jeju's jewels

this past tuesday we bussed with dan and angela from wonju to gwang-ju, and from there to mokpo, a fish-scented city by the sea. we met up with our former Bible School prof, John Gurnett (now preaching and teaching in seoul) as well as two of his friends -- matt and nicky. from mokpo we ferried for 5 hours to the palm tree studded, orange-sunkist island of jeju.

john arranged for us to stay at Jazz Village, a funky hardwood-floor, high-ceilinged, winding stair-cased resort which played soft jazz music daily. we rented a van and toured the island, with john as our very capable guide. he took the time to teach us how to read korean, to cook us elaborate breakfasts and barbecued suppers, and to lead us into the heart of jeju. we took so many pictures this is only one of three blogs dedicated to our Chusok adventure.

Chusok is the Korean rendition of Thanksgiving, celebrating the entrance of the full moon. it abides by the lunar calendar. all week, families are driving from home to home, dining and drinking in the moonlight. on friday afternoon, after taking the ferry back to mokpo, we were stunned by the millions of cars dimpling the highway. we traveled back to seoul with john, nicky and matt... it took 9 hours, instead of the usual 5. nonetheless, the elaborate rest stops along the way (decorated by bonsei trees and countless mini restaurants) as well as loads of sarcasm and lots of laughs helped us make it through.

trent and i crashed at john's place in seoul on saturday, then spent the day buying christmas gifts and clothes before taking the train home to wonju. it was a full week. today we bummed around home, doing laundry and daily things, preparing for a week's worth of teaching... praise God for rest stops like jeju. and jewels like john.