長城 - The Great Wall

-Dad hiking the Great Wall of China. Notice the great MEC backpack!-

Stretching over 6,700 km in total, the Great Wall is one of the most recognized structures on Earth. Built between 200 BC and1600, its intent was to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire from unwelcome invaders.

-The Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall, China.-

-Mom and I posing by an old canon that was used to ward off enemies from the north.-

It is said that at one time the Wall was guarded by more than one million men. It is also recorded that an estimated 2 - 3 million Chinese died while pursuing the completion of the many sections of this magnificent wall.

-The top of this section of the Great Wall. Look how steep the stairs are!-

-The Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall, China.-

After a two hour drive from Beijing's city center, we were excited and filled with anticipation as we reached the base of the lofty, rugged mountains on which the Wall is perched. As we stepped out of the taxi we were greeted by hundreds of desperate vendors. We pushed on to the gondola, amidst the commotion, and looked up to see the ancient Wall stretching as far as we could see.

-Mom and Dad standing on the Great Wall of China.-

-The Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall, China.-

None of us were disappointed. Unlike other over-touristy areas of the Great Wall, Mutianyu was relatively unvisited. Once reaching the Wall and leaving the noisy sellers behind, much of the day we hiked in relative solitude. We found the day to be an amazing time to take in where we were and what we were doing.

-The Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall, China.-

-The un-restored section of The Great Wall.-

Mutianyu, the section that we visited, began in the southeast and snakes on towards the Northwest for approximately 2.25 kilometers. While most of it has been restored, the end section at the peak of the highest mountain has been virtually untouched for hundreds of years.

-We figured that they would build both sides of the wall and then fill it with rubble. This would account for what you see in this picture.-

-One of the few vendors, who was actually on the Great Wall, packing it in for the night.-

Wikipedia: Great Wall of China at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_great_wall

The Whirl-wind that was China!

-Mao, a Chinese soldier and a monk posing in front of Tian'an Gate, Beijing, China.-

A few weeks ago I was handed the opportunity of a life time. While sitting in a Red Mango, a Korea frozen yogurt shop, one of my co-workers, Matilda and I began to talk about my parent's fast approaching trip to Seoul.

Upon learning that my parents would be visiting Beijing, China right when our school was set to have mid-terms, Matilda devised a plan to have me released from my teaching duties so that I could join them on their travels. Much to my delight early the next morning she promptly proceeded to ask the principal and vice principal if I could have the time off to voyage to China with my parents. And, by the time that noon rolled around I had a ticket to China, a visa in process, a hotel to stay in and a permanent smile on my face.

-A hotel near Tienanmen Square, Beijing, China.-

Needless to say, I was elated! What a change from last year's work schedule when we worked every Korean national holiday and some Saturdays too. I love Korean public schools and I especially love Beijing in the spring!!!!

Ma and Pa's Fantastic Asian Trip

Ma and Pa Olson here...

SINGAPORE & THAILAND
We left our cool Saskatchewan climate on April 29, destination, Thailand and South Korea. Flying time to Phuket, Thailand was almost 23 hours with a night stop over in Singapore. Singapore was a beautiful city and we wished we had booked in for a couple more days.

-Going for a dip in Phuket, Thailand.-

Thailand, on the other hand, was hot, very hot. We did a couple tours, the first was a speed boat tour to Phang Nga Bay, James Bond Island and Khai Island. We also did the touristy elephant ride which we really enjoyed.

-Cashews in the trees on a Farm in Thailand.-

The rest of time we spent taking in the culture in Patong and surrounding areas, it really was a culture shock. We enjoyed the food and restaurant in Phuket but it’s debatable whether we would go back.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
The next leg of our journey was Seoul, South Korea to visit with Trevor and Rachel. What a huge city, but so different from what we expected. The city is a mix of old and new and everywhere you turn is something different. Even back allies are lined with little shops and different smells, some better than others.

-Posing at the royal palace, Gyungbuk Gung, Seoul.-

Trevor and Rachel kept us busy with all the different attractions that the city has to offer, we weren’t sure if where we were going was for food or to a tourist place. They took us to a traditional theatre, it was amazing, and also to a performance called Jump. We went to markets, palaces, and to the down town area where there was lots of activity.

- Trev and Rach eating dalk galbi, a kind of spicy stir-fry.-

It’s hard to pick a highlight it was all great, but Dr. Fish was definitely the most unusual, imagine hundreds of little fish nibbling your feet, and paying for them to do it. All in all, it was a wonderful visit and a great time. Thanks Trev and Rach, we had a blast.

-Oddest pedicure, Dr. Fish, Seoul,-

Favorite Places: Cheon-gye Cheon and Chong Dong Theatre.

-Taking in the paper lanterns on Chung-gye Cheon, Seoul.-

Least Favorite Thing: Crowds!!!!

-The crowds on this holiday weekend, Buddhas Birthday were incredible.-

Favorite Food: Dwaji Galbi, BBQ pork.

-Delicious marinated pork wrapped in lettuce leaf.-

Favorite Goofy Korean Pose:

-Posing at Gyung-buk Gong, Seoul.-

A Little Taste...

-Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China-

Recently, our blogs have been few and far between. Apologizes.

-The Great Wall, China-

We have been on the run. On and off planes like their taxis, in and out of tourist attractions like we live there and we've had visitors coming out our ears. As we still do not have time to give you the full update that we want to and will... eventually, here is a teaser; a small taste of what we have been up to. Enjoy.

-Halla Mountain, Jeju Island, Korea-

-O'Sulloc Tea Fields, Jeju Island, Korea-

-Azeleas, Jeju Island, Korea-

-Halla Mountain, Jeju Island, Korea-

Wild Adventures of the Fifth Grade

- The Korean version of a ladybug. -

There we were... six teachers and four bus loads of kids.
Introducing them to dirt and bugs, something they have never seen in their concrete life.
This was not a pursuit to be taken lightly as the following pictures indicate.

- Jae Won and a friend. -

- Grade 5 boys -

- When the talk on the species of trees get a little dry... -

- Yet, some find entertainment in anything. -

- Fishing for tadpoles. -

화성 (Brilliant Fortress)

(Weeping Cherry Tree - Janganmun 'north gate')

This past week we were fortunate enough to experience what the Koreans call a sandwich day, or a day off in the middle of the week. So, wanting to take full advantage of our holiday, few and far between as they are, we rounded up a group of friends and we all headed down to the brilliant Hwaseong fortress in Suwon, a city 48 km south of Seoul.

(Cross-bow Tower - Rachel, Bridgette, Alison, Jeff, Nate, Jess, and Alicia)

('Romantic' Korean poses under the cherry trees - Alicia, Jess, Bridgette, Alison, Rachel and Vanessa)

Interesting Facts -

• Hwaseong was built from 1794 to 1796 by King Jeongjo, who is featured on the header of our blog.
• King Jeongjo constructed the fortress to honor and house the remains of his father, Prince Sado, who was forced to commit suicide by being shut in a rice chest by the previous King.
• The wall is 6 kilometers in length and four to six meters high.
• The wall took 700,000 man-hours to build.
• It cost the national treasury 870,000 nyang, the currency at the time, and 1,500 sacks of rice to pay the workers.
• King Jeongjo put so much time and effort into the construction of Hwaseong because it was his intent to make Suwon the capital city of Korea. This obviously failed.
  
• The fortress was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage site in 1997.

(Only in Korea!!)

(Shhh... don't tell Jen!)

Please note that we do not always pose in such ridiculous manners. We are sporting these stances in the name of education. We are attempting to illustrate and help you to further understand the culture and society that we live within everyday. 'Innocent' and 'romantic' poses are a way of life in Korea. Image is everything over here. These poses say it all.

(They have such small doorways over here.)

(Changnyongmun 'east gate' - Rachel, Jess, Alison, Bridgette, Erik and Alicia)

To find out more check out wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hwaseong_Fortress

Kimchi

As Spring has now arrived in Seoul it seems that everything is getting cleaned out, prepped up or cut off. Kimchi's mane is no exception. A few weeks ago, we took him to the vet to get his tri-annual haircut. When we dropped him off he looked like an old man. Well, actually he looked more like a professor. With his shaggy unkempt hair covering his dark little eyes and his beard so long it trapped almost anything that dared venture near, professor, as a few of our friends like to call him, was a very fitting name.

When we ventured down to the vets to pick Kimchi up, we were shocked to find that the groomer had changed our little professor into the adorable dog that we now call Jenny. Long flowing ears and a curly soft tail, all he needs to complete the look are two pink bows and a stuck up attitude.

Yet, no matter his 'do' we sure love him.