows a person to talk to themselves…I became my own motivational speakerJ

Things Confirmed: South Korea has the best playgrounds!