OMG y’all, I can’t believe it is already the end of June.  We arrived in Seoul around April 11th and it is almost July.  It is so crazy how fast our time here has flown by.  S and I have adjusted so well that we tell each other that we are “so Korean” hence the song “I’m so fancy.”  I have conquered the subway, the grocery store and the language barrier being frustrating… finally.  I realized that no matter how frustrated I get they won’t understand me so I just decided to deal with it.  I’m actually pretty lucky in Seoul because there are English teachers here and more Koreans speak English than the rest of the country.  S and I learned that you just say the important words and they can catch on to what you are saying.  We also have a translator on our phone that we have to use for certain things as well.  Yesterday, I was looking for dishwasher liquid; I put it in my translator and the man showed me right to it.

The language here is very hard.  I was told from a Korean friend that Korean is harder to learn than Japanese and Chinese.  There is no F sound in the Korean language which I found interesting.  S had a fan to come up to him in the subway and say “Pan, pan, pan” hence the no F sound.  I thought his name was Pan.  I also get confused about the pronunciation of Gangnam, where S and I live.  Koreans don’t use the G sound in this word, and it drives me crazy.  They say Gangnam with a K sound not a G sound so it’s spelt Gangnam but pronounced Kangnam.  I have no idea why either.  I think I’m doing good then I mispronounce the word.  Oh well at least I’m trying at this point.

S’s last off day, we went to Itaewon and went to eat at On the Border, massages at the Foot Shop and played virtual golf.

We got a couples back and foot massage.  The lady was pretty rough on my back at times, but it worked out the kinks.  S and I couldn’t quit laughing because the massages were so rough, and the ladies had no idea what we were saying.

I have always wanted to do the fish on the feet thing.  We asked the lady working what package we had to get to do the fish and she said it was free!  So obviously, S and I had to do it.

My parents came for 10 days and visited us last week.  It was great to have them here and to enjoy Seoul with us.  I took them to some of my favorite sites in Seoul, and they got to experience Korean baseball and Korean BBQ.

Of course, I had to take them to the Coex Mall with the Gangnam Style hands.

Selfies in the elevator at the Lotte Mall was a must and don’t forget the peace sign.  American girls do the skinny arm pose and Koreans do the peace sign… it’s a thing!

We took a night to relax and go bowling after S’s game got rained out!  It was a fun experience and the bowling alley was smaller than what I’m use to in the states.

When S went to work last Thursday, my parents and I went to the Changdeokgung Palace.  Kings and queens is so interesting to me.  I guess because America is not as old as other countries it just interest me in how these people lived their lives.  The details in the buildings are so beautiful that I just love looking at them.  I feel like someone has to be so talented to build these structures and the paintings are indescribably breath taking.

We were given a pamphlet on the palace and this is what it says.  The Changdeokgung Palace was loved more than any other place by the kings of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) because of the spacious and beautiful garden in the back.  Preserving the original topography garden areas were planted in each valley and a series of lotus ponds were built.  Small pavilions were also built along the stream that flows through the rear garden.  Through this, the natural quality of this Secret Garden has been enhanced.  Although, YeonGyeongDang Hall was built in the royal palace, its architectural structure and non-coloring style are close to those of gentry level.  These unadorned buildings add to the special atmosphere of the rear garden.

Simply amazing and gorgeous buildings.  Now,  next up is the Secret Garden.  We didn’t plan on doing the Secret Garden, but we came across the tour at the exact moment they were leaving and the tour guide was speaking English so we hopped right on it.

This is the information the pamphlet gave on the Secret Garden.  The Secret Garden was indented as a place of kings and royal family members to relax, but it was also a venue for a various outdoor activities.  The early Joseon kings would join in military exercises here and archery contests were held, among with banquets for the queen dowager, prominent relatives of the king and high-ranking ministers.  The king sometimes tried his own hand at planting and raising grains here, and queens would engage in sericulture.  The Secret Gardens take up almost 60% of the entire area of the Changdeokgung Palace, and in the old days even tigers would occasionally appear.  The beautiful sights are hidden in a series of valley, so the entire layout cannot be seen at once.  One must walk down into each of these valley to the pond and its pavilions in order to truly appreciate the beauty of the palace.

The building was built as a library for the prince and the king would go fishing in the pond.  They did a lot of reading back then and I’m assuming because they had no TV or radio.

The 2 side pictures are of the kings “fishing camp” building.  He would fish off of it and the middle is the gate to the library building.

Boy did we do some walking up and down hills through the “valleys” as they called them on the pamphlet.  (Where I come from we call those hills)  These are just more pictures of places the king and prince would go to get away and read, be alone or have guest with them as well.

This was our tour guide.  I give her props for walking up and down those hills all day and wearing this cute little Korean outfit.  She was so sweet and informative; I had to snap a picture with her.

By the time we left, we were so tired from all the walking.  We got a cab to get back to Gangnam, and it was the worst cab ride I have had since being in Seoul.  My parents and I both got headaches.  Mom and dad both started to feel light headed.  It was so bad I was having to hold on to the car handle above my head.  After everybody recovered, we were able to make it to the game that night!  We had a good visit from my parents and so glad they were able to set aside time to come visit.

S and I are steadily learning new things and really enjoying our time here in Seoul.  We are so thankful for the opportunity to be here and the prayers from everybody back home.  We feel truly blessed to be able to experience the world with S’s job.  S has played baseball in 4 different countries now, and we are loving every minute of the unforgettable memories we are making with his job.  If I can give any advice to couples who have been married less than 5 years is to enjoy each other and the time you have together.  Explore, travel and enjoy being married to your person God created for you.  Marriage is precious gift from God!

Thanks for reading,

XOXO,

HC