So like I said in my last post I don't have any new and exciting photos to share. But I will work on it this weekend and make up for it over time. Last weekend though was very exciting for us. Saturday morning we cleaned our apartment from head to toe -ceiling to floor- tried out our broom/mop and our washer and clothes line. After the first load we discovered we had to buy some softener. Andrew being the test rat, most of his clothes stayed in the same shape after the were done drying as they were hanging up.
That night we went to the sweet persimmon festival. We saw lots of different food to eat - fried silk worm larva, a whole pig being roasted, roasted chestnuts, chicken teriyaki (what I think was chicken anyways), many different ways to eat a hot dog, gyros, bean donut things, lots of fish, octopus, chinese food, and b-bimbop.
They had 4-5 different "pop singers" for staged entertainment that were being broadcast for tv. There were lots of people there for that. When one singer would arrive they would try to drive down the middle of the crowd to get to the stage. After a few attempts they would go to the shoulder and had much more success. People were also swarming the cars to see who was in them, and looking in with flashlights. We couldn't understand the singers at all but had a good laugh or two. The way korean singers perform would never fly back home. The background dancers extent of choreography was waving their arms in all different directions and jumping from side to side, while the singers just stood there. Comparing this to a lady gaga or brittni spears concert it feels like we traveled back in time to the 60's or 70's - maybe this is why Asians love Micheal Jackson so much.
We also had a lot to look at and buy. They had a 1,000 won sale (less than 1 dollar) where we bought lots of little things we needed for our apartment - rug, hangers, towels, hammer, nails, mugs. Kang (our friend) took us to make soap. I'm sure I was the only one over the age of 10 doing it, but it was fun and we learned that the "color sand stuff" was ash from a Japanese volcano. Andrew also bought little tea cups, not like american cups, to put all of our Korean change in. At the same vendor I purchased the one thing I wanted from Korea - an authentic Korean tea set; many pictures to come. I had about four to choose from but Andrew talked me into the nicest and more expensive one, but it was worth it. I believe it is white ceramic thrown on the wheel - because you can see the finger pull marks, and it's glazed in a snow white with a pink flower ornament. It came with one teapot, a teapot stand, small container with lid, 5 cups, a big bowl and a small bowl with spout. I drink tea, especially with my tea set, about once a day.
After our shopping experience at the festival we went home and rested for round two at the department store! The department store was about 30-45 mins away from Jinyeong in Changwon. Our director's husband's sister and husband took us to the E Mart. I must say I love E Mart, but not the business of them. It seems that everyone goes shopping at the E Mart on weekends. To give you a picture - imagine the day after Thanksgiving shopping, minus the sales. And only having to travel to one store, instead of going to all the stores. E Mart is like Ikea, Best Buy, JC Penny's, Target, Toys R Us, a small book store, and your local grocery store, all wrapped into one 3 story building with 6 levels of parking. Though you can't find American amenities such as incandescent light fixtures and memory foam, you can get wine from around the world and about a Target store filled with just kitchen supplies. We purchase end tables, a laundry basket, wine, cooking utensils, wine glasses, a tie, a broom, 2 clocks, Korean beer, a mirror and most important of all a rice cooker. Why is a rice cooker so important you ask, because I can not cook rice without burning it, due to our extremely high heat burners. A rice cooker is a very smart home appliance because "it just knows" how long to cook it for, it doesn't even have a timer! So after that shopping spree we felt little bit more at home.
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