Blast from the Past--Going back to my old sites

New Construction of a traditional house

On Wednesday we took the bullet train to Daegu. I was disappointed that it didn't feel that fast. We had a guide assigned to us and he took care of everything. He even bought John a can of Pringles. My former co-teacher lives in Daegu so we were meeting her but first her husband for sightseeing. (she had to work) It was raining as usual. We visited the house of one of his friends that was being built  in the traditional Korean style. 

Teahouse with my co-teacher and her husband

In the evening I finally met again with my co-teacher Chae EunYoung. We had been corresponding off and on for thirty years but this was the first time we had met since we were 23 years old. We had the usual Healthy Korean meal. We had the typical dessert which was a bowl of sweetened water with some rice in it. No wonder Koreans are thinner than Americans. After we drove out into the countryside to a private teahouse that one of her friends built. I guess if you are a Korean with a house in the country and a little money, you build a teahouse for you and your friends to enjoy.

The next day we went to my old hometown, Sangju. I had my old address so we actually found my house. The courtyard and outhouse were gone but I recognized it.  Then we went to my old school. One of my friends who was my Korean language tutor still worked there. She was surprised to see that I didn't look  like a "grandmother" and that I was much thinner than she remembered! 

The school was very modern; we looked at the computer room and then went into some English classes. The girls were fascinated by John. They had no questions for me only for him.  They wanted to know his name, his age, whether he had a girlfriend, his hobbies, and if his hair was naturally curly. Every word he spoke made them gasp in delight. When he waved to one of them in the cafeteria, she almost collapsed with excitement. We had lunch with the students in the cafeteria.

Don't you love the sign?

Computer room

Eating lunch in the cafeteria