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Tradition, Culture, and everyday life...

We are outsiders looking in on this beautiful country filled with tradition and fascinating history. We immerse ourselves in the Korean experience, yet we still only get a glimpse of what truly is a “Dynamic Korea”.

The first few days of this experience have been filled with exploration and learning. The National Folk Museum of Korea located inside Gyeongbok Palace gave us a glimpse of the lifestyle, traditions and culture of Korea from different periods of time. The National Museum, Korea’s largest museum, displays artifacts and national treasures that tell the story of the people and culture of Korea. But, among all of these beautiful artifacts, I found myself surrounded by something even more precious, two Korean families who we met and who shared with us a bit of their lives. The children of these two families were very polite and very eager to learn English from us. I was just as eager to learn from them. My most pleasurable experience with these families was our tour of the National Museum. Kelly and I challenged 8 year old Seong to a scavenger hunt of Korea’s national treasures. He was thrilled when he found one of the many artifacts listed on the museum map, and were amused by his excitement and 8-year-old energy.

We had many wonderful meals during our first few days in Korea in the area around Sinchon & Ewha University as well as in Itaewon, an area very near the US Army base and an area very popular with foreign tourists. Also, thanks to Sarah’s wonderful communication and navigational skills, we explored other areas of the city such as Insadong, an area filled with handicraft shops, narrow alleys with tea shops, restaurants and beautiful old buildings.

posted by Rebecca @ 5:28 PM