Jeonju 전주 Living: Jeonju

Showing posts with label Jeonju. Show all posts

8 May 2015

Morning Running

Since the start of the warm weather, Dean and I have made an effort to get outside more and enjoy all of our days left here. We now walk or run everyday. I've been meaning to get a bit more into running but during the long cold months, this was not going to happen. But now I have no excuse. I found this great app called "10K". It coaches you to be able to run 10km in 14 weeks (or 5 by 8 weeks). I skipped the easier beginning weeks and I have really started enjoying running with it. We live on the edge of Jeonju so we have many places to run; mountains, forests and rivers that spread out into the country.

I really like running outside of Jeonju in the "country" because it's much quieter than the city. We have seen many people walking their big dogs off lead and even though we are the only runners, it feels more normal.

It's great to get outside before it is too hot and to make the most of our mornings. I look forward to doing more running when I get home.

1 May 2015

A Korean wedding experience

A few weekends ago, Dean and I attended the wedding of one of my colleagues. I didn't ever expect to go to a wedding while living in Korea for a year, but I am so pleased I got to have the really interesting cultural experience. Korean weddings are completely different from western weddings and I think I was constantly surprised. Here are some key differences and observances about Korean weddings:

1. Weddings take place in a Wedding Hall (or palace)

These "halls" are large multistory buildings where the wedding ceremony and reception take place. There isn't just one wedding taking place, in fact there are many. There are many ceremony rooms for the different wedding parties. When we walked into the building there were hundreds and hundreds of people. You have to check the reception to see where the wedding you are attending is taking place. There are 7 of these "halls" in Jeonju, doesn't offer much choice then.

2. The Bride's Room

Before you enter the ceremony room, you go via the Bride's Room. Here, the bride is waiting to greet the guests and take a photo. Obviously this is really different to western weddings where no one sees the bride before the ceremony.

3. Wedding gifts

It is customary to give money as a gift. The money should be in a white envelope and it is given to cover the cost of food at the reception. After you give your envelope you are given a meal voucher for the buffet reception.

4. The ceremony

The actual ceremony was so interesting. It was set in a dark room with many multi-color lights and flashing screen pictures. Depending on whether you are a guest of the bride or groom, you sit on a different side of the room. I can't say exactly what went on in the ceremony as I can't understand Korean. There was a lady who kept ushering the bride and groom around telling them what to do. The groom and the groom's friend also sang which was cool because they had good voices. The most bizarre thing is that most people don't even sit but hover around at the back. Guests didn't seem to even listen to the ceremony, rather talking loudly and even making phone calls!! After the ceremony (and even during it), guests leave and head to the reception.

5. The reception

At the reception, there is a huge buffet and the guests from all the weddings (so hundreds of people). It is so crowded and you have to try find an empty table. You obviously end up sitting next to random guests from other weddings. The food though is unlimited and was really delicious. There was even unlimited beer and soju.

6. Wedding attire

The bride doesn't have a custom dress designed but rather rents a dress and shoes too. The dress for the ceremony is a typical looking white dress. During the reception, the bride and groom change into Hanbok (Korean traditional clothes), and walk around and greet their guests. As far as the guest attire goes, the range was huge. Some of the older people wore Hanbok, while others were smartly dressed and a few really casual. The guests dress code is definitely not as fancy as for a western wedding.

So there you have it. Korean weddings are definitely an interesting experience and I am glad I got to have this cultural experience.

28 Apr 2015

The start of summer

This past weekend definitely felt like the official start of summer. It was the first time we wore shorts (since about October last year) and the weather was so lovely and warm. The flowers out at the moment are amazing, there are bright colors everywhere. The azaleas are in full bloom, the cherry blossoms are long gone and the trees are beautiful and green. Everything is looking alive and happy compared to the long, dry, brown winter. The cat is of course content with life as she gets to watch all the noisy birds and lie in the sun.

I'm sure these mildly warm temperatures will be short lived as I can imagine we will be boiling soon enough. But in the mean time we are making the most of this weather. We are enjoying lots of morning walking, running and hiking. Last weekend we went to the Bukchon Hanok village in Seoul and it was good to wonder around in the sun and eat. icecreams

Our time in Korea will be coming to an end soon. We have just one month left here, I can't believe it! Time seems to have flown in the last few months. We are looking forward to making the most of our time left here and enjoying the start of summer.

5 Jan 2015

Christmas in Korea

Christmas is not a very celebrated holiday in Korea and for some reason it is thought of as a 'couple holiday'. This didn't deter us and so we had a big Christmas celebration with a group of our foreigner friends in Jeonju.

We got into the Christmas spirit and decorated our apartment and it felt nice and cozy with the cold weather outside.

Our friends came over for an afternoon of good food and company as well as some games. There was so much yummy food, Christmas jumpers, and even gluwein and champagne too.

We organized a secret Santa and there were some interesting gifts including a BB gun.

It was a lovely day and definitely a memorable Christmas in Korea.

8 Aug 2014

July Round-up: Part 2

When my mom arrived, Dean and I were proud to act as tour guides of Jeonju and show her around. Her visit was also perfectly timed to coincide with our 3 day vacation so we were extremely lucky to be able to visit Jeju Island. Here are just a few photos to finish off the end of the month.

Mum catching on with the Korean ways :)

The flowers this time of year are lovely.

One of the larger traditional Hanok Village houses.

Enjoying the wonderful treats the village has to offer on a hot day.

A moving tribute to the victims of the Sewol tragedy. Korea is still in deep pain about this.

More flowers and a cat!

My mom became a bit obsessed with cute Korean children. Snapping pictures whenever she could. Her camera must
be full of them :)

Hillside village. How to disguise a drain pipe.

Lucky for my mom, she also celebrated her birthday while she was here. We took her to try the famous Jeonju Bibimbap. We went to a restaurant called Gajok Hwegwan and it was definitely the best Bibimbap we have had so far. We followed up with traditional Korean desert Bingsu which is made from shaved ice and has various toppings. It is truly most delicious.

More flowers. In the forest behind our apartment.

Gym time!! In the forest.

-One a side note, a funny thing happened at school the other day. My middle school students rushed in one evening to tell me about Ebola. And how Ebola is in Africa and that now I am lucky and I don't have to worry because I'm in Korea, I'm safe!!. The blissful ignorance...