A Trip to the "Blue House"

First I'd like to congratulate one of my closest friends from Wooster, Ohio, Molly, on now becoming Mrs. Corey Sipos! Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the glorious festivities last evening, however due to mobile text updates from my siblings Rachel and Chris, it almost felt as if I were there. Best of luck to them both as they head to San Juan, Puerto Rico for their honeymoon this week!

Secondly, my flight has been booked and I will return to the rural Ohio parts on September 4th! I couldn't be more excited to see my friends and family! This next week will be very busy, but then I will have a week vacation and will return to Busan with my friend Anna. There are many places in Korea that I'm sure are fabulous to visit, but Anna really wants to see Busan and I am not picky, other than my need for sun rays and a piña colada.

Due to the fact that my previous entry significantly lacked photos, I will attempt to compensate and show you what on earth I've been up to the past month...

Armadillo class took a field trip to the "Dibo" Museum. Dibo is a Korean cartoon dinosaur and I cannot pronounce his name correctly. When we first arrived, my students made crafts at the table as they are nicely seated. After crafts, Dibo has a special dance that he taught the children and they were precious as they shimmied in movements similar to Dibo and Friends.

Armadillo class is precious, yet I welcome the upcoming vacation with open arms. And with even wider arms, I welcome the end of my contract. I have one student in particular who loves to scream at the top of his lungs, punch other students, speak Korean while at English school and ignore my directions. This sweet boy's mother told my Korean co-teacher that her son needs love from the teacher in order for him to behave properly. My health is now declining, I get daily migraines and I am ready to never teach another day of my life :)

While in Seoul, I have made some really great friends! In this photo, I am pictured with my friends Jayoung, Leo and Anna.

I met Jayoung at a yoga class close to when I arrived to Korea. She teaches piano and yoga. Leo is a ship engineer and has been friends with Jayoung for many years. I met him at the same yoga class, as he attended not only for means of physical fitness, but to meet women. Unfortunately, I think Leo's membership expired before he was able to meet his future wife. Anna is a friend that I met while at our mutual friend, Erwin's, birthday party in April. Anna is from Illinois and attended university with several friends of mine. She and I will take a short trip together over break and will do our best to steer clear of kindergarten-aged children while in Busan.

While Seoul is a city located in the extreme eastern parts of the world, Mexico is represented of course! A few weekends ago, Anna and I went to see a mariachi band that plays at events in Seoul. The men immediately became my amigos and so we took a photo together. All of the musicians are from Mexico City and they dedicated a song or two to me. I'm certain that my allegiance to Mexico and working knowledge of Spanish were primary factors.

This weekend, I visited "Cheong Wa Dae," with two American teachers and two Korean teachers. It is the home and office compound of President Lee Myung-bak. As we have the White House, it is also referred to as the "Blue House." Documentation of this adventure is as follows:

This is the main office at Cheong Wa Dae. This building essentially houses the office of the president and an array of function rooms. It was finished in 1991 and due to the blue tiles on the roof, this is the "Blue House" of the presidential compound.
This large gray building is Yeongbingwan. This building holds presidential guest gatherings. Inside, it looks like a large ballroom on the first floor. Prior to this building's existance, the events were held in hotels in Seoul, but there was much "discomfort to the citizens and security hazards," so, this was built.
The building that seems to be covered by trees is the Sang Chun Jae ("Ever Spring") House. In this house, the president hosts unofficial meetings and dinners for small groups and foreign dignitaries.

Next to the Blue House, are shrines to the tablets of concubines for previous rulers. The architecture and details of the buildings are spectacular! Enjoy the photos and have a great week!