My Dad was in Korea: "that's different"

This will be the final post in the blog series about my dad being in Korea.  He helped me to write some of this before he left and it took me a few days to finalize it. Enjoy...

It was fun to see Korea through my dad's eyes.  He did a great job of embracing a new culture and being observant of the differences between life back home in America and life in Korea.  After you've lived in a place for a while you start to become desensitized to its intricacies, so it was fun to be reminded of various and unique aspects of Korea.  Here are a few things he noticed that were different:

1. U Turns happen everywhere and all the time while driving.

2. You park wherever you want (sidewalks, made up spaces, in front of other cars, etc).
3. Stopping at red lights can be optional (and the orientation of the light itself is different too). To quote my dad, "There are some lights you obey and some you don't.  How do you know which one is which?"

4. "Motorscooters dashing everywhere...on sidewalks, going the wrong direction, in between cars...forget about them worrying about lights."

5. Cars can be much smaller here.

6. Cars with the goofy mirrors on the back (these help in tight parking situations).

7. Almost all the cars have dented bumpers (see point #2 for why that might be the case).
8. Tacky bus decor.

9. McDonalds delivers and on cool little scooters!

10. Flatbed trucks instead of pickup trucks.

11. Gas pumps that come from the ceiling (you have to look closely to see them dangling down) and most gas stations are full service.

12.  So much honking--even while we're in the apartment you can hear honking all the time. 

13. Car elevators for parking 

14. Burial grounds scattered about the city.  These mounds are graves and literally you will see them in the most random places, like behind our apartment where this one is:

15. In the bathroom expect that there could be: no towels, a roll of toilet paper on the outside of the stalls for all to share, and a bar of soap on a stick.
16. Fancy bathrooms have toilets with buttons on the side (which are for heated seats and an electronic bidet).
17. Churches have neon crosses that light up at night. They are everywhere.
18. Common spaces in office buildings aren't heated.
19. Umbrella covers--these are handy for rainy days.  You just slip your umbrella in a plastic covering to prevent water from going everywhere.

20. Soda can sizes

21. Meal portions are smaller, in a good way.
22. Had to use chopsticks all the time.

23. Alleyways are everywhere: there are big streets and then there are these obscure alleyways with little shops and a black market feel.

24. Propane heaters inside restaurants

25. Big moving elevators: It's hard to see this in the picture, but if you look behind the tree you can see an elevator moving things into the apartment from the outside.  You just put your stuff on a platform and it carries it up to a window in your apartment.

 26. People are pleasant and polite--they say thank you all the time.

Surprisingly the list was longer, but these were some of his main observations.  If you live in Korea or have been to Korea is there anything you would add?

It's a boy!!!

This morning we had our 22 week ultrasound to see our little one.   And it's official that we're having a boy!  Well...it's "70% official" or so they said today.  The umbilical cord was actually down around the gender region, so it was a bit hard for them to tell but they're pretty sure it's a boy.  At our last ultrasound at 17 weeks they speculated it was a boy.  The conversation went something like this: 


Tech: It is a boy.
Us: Really?!?! Are you sure?
Tech: Yes, well, probably...
Us: What?
Tech: This is boy indicator (point to his penis on the sonogram).  But it is still early...
Us:  Oh...
Tech: But most likely boy. Should wait until next time to confirm.


So, we had our suspicions it was a boy but we wanted to wait until there was a bit more certainty.  The ultrasound today was very thorough and they said everything looked great at this point.  The ultrasound lasted for over 30 minutes and they recorded everything for us on a DVD!   Here is a fancy 4D picture of Little Meyer's head.  I annotated it down below in case it's hard to see what's going on.  There's a little baby boy in there!  

My dad is NOT in Korea anymore: Post 7

This afternoon we dropped my dad off at the airport so he could head back to the States.  He was flying standby, so it was a bit nerve wracking but he was able to make it on his flight and is currently crossing the Pacific Ocean.  I know that I will see him (and other family/friends) in a little over two months when we return June 2nd, but it was a bit sad to say goodbye.  We really loved having my dad spend the week with us.  It was so fun for us to have him see our lives here, and at the same time embrace Korean culture so openly.  He was such a risk taker and was always up for a Korean adventure.

Right after we got back to the apartment from the airport it suddenly started to rain and even snow! Crazy and unexpected! I guess Korea was a sad to see my dad go too.

Thanks for a great week Dad!

My Dad is in Korea: Post 6

The day started off with my dad noticing all the crazy traffic outside our apartment.  The headquarters of Samsung are about a mile from where we live, so traffic near our apartment can get congested.

 We also went for a morning stroll behind our apartment to show my dad the rice fields, which don't look all that great right now since its been wintery.

 Then we had brunch at Butterfingers.  This place is fantastic and serves a legitimate American style breakfast.

 Next we headed into Seoul to see Olympic Park.  Korea hosted the 1988 Olympics and this park has great walkways, artwork, stadiums, and monuments left over from the Olympics.   You can see in this picture that my dad started to really embrace Korean culture by throwing up a peace sign (classic Korean pose).

 After checking out some other parts of Seoul we ended up at On the Border.  Tom and I had gift certificates from a student to eat there so we ate a huge Mexican feast!

 For my Korean friends, we tried the On the Border at Apgujeong rather than the COEX mall.  It was nice, but it had to be the smallest On the Border ever created!!! Tom counted that they probably only had 50 seats (roughly 13 tables) between the patio and inside the restaurant.

 Here is our fearless leader driving us home.  Watching Tom read a map (on the iPhone) and navigate Seoul is like a work of art.  

My Dad is in Korea: Post 5

Today we went into Seoul again and took my dad to Namsan Tower, which is a high tower in the center of the city that overlooks all of Seoul.  We took a cable car up to the tower, which is where we got to see these old signal beacons and traditionally dressed men.

 We also got to show my dad the fences outside the tower with all the locks on it.  Couples buy locks and fasten them on the fence to signify their "endless love."  Tom and I have locks on there somewhere but we couldn't find them.

Then Tom and my dad went up the tower for a great view of the city.  It just goes on forever...

 After looking around for a while we rode a cable car down from the tower area.

 Next we stopped by Insadong, which is a Korean shopping area.

While we were there my dad bought a stamp that had his name engraved in it, both in English and in Korean.

 Tom didn't do much shopping but he did eat up this Korean treat.  It's kind of like an inside out pancake; it tastes like a funnel cake on the outside but has a brown sugar/syrupy substance in the middle.

I think our shopping trip was a success, as evidence by the bags my dad ended up with.

We ended the evening at Pho Mein, a Vietnamese restaurant that Tom and I regularly frequent. 

 My dad opted for the tasty Cashew Chicken.

 After dinner we watched "Waiting for Superman" which is a documentary about the American education system.  Although slightly depressing in some ways, I really enjoyed watching it and feel more inspired to do my job well.

My Dad is in Korea: Post 4

We've had a busy few days so today we decided to have a slow morning.  After sleeping in, relaxing, and eating a bit of lunch we headed out to the traditional Korean Folk Village.  The only way I could think to describe this to my dad before he saw it was to compare it to those reproduced old western towns in the states that still pretend its the 1800's, but this is like the old school Korean version.  If that analogy makes no sense, have no fear...just look at the pictures below.  Everything you see if a replica of an older, traditional Korean village.

The folk village is quite large so this picture is just a small part of the village.  You just meander around and look at the various houses, people, and buildings.

Some of the houses had staged scenes.

 My dad sitting in front of a wealthier home.

 This lady has the goofiest expression!  I think she's making kimchi.  I made my dad pose next to her.

 This was a real person weaving baskets in one of the huts.

 Me in front of the shrine to the "dutiful wife."  I felt like this was fitting.  :-)

 In one part of the village they were filming a movie!  All these people were staged for a scene they were filming.

 We also got to see a traditional dancing/music show.

 Classic Korean pose:

 Inside a Buddhist temple.

 Hitting the big bell by the temple area.

 Kimchi pots!!! Kimchi is fermented cabbage that is a popular Korean dish.  These kimchi pots act like refrigerators so the kimchi can sit in there and ferment over time.

 Danger: "The old and infirm and pregnant do not cross the bridge please."

 Don't tell a pregnant lady what she can and can't do!

 Funny statue from Jeju-do (a southern island of Korea).

 We also got to see a horse show! It was probably my favorite part.

 After the folk village we had an afternoon snack of mandu.  These are dumplings filled with pork and other tasty things.  We had two varieties; one steamed and one fried.

 My dad has been awesome at trying Korean food!  He said that so far we haven't led him too far astray.

 Lastly, we had galbi for dinner.  Slices of meat are given to us and we cook them in the middle of the table and eat them with numerous side dishes.  This is one of our favorite meals.

My dad liked this meal too! And he's getting pretty good at those chopsticks.