Andong International Maskdance Festival

It was another exciting weekend for the Fletcher adventure. After Andrew’s soccer game (which he played really well in and I lost count of all the goals he scored) we went to the Andong International Maskdance Festival with Moonja, Jong Gun, Cindyjo, and Jonnie. The drive to Andong was gorgeous. The Korean countyside is bursting with beautiful valleys complete with rice paddies, rolling hills, and mountains. It is all still very green this time of year here. The weather has changed to fall and is just perfect in the low 70’s during the day and low 40’s at night. We are looking forward to all the marvelous fall colors to come out next month! Once we arrived in Andong we went and found a nice little place to eat. The kids and I tried some mussels and Mackerel. Andong is famous for its Mackerel so I wanted to give it a try. Joseph stuck with the pork BBQ! It was all yummy! After dinner we went and watched performances from all over the world in the special event part of the evening. The masks and costumes were elaborate and brilliant in all their colors. Mark’s favorite part was the dragon! Andrew’s favorite was the Tae Kwon Do mask-dance. He was very impressed as were the rest of us. Andrew and Mark both really enjoyed the whole evening. The final performance Saturday evening was called Good morning Mr. Heo. It depicts the legend of how the Maskdance started in Korea. It was a tremendous help to have Moonja and Jong Gun to translate the performance for us. I read about it last week but it was just fantastic to see it in person. We checked into our room around 11:30p and all collapsed into bed.
Sunday we got up and walked around Andong for a few hours. The little narrow alleyways reminded us of Europe. We also went through the large outdoor market. The kids were back to their superstar status here in Korea. One very nice lady gave each boy two chestnuts. They both attracted a lot of attention on this trip. It seems the father away from Seoul we go the more attention the boys attract. We made our way back to the Maskdance Festival and the kids all made their own masks. Our boys each picked out the nobleman mask. Joseph was far braver than myself and was in charge of helping Mark paint his mask. After a promising (cooperative) beginning, Mark became more and more determined to paint in his own way, which unfortunately included flinging paint on Joseph and everyone/everything around him. So, I ended up finishing Mark’s mask and cleaning up Joseph! Andrew did a super job on his mask! There were many other hands-on activities for the kids to do but we just picked that one. We then went over to the Maskdance Theater to watch the Sooyeong special performance. It was another incredible performance complete with “tigers.” We then went to the Puppet Theater to watch the Tears of God performance. We enjoyed the performance and were able to understand most of it. We then did a little souvenir shopping and ate a Korean style snack before it was time to make the journey home. We got home around 9:30p after a fun adventure to Andong. The festival is very large, has three different sites and lasts for ten days so we only saw a very small part of it. We thought about going back next weekend to see more but I think we will pass because we all need to recover. We might go back down in the next two months to the Hahoe Village because it was one area we did not get to see that we wanted to on this trip.

Life in the ROK

Friday night Joseph and I went on our second date since I arrived on the ROK. It was a double date with Owen and Lynniece…I hope they don’t get tired of hanging out with us! We all had dinner at the O’Club and then went over to see MAMA MIA! It was an amusing blast of a show. I’m glad we finally got to see it.
Saturday we got to talk to both sets of Grandparents which was good. Then we headed over to Andrew’s first soccer game here. It started raining just a little on the way over. They played anyway and made it until about half way though the game when it started thundering and pouring! Andrew played a great game and scored one goal, and his team was ahead three to zero when they called the game. The name of his team is the Gold Tigers and they played against the Purple Bombers. After the game we had planned on going to the Seoul Forest but given the rain we went with plan “B” and headed to Seoul to go to the National Museum which has a children’s museum. But unfortunately not only did the rain change our plans but the traffic was HORRIBLE! So, we got off the road and tried to go to the Flower Market but it was closed. So, we went over to a mall and got some ice cream to try to save part of the day. We had all had enough of sitting in traffic for over two hours for a trip that should taken 45 minutes and given the traffic we were still another hour away from where we wanted to go, YUCK! Anyway, I guess we were just not meant to make it to Seoul this past weekend. I did finish my book club book, which is good since our first meeting is this coming Wednesday. The book is titled The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. It is a great little read that I enjoyed more than I thought I would. It made me cry, laugh, pray, and think.

Sunday, the kids and I went to church and then out to lunch with Moonja and Jong Gun and their kids. We went to a yummy Chinese’s restaurant. We worked on our plans for this coming weekend’s activities in Andong at the International Maskdance festival. We can’t wait for the weekend to get here. Andrew went over to Moonja and Jong Gun’s home for a play date and Mark, Joseph and I had our own play date going grocery shopping, playing at the playground and going to a cookout. It was a relaxing Sunday!

4 & 9 Market

This morning we went for the first time to the 4 and 9 market in Songtan. It is called the 4 and 9 market because it is set up on any days with a 4 or 9 in them. Our friend Lynniece showed us around…it was massive! We did not get to see everything but we saw enough. I picked up what I needed to make my man his salsa, plus, red and yellow peppers at a great price. I took a few pictures before my battery gave up the battle. I’m sure I’ll go back and take more pictures of all the incredible sights. Thank you Lynnience…we are looking forward to going again!

Chuseok

This past weekend was Chuseok, a three day Korean holiday. Chuseok is Korea’s Harvest Moon Festival and is similar to our Thanksgiving. We did not venture too far from Osan AB because most places are closed and the highway traffic jams are a nightmare. Friday night we met up with our friends, the Evans, at the Osan Hospitality House for dinner and fellowship. Hospitality House is run by missionaries from Cadence International with the goal of “sharing the gospel and our lives with the military community.” They provide a safe alternative to the night life around Songtan and, might I add, loads of fun for military personal. Joseph is involved with a men’s Bible study run by Hospitality House also.

Saturday we got up and went on a walk around base. It was good to get out and get a little exercise as a family. We stopped by the commissary and the playground at the end of our walk. Back at home, we talked with Uncle David who lives near Houston. He was all ready for Hurricane Ike to hit. We also had a good talk with Grandma Titus. Saturday night Joseph and I went out on a double date with our friends Owen and Lynniece as well as one of our friends from Holloman AFB who is here without his family. We ate at a great little Thai place above the Volvo dealer. This is now the third Thai place we have eaten at in downtown Songtan and they have all been marvelous so far. There is one more to try if we get around to it. After eating, we walked around for a while and then stopped for dessert at a place called Melissa’s. It was a great little European style restaurant/bakery. We then headed back to Owen and Lynniece’s to pick up the boys. They had had a ball with Owen and Lynnience’s boys, Alexander and Zachary. So, it was an outstanding date night for everyone. We have another one planned already for Friday night!

Sunday we got up and went for a 6.5 mile walk around the flight line. Back at home, we talked with Grandma and Grandpa Fletcher to get the latest update on how David and family were holding up after Hurricane Ike came through. They have no city power but their generator is working great. They did not have water for a while but it is now back and running. Their house was not damaged as far as they can tell. After Mark’s afternoon nap we went on a lovely Sunday drive to the east of the base looking for the “11 mile lake” as it is called on base. The lake’s proper Korean name is Idongjeosuji. It is a striking lake surrounded by mountains and frequented by water-skiers. We then drove a bit farther to Gosamjeosuji Lake and spent most of our time exploring this area. I finally got a few pictures of the Lazy Boy type chairs around the lake with people fishing – it still makes me laugh! We spent some time walking around the edge of the lake watching people fish and enjoying the scenery of the nearby mountains and rice fields. On our way back we stopped at the Gosamjeosuji Lake dam and did some fun exploring with the kids. We also drove by interesting buildings on our way home, one with wonderful paintings all over it and another shaped like a pig! It was the finest Sunday drive I have been on in a long time!
Monday we spent a peaceful day together as a family. In the morning Andrew went with his Dad to Tae Kwon Do and Mark and I went to the playground. After lunch Mark napped and Joseph and I worked out and Andrew got some Webkinz time. Monday evening we went over to our friends, the Thomassees, for a wonderful potluck dinner. The kids had a blast playing and the adults had a fantastic time hanging out. We can’t wait to do it again!

PWOC

I just started a new Bible study with the PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) here at Osan AB. We are reading and studying Chip Ingram’s book God As He Longs For You To See Him. I just read the first twenty-seven pages today and was just amazed at how this book seems to go along with another book I’m reading and what God seems to be working out in me at this point in my life. Plus, I’m reading II Corinthians in the Bible this summer. One verse from II Corinthians (NIV) in chapter ten verse five in particular has hit home - We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. It has been a different kind of year this year to spend so much time apart as a family and it looks like Joseph will not be home until the end of March instead of the end of February. I am not complaining but trying to stay optimistic. I fully appreciate that other people have it much worse and a great deal harder. Anyway, I have been reading another great book by Henri J.M. Nouwen, a Dutch Roman Catholic priest, titled The Return of the Prodigal Son; a Story of Homecoming. It is a brilliant spiritual journey through Henri J.M. Nouwen’s analyzes of Rembrandt’s painting depicting the powerful Gospel story of the Prodigal Son. It was not hard to see parts of my life line up with the younger prodigal son but it was extraordinarily humbling to see myself as the older brother! Not something I really wanted to see or admit to myself or anyone else. It has been good to see my own misperception about myself even though I did not like what I saw. Both of these books have been challenging my misperceptions of who God really is according to the Bible, and helping me deal with the misperceptions my mind seems to come up with about the people God has blessed me with in my life. God has been really working on my thought life and helping me, along with the Holy Spirit, to take my thoughts captive and make them obedient to my Heavenly Father to love people the way God does. It has been freeing and difficult. I have felt God’s love energizing me to be able to love more genuinely and making me aware of the needs of those around me. I think this process will always be complicated and ongoing this side of Heaven.

Dinner with friends!

Sunday was another great day in Korea for our family. We started off with a fun trip to the playground before church. After church we stopped by the commissary for a few necessities before heading home for lunch and a little downtime before heading over to our Korean friends’ home for dinner. I made some brownies to take with us and they were a big hit! I think from now on we will be bringing brownies when invited over for dinner. The dinner was mouth-watering! We had bulgogi with many different types of lettuce and spicy red pepper paste. We also had cucumber kimchi made fresh by Moonja’s mother out of her garden that was scrumptious. Cucumber kimchi is our favorite! Moonja also made another wonderful Korean style salad that was delicious. We also had the most amazing grapes for dessert – they were the largest, juiciest grapes we had ever seen, some almost the size of small plums! I had to take a couple pictures of them before we ate them since they were so lovely, and they were delectable too! We also ate brownies and ice cream. The kids had a blast playing and for Joseph and I it was a wonderful evening of fellowship with our friends. We already started making plans for our next adventures together. Can’t wait!

Icheon Ceramics Village

This past Saturday we had the first adventure of our second trip to South Korea. We ended up going to the Icheon Ceramics Village. It was a dangerous choice with a two year old but we decided to risk it anyway. I’m so glad we did. The drive over was relaxing since I was not driving and Joseph was excited about getting out for a drive. We did get a late start so by the time we got there it was time to find a place for lunch. The first place we stopped at had only pictures of seafood, but seafood in Korea is often “interesting” and we were not up for that much adventure. So, we moved on to the next restaurant down the road. The place we found was marvelous but I have no idea what the name of the place was or the name of what we ate, but it was good anyway! And the boys had a ball watching the cook do his work out the window by our table. After lunch it was time to go to the Icheon Ceramics Village. We saw many gorgeous pieces of pottery. It was just a wonderful experience. We picked up two celadon vases with a lovely inlay pattern that included delicate white cranes. There were many very expensive pieces of pottery by famous Korean potters that were extremely enjoyable to get the chance to look at. Mark did not get to go into some of the pricier stores – we just did not want to take the chance! Joseph and Mark spent most of the time running around outside far away from breakable items and watching a construction site near by. Thank you Sweetheart! There were many kimchi pots (utilitarian pots used for pickling vegetables) to be found in many stores. These pots take on an attractiveness of their own when all lined up on display. Kimchi is a staple of the Korean diet. I can’t wait to go back and see all the stores we ran out of time to see! Once we got back to base it was time for the BBQ & Blues event outside the O’Club. The BBQ was very yummy. We all enjoyed it. Andrew and a ball at the bouncy castle and Mark loved playing the Korean style drum and dancing (bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce…) to the Blues! It was also fun to meet up with friends and get caught up. It is good to be in Korea!

back in Korea

Well, we made it safe and sound back to Korea for our second visit. The trip over went as efficiently as it could. Both boys did get some sleep on the second flight of our trip from Seattle to Seoul. I, however, was up for 37 hours straight—yuck! Andrew seems to be over the worst of the jetlag. He has already been to Everland (a very large amusement park) with our Korean friends. He had a ball. We plan to go again maybe next month as a family. Mark and I were just not up to it after only being here less than two days. Andrew starts soccer practice today and will have soccer games on Saturday mornings. He is also going to do AWANA which meets on Wednesdays. We are all feeling very blessed and happy to be back together as a family. It was hard to be apart for the summer. Yesterday was a very big and important day for our family—Joseph pinned on Lieutenant Colonel. We are all so thrilled for him and this next stage of his Air Force career. His boss Col. Harris pinned on one side and Andrew helped me pin on the other side. Mark, thankfully, fell asleep during Col. Harris’ speech (no offence Col. Harris!) and our friend Owen held Mark for us while his wife Lynniece took pictures. On the exercise front, I have been missing doing yoga on the Wii Fit in the afternoons. So, the boys and I have been doing some yoga moves for Dad (and making Dad laugh!). We have also been enjoying catching up with all our friends here in Korea. It is good to be back! We are planning another adventure for this coming Saturday so we will keep you posted.