Mokpo

Hello! K, here. It's been a very restful weekend here after a rather full week so I'll give you the bullet points you might find interesting.

First of all, we made our first trip to Mokpo, a costal city on the other side of the lower peninsula. It is, interestingly, where J came during his first teaching trip to Korea and is the place that sold him on coming back for a full time teaching position. We were only in town overnight, so it was a brief visit, but the city offered a few restaurants with a genuine western style brunch, so we were happy. The night before that, however, we learned that there is a sizable population of foreigners in Mokpo, so we met up at a western style bar for cocktails. While we often want to experience Korea when we make trips, just as often, we want to go somewhere big enough to offer a little piece of home (English road signs, western food, a friends who you don't have to remember to bow to). We did, of course, have a little fun with the unique  things that the city has to offer, and enjoyed a water show on the ocean with lights and music. They played pop songs, Disney songs, and classics while synchronizing floating water shoots to spray music and light into the air. It was pretty nifty. Fortunately, too, the show happens multiple times a night, rather late, so that the audience can beat the heat. Because, boy has it been hot! It is the rainy season here to boot, so we've got 100% humidity and 30+ degree temperatures daily, and it doesn't cool off but a few degrees at night. Needless to say, we don't go out mid-day if we don't have to. Walking outside honestly feels like walking into the turtle habitat at the zoo. You know, the one where they pump steam into a greenhouse type box to keep those tropical animals happy?

A benefit of the heat, though, is that I've got the urge to make summer-y foods. And since I haven't mastered nengmyeon (Korean ice noodles), that means deviled eggs, salads, and sweet tea when I can get my hands on actual black tea. If you've read previous posts, you might remember that we visited a green tea field and that green tea is a national beverage. Black tea, on the other hand, is almost non-existent in grocery stores. It is easy enough to find in nice coffee shops, but forget stocking it in the home. That being said, I was thrilled to find a grocery store stocking variety packs of Twinnings tea as a sort of "exotic import." So I bought up enough boxes to take the couple black tea bags out of each and make two liters of sweet tea. It was a hit! As we round the corner between our first and second year here, we are in that place where we miss tastes of home like crazy, and aren't close enough to leaving to be savoring the tastes of Korea before we go. As I write these posts I often envy the little things I imagine you all back stateside might be doing as you read along. Munching on a scone, sitting there with family watching the kids grow up, or letting the dog out in the morning.

Enjoy those moments for us till we come home. Have a great week, everyone.
-K