We’ve been having such a restful and refreshing holiday. The time at the temple was so nice. The group of 12 people that we went with couldn’t have been nicer. Everyone was really chill and interested in really learning what we could about the monks’ way of life at the Buddhist monastery. We got to observe several chanting ceremonies and participate in meals, meditations, a walk up in the mountains, and we even got to do some Chinese calligraphy. We also drank a lot of tea in the outdoor pavilion. We went to bed at 9:30 p.m. and woke at 3:30 a.m. for a pre-dawn service. Our visit was the perfect mix of social, restful and educational.
I am not a Buddhist, but I was able to gain some insight into beauty. The woman who was our host was so gracious. She also told us about how they believe that the problems of the world can’t be solved by pointing fingers but by seeing that so much of the problem begins in “me”. This is something that we were just discussing in our book study a few days before. The more people I meet, the more I know it’s true that I have to dialogue with people of other faiths. I first learned this with my friends Serife and Sajee who come from other cultures and faiths. So often, their understanding can shed light on a principle I have known but found hard to grasp. It was a valuable experience. That was Tuesday and Wednesday.
Adam and I laid low at home on Wednesday night and most of Thursday. Thursday night, we went into Seoul with a big group of English Village people who stuck around for the Chuseok holiday. There were about 30 of us, and we went to a place called Carne Station. It’s an all-you-can-eat-all-you-can-drink place that, as the name suggests, is very heavy on the meat. It was a feast, and we got to know the brand new arrivals to EV, Melanie and Larry. Afterward, most of us went to a dance club. I’m not into clubbing, but it was fun to go dancing with some of our new friends. We actually went to Carne and the same dance cub with a huge group of EV people the first week we got here, and it was a debaucherous spectacle. I was a little uncomfortable with the scene, to put it mildly, but this Thursday night redeemed in my mind the Carne Station and dance club. This group of people was really laid back and mostly interested in spending time together, not getting sloshed. It was nice. It was a late night, so Adam and I stayed at a cheap hotel in Seoul and got eaten by mosquitos.
We’ve spent our time since then at home again taking it easy. We finished watching the last season of Alias last night which was a great accomplishment. I love that show. Sometime in the Spring, we started watching the DVDs of Alias, and except for some of Season 4 that we skipped because it sucked, we watched everything. I totally want to be Sydney Bristow except for the fact that she’s always fighting for her life. She’s awesome. And so are most of the characters. It’s a great show.
Today we went out on our bike a little bit, got some groceries, and we had our new friend Cheryl over for dinner. By the way, if you’re a dancer looking for ways to perform, you should buy her self-published book at www.DanceInfoSource.com. She’s great, and we had a great conversation about everything from America, travel, English Village, faith, God, sleep, family, food, Italy while we ate tofu, curried vegetables and rice. It was good to get to know her.
Adam is finishing a paper now. He’s doing really well with his school work, but he did get a little side-tracked this week since we were on Chuseok break. He’s almost done with his work though, and all with be well. I also talked to my mom on the phone briefly. Adam and I are so fortunate to come from such good families. Thanks, Mom and Dad.
Tomorrow, I get to go to church for once, since I have a Sunday off. That will be nice.
That’s all for now. Talk to you later.
-Jessica
