Chuesok Part 2: Omija and Grasshoppers

I was totally exhausted when I got back from Ulsan on Friday.  I spent the rest of the night taking it easy because the next day I knew I wanted to go to the Omija festival.

Omija are fruit that are native to Mungyeong (which in case you've forgotten, is the area I live in). If you read anything about Korea, you'll quickly learn that Koreans love festivals.  When I was first researching life in Korea, I was amazed at the number of festivals that are held here throughout the year.  Every area has it's signature foods and items and to celebrate these things, they have festivals where they have tons of food, beverages, and souvenirs.

I went to the Omija festival with some of the other teachers from Jeomchon.  It was about an hour bus ride (well, it actually took us longer on the way there because we hit so much traffic) and we rode through some pretty rural areas that I had not seen yet. It was quite the contrast to the city life I saw in Ulsan.  The cities in Korea are some of the most modern in the world, but there are still many extremely rural areas...it's quite the mixture of lifestyles.

Once we got to the festival there were tons of food stands where you could buy pretty much anything.  We had just grabbed some food and omija beer when we got stopped by some people from a tv station. Obviously the group of waygookins stood out, so I guess that we were good subjects for a quick little interview.  It was pretty entertaining, but apparently this happens at pretty much every festival.  Gotta love being the foreigners!

After our tv experience, we continued on and ate and drank more.  All in all, I had a really good time at the festival and I can't wait to go to more!

When we got back to Jeomchon, some of us decided to stay out and hang out for a bit longer.  We ended up going to a place that serves grasshoppers....and we got a nice big plate of those bad boys.  I don't think eating grasshoppers is particularly common in Korea, but when I decided to come to Korea I knew I had to willing to try (just about) anything.  So, I figured this was one of those times when I had to take the opportunity to do something completely different.  I mean, when else will I ever get the chance to eat grasshoppers?

The grasshoppers were really crunchy, but didn't taste bad at all.  They were cooked in plenty of good stuff so they were really pretty tasty.  Never try, never know.

Such a kodak moment. 

After the grasshopper adventures, we stayed out for a while longer...ok, a lot longer.  We went to noraebang and on our way out the lady that was working there stopped the other girl we were with and myself to take pictures with us....seriously, being a foreigner in Korea is unlike anything else.

After noraebang we hung out for a little longer. I don't even know what time it was once I actually got to bed, but I slept until 2:30 this afternoon, so I know it was late! Yikes!

All in all, I had a great Chuseok break.  I am absolutely loving getting to see and do so many new things.  I obviously came to Korea to teach, but I also came to travel, and I'm really glad I got to see some of the country this weekend. 

Korea isn't usually at the top of most people's lists for places they'd like to go visit, but the more I see of this country, the more I am amazed by how beautiful it is.  The mountains are everywhere, and they are breathtaking.  Never mind the coast, rice fields, and temples that you see on the regular in this country that are just as amazing.  People don't tend to think of Korea as a "must-see" country, but I'm feeling incredibly blessed that I AM seeing it with my own eyes because as many pictures as I take, I can't quite capture the beauty of this country.  It's sometimes frustrating that the pictures I take can't really capture what I'm seeing...but then I remind myself that is part of WHY you travel.

I know I'm still in my honeymoon stage of living in Korea.  I have done my research into culture shock, and I know it doesn't really hit until about 3 months into your time in the country.  However, I am currently loving the honeymoon stage for all its worth.  I know it won't take long until the things I find intriguing about this culture start to annoy me.  However, for now I just want to take in the constant awe that I've been experiencing.  I know it won't last, but that's all the more reason to take it all in and enjoy it while it's here.  

Beautiful mountains...they are everywhere in Korea!