Tradition Mission

When you live and work in Korea, it doesn't take long for you to realize how hospitable and generous the local people are towards their visitors.  The Office of Education are constantly sending out emails offering EPIK teachers free tickets for certain shows, free dinners, and free trips that are seen as ways to reciprocate the service that we are providing for their children.  If they see me standing at the front of the class explaining to confused kids why I have foolishly decided to refrain from shaving my pathetic upper-lip growth for the month of November as a great service to their country then let the freebies roll-on.  I am more than happy to embarrass myself and suffer the pointing and the giggling if it means I can go on trips like the one I took a couple of weeks ago to the historical town of Gyeongju on the Eastern side of the peninsula.  Dubbed a cultural field-trip it certainly lived up to its name and allowed me to get stuck in to some Korean culture!


The large group of teachers set out on Friday morning (yes, we were given the day off as well!) and took a bus to the city of Gyeongju where we were split into two groups and marched with military precision to a nice restaurant and fed traditional Korean food.  It was here that we met our tour guide for the next two days; an out-of-place looking Israeli man wearing what can only be described as pajamas and a straw boater.  As if being the only non-Asian tour guide wasn't enough, being the only one in pajamas made him stick out like a non-Asian tour guide in a group of Asian tour guides.  He was very knowledgeable about the surrounding areas which were the cradle to Shilla dynasty that ruled Korea from 668 to 935 AD.  Needless to say, there was a lot of history in the area ranging from the tombs of kings to Buddhist temples and pagodas.

We took a walk around a Daereungwon Tomb Complex where a few of these famous royal tombs are situated.  The park has an almost eerie feel to it given that only one of the 23 tombs have been excavated leaving a lot to the imagination of the secrets buried within.  The tombs are perfectly round mounds of grass poking out of the ground that make you wonder if it was the set of where the Telly-Tubbies was filmed.  After consulting the tour-guide, we found our query to be unfounded.  Seriously though, it was a really interesting part of the trip and hearing the stories of some of the royals thought to be buried under these mounds only added to the mystery.

We were then put to work by learning to craft traditional soap made with broccoli and scented with apple oil, making ink prints of temples on fine paper, and decorating pencil cases.  A large group of foreigners pumping out these trinkets in groups of 30 made me wonder if we would get to keep them or see them for sale in the gift-shop on the way out.  Certainly, the fact that I strayed away from the procedure and tried to get creative with my pencil box design was met with utter disdain from the ladies working at the cultural centre only until they saw the finished product when they gave me a ooooohhhh and two thumbs up.  I think this is further evidence of the collectivist culture where individuality is almost seen as disruptive and certainly not encouraged.

We were then taken to a nice temple complex outside the city named Bulguksa.  The surrounding ground were gorgeous and the insight of our guides really gave the tour value.  Simply appreciating the aesthetics of the temple would be enough but their input gave us the background of certain parts of the temple and the rituals of the monks that lived there.  These temples are always built with interlocking wooden pieces without using a single nail.  How cool is that?  Also, the roof tiles come in two shapes; male and female representing the balance of nature.  The capping tiles on the eaves of the roof have a circular disk that usually have something moulded into them like a flower or a face.  In fact, they say that the faces on these tiles was the inspiration for the logo of the electronics company LG.

As if that wasn't enough for one day, after dinner we were given lanterns to write wishes on and taken past Cheomseongdae Observatory, the oldest existing astronomical observatory in Asia (built during the reign of Shilla Queen Seon-deok AD 632-647) to Anapji pond.  We all strolled around the perimeter of the pond in a moonlit procession.  It was a really cool experience and gave me a chance to think of all the things I was thankful for and that I wished for in the future.  Having just found out that day that Louise was coming to Daegu, I certainly had lots to think about. 

The next morning we were back at it again, flying kites in the park with our personal zodiac sign printed on them (I am a snake).  I realized that it was my first time flying a kite in my life!  We were then taken to a cultural centre outside the city where we heard a band playing traditional Korean instruments.  They taught us a couple of songs to yodel along to.  To be honest, I don't find the traditional singing the most pleasing to the ear but I appreciate the fact that these songs have been passed down through the oral tradition.  However, sometimes I wonder if they are making it up as they go along and essentially pulling the wool over the eyes of awestruck foreign onlookers.  They did, however, get the crowd going with a couple of renditions of Beatles classics Obla-dee Obla-da, Hey Jude, Let It Be and even broke out into LaBamba, all on traditional instruments.

We were then split into groups and taught the art of Taekkyeon, a martial art that has elements of dance to it making it very graceful yet lethal.  We also played a few Korean games, made rice cakes, and learned all of the etiquette of a Korean tea ceremony such as the proper way to bow for each gender and the order of mixing and pouring teas.  It was a methodical process, steeped in tradition (pun absolutely intended).

The trip ended at the beach where the wind had kicked up and a man was flying a super-kite made of 60 kites attached together that climbed and climbed into the sky.  The blustery ocean-scape was a serene end to what was a fantastic weekend where I learned a lot and became closer with some of the other teachers in Daegu.

Louise has arrived safely, and while my posts are two weeks in lag-time, I am sure they will catch up soon enough and I will be able to fill you in on some of the adventures we will be having together over the next three months!

Hope everyone reading is in good health and spirit and thanks again for tuning in!
Much Love
D