Memorials, Museums, and Soccer Matches

Friday was our day for dancing. Our morning lecture would include leaning some dance moves for a Korean dance. Unfortunately, we only did basic stuff, so I can't actually do a traditional Korean dance :( After dancing we played some basketball. It was an enjoyable game for sure. We hit up lunch, cleaned up, and headed for the techno-mart, a 9 story electronics superstore. We arrived at the massive techno-mart and commenced checking it out. I didn't purchase anything (because I don't need anything :p) but enjoyed seeing all the top notch Korean electronics! And the parking lot attendants were an interesting site (see photo). We headed to Insadong and looked for some food. And some dinner we found! We hit up a local spot that had some meat! We found a great place with great prices, and our group ate ribs, chicken, hot wings, and terayaki chicken. Because we were only 500 meters from the river walk we decided to head that way. The river walk was a newly constructed site and I must say it was a lot of fun. We spent some time enjoying the water and night lights, and headed back home. We had a free weekend, which lasted from Saturday to Sunday night. What was in store that weekend? Ken and I planned a day and ran with it!

Saturday was an absolutely wonderful day. Because we had the weekend free, my Kiwi (New Zealand) friend Ken and I decided to hit up some museums. The first (and one of the best I’ve ever been to) was the Korean War Memorial. This memorial was 3 floors, complete with pre-Korean War history, the war, and post war. It included sections dedicated to the South Koreans, the Marines, the UN, and everyone else involved in the war. You can see from the pictures how fascinating it was!

After the Korean War Memorial we hit up the National Museum of Korea. Unbeknownst to Ken and me, it was not quite what we were interested in seeing. It focused more on older history, including documents, pottery, and art. It was still a massive museum and nonetheless interesting. We finished up at the National Museum and headed to Dongdaemun, a nice place full of shopping (more gifts for the fam :p). We traveled from there to another local seafood market which was the biggest fish market I’ve ever seen. It went on for seemingly forever, but we eventually made it out. We then passed onto the textile market, and other markets that sold anything you could want, from shampoo to dishes!

By that time it was about 6 and Ken and I split ways. I headed back to SWU to recruit some soccer match hopefuls, but was rather unsuccessful. I was so determined to watch an FC Seoul (K League pro soccer match) game that I went by myself. I left at 7:30 and arrived at the game in my seat by the 20^th minute. It was my first professional soccer match, and it was an extraordinary event. The atmosphere, the fans, the whole thing was excellent. Not to mention where I sat. For 12,000 Won ($12) I got a ticket for “E” section (East side of the stadium). It wasn’t until half-time that I realized the seats were general seating. I sat on the 27^th row from the field in the first half, and for the last 45 minutes sat on the 7^th row. Yes people, 50 feet from the field for $12. Pretty smoking deal if you ask me! The game ended in a tie, which was alright as I was just happy to be there. The competition was good and I enjoyed myself immensely. It was only 10 after the match, so I decided I’d see some other stuff. There just so happened to be a HoMever store right next to the stadium (HoMever being my new favorite store :0). I spent about an hour in the massive building finding deals and taking my time. I left at about 11 and headed for the Ginjilbon to spend the night (The university closed at 11). I got there and met Ken and introduced him to the famous Ginjilbon. I spent an hour or so relaxing and enjoying myself before eating noodles and hitting the sac, which was a spot on the floor with a pillow.

Sunday was the day to visit the Yoido Full Gospel Church, also known as the largest church in the world. Interesting fact, Seoul claims to have 9 of the 10 largest churches in the world. This church has over 850,000 members! With satellite churches, 7 services a day and 26,000 people that can fit in the building, I’d say that’s pretty massive J Ken and I had a little miscommunication the next morning, and ended up attending the 1:30 service. We arrived late so went to the 3 o’clock. We left at about 5 and decided to visit the Gyeongbokgung Palace, the second largest in Seoul. It was raining, but who cares? Rain never hurt anyone! (Actually, according to Seoulites, the rain can damage your skin because it has chemicals that come from China). We enjoyed our palace visit, and after an exhausted day came back to the school to tell about our days adventures. That evening was relaxed, and consisted of recounting the weekend and relaxing. Monday was a most anticipated day, as it was sports day!

Thanks for reading, and as always I love those comments! 벤