I can't believe it's already June!!

**Because I know I don't have to much time left in Korea, I've been keeping busy seeing as much as I can. A few weekends ago I went with my friend Rebekah to Jirisan in the south. Korea's big 3 mountains are Halasan, Seoraksan, and Jirisan. Making it Jirisan rounded out my list and now I've been to all 3. Koreans LOVE hiking and I understand why. When you live in crowded spaces with big buildings and tons of people, it's extra nice to get out in nature when you can. I didn't take too many photos except for at the beginning of the hike where there was a Buddhist temple. And there was a restaurant that had seating IN the stream. I told you they love nature whenever they can get it.

**The following weekend I went on a wilderness trekking trip with my friend Candice in Gangwon-do with a tour group for foreigners. They claimed it was an area unknown to many, and it was actually true. Besides our big group, we only saw a couple other people the whole time. It wasn't quite like hiking because instead of going up then down a mountain, we walked along a river, climbing over rocks, up hills, through trees, and even having to get in the icy water a few times. It was a pretty unique trip.

**Then this past week, from Wednesday morning to Friday evening, I went with the 5th graders to an English Village in Gyeonggi-do about 2 hours away. The places was amazing!! It as based on old America. The buildings and roads were called things like, Monticello, Virgina Street, Georgetown. All the 5th grade teachers that went with me kept asking me if it was really like that where I lived, haha! Despite the place being beautiful, I really had nothing at all to do for 3 days. None of us teachers did (me, my VP, and all the 5th grade teachers) because they had their own staff that took the children from one activity to the other from the minute we got off the bus. Basically, I slept... a lot, played badminton, played soccer (though by myself because the teachers didn't want to get sweaty), ate lots of Korean food, and watched TV. I actually wished I had more to do because I got bored a lot. But, none the less it was fun to be somewhere new. It was nice also to be around some new teachers that I didn't know. They tried their best to communicate to me in English and I tried to say some things in Korean. But more or less, it was mostly gestures and laughing.


**This past Saturday I went on a tour of the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone). The DMZ is a 4km wide buffer zone that separates North and South Korea. I went with a couple friends on a tour that the US military gives. We first went to the Joint Security Area, the only area where both North and South Korean forces exist together. It's where a lot of talks and meetings occur between the two countries. Then we went to a few lookout points. At one of them you could see the North Korean town called "Propaganda Village" (named that by the South of course). We also saw "The Bridge of No Return." After the signing of the truce of the Korean War, POW's from each side were lead to either end of the bridge. They could make a choice to cross or stay, but once they made a choice, there was no turning back. The last stop on the tour was the 3rd North Korean Infiltration Tunnel. South Korea found 4 tunnels (though they expect there to be up to 17) that North Korea made leading to Seoul. They were made after the signing of the truce in 1953. We weren't allowed to bring cameras in the tunnel, and actually there were a lot of photo restrictions in the DMZ so the ones you see were in the areas were photos were allowed.

These first 4 photos are from the JSA. The grey buildings belong to North Korea and the blue belong to South Korea. In the 3rd photo you can see the distinct line (the concrete slab) separating the 2 countries. The rocks are South Korea and the sand is North Korea. The 4th photo is inside the T2 building where talks between the 2 countries are held. The building is set in both countries. The microphones on the table are the dividing line of the 2 countries (they are in line with the same concrete slab in the previous picture). We got to cross into North Korea while in this room, so technically I went to North Korea! The mood in the room was very serious and we were'nt allowed to sit in the chairs, touch the soldiers, or touch the tables.

The first photo here is of "Propaganda village" in North Korea. Notice the huge flag pole. It is estimated that the flag weights over 600 pounds and was made that big after South Korea raised a flag bigger than their previous one. The second photo is "The Bridge of No Return."

These last 2 photos were taken outside the 3rd Tunnel. South Korea has tried to make light of the situation and made it into a tourist area.

**These last two pictures were from a while ago, but I forgot to post them. I went to a Swell Season/The Frames concert in Seoul with my friend Mallory. They are the singers from the movie "Once". The concert was amazing!!! They were so good. We rented binoculars too, not because we couldn't see, but just because we thought they looked fun!