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Last week the Holt adoptees in the Homecoming Program gathered together for a going away dinner for Susie who returned to MN.  Her homestay mom gave her a "fusion hanbok" and she wore it...it was so pretty.  While Susie has been here, she has trained for and run in at least two marathons.  Her boyfriend even decided to begin training and he ran in one marathon...incredible.  The dinner was great...we ate galbi...which is grilled meat (nicely seasoned) side dishes of kimchi, lettuce leaves to wrap the meat in, pickled onions, soup, garlic (they eat lots of garlic here...yum).  The meat is grilled on the table in front of us.  The grill is placed over a pan of really hot coals.  There was a little ventilation device in the middle to suck out the smoke from the grill, but it wasn't working very well.  Once the meat is nearly cooked, the server comes over with her utility scissors and cuts the meat into small pieces...so it can be eaten with chopsticks.  Scissors and tongs are almost always available at places where you have to grill your food.  This is very typical of how you eat out. This place also gave the ladies aprons to cover their clothes...the guys just had to try to be neat.

Last night was Korea's first game in the World Cup, so the whole country found places to watch the game.  In Seoul there were several large outdoor venues that had live entertainment before the game and then played the game on a huge screen.  The pre-game coverage showed the crowds there...all wearing rain ponchos, dripping wet...it didn't look like much fun.  I'm glad we chose a restaurant for our viewing pleasure.  I met two adoptees that currently live and volunteer at Ilsan Town...Holt's places for the handicapped orphans.



Before Martin and Melinda arrived, I walked around a bit and the city had a pep rally set up, singing going on, they were giving away these plastic inflatable "sticks" used to beat together for cheering...so I picked up a couple for us.  We definitely used them...they came in handy!  I went out on Friday night looking for a good place and found this one...it was perfect!  It's one of the few places that has TVs in their restaurant and plays sports...some of them have monitors that only play music and music videos. The tables looked like they were made out of wooden crates and they used milk crates as seats...added cushions on top.  There is a little drawer on each side of the table that holds napkins and a box with chopsticks and spoons (there is a box like this at every restaurant you visit...usually on top of the table.)  The cushions came off which  was handy for stashing our umbrellas and purses.  We got there a little early to make sure we could get a good seat for the game and to eat dinner.  It's funny...it was mostly a seafood place (I obviously didn't know that.).  LOL  I ordered the one dish that had beef...it was cabbage, bean sprouts, and beef...delicious. 

The restaurant was completely filled and everyone was dressed in red...the team's colors.  The team is the Red Devils, so some folks were also wearing horns that lit up...very cute!  Korea dominated the game and scored quickly--they won 2-0 against Greece.  The whole restaurant was cheering, chanting, and we LOVED it.  I met a girl from Alabama who is kyobo (Korean parents, grew up somewhere else).  She is here teaching English.  We also met a Holt adoptee from Rochester, NY.  He is here teaching English (18 months so far).  They were the nicest group of people...it was fun sitting with them and getting to know them.  What a small world.

Today I'm going to meet Leora and YiYi, the ladies that I know who work on the Army base.  They are bringing the flat rate boxes for me so I can mail back some of my stuff to make sure I don't go over weight on my luggage.  We're also going to a local church that has a Sunday only authentic Italian dinner.  I heard about this Italian dinner from an Italian who said the food was delicious, homemade pastas and raviolis...I'm excited.

This evening I'll meet the group that helps in the soup kitchen.  Next week I teach, tutor and on the weekend I'm going to Jeju do (do means island).  It is called the "Hawaii of Korea."  They grow a lot of the fruit and vegetables that are eaten in Korea.  There is a dormant volcano there, and who knows what else.  I'm looking forward to a change of scenery for a couple of days.  I will report back!  Have a great week.