After bathing over a wash
basin (which consisted of nothing more than ladling warm water from
a large bowl and pouring it over my head) and sleeping on the
hardwood floor with all the Korean boys Sunday night, I arose when the rooster
crowed. That is no metaphor, the obnoxious rooster actually woke me
around 5:45 in the morning. The thought of rolling over and attempting to go back
to sleep momentarily crossed my mind but then I quickly realized that
that'd be foolish. When else would I be able to watch the rising sun
over the mountains of the Korean countryside? I grabbed my camera
and tip-toed over the countless sleeping bodies strewn about and made
it outside only to discover that it was cold and densely foggy. I was
prepared for neither, but it made for interesting photo
opportunities. I decided that some fresh rice grain and a persimmon
would make for a good breakfast and I was correct on only one of
those. The rice grain pulled from the stalks tasted great, however I
ruined my mouth for the next hour by biting into what I thought
looked like a ripe persimmon. Don't know what I'm talking about?
Give a green persimmon a try one day.
When taking pictures, Koreans love the peace sign and saying "1, 2, 3...Cheese! KIMCHI!"
I return back to the house
to find most of the family awake and preparing breakfast. Sausage,
French toast, scrambled eggs, and bacon, you ask? Nope...clams,
pork, onions, kimchi, and more kimchi – like always. We ate and I
was then informed that we'd be taking a trip to a nearby Buddhist
temple. You can imagine my excitement, and after spending the day
there picnicking on fruit (Buddhist monks follow a strict vegan diet
as not to harm any other living things so that diet must be followed
while on the village's ground), it surpassed every expectation that I
had.
What I'll leave you with
are the photos from that wonderful Monday. I'm incredibly grateful
that I was able to experience all that is Chuseok. I believe I left
a good impression upon my friend's family as I was asked to be in a
family-style portrait that was taken to be hung up on the wall. I
was also told by the men, women, and children of the village that I
was "very handsome" so many times you'd think I was Brad
freakin' Pitt. Finally, I was invited back to celebrate the second
most important holiday in Korea – Lunar New Years. How could I say
no?! So here's to ringing in the year of the snake in 2013, lunar
style!
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