tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13437161436822883852024-03-19T13:56:16.188+09:00The View From Over HereCross-cultural experiences of a restless twenty-something조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.comBlogger925125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-64656457787497706812017-07-02T22:14:00.001+09:002017-07-02T22:14:03.694+09:00Central Europe bike trip preparations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKXSnkPLx3D2l52mtTrqoFmbIMj9S4UXrbf7UZa0zcWhh-p1Mx5nPOTnyxgDeKoixIs6_3sLHWAT9u7yh1mAD-kthOZkGAOkIfGxl6YyURTT1ymPHrTGr3dyGXhbFkO0FQYAzYm384hc/s1600/IMG_20170504_154155.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKXSnkPLx3D2l52mtTrqoFmbIMj9S4UXrbf7UZa0zcWhh-p1Mx5nPOTnyxgDeKoixIs6_3sLHWAT9u7yh1mAD-kthOZkGAOkIfGxl6YyURTT1ymPHrTGr3dyGXhbFkO0FQYAzYm384hc/s640/IMG_20170504_154155.jpg"> </a> </div>조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-29255993053127175092015-01-13T23:20:00.003+09:002015-01-13T23:20:44.548+09:002014 in Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I can't explain why I quit blogging this year. It was not a concious decision and it was not because I was too busy, that's for sure. Maybe I've just been in Korea too long and even the really exciting things that I did just didn't seem that exciting. Who knows? So, I'm going to sum up my year in one post, and hopefully I'll get around to actually finishing it and posting it. Maybe in the new year I'll start blogging again. Maybe. I do miss it sometimes.<br />
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All of these points need at least 1 blog post, some of them need at least 3. This is the best I can do for now, who knows, maybe I'll find some motivation in the future...<br />
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From Jan 10-Feb 24th I was in India teaching at a Buddhist monastery in northern India. It was a really interesting time and I learned a lot as a teacher, and a person. I also learned about the importance of health, as I came down with hepatitis shortly after I came home and was basically incapacitated for a few days and really needed more than a month to recover properly. <br />
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After returning from India (and just around the time I came down with hep) I started work a university here in Seoul. I won't say the name for privacy reasons, but it's a really great school to work for. The location is not the best, but it's manageable, and when you're only teaching 14 hours a week 45min-1hr commute is not TOO bad. I'm not quite sure why, but the administration seems to like me at this school and not only have they renewed my contract for the next year, but they are promoting me to level coordinator. I worry I will be a huge disappointment, but we'll see what the next semester brings... <br />
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In May we rode our bikes following the 4 rivers bike path. Our original plan was to get to Busan, but bike problems + laziness + out of shapeness only brought us to Andong. It was still a fantastic ride and conquring the Saejae bike path through the mountains was probably one of the proudest moments of my life. <br />
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Also in May, two of my good friends got married. I really liked their wedding because they took all the western and Korean traditions and mixed them all up together in their own way. And my friend got spanked on the feet with a dried fish. <br />
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I tried a bit harder this year to study more 'academic' Korean. I found this fantastic leveled reader series of Korean books and I've now read three of them. they're not long, and they're not hard, but they give you confidence to try harder things. I also read 1/3 of The Diary of Anne Frank and am now reading/translating a book on Korean culture.<br />
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I also took 1 semester of intensive Korean (level 4) at Sungkyunkwan Univeristy over the summer, and then discovered that the university where I work offers intensive Korean classes at 70% discount, so in the fall and winter semesters, I continued with level 5 and 6. Considering I was working at the same time, it was kind of a disaster, and I can't say that I have learned much, but it's better than nothing, and the price was too good to turn down. This weekend I will take the TOPIK exam again. I'm hoping for level 4 (cross fingers). <br />
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In June we did a 3 night trip around Ganghwado by bike. It was really fantastic, though I regret a little veering off to another smaller island for 1 night. It was more expencive and there was no good food to be found. Ganghwado is big enough and exciting enough, it's not really necessary to go to other islands on such a short trip. <br />
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At the end of June I went to visit my friends in Hong Kong. They've been living there for 2 years and I have never managed to find time to visit. I finally made it. Besides being very <strike>hot </strike>fun to see Hong Kong in the summer, and good to see my friends, it was also some of the best time I've ever had to practice Korean. I literally spent 5 days only speaking Korean. I was really starting to function in Korean. As an English teacher here, even though I speak Korean fairly well, I'm always using English for this or that, if not for work than with friends, if not with friends than with my husband. etc. etc. In Hong Kong, staying with two Koreans, there was almost no reason to use English. Finally on the last day we met a friend of my friend and had to switch to English since he was British. We both laughed because we thought the sound of our English speaking was too strange.<br />
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In early July I bought my first smartphone. Sometimes I wish I hadn't, but sometimes it really is handy. I do miss daydreaming sometimes. I try to remember to do it sometimes, but the NPR articles that keep popping up on my Facebook newsfeed are just too interesting ㅠㅠ.<br />
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In early August we took a few nights trip to Qingtao (now my 2nd time to visit, but I haven't blogged about either time) to visit the husband's sister and brother-in-law. The Koreans went and played a lot of golf, and I explored the city. Qingtao is a really fantastic city, but since I'd already been there once I had already seen all the cool stuff. I just tried my best to enjoy the good food. Here is the family at the Tsingtao Brewery. <br />
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Throughout the summer, the husband and I worked on a DMZ bike trip project. We never had enough time to do it straight through, so we had to do it in 3 parts. There's no bike paths up there, and there are a ton of pretty big mountains. But, the nice thing is that there are not many people/ cars and you can see a lot of military bases. It's hard to follow maps up there because even if you look at the map and you see a road, that doesn't mean that non-military/residents are allowed to use it. Sometimes we would ride along a road for 10 km only to be told somewhere in the middle that we could not pass and we had to turn back and find another road. It's truly an adventure. A frustrating, wonderful adventure. <br />
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In October I bought a new bike and we took our bikes down to Jeju Island for a bike tour. We did the whole island in 4 days. The first day was fantastic, the second day was ok but a little windy with sunny skies. The third day was cloudy and overcast with serious headwinds and a few bike issues. The fourth day was full on typhoon winds and some rain from a big typhoon hitting Japan at the time. It was hard, but certainly an accomplishment. I just wish that the salt water hadn't rusted my brand new bike up... <br />
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Two weeks later we went with the husband's little brother and sister to Tokyo for a 2 night, 3 day trip. It was a fun trip, maybe more fun because we were with two high school kids, one of which is a total otaku who could speak Japanese fairly well. The most fun/interesting/strange experience was going to a maid cafe. We new it would be expencive, but $80 for 4 people was a little rough. We realized that the table fee for our seats was much higher... if we had sat on the other side of the room at a counter style table, the table fee would have been much cheaper. I'm not sure what to make of the whole maid cafe thing, but at least I can say I've seen/done it, whether it's a good thing or not I don't know. <br />
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Two more friends got married in November. Two weeks before the wedding we delivered a 함. This is a Korean wedding tradition which is quickly disappearing, at least partially due to the fact that most Koreans live in apartments and delivering a 'ham' is a very noisy affair which involves a lot of fighting and negotiating and singing and drinking etc. I really need to write a long blog post about this, since there's not much information on the internet in English, but in the meantime, watch this video and ask your Korean friends about what 함 is. <br />
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Then they got married a few weeks later. Traditional weddings mean more excuses for me to wear my hanbok. It was a really nice wedding and they were really fortunate because despite being the end of November, it was not cold at all.<br />
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In December we started the new ski season. So far for this season we've already put in 12 or 13 days of skiing thanks to two 4 day weekends with Christmas and New Years. My skiing is getting better and better, but I've still got a long way to go to look as graceful as some other skiers on the mountain. <br />
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What is in store for 2015? In the very immediate future, I'm leaving for a 3 week trip home to Boston and I've planned a mother-daughter trip to the Florida Keys for a week. After ski season is done I hope to do even more bike trips this year. I'd like to do a little more world travel next summer... maybe with the bike? But, beyond that trying not to over-plan because my schedule has been busy enough these days. </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com312tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-33203725156381132382014-05-25T16:46:00.002+09:002014-05-25T16:46:41.792+09:00Bike Ride from Yangpyong to Andong<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Over the long weekend several weeks ago, a few friends and I attempted to ride from just outside of Seoul in Yangpyong to Busan. We were the only two who didn't have to work, so we got an early start on the trip on Friday. Here we are at the start of the trip on Friday morning at 9:00am, ready to go! <br />
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About 1km into our journey we hit a bump and my friend got a pinched flat. Here he is, looking not so happy about it. <br />
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Fortunately we were prepared and, and we were able to patch the tire in 30 minutes flat (haha, pun intended), And we thought we were ready to continue our ride. <br />
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A minute later we realized that not only had he gotten a flat, but had also damaged his pedal crank. We did a quick Google search to find the nearest bike shop to fix it. Unfortunately he pedal crank had to be replaced, but the only option this bike shop had was a steel one. It was quite heavy, but it was cheap, so we had them put it on and continued along the journey. <br />
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We made it to within sight of Ipobo before the new pedal crank was now wobling like the first one. Unfortunately, there were no bike shops out here as it was much more rural than Yangpyong. We had no idea how to fix it and we had ti figure out a way to get to Yeoju, then next city. We thought maybe we could somehow get the bikes into a taxi. Upon asking a local for the phone number for the local taxi company, he laughed at our notion of getting two bikes in a taxi and suggested that he could take us in his Bongo truck... for 50,000 won. While it was steep, we didn't know any other way, so we bargained our fare down to 40,000 won and he drove us the remaining 15-20km to Yeoju. In Yeoju we were able to get a better steel alloy pedal crank for his bike, but at this point we were quite frustrated and it was getting a bit late in the day to continue on to the next big city, Chungju. We settled down for the night an grabbed a motel and waited for two others to join us there in Yeoju.<br />
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In the morning two friends, my husband and I took off, our final
destination being Suanbo Oncheon (because who wouldn't want to stay in a
oncheon (hot spring) after a full day of riding the bike?). The terrain was a little different than the trail to Yeoju (which I had done twice before this trip). Whereas the trails to Yeoju are well maintained and separated from road traffic, these trails were often riding on car roads with a side lane for bikes (see photo below). Some off road trails were a bit bumpy and rough, no problem for mountain bikes, but a little uncomfortable for the road bikes. However, this was also one of the most beautiful rides I've done in Korea. <br />
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When were were not far from Suanbo Oncheon, they boys decided to take a 30 minute break by a river. Somebody went for a swim... I just watched from the shore. <br />
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<i> Face mask protects from sun, bugs, and dirt, though probably not much from pollution. </i></div>
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Upon arriving in Suanbo, we got our passport stamps and we found a public hot spring for anyone to stick their feet in (perfect to put right by the bike trail). Three of us found a hotel for the night with hot tubs with hot spring water in the basement, while one friend departed back for Seoul. The hot springs were slightly disappointing, only because the temperature is 53˚C, making it too hot to stay in for more than a minute or two. <br />
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In the morning, we continued our way along the infamous Saejae Bike Path. This path is infamous for it's difficulty. It has at least two big mountains which need to be traversed, and most of the path follows roads with nothing more than little white bikes painted on the roads warning cars to share the road. Fortunately the traffic here (or anywhere along any of the paths we did) was not too bad. The photo above is us at the top of the first hill. I don't think I walked at all going up this hill, it was very long and hard (about 3km uphill), but the grade was not too steep so it was possible to keep going without getting off the bike. <br />
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Going down from the top of a high mountain is fun... actually a little scary because you have to keep your hands on the breaks constantly for a long time. Some bikers fly down, but I prefer to keep my bike under controllable speeds, especially because my brakes are not exactly top of the line. As we were going down, we were lucky enough to stop to find this Buddhist carving on the side of a cliff. It is special because there are two Buddhas seated together. <br />
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Finally it was time to do the dredded big mountain. 5km continuously uphill. the bike lane looks like this. It's nice because there are many kilometer markers along the way so you know exactly how much further you have to go and how far you've come. It's also nice here because they seem to have little resting points every 500 m or so. It wasn't hard but extremely long. We took several breaks going up, but again, we managed without walking once. <br />
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Here were are at the top after 5km uphill. There was a little shop/restaurant up here, and we really enjoyed a little ice cream after the ride. <br />
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After tackling the big mountain it was all downhill from there. We couldn't help ourselves but to stop by this omija wine factory and get a glass of omija wine. <br />
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We finally had to stop for the night and we stayed near Munkyung in the city of Jeomchon (점촌). This happened to be the city where Halmoni lived and worked for many years after the Korean war. My husband was quite excited to finally see this city which was so important in his family history. We stayed the night here in a little love motel for 35,000/night. <br />
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The next day we decided that, since we had gotten too delayed on day one with all the bike problems that it would be impossible to get to Busan. So, instead we decided to follow our plan B, to head to Andong Dam. <br />
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This is another bike path which follows the Nakdong river. It was also another fantastically beautiful path through the countryside. Though they call it a bike path, it's basically the little, rarely used country roads between the fields. <br />
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Finally we arrived in Andong. We were pretty exhausted so we found a love motel to share for the night. Since Andong is a big city, it was a bit more expencive than the other places we had stayed, 50,000, so we all stayed in one room. Dinner was Andong Jjimdak, of course. Then we got ice cream and went back and watched movies and passed out.<br />
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In the morning we continued on to Andong Dam (so close from where we were! Probably less than 5km! We should have just finished it the night before) and got our stamp. We explored the area a little, they had a nice natural area, plus an area with traditional houses which were saved, moved and preserved before creating the dam in the 70's.<br />
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Since it was Buddha's Birthday, we made sure to find a temple and get some bibimbap. <br />
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Our last stop before leaving Andong was visiting the Andong Soju museum. There we met a friendly man and my husband was able to ask all his soju brewing questions to (we have made soju at home several times now). <br />
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Finally it was time to go home. Being the last day of a long weekend, we were lucky to have gotten standing room only seats on the train. So you know, trains have some bike racks in the cafe car. We tried to get it on the regular car and not only would it have been impossible but they weren't very happy about it either, and sent us to the cafe car. Here we were lucky to have gotten on at the first stop and we got a seat on the floor in the cafe. As you can see, people who got on later didn't have that luxury. Though they also didn't have as far to go either. From Andong to Cheongnyangni station was about 3.5 hours. Not too bad, and no risk of traffic either since it was a train. I wouldn't mind taking the train again (especially if I got seats ahead of time!).<br />
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Overall it was a really fantastic trip, I look forward to the next bike trip! I hope there will be many more! </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-71405285778386466642014-03-26T22:51:00.001+09:002014-03-26T22:51:47.600+09:00Indian Food<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I'm pretty sure that Indian food is the best food in the world. I can't think of any cuisine which has quite as many flavors or diversity as Indian food. While I was in India, I spent most of my time in the Tibetan community, which meant getting Indian food was a bit of a production, however, I tried my best to get Indian food at least once a week while working at the monastery. <br />
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This was one of my first meals in India. This was a roadside Dhaba (small restaurant) on the way to Agra. We were tempted to get this 'veg curry' because of the dirt cheap price of 20 rupees or something, however the bread was filled with something delicious which made one piece of bread about 100 rupees. So, not a dirt cheap meal, but still delicious and amazing. And made me more conscious of bread prices in future meals. </div>
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One of the most ubiquitous street foods in India are samosas. Who can resist deep fried amazingness? <br />
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Hindi sweets are quite famous. After watching this guy making these deep fried snacks I couldn't help but buy one to try. Actually, the taste reminds me a lot of the Korean pastry 약과 (yakgwa), but these are a lot prettier in their swirly shapes. <br />
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This one was from another roadside dhaba on the way back from Agra. Amazingly simple palak paneer, yet so delicious. <br />
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Another curry (can't remember which) from a small restaurant in Delhi. With a lassi on the side. mmmm... <br />
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This was like Indian fast food/ take out. All the food was pre-prepared. Just order, and they'll serve it over to you. <br />
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Here is a very typical Indian street food/ snack. This deep fried bread is called <i>puri</i> and is served up with some simple curry or yogurt sauce to dip in. <br />
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When visiting Indian restaurants before going to India, I always avoided butter chicken. Not sure why, maybe I thought it would be too rich or too fatty. But, butter chicken was one of the first dishes my co-workers ordered for us on our first Indian food outing. And, well, I realized what I had been missing all those years. Butter chicken is absolutely mouth-watering. Just melts in your mouth as you eat it. Definitely need to get this again soon. <br />
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Here is a man selling a variety of street food. The one in front is fried channa (chick peas), others are other random fried things. Well, there's a lot of deep fried and fried food in India... <br />
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This is the kind of street food that tourists should definitely not eat if they don't want to get sick. Basically fresh vegetables with chili sauce over some kind of crispy chip-like things. Tasty, but not recommended for tourists. <br />
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Here was our meal at the 'public dhaba' in Joginder Nagar. Channa masala, aloo palak, and mutton (goat) curry. Delicious and super cheap. <br />
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Here's another puri with various dipping sauces, plus a samosa at a popular hole in the wall restaurant in Baijnath.<br />
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Lots of samosas, puri and maybe those are parathas in a stack in the back. I'm still a bit confused about the difference between paratha, chapati, and roti... they all look like flat and round bread to me.. <br />
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<i>Making samosas</i></div>
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Here's another absolute tourist no-no which I should never have eaten. No idea what it was made of, but there was definitely cilantro and green onions mixed with some kind of spicy snack. It was being sold by a man roving bus to bus and he carried this around in a bucket and distributed it on recycled paper as you can see. I don't think this made me sick though <br />
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While in Palampur we decided to try out some more Hindi snacks. The yellow one was actually paneer (I think) in a cold creamy sauce. The orange one was actually made of carrots, but it was very tasty. After searching online, I found one dish called Gajar Halva. <br />
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This one is a pretty typical snack to eat while drinking in India. It's basically peanuts mixed with all sorts of fresh veggies. It's really nice, but again, I don't know the name of this dish. <br />
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Here's a pappadum with fresh vegetables on top. This is quite tasty. The pappadum is almost cracker-like in consistency so it's a little difficult to eat as it is very brittle, however with this veggie mix on top it's quite tasty. <br />
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I tried a few different biriyanis while in India. They were all really nice. Basically this is slightly creamy rice with many different spices. <br />
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Don't remember what this one was, something with paneer. <br />
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Here's an egg biriyani... really delicious... <br />
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Lots of amazing food... <br />
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Don't remember what this was... but I'm sure it tasted great... <br />
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Finally, my last breakfast in India. I was told I must try Paratha with curds as it is a very typical Himachal Pradesh breakfast food. Unfortunately, after several attempts (usually after breakfast time) I failed to find it in my town. So, on my last morning in Majnu ka Tilla in Delhi (the Tibetan colony in Delhi) I found paratha with curds on the menu at the Tibetan restaurant where we got breakfast and I figured it was my last chance to get it. Anyway, it was quite nice, the curds reminded me of my homemade yogurt actually and the bread was simple and nice to dip in the curds.<br />
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Before leaving India, I made sure to pick up a bunch of Indian spices. I hope I can use them soon to try making some Indian dishes! </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com95tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-44379301266639225522014-03-21T11:25:00.000+09:002014-03-21T11:38:48.142+09:00Part Time Cooks: Hip-Hop Performance in Seoul 3/28/2014<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2xFhmU5bHmY9gPnz5xKUNKuFKibyMRD7Qai9iL6ev1n3OWeTe2It0tL5gWmgqngIAYe_PuhZy1LR9RutDGSSK1i8ALy2q_0Oh-N7xX0JqurZGRnieulHRWpN3TJ_sHxMLLGzm5qnYYbA/s1600/Part+Time+Cooks+members.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2xFhmU5bHmY9gPnz5xKUNKuFKibyMRD7Qai9iL6ev1n3OWeTe2It0tL5gWmgqngIAYe_PuhZy1LR9RutDGSSK1i8ALy2q_0Oh-N7xX0JqurZGRnieulHRWpN3TJ_sHxMLLGzm5qnYYbA/s1600/Part+Time+Cooks+members.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a> </div>
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I'd just like to put up a little add for a friend of mine here in Seoul. My friend Blessing, who goes by the name Black Moss has formed a new group called Part Time Cooks. Their style is somewhere between hip hop and jazz. I've heard a few of their songs and I think they should definitely be worth checking out.<br />
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Here's the info for their upcoming show:<br />
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Here are some samples of some of the group members' music. They've all got pretty nice sound to them.<br />
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If I've piqued your interest, see the map below for directions to the show:<br />
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-65578941354757156722014-03-19T22:29:00.000+09:002014-03-19T22:29:04.760+09:00Tibetan Food<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Even though I was in India, I spent the majority of my time in the Tibetan community, as I was working at a Tibetan Buddhist temple. That means I got a lot of exposure to Tibetan food. What I discovered after 5 weeks in the Tibetan community is that there really aren't that many foods on a Tibetan menu (especially when comparing it to the never-ending menus at the Indian restaurants around the corner). I tried my best to document all the food I ate here, but there are a few important dishes missing. I'll introduce them later. <br />
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This dish is called Shapale. <i>Sha</i> is meat and <i>Pale</i> is bread, so basically 'meat bread'. Actually, it's like a giant fried meat filled dumpling. This was served with fried potatoes and chili powder. I heard that in Tibet, chili pepper powder is not popular, but here in India no Tibetan restaurant would be complete without several kinds of chili paste/powder. <br />
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Here is the monastery's version of thukpa. This was was lacking a lot of broth, though, it was mostly just noodles. <br />
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This is more like a normal thukpa. Long noodles with vegetables and this particular one has meat, too. The meat is 'mutton'. Now, I've always learned that mutton was sheep meat, particularly older sheep as opposed to lamb, which would be a young sheep. However, I realized (almost at the end of my stay) that generally when you order '<i>sha</i>' (meat) in Tibetan restaurants, it is what they called 'mutton' however, 'mutton' in India is not sheep meat as I originally believed, but in fact is goat meat. So, I ate a lot of goat during my stay in India... and not necessarily on purpose... <br />
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Here are some momos, sha momos I believe. There were three kinds of momos I saw a lot in Tibetan restaurants. Meat (<strike>mutton</strike> goat) momos, spinach and cheese momos, and potato momos. Though, the potato momos were my favorite, though they were spiced with some kind of Indian style spices, so I don't know how authentic Tibetan they were. <br />
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This dish is called Then Thuk. <i>Then</i> (pronounced ten) means 'pull' and <i>Thuk</i> (pronounced tuk) is noodle, so this dish can be called pulled noodles. They're called this because to make them, you can make a long string of dough and pull off small flat rectangles to make these noodles. As you can see, the noodles are flat, short and wide, like little squares/rectangles. I just found t<a href="http://www.yowangdu.com/tibetan-food/thenthuk.html" target="_blank">his recipe</a> online while researching this dish... it seems pretty simple to make... perhaps I'll try it some day... <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjXq81y5UkWDSnRPs2Se6U3Zfp8AKlJw7be_DthopLYEa2eXSW0YL-OUHfMHFdPjk6sMXaS2Zw4QI3C_aKMvVkZB4jvfZbi01YJYSBzu25o9lu6pXYYXcas3qK7NcPsxLITz-M6WXHtd0/s1600/IMG_4294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjXq81y5UkWDSnRPs2Se6U3Zfp8AKlJw7be_DthopLYEa2eXSW0YL-OUHfMHFdPjk6sMXaS2Zw4QI3C_aKMvVkZB4jvfZbi01YJYSBzu25o9lu6pXYYXcas3qK7NcPsxLITz-M6WXHtd0/s1600/IMG_4294.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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This one was kind of special. This is called lapping (sounds like laughing), and is a typical street food. The noodles are served cold with a spicy sauce. I'm not sure why this particular one was so yellow, as when I search online, it seems the noodles are usually clear. It was quite fun to watch this being made as the woman had a sheet of this gelatinous substance. She then rolled it up and cut it to make many noodles. Then she just threw a little bit of all the spices on her table together to make the spicy sauce. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMejXk5L2JqAZJIbeI2neZTEVC2Qp3wNrBrUkuUHa8632xmP-iDM1AU2CyABSk9CjfBGzXTbtEKAFDmjhRRJWa8j8dhnEjGAEM-b4sUTBQI68hLBIYYfaAlInzPDFegoQ0pktjPeT3aHM/s1600/IMG_4295.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMejXk5L2JqAZJIbeI2neZTEVC2Qp3wNrBrUkuUHa8632xmP-iDM1AU2CyABSk9CjfBGzXTbtEKAFDmjhRRJWa8j8dhnEjGAEM-b4sUTBQI68hLBIYYfaAlInzPDFegoQ0pktjPeT3aHM/s1600/IMG_4295.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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But, somehow I forgot to photograph one of my favorite Tibetan dishes, <i>Chow Mein</i>, dispite eating it on many occasions. Now, I know what you're thinking... <i>chow mein</i>, that's Chinese food. Well, yes, that may be true, but clearly, thanks to geography if for no other reason, it's not hard to see why Tibetan food might be similar to Chinese food. I find Tibetan Chow Mein to be much less salty and oily than its Chinese counterpart. I'm not sure how the cooking methods are different, but Tibetan chow mein is definitely worth a try. <br />
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Another food missing here is tingmo, which is steamed bread, a little bit like Chinese style steamed bread. I never took a photo of it because I guess it was just too normal to me. At the monastery, breakfast everyday was tingmo. I found it to be a little dry and bland until I discovered that when they are fried and eaten with ketchup on the side they become absolutely scrumptious.<br />
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Butter tea is another famous part of Tibetan cuisine. However, thanks to bad memories of the <a href="http://smileyjkl.blogspot.kr/2014/01/yunnan-part-3-feilaisi-to-upper-yupeng.html" target="_blank">butter tea in Meili Xueshan</a> several months before going to India, I couldn't bring myself to drink it on this trip... <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWn9IRsXh7ujfCGDXQwoxQKR20nceKAsDkYGx8uwd-MhoK4nLEtwHTAFcPk_EsBJtbcOFEol_k0Ys95sw5gxQxlDUlA_o9TVpua4vZ-SKeBT0E_Jyn5EcZUZgcNXcJNj1fc7zKlb1_t08/s1600/IMG_4051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWn9IRsXh7ujfCGDXQwoxQKR20nceKAsDkYGx8uwd-MhoK4nLEtwHTAFcPk_EsBJtbcOFEol_k0Ys95sw5gxQxlDUlA_o9TVpua4vZ-SKeBT0E_Jyn5EcZUZgcNXcJNj1fc7zKlb1_t08/s1600/IMG_4051.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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Finally, I'll leave you with a photo of one of the restaurants in the Chauntra Tibetan colony which we often frequented. They were always open (there was a bed in the restaurant, I'm pretty sure the owners live in the restaurant) and the woman there spoke quite passable English and was very friendly. Later we found that the shop two doors down, though, had the most fantastic potato momos we'd ever tried. In any case, it's good to have options. </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-46267059875270673862014-03-11T22:42:00.002+09:002014-03-26T22:14:57.061+09:00Baijnath, Palampor, and a toy train<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jdly6lxcXK00uYbyhQg86wphndBeKow94cJiR3CUNBgoUOP-5vAaYfupJeAtolSHpSxMPQFllmjUdzyW5_AW7f81BfmdXy3vjBpxd5Es_rdoN76XtmLZ-F56ddTxsskrI6eTNjJBPYs/s1600/IMG_3981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6jdly6lxcXK00uYbyhQg86wphndBeKow94cJiR3CUNBgoUOP-5vAaYfupJeAtolSHpSxMPQFllmjUdzyW5_AW7f81BfmdXy3vjBpxd5Es_rdoN76XtmLZ-F56ddTxsskrI6eTNjJBPYs/s1600/IMG_3981.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Indian buses look just like how you would expect them to look... </i></div>
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With only one day per week off from working in the monastery, we looked forward to our Fridays off a lot. Unfortunately, our day in Tso Pema was the last bright sunny day we had on our days off. The next Friday it poured and we did nothing but lay around the monastery and sleep. And the following Friday, after a week of beautiful weather, we woke up to thunderstorms again. But, as my days in India were quickly flying by, I couldn't let my last Friday off from work be ruined by another rain storm. So this time, my Tibetan co-worker, my new American co-worker put on our raincoats and our umbrellas and trudged out into the rain to catch a bus to the nearby town of Baijnath. <br />
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The good thing about traveling by bus is that you can go between towns for almost nothing. I think we paid about 20 rupees or so for this bus ride, which is about $0.33. Though, the downside is that the buses are crowded and take more than double the time of driving. <br />
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In <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baijnath,_Himachal_Pradesh" target="_blank">Baijnath</a>, there's really only one thing to see, and that is the town's namesake, the Baijnath temple. This is a temple dedicated to Shiva and it is ancient. The temple was constructed in 1204AD and apparently there was even a temple on these grounds before this one was constructed. So, basically folks have been praying here for a really long time. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZVstIeVq1irOQTrtoIgNGbxnYsph8jQGsh-KEGwVyC_GsBcmdysZVBKau1e2kBBKqxwQJruPpR0B9tTUFRIzL_YQC9NfbPDH3OcRu_UfxMc3RKS3bNk05QmFIYTEpfQj-GLJapLUoLfU/s1600/IMG_3988.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZVstIeVq1irOQTrtoIgNGbxnYsph8jQGsh-KEGwVyC_GsBcmdysZVBKau1e2kBBKqxwQJruPpR0B9tTUFRIzL_YQC9NfbPDH3OcRu_UfxMc3RKS3bNk05QmFIYTEpfQj-GLJapLUoLfU/s1600/IMG_3988.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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As uncomfortable as I sometimes feel in temples which are not my own
religion, I must say, being in Hindu temples was one of the most
uncomfortable experiences for me. I know in a church I should cross
myself or kneel in a pew, and I know in a Buddhist temple I should bow a
few times, but in a Hindu temple I really have no idea what I should/
should not be doing. There's often a lot of different things going on in
different places... people ringing bells, people making offerings,
people chanting, etc. etc. Sometimes a lot of people are just sitting
around on the floor doing... stuff... that I don't have any clue to even
make a guess at what they could be doing. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6Yo_24fhwSnk6aPb2h74-4bDalZkgo4cjZYaH21r5nVPF1GxTU9rtGLXud08wL_K6v9YD0gvL3K_VSrk34vmcG4KdD9Yi10TfpyxkfBOxO9qL2XoJD8VVVwW_9wkNJIgPa2aT4S1flI/s1600/IMG_3989.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6Yo_24fhwSnk6aPb2h74-4bDalZkgo4cjZYaH21r5nVPF1GxTU9rtGLXud08wL_K6v9YD0gvL3K_VSrk34vmcG4KdD9Yi10TfpyxkfBOxO9qL2XoJD8VVVwW_9wkNJIgPa2aT4S1flI/s1600/IMG_3989.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i>Holy Cow</i></div>
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One thing that I noticed in Hindu temples is that you have to take off your shoes and socks. And not just when entering a building, like in Buddhism, but when entering the temple grounds. Which leads to very cold feet when it's raining, or very painful feet when walking over gravel to get from one part of the temple to another. <br />
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Another thing that India seems to be very strict about is photography in religious places, like temples. There are signs everywhere about no photography, and in Delhi and Dharamsala I had to leave my camera at the front gate of temples. However, here in the country they were a bit less strict, and despite the warnings everywhere about not taking photos, since many Indians were also taking photos I decided I might as well go for it...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQFMn45KPmQ6doh-M4YoY1Yt5X2plZ6eCRDKtL1nJlCZ7BVFJ9G4XTwcs8H7nD1du5mS0gIcBbr0zdEH5VRjaBi_YznyfKMMPvz8OdrpxAtDFgsFAdxINq8dOA-BLPZ_-6rNuAnnKerU4/s1600/IMG_4009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQFMn45KPmQ6doh-M4YoY1Yt5X2plZ6eCRDKtL1nJlCZ7BVFJ9G4XTwcs8H7nD1du5mS0gIcBbr0zdEH5VRjaBi_YznyfKMMPvz8OdrpxAtDFgsFAdxINq8dOA-BLPZ_-6rNuAnnKerU4/s1600/IMG_4009.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Palampur Bus Station</i></div>
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While the temple was beautiful, it was not so big, so 20 minutes of exploration of the temple was more than plenty. We then had a quick snack and the boarded the next bus headed for the city of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palampur" target="_blank">Palampur</a>, the nearest 'big city' to our monastery. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRx5jAAz-mJJi-bbsE3x7tm4jttlIuzEbziKYgaeOx2R5Ocr7Oe7AtfwB0WnjrP6JUyF1A2XrpXwgc-rEPNrIJGCvGJCJJdZbzutiCcGa3F3Zc3gcTry_aIfCjqoYpNByuwqqtXXIZmw/s1600/IMG_4011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRx5jAAz-mJJi-bbsE3x7tm4jttlIuzEbziKYgaeOx2R5Ocr7Oe7AtfwB0WnjrP6JUyF1A2XrpXwgc-rEPNrIJGCvGJCJJdZbzutiCcGa3F3Zc3gcTry_aIfCjqoYpNByuwqqtXXIZmw/s1600/IMG_4011.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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We didn't really need to buy anything in particular here, so we just kind of wandered here and there. Since I was kind of in the market for some Punjab style clothes, I kept my eyes open. I missed a few good deals here because I thought I could find something better later... But, the problem (or good thing, however you choose to look at it) with buying clothes in India is that it seems most people prefer tailor made clothes. So, it's very easy to find textile shops and tailors, however, finding shops selling pre-made clothes can be quite challenging. The particular store shown above had a mix of both pre-made clothes and fabrics for tailor made things. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3kheiPOc6oiUIiaAVh9ajTQXYWl2juhAoe3EaHEj6NcQpaWItSoOILFgIcAWEmJxv8GvryGiRKYag-aGUiM8mOFLwtQNih4GCMmbsb1XjboXip22ttdG2-8nscK8UV9v8Kezu-nz509U/s1600/IMG_4015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3kheiPOc6oiUIiaAVh9ajTQXYWl2juhAoe3EaHEj6NcQpaWItSoOILFgIcAWEmJxv8GvryGiRKYag-aGUiM8mOFLwtQNih4GCMmbsb1XjboXip22ttdG2-8nscK8UV9v8Kezu-nz509U/s1600/IMG_4015.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Cows in India are not just for the country. It's not unusual to find cows even in the middle of the city, sadly eating trash (Though, I'm sure even the country cows are eating a lot of trash, too). Our region had put a ban on plastic bags because, not only the obvious problem of too much waste, but also because animals like cows often eat them and they are eventually killed by the plastic in their stomachs. However, despite the ban on plastic bags, it was still possible to find them here and there, and there is still plenty of plastic used in packaging. Ah, the joys of consumerism. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgllIaEHufGcA7c3LJjjqlsEm17Qs_nKPBsii-wCS-R9ueFNVcNHTLI_wVkbTuJiBvaN0Lem5flWTrOelehpeXLZi4CSE-dWmGqOGeqotmzVE3u9BBKGTV5gQJEIfk9caFpwEMqVmB8Dh0/s1600/IMG_4021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgllIaEHufGcA7c3LJjjqlsEm17Qs_nKPBsii-wCS-R9ueFNVcNHTLI_wVkbTuJiBvaN0Lem5flWTrOelehpeXLZi4CSE-dWmGqOGeqotmzVE3u9BBKGTV5gQJEIfk9caFpwEMqVmB8Dh0/s1600/IMG_4021.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Palampur Toy Train Station</i></div>
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We spent about two hours wondering around Palampur and then it was time to head back. We had heard about the famous "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangra_Valley_Railway" target="_blank">toy train" of Himachal Pradesh</a> and wanted to give it a try. The train is called a "toy train" because it is a smaller gauge (2ft 6in) than a normal train. The train is also incredibly cheap. From Palampur back to the monastery in Chauntra was just 10 rupees ($ 0.16), though you get what you pay for. The train ride takes nearly triple the time it would take by car. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpX5cu-Bx5a8icVzJ2AfPaF7s6-kMLFHGyrfoOjYmK-Gd3kmOlRmUkcQzVkgBBA7XyJuVJOzEfuBGuiVuIxh1NnxKnHdZi6zYgTGn9ZamNaPqRsi-DASqygOJzimVNFiizQ7YQvlfbQ84/s1600/IMG_4023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpX5cu-Bx5a8icVzJ2AfPaF7s6-kMLFHGyrfoOjYmK-Gd3kmOlRmUkcQzVkgBBA7XyJuVJOzEfuBGuiVuIxh1NnxKnHdZi6zYgTGn9ZamNaPqRsi-DASqygOJzimVNFiizQ7YQvlfbQ84/s1600/IMG_4023.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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We checked the schedule online which told us that the train left at 4:30pm from Palampur. Upon arrival, they told us that it would be 4:45, though I shouldn't have been surprised when we took off no later than 5:00pm. The train inside was basic, but it had a toilet in each car. We were lucky to get seats, as one person offered us his seat because he was getting off soon. Otherwise, at least one of us would have been standing for the ride. <br />
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Upon reaching Baijnath, the train stopped and all the people cleared out. It seems as though most people only go as far as Baijnath. We waited in the train car for a little while, but finally we got impatient and went outside. We were quite surprised to find that besides our car and the one after our car, the rest of the train was gone! We bought some chai and street food and waited patiently for our engine to reappear. It finally did, and they coupled the train back up again, this time which much fewer cars and filled with much fewer people.<br />
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<i> Tracks near the "swimming pool" during the day...</i></div>
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We continued the rest of our ride back to Chauntra and arrived at the "swimming pool", which is what the locals refer to as the reference point for the station. The "station" is not on any road and there are no signs. Basically, to find it, you've got to walk down a hill behind a house, then keep walking down until you find the tracks. Then follow the tracks until you find a tiny hut on the side of the tracks. That tiny hut is the station and it happens to be across from a swimming pool. So, if you ask locals where to catch the train, they may tell you to go down to the swimming pool.<br />
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We arrived around 7:30pm, in the rain and pitch black night. Had to use my cell phone flash light to find the way back up to the road and back to the monastery. While it wasn't the most exciting day in India, it was good to get out of the monastery, despite the rain. <br />
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-38677175745480333812014-03-01T20:22:00.000+09:002014-03-01T20:22:00.047+09:00Monks are people, too... <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Before teaching at the monastery, I guess I never thought about the normal lives of monks. I thought all they did was pray and meditate and... I suppose... eat meals. However being at the monastery and interacting with monks all day I learned one important fact. Monks are people, too (this may or may not be a quote from one of my students). Monks do all sorts of things you wouldn't imagine them doing initially. <br />
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One thing we did twice a week was have a movie night for the monks so they could practice their English doing something fun. The most popular movies were action movies. They love Jackie Chan and martial arts. Mission Impossible was a big hit with them, as was Rush Hour. I mean, really, they are mostly a bunch of men in their 20's. Why wouldn't they enjoy that stuff, right?<br />
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And speaking of them being men, what else to men like better than sports? Sports are huge in the monastery. Apparently, during the main program, the monks' free time is very limited and they only have one or two days a week that they are allowed to play, but during the winter holiday when I was visiting, there were essentially no rules about when they had to do anything (except show up to English class if they had enrolled, of course) and so whenever it was light outside, you could find monks out playing sports. The three most popular sports I saw there were basketball, cricket, and football (soccer). Due to the immense popularity of cricket, not just in the monastery, but throughout India, I was forced to learn the rules of the peculiar game in order to understand what I was watching...<br />
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<i> Monks playing basketball</i></div>
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<i> Monks playing cricket</i></div>
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<i> Pitching form is quite important in cricket... apparently</i>... </div>
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Another growing passion among the monks is technology. Despite the price of iPads, iPhones, Smartphones and tablets, it was not so hard to find these devices around the monastery, particularly among the graduate monks who work there. But, even among student monks, there were quite a few smartphones to be had. The Khenpo (instructor) who looks after the English program had an iPhone... which ran on 2G internet. It was literally impossible to do anything with it when it was running on 2G, but it didn't matter. He had it! <br />
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<i>Me, one of my students, and one of the administrators </i></div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-46480195969023666782014-02-28T19:54:00.001+09:002014-02-28T19:54:09.999+09:00Tso Pema/ Relwasar Part 2: Around the Lake <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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After our expedition to the caves, we headed over to the town of Tso Pema to continue our exploration of this holy town. Our first stop was Zigar Drukpa Kagyud Monastery. This is a new temple dedicated to Padmasambhava. The big guy behind me in the photo, is of course Padmasambhava, which as I mentioned in my last post is considered a second Buddha.This giant statue is quite new, it was just completed in 2011. <br />
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The temple overelooks the lake, Tso Pema, where Padmasambhava supposedly was reborn in a lotus flower (Tso- Lake, Pema- Lotus). The lake is quite small, it takes just 10-15 minutes to circumambulate.<br />
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<i>Circumambulate</i>, by the way, was a word I've had to learn here living with Tibetans (<i>Kora</i> in Tibetan), which means to walk around a temple or holy place in a clockwise motion, something which is always done whenever possible. We generally walk around our temple after meals as a general sort of habit. Someone suggested to us that we circumambulate the lake in Tso Pema fifteen times. However, we actually did it just twice, mostly incidentally because we were walking around the town and trying to visit all the temples. <br />
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There was something poetic about these tiny little boys riding their bikes in front of the "Danger: Non-Ionizing Radiation" sign. Not sure what that means, and I'm guessing it's not particularly dangerous, but it just looks and sounds scary...<br />
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The next temple we visited was very special. This temple is called Zangdok Palri Palace Monastery and my Tibetan co-teacher belives it to be an actual 3-D mandala thanks to it's seemingly purposely colored walls of blue, green, white and red; and its temple upon temple upon temple construction. The palace is actually three temples stacked on top of one another. <br />
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<i>Red and green (blue?) walls of the palace monastery</i></div>
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Buddha of the main hall in the Palace Monastery</div>
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In fact, just around the lake, there are at least four Tibetan temples and monasteries. The photo above was taken in the last one. While here the architecture was not as spectacular as some of the other temples, they did have prayer wheels around the whole exterior of the temple. There is something really great feeling about spinning a wheel, which may or may not have something to do with the Buddhist mantras inside that activate for your salvation when you spin them. <br />
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But as I mentioned before in my first post, Tso Pema/ Relwasar is not just famous to Tibetans, it is also important in Hinduism and Sikhism. Here, above, you can see one of the many Hindu temples around the lake. I don't know much about about these temples, but they are sure fun to look at and walk around!<br />
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To get here, we rented a private taxi to pick us up early in the morning at 6:30 am and take us there and back. This was convenient to visit the caves and do everything within a few hours as we only had one day. The price for the driver was Rs1,900, or $30USD to take us from Chauntra (between Bir and Joginder Nagar) to Tso Pema. However, there are public buses which are much cheaper that can take you as well. The town is just 30 minutes from Mandi, a moderate sized city in Himachal Pradesh. </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0Rewalsar, Himachal Pradesh 175023, India31.6321926 76.833174331.6254326 76.823089299999992 31.6389526 76.8432593tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-78779064240593452012014-02-19T01:46:00.000+09:002014-02-19T01:46:00.779+09:00Tso Pema/Rewalsar part 1: Caves and Hindu Temples<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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For my second day trip, my Tibetan co-teacher and I headed out to a very holy town for not only Buddhists, but also for Hindus and Sikhs. The area is called Tso Pema in Tibetan, but you may also hear it called Rewalsar in its Hindi name as well. <i>Tso</i> means lake and<i> Pema</i> means lotus, so it is actually Lotus Lake.<br />
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According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rewalsar,_India" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a>: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>The famous Rawalsar lake ('Tso Pema' to Tibetans) is associated with Padmasambhava (also known as Guru Rinpoche),
who is recognized as a second Buddha. One version of a legend has it
that the king of Mandi had Padmasambhava burnt alive after rumours that
the Guru had attempted to teach his daughter the Dharma, which was not
accepted then. The pyre burned for a full week, with great clouds of
black smoke arising from it, but after a week, a lake appeared at the
spot where he was burnt and Padmasambhava manifested himself as a 16
year old boy from within a lotus
in the middle of the lake. The king, repenting his actions, married his
daughter with Padmasambhava. It was from Tso Pema that Padmasambhava
went to Tibet to spread Vajrayana Buddhism.</i></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVNyFiK7otj-CobJgYrcIfxZSPVAY8bFEvxzIr5meqa3QNmbjP_JymrfrfAzyPRdEJ4l0yhS6NSc-myfmnV5exYpEZVYnAgb4XxphLuxvlmFZnhYKjPtJs-6apVbfvN_H6XWfkPC1KyhQ/s1600/IMG_3833.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVNyFiK7otj-CobJgYrcIfxZSPVAY8bFEvxzIr5meqa3QNmbjP_JymrfrfAzyPRdEJ4l0yhS6NSc-myfmnV5exYpEZVYnAgb4XxphLuxvlmFZnhYKjPtJs-6apVbfvN_H6XWfkPC1KyhQ/s1600/IMG_3833.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a> </div>
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However, our first stop here was not the lake, but the caves in the mountains nearby which make this area so famous for Buddhists. It was here in these caves that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padmasambhava" target="_blank">Padmasambhava</a> found enlightenment. Padmasambhava is considered a second Buddha and the one responsible for bringing Buddhism to Tibet. There are four important caves here, although, from the outside you would never know that they were caves. Outside of the caves, houses and roofs have been constructed and inside the caves the floors have been tiled and stairs have been put in, so actually they have become caves converted into temples or shrines. <br />
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<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-buddhist1_7-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rewalsar,_India#cite_note-buddhist1-7"><span></span><span></span></a></sup><br />
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<i>Inside the first cave: A portrait of a famous lama</i></div>
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<i> Some cave-like walls still remain...</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQ8doImE1wuz55Q3FSMQ7W6t_8Rx0MOKOovz5mji2E4nuIvXJtodPtcZ02tMbXkYie9h6jyIy2L1oiS5oWJz7IQzWc9LYwkoqxWTa2HPEnO3xUlXpn3cgoBvKtH258gDaTFcMsEY0E-c/s1600/IMG_3803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQ8doImE1wuz55Q3FSMQ7W6t_8Rx0MOKOovz5mji2E4nuIvXJtodPtcZ02tMbXkYie9h6jyIy2L1oiS5oWJz7IQzWc9LYwkoqxWTa2HPEnO3xUlXpn3cgoBvKtH258gDaTFcMsEY0E-c/s1600/IMG_3803.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i> Butter Lamps</i></div>
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My co-teacher showed me these lamps. They are called "butter lamps" and you can buy one to make a prayer or offering. They cost around 50 rupees for one medium sized one. Some temples have special rooms just to burn these lamps, while other temples will let you burn them in a special area in the temple. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6B7ClBFqdWwtHBBMfQ-Xq9OvNFbl6M8yyTzrj_w1NZqNE8Ten8JVn6GzeNlYXNfcoCdhE6ZCSUXT0VHY1quZTOgljGgnzev0ZaeAQdHGhd78zQW-W0EVIkjJLfC8IeDoUncEWlWTeSs/s1600/IMG_3804.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6B7ClBFqdWwtHBBMfQ-Xq9OvNFbl6M8yyTzrj_w1NZqNE8Ten8JVn6GzeNlYXNfcoCdhE6ZCSUXT0VHY1quZTOgljGgnzev0ZaeAQdHGhd78zQW-W0EVIkjJLfC8IeDoUncEWlWTeSs/s1600/IMG_3804.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVgrYHFBQCCist6u19k38zDDcUarn6Q_FhjFSGKOpkDFTbpAXwogEAkRHs3F9c6zVselKwHwnlbKddGILOXTxY9maHZzIjw_VER4Ge-MN3iXtYlrk5pz3IcXa_4RncUOxwdQLbPfalbo/s1600/IMG_3815.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<i> Burning butter lamps</i></div>
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<i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZqmR1JWAy3s1wR7lpZDDg4C8dc0D7-HwrCdmI70IbPXwC8iN_XJfmMZQjdO9jxoFFoCBa3SAnzFYEIShxKJypivqmV0kxOKoYMC5W8NCMwNc5K3iNKVwFBkoqIgd9LC2pQEhS1CtjQUM/s1600/IMG_3835.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZqmR1JWAy3s1wR7lpZDDg4C8dc0D7-HwrCdmI70IbPXwC8iN_XJfmMZQjdO9jxoFFoCBa3SAnzFYEIShxKJypivqmV0kxOKoYMC5W8NCMwNc5K3iNKVwFBkoqIgd9LC2pQEhS1CtjQUM/s1600/IMG_3835.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a> </i></div>
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However, the most famous cave here is the small one containing the supposed footprint of Padmasambhava. My co-worker was a little surprised when he saw it, he thought it was too big to really be his footprint.... <br />
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<i> Padmasambhava's Footprint</i></div>
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<i> Butter lamps outside of Padmasambhava's Footprint</i></div>
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<i>Shops before the temple selling many offerings to leave at the Hindu temple </i></div>
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As we continued to hike up the mountain here, we came across a very big and beautiful Hindu temple. Though we didn't know much about the temple or Hinduism, it was still fun for me to walk around. One thing to note, that when you enter the grounds of a Hindu temple, you must remove your socks and shoes, even when walking around the outside of the grounds. Fortunately it was a warm and sunny day, so it wasn't a problem. </div>
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Inside the temple was smokey from all the incense burning. Around the perimeter of the inside of the temple, there were bells hanging every meter or so. As we and the other visitors walked around the temple, we rang each bell as we walked by. Very fun. Not sure about what the meaning of it is, but there is something about ringing a bell that makes you feel good. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDI_jx5LVkt1MADIGKQKZx1Qm2eJFahYzbVPHUdxdaFwz74-a6tal50dKvT2arEq1pPGsHpoi9eTT-pXwlDW2rqcjdiyu_f1O3wwOBKatlC-ICFA8nrwiJ6wJl23_1H6g4gdGxiQxYks8/s1600/IMG_3814.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDI_jx5LVkt1MADIGKQKZx1Qm2eJFahYzbVPHUdxdaFwz74-a6tal50dKvT2arEq1pPGsHpoi9eTT-pXwlDW2rqcjdiyu_f1O3wwOBKatlC-ICFA8nrwiJ6wJl23_1H6g4gdGxiQxYks8/s1600/IMG_3814.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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After checking out all the caves and the Hindu temple, which took about 2 hours, we got back in our cab and headed to the actual lake itself. Stay tuned for Part 2 where I will introduce the rest of the holy places! </div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com2Rewalsar, Himachal Pradesh 175023, India31.6321926 76.833174331.6254326 76.823089299999992 31.6389526 76.8432593tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-48137590956590527002014-02-18T00:38:00.000+09:002014-02-18T00:38:00.554+09:00Up to the snow: Birling, Himachal Pradesh<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On my first day off, my boss decided our staff should have a
staff lunch, and we figured before lunch we’d make a quick stop to check out
the view from Birling, a small settlement at the top of a local mountain which
also happens to be one of the world’s top spots for paragliding. We knew there
would be snow up there, so we figured it would be fun to play in the snow (down
here in Chauntra it never gets cold enough to snow) and see the view. So,
before going to the restaurant, which was near the bottom of the mountain, we
jumped in two cars, one of our staff member’s cars and one taxi and headed up
the mountain. I kind of felt like I was on a Korean ‘MT’.</div>
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The mountain road was a little scary at times. The road was only
wide enough for one car (as most roads are here), though it of course supported
two way traffic, which made passing both oncoming traffic and slow traffic
ahead of us difficult, and at times scary, since there were rarely barriers
protecting us from the steep mountainside next to us. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUOt2h0eSeIS3wNANRsbexmKcacuWS0SPhmFQwSO1S7V9ANgzlyp2BxuU0Qb9TXX8ueDWkUFpIlaBpPqnuWBthExImfhr4YV8_cTTDgex_T_zy__V_27fN9Kp5tuWEVA07LvhBJoGtvlw/s1600/IMG_3678.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUOt2h0eSeIS3wNANRsbexmKcacuWS0SPhmFQwSO1S7V9ANgzlyp2BxuU0Qb9TXX8ueDWkUFpIlaBpPqnuWBthExImfhr4YV8_cTTDgex_T_zy__V_27fN9Kp5tuWEVA07LvhBJoGtvlw/s1600/IMG_3678.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a> </div>
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However, things were going along smoothly until we reached
the snow line on the mountain. Here we quickly realized that our little ultra
compact cars could go no further in the snowy and icy conditions. Clearly no
one up here owned anything like a snow plow. </div>
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But, we figured we’d just walk the rest of the way up. It
was only 11am, and our lunch reservation was for 2pm, so we figured we’d have
plenty of time. The local folks from our staff assured us that we were just a quick
hike from the top. </div>
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We found a small path on the sunny side of the mountain with
not so much snow and started our assent. Some members of our staff were not
prepared with proper shoes for hiking...</div>
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I'm not sure if it's a Tibetan thing, or a mountain people thing, or just a human nature thing, but we found that, just like in China, whenever we asked the locals "How much further?", they always reply in a way that makes it sound like you'll reach your destination in 10 minutes. However, just as in China, this hike took us much longer than expected. We finally reached the store near the top at 1:30. </div>
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Here we collapsed and had a cup of chai with some chips and cookies... and lots of water... </div>
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Around this time we called and informed our restaurant that we would be a bit late, to which we got a very angry response and hung up on. But, there was nothing we could do, so we continued our way up to the top of Birling. <br />
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<i>Me and my co-workers at Dzongsar Monastary</i></div>
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Finally we made it to the top. There was some pretty fantastic views and despite all the snow, we felt quite warm. I've never had a snowball fight where I didn't mind picking up snow with my bare hands or wanted to take off my jacket before... </div>
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After throwing snowballs around for a little while, we made our way down, this time along the switchback roads, back to our waiting taxi. Then we headed back down the mountain to Bir for our, now very late, lunch. <br />
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Upon arriving at the restaurant (which, by the way, is a very special restaurant owned by a German-Indian who accepts only advanced reservations and has a wood fired oven in which he makes pizzas totally from scratch using whatever ingredients are available in the morning market), we were told by the owner's assistant that we were too late, that we could not eat. We sadly walked out and wondered where we should eat when the woman came back out and informed us that, actually, she had already made our pizzas that we had pre-ordered, and if we didn't mind that they were now a little soggy, she could heat them up in a pan for us. We jumped for joy that we hadn't completely missed our meal and headed back in to enjoy our pizzas. </div>
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After our late lunch, my boss took me for a little tour of her 'neigborhood' in Bir, which was basically a house in the middle of a field. But, the terraced land sure was beautiful.... <br />
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I got back to the monastery where I'm staying just in time for dark, and was a good first introduction to the area... </div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0Bir Tibetan Colony, Himachal Pradesh 176077, India32.0363889 76.71388890000002931.976331899999998 76.633207900000031 32.0964459 76.794569900000027tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-81214971116032733632014-02-16T12:39:00.001+09:002014-02-16T12:39:10.638+09:00Yunnan Part 5: Upper and Lower YuPeng<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>A view from our window in Upper YuPeng, Meili Xueshan National Park, Yunnan, China</i></div>
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Ahhh .... the best part of Meili XueShan National Park... Yupeng (pronounced we-pong). We still, 4 months later, talk about this place nostalgically... Nestled in a valley just before the great snowy mountains lies this little Tibetan town. Two little Tibetan towns to be exact. It's kind of like stepping back in time to some mythical village. No car roads lead here so anything that is here is brought in by donkey. Apparently they have only had electricity here for a year or two. <br />
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Ok, let's be clear about one thing, though. While these towns may have always been here in some shape or form, these two towns have certainly grown substantially with tourism. Houses here have clearly been built with the idea that they would be guesthouses. But don't let that turn you away, most residents that we met come from just on the other side of the mountain in Ninong (I'll get to there in another post) and as you can see in the photo above, all the buildings have been built in the typical Tibetan style. Thanks to the money from tourism, the locals can actually afford to do that. Here in India where I am now, while there are hundreds of Tibetans living around me, it's nearly impossible to find houses built in this style, probably due to lack of funds and lack of experience in building these homes. <br />
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<i>Building a new, traditional style Tibetan house. </i></div>
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But life here in Yupeng is good. Though it is located some 2,500m above sea level, its location so near the tropics (just a hop, skip and a jump from the border of Myanmar and about a day or two drive from Vietnam) so there is never any snow. <br />
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<i>View of the glacier from Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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The view from our bedroom window in Upper YuPeng afforded us a beautiful (though often covered by clouds) view of the glacier in the mountains nearby... <br />
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<i>Cooking dinner in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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Cooking out here is done the old fashioned way, on a wood stove. It was fascinating to watch this woman, who was our guesthouse owner, run the kitchen. <br />
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<i>Dinner in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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Food here was mainly Chinese style. We kept asking around for Tibetan food, but everyone looked at us a little strangely and couldn't understand why we would ask for such a strange thing. So, we mostly ate lots of fried vegetables and rice. Fortunately we like fried vegetables and rice. <br />
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<i>Maybe breakfast? in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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<i>Preserved meat in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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With no car access, anything eaten here must either be grown here or lugged in on a mule or backpack. Meat, of course, could not be sealed and stored in refrigerators as it would be in developed places so meat was salted and preserved and kept on the wall, as you can see above. I'm sure the salting process is not too unlike that which Americans used many years ago. When we ordered food with meat in it, she would just take down this salted pork from the wall and shave off a few small slices and add it to the food. <br />
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<i>Dali Beer</i></div>
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We did enjoy a number of these 大理啤酒 (Dali Beer) on our trip, it seems to be one of the only beers available in many rural areas of Yunnan Province. However the beer is quite weak, just 2.5% alcohol... But, I suppose we should not have been drinking it at all as it had to be carried in by mule and hopefully the used bottles were also being lugged out by mule. The price was several yuen more than what it cost in restaurants in the city. <br />
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<i>Drinking with the locals</i></div>
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Another exciting moment for us with the local cuisine was sampling the local liquor. We had chatted with this woman, the one with the black vest in the center of the photo, earlier in the day and she told us that she makes her own, homemade, liquor. We told her we wanted to try it later, so around 8pm that night we headed down to her restaurant in the dark and inquired if she were open. Of course we were the only ones in the deserted restaurant but she was excited to show us her liquor and we were excited to try it. We wanted to try both her wine and her barley liquor, so we ordered one of each. However, it was far too much alcohol to drink for the two of us (you can see the containers, the barley liquor was probably 40-50% alcohol...). So, we started recruiting locals to drink with us. Once the woman sitting next to me wondered in, completely drunk, it wasn't hard to get the rest of our drinks drunk as she was more than willing to help, plus getting others to join her in her drunkenness. <br />
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<i>Mules in front of traditional Tibetan house in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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Life in YuPeng runs at a slow pace. There are animals roaming the streets in all directions. While a lot of the local economy is now supported by tourism, it still logistically makes sense to keep up the agricultural way of life as everything here still needs to be brought in by horse if it's not made here. <br />
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<i>Pigs</i></div>
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<i>Calf</i></div>
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<i> Pet monkey?</i></div>
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Not sure what's up with the pet monkey, but it was a little scary and tried to attack us... I think... <br />
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<i>Our accommodations in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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Accommodations here were rustic and simple, as one would expect when trekking I suppose. But, we thought this place was quite nice and clean for $3 USD/ person/ night (20 yuen per night). Not really what most people imagine when they think about honeymoons... but, it was a different kind of romantic I suppose...<br />
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<i>Our lovely hosts in Upper YuPeng</i></div>
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After two nights in upper YuPeng we sadly left our guest house and said good bye to those working there and headed down to lower YuPeng for the next night. Lower YuPeng seems to be a more popular place to stay because it has a slightly better view of the Meili Xueshan mountain. However, considering the fact that the mountain is nearly always covered in clouds, or at least it was when we were there, we found life in upper YuPeng much more enjoyable. Fewer tourists, friendlier people, and cheaper accommodations. We went around to several guesthouses before we were able to find one that was both cheap and had a good view. But we paid for it with bedbugs... <br />
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<i>Our accommodations in Lower YuPeng</i></div>
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<i>Temple in lower YuPeng </i></div>
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<i>View of the mountains from Lower YuPeng</i></div>
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<i>A moment of clear skies in Lower YuPeng. </i></div>
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Overall, both Upper and Lower YuPeng are beautiful, fantastic places which have been relatively untouched by modernity. They are fantastic places to find traditional architecture, good meals made with fresh ingredients, kind people, and fantastic views. The husband and I, even now 5 months later long to return to YuPeng... </div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0China30.829296040247534 97.338867187516.172720540247532 76.6845701875 45.485871540247537 117.9931641875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-24967018118079353762014-01-19T23:27:00.000+09:002014-01-19T23:29:24.989+09:00Yunnan Part 4: BingHu (Glacial Lake)- Meili Xueshan National Park <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>The road to Bing Hu </i></div>
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While most trekkers try hard to get out early in the morning in order to maximize their days, we were kind of lazy trekkers... we'll say our excuse was our honeymoon, but it is entirely possible that we are just extremely lazy trekkers in general. Nevertheless, we finally got our gears in motion, probably close to noon on our second day in Meili Xueshan National Park. We asked around to the locals how long it would take to get up to BingHu 冰湖 (the glacial lake or literally 'Ice Lake'), and we were told 2-3 hours there and back. That sounded quite reasonable to us, so we headed out of town towards the lake. <br />
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We got a little lost once or twice, but eventually we found ourselves on the correct path to the lake. It was rainy, and we were very thankful that we had both bought ourselves quick drying hiking pants before coming on this trip... <br />
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After two hours of hiking up (and no sign of any other hikers) we started to wonder if we really were on the right path... Finally, we met one person coming down and they informed us that we should expect to arrive within an hour to 1.5 hours. Hm... not quite 2-3 hours there and back as we were originally told.... </div>
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Finally, after three hours of hiking we were finally within sight of the end. We could see the glacier now, and we just had to climb up one more small peak to reach it...<br />
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Utterly exhausted we finally made it to the top of the peak and looked down at the glacial lake. While it was a lot smaller than I expected, I would recognize that blue color anywhere from the last time I was near a glacier, way back in 2006 in Patagonia. If only I had been blogging at that time... <br />
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Some people ventured down to the water's edge for photos, but we were exhausted, it was getting late and we still had to go all the way back the way we came. <br />
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There's not enough houses up here to call it a village, but there seem to be a few people who live way up here in the mountains... and their cows roam freely around the open grassy area near the river flowing from the glacial lake... <br />
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Walking back we found a slightly different route that was a little more scenic. Here is another Tibetan prayer wheel, this time it spins with the flow of the water, I guess it's like putting the mantra inside on repeat keeping the world saved from evil... or something like that.<br />
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Finally we got back to YuPeng for another night in our guesthouse. We certainly slept well that night... We also learned our lesson. When Tibetans tell you how long it will take to walk/hike from one place to another... double the the time they tell you.... </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0Yunnan, China25.045806 102.7100020000000317.704344499999998 92.382853500000039 32.3872675 113.03715050000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-57663193420090921732014-01-18T12:30:00.000+09:002014-01-18T01:19:19.962+09:00Yunnan Part 3: Feilaisi to Upper Yupeng - Meili Xueshan National Park<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The next morning, we woke up and decided to make our decent into Xidang, the starting off point of hiking trails in Meili Xueshan National Park. Before leaving Feilaisi, we got some breakfast of dumplings and Tibetan butter tea. I was very excited about drinking this tea, as it is a staple in the Tibetan diet. I was a little disappointed by the taste. It is very strong.. it tastes... just about how you would expect butter tea to taste. Not great. But, I forced myself to drink it down and head out for the National Park.<br />
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From there, we had to find a minivan (called Baoche 包车)to take us down to Xidang. We thought we would have to hire one on our own, as we got a later start than most hikers in the area, but then we bumped into a group of five Chinese tourists who also were heading to the same place and we were able to share the minivan with them. <br />
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In order to enter the national park, you need to have a ticket like this. Actually, the price is quite high, but it includes entry into the park, Feilaisi, YuPeng, and another location we never found. You can buy this ticket either at the gate to the park or near Feilaisi and the cost is 230 Yuen ($38). Considering that once you are in the park, you can eat and sleep for $5-10 USD/ day per person, it's worth spending the money. <br />
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Finally we arrived in Xidang and were brought to the starting point of the hiking area. In order to go further into the National Park, one must go either on foot or by mule as there are no roads that lead in to the towns deep in the mountains. We didn't stop to rest here but made our way straight to the trail and started our upward climb. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfM4LkJZMwAlEoIa8WBwa_Ow16JGe_ZOsCMXjltQ4FIbyp4bnpWHMbLDvkzOPlfYwz0O-3FHPpcQ_rEMT4GpvFcXwZ1VhN9Dox5tCl8-X2CZgBUUFir8Ree9KMBiJit4_nD4JXg2B707Y/s1600/IMG_1219.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfM4LkJZMwAlEoIa8WBwa_Ow16JGe_ZOsCMXjltQ4FIbyp4bnpWHMbLDvkzOPlfYwz0O-3FHPpcQ_rEMT4GpvFcXwZ1VhN9Dox5tCl8-X2CZgBUUFir8Ree9KMBiJit4_nD4JXg2B707Y/s1600/IMG_1219.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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About an hour or two into our climb we happened upon our first rest stop. Here you could buy all manner of things, the most popular being a Chinese form of Red Bull (see the yellow cans piled high), Snikers, Dove Bars, and ramen. <br />
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We wanted the local cuisine, however and opted for more butter tea and some sort of fried bread. Then we continued on our hike up the mountain. <br />
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About four hours or so into our hike, we made it to our next rest stop and got ourselves some lunch. Here, the most popular fare was by far the ramen, so we figured there was no point in being different and bought two cups of ramen noodles. Just to prove the popularity of the ramen here, if you see in the background of the photo above, there are towers of something red in the background. It's hard to tell in the photo, however those are actually piles and piles and piles of used ramen cups. As it can be difficult to dispose of waste up here, the locals have started using the waste as decoration rather than tossing it into the environment around them. Unfortunately, the hoards of Chinese tourists continue to treat the mountain like their own trash barrel and there is trash strewn everywhere, undoubtedly 98% of which comes from tourists (of which probably another 98% happen to be Chinese). </div>
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After another hour or so of hiking, we finally reached the top of the mountain, a holy place for the local Tibetan population. While I expected the summit to be a little more exciting, with breathtaking views, those were to come later on the decent on the other side. For now, we had to be satisfied by the prayer flags which covered the summit. <br />
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As I said, the real views were for the hike down the other side, once we reached the inner side of the mountain. The whole hike down afforded us views like this with the snow capped mountains and glacier looming in the distance. <br />
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It was also not uncommon to find collections of objects like this concentrated in one area. I'm not sure yet about the significance here, but I imagine it would be akin to the prayer flags. A way to make a prayer in a holy place. <br />
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Finally, after six hours or so of hiking up and down a large mountain at a relatively high elevation (I think it was 3600 at the peak, but I could be wrong), we finally caught sight of Upper Yu Peng <span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>雨崩</i>村. I can't say I wasn't excited to be done with the hiking (especially with my huge backpack!). We settled down here in Upper Yu Peng for the next two nights to continue our exploration of Meili Xueshan National Park. More on that later. </span></div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-43281239944189449412014-01-17T19:30:00.000+09:002014-01-17T23:15:55.969+09:00Breakfast with Khenpo<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I am now finally situated in my home for the next five weeks, the Dzongsar Khyentse Chokyi Lodro Institute, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery situated in northern India. Here, I live in the monastery with the monks, eat my meals with the monks, and will be teaching the monks English during their winter program as a volunteer.<br />
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It's quite an opportunity to live in a monastery like this, something most people would never dream of being able to do (although apparently it's actually not on most people's to do list in life, though I can't imagine why...). <br />
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I've got to get used to the daily routine here, and today, as classes have not started yet, I thought I'd catch the morning tea served at 9:00am according to the schedule given to me as a new volunteer (I'd already missed breakfast, which is served at 7:00am). As I left my room and started to head toward the cafeteria, I was stopped before I even got out of the building by the monk living in the room next to mine. Upon asking him if it was tea time, he replied... "Yes, but tea is not hot.". I told him that was no problem for me but he insisted that he make me a cup of hot tea in his own room and invited me in.<br />
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I was told by the head teacher that this monk living next to me was no ordinary monk, but one of the most well respected instructors of philosophy in the monastery. Teachers here are known as Khenpos. As he introduced himself to me, he did not refer to himself as Khenpo, but just his first and last name. I feel terrible, but I can't remember it. Maybe I'm getting older, but these Tibetan names are making my head swim. Fortunately, I'm realizing that there are many common names that you hear again and again, so maybe after a few weeks the names won't be so hard for me.<br />
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He sat me down and brought me a cup of green tea and when he realized I hadn't yet eaten breakfast he whipped me up a bowl of Indian style ramen noodles... with some sort of snack like Cheetos sprinkled on top. Then we started chatting. His English was far from perfect, but good enough to understand and chat for a while. He started telling me about where he comes from, high in the mountains of Kashmir, much further north in India, an area with large ethnic Tibetan populations (however, he does not call himself Tibetan!). He showed me beautiful photos of the first monastery where he began his monastic studies and where he grew up.<br />
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Then we started chatting about Buddhism and I asked him all my questions about how Korean Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism differ (not about philosophy, because I still am far from understanding that, but just in simple things). He explained to me about the Tibetan prayer flags. Each string of flags should represent one form of Bodhisattvas. Depending on which Bodhisattva you may need (wisdom, compassion, happiness, etc.), you can buy the flag which reflects your need, and hang it where you like, often in a holy place.<br />
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We also discussed the relics left behind by Buddhist masters after cremations. In sandskrit they are known as <i>sarira</i> शरीर (in Korean 사리), however Khenpo was not familiar with this word, but the Tibetan word <i>ringsel</i>. These are small crystal balls that are found in the cremated remains after cremation of the most holy of masters. He told me as well that relics such as these, or teeth or other matter which are saved as relics can actually grow over time.<br />
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I'm sure he tried to explain other things to me, but I am so clueless about the philosophy of Buddhism that I can not hope to understand things yet. <br />
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-82125483491578613382014-01-16T14:56:00.000+09:002014-01-16T14:56:00.472+09:00Yunnan Part 2: Getting to Meili XueShan National Park <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i> Street Seamstress</i></div>
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Upon our arrival in the Shangrila airport in Yunnan Province, China, we wasted no time in finding a cab to the bus terminal and buying tickets for the next bus to Deqen (pronounced Duh-chin), the nearest city to Meili Xueshan National Park. <br />
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While we waited for our bus to depart, we wondered around the area. The husband got a pair of pants hemmed by a seamstress on the side of the road. The woman stated the price was 10 Yuen ($1.50), but then doubled it when we went to pay, stating that 10 yuen was the price of one pant leg. Welcome to China! So, basically we paid the same price as we would have in Korea ^^.<br />
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<i> Breakfast on the street</i></div>
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We found some street food for breakfast. Bread with soy milk. Not bad for less than a dollar! <br />
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<i>View from the bus window</i></div>
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Finally, it was time to hit the road. We piled into the bus, full mostly of locals plus a few other Chinese tourists also heading for the same area we were. Because of the early wake up time and stress of the day up until this point, I fell asleep quite easily in the bus for the first hour or two of the ride, passing out before we even left town.<br />
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I must certainly say I was shocked to wake up and look out the window to see these sights. Let's just say from the height of the bus, it was hard to see the side of the road, all you could see was the sharp drop into the ravine below. I was fairly sure I would not make it home alive. <br />
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Perhaps the most frightening part of the ride was the landslides that were to be found all over. While I'm not sure if they're natural, or a result of all the roadwork going on as the road in to Deqen was clearly under a constant state of construction. However seeing how the landslides have clearly tumbled down on roads in the past, and in some places we even had to travel in the opposite lane to avoid them, I really thought that our bus would be the next to have a giant rock through the roof. <br />
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I certainly had some flashbacks to my time in Georgia. Part of it was the scenery: the tall mountains, switchbacks on the roads and the sharp drops on the side of the roads; however it was also the people and animals. Cows and goats being herded along the roads, even on this major highway. <br />
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Finally we reached the end of our bus ride, the tiny city of Deqen. However, our journey was not quite done. Generally travelers continue another 10 minute drive out of town to Felaisi (飞来寺). If you recognize that character 寺 as temple, you are correct. While the temple is beautiful, the area around the temple overlooks the Meili Xueshan National Park making it the perfect resting point before starting one's journey into the park. <br />
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<i>House near Feilaisi</i></div>
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Here was our first introduction to Tibetan architecture. I really loved the colors of the houses in this area! <br />
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<i>Tibetan Woman</i></div>
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<i>Circumambulating and spinning prayer wheels at Feilaisi</i></div>
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We also journeyed into the temple, which was, of course, a very rewarding experience. Here you can see the prayer wheels around the temple, as typical of Tibetan Buddhism. Each while contains one mantra, and by spinning each wheel the prayer is automatically said. Typically, when one visits a Tibetan temple, one should circumambulate around the temple clockwise, turning these prayer wheels, if present. <br />
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<i>Large prayer wheel</i></div>
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Bigger prayer wheels are also common in Tibetan temples. Feilaisi also had one as well, the painting on it looks quite ancient. <br />
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<i>Inside the temple</i></div>
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For those daring to enter the main worship area, it was pretty exciting. The monk there was very welcoming. We bought some incense and bowed (Korean style) and then walked about and gave a few yuen here and there as the locals were doing. <br />
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<i> Money and Buddha</i></div>
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But, here, the main attraction is not the temple, it's the mountains. For just a moment they came out from their shroud of clouds to say hello.... <br />
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<i> View from afar of Meili Xueshan National Park </i></div>
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Actually, these peaks have never been climbed. Some foreigners died while trying to climb here a number of years ago and have since been off limits to climbing. While there are a number of hiking/trekking trails here, none go past the snow line.<br />
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And it was here we spent the night, overlooking this enormous mountain range and trying our best to get acclimated to the altitude (about 3,500m above sea level). I had no problems, however, the husband looked absolutely terrible until the next morning. Fortunately, he recovered in time to start our trek. And speaking of the trek, that will come soon enough...<br />
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ps. sorry for switching between India posts (which are basically current) and China posts (which date back to Sept. and October). I'm extremely backlogged and finally have some time to get caught up! To follow only stories about China, click the <a href="http://smileyjkl.blogspot.com/search/label/China" target="_blank">China</a> link, and to follow only stories about India, click the <a href="http://smileyjkl.blogspot.in/search/label/India" target="_blank">India</a> link. </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0Meili Xueshan, Deqen, China28.5083333 98.6519444000000482.9862988 57.343350400000048 54.0303678 139.96053840000005tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-89908583018309759132014-01-15T23:34:00.001+09:002014-01-15T23:35:11.875+09:00Delhi<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
What can I say about Delhi? I spent just two days wondering a little around the city, but I feel like I couldn't relax enough to truly get to know it. So, what can I say? Basically, that every photo you've seen of it and every word you have heard about it; the beauty, the chaos, the poverty, the pollution and trash etc etc. is true. Words can not describe it, so I will try with just a few photos.<br />
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<i>A welcome into India from Delhi's international Airport </i></div>
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<i>New Delhi Train Station </i></div>
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<i>A tapestry made from remnant fabric for my house: 700 rupees ($11 USD). </i></div>
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<i>Size is approx. the dimensions of a twin bed.</i></div>
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<i>My clothing purchases: two shirts and pair of pants (total $600 rupees/ $10 USD) </i></div>
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<i>and thick wool scarf ($310 rupees/ $5 USD)</i></div>
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<i>The Red Fort (closed on Monday) </i></div>
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<i>A view of Jama Masjid (India's largest Mosque) from the bazaar </i></div>
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<i>View of a busy bazaar from the steps of Jama Masjid </i></div>
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<i>Typical street in Old Delhi </i></div>
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<i>Around Chawri Bazaar </i></div>
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<i>Hindu temple, not sure, but they may have been doing funeral pyres here... many people were standing around and someone was building a fire, outside there was a sign for 'mortuary'... </i></div>
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<i>Door to another Hindu temple </i></div>
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<i>Same temple from above </i></div>
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<i> Typical road near Nehru Place</i></div>
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<i> Indian fast food take away</i></div>
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<i> Simple but nice palak paneer</i></div>
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<i>In the metro </i></div>
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<i>Young trees </i></div>
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<i> 신라면 in an upscale local food mart</i></div>
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<i> In a local Hindu temple in Greater Kailash</i></div>
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<i> Monkey god</i></div>
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<i>Playful kitten outside the Hindu temple</i></div>
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Everyone kept asking me how I was handling Delhi, and I kept telling people that it was "fine, no problem". I think it hit me much later that it was not "fine, no problem". Generally, when traveling, I have no problem walking around cities for hours on end, but here in Delhi, after just one or two hours I found myself longing to be back in my hostel. I realized later that the reason for that is that if you choose to walk around Delhi, especially downtown, but really anywhere, you are constantly on guard. Pickpockets, tourist touts, scam artists, beggars, insane traffic, and the necessity to bargain hard for nearly any service you need creates a certain amount of stress that builds and builds. </div>
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Once on the train to my next destination I got quite sick and wound up vomiting in the train. Some may blame the food, and no doubt, it is quite possible, however, I tend to think it may have been my body's way of dealing with the intense amount of stress and lack of sleep it had been experiencing the previous few days. More than likley it was some combination of the two. </div>
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After a long journey that took an extra day longer than expected I am finally in my home for the next five weeks, a Tibetan monastery in Himachal Pradesh, India. More on that in the coming days. </div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com1New Delhi, Delhi, India28.635308 77.2249600000000128.1893855 76.579513 29.081230499999997 77.870407000000014tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-10618372828968019782014-01-14T17:31:00.001+09:002014-01-17T23:14:44.359+09:00An adventure to Agra to see the Taj Mahal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Our bus to Delhi</i></div>
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Having originally only planned just two full days in Delhi before moving to my work site in the north, I realized that Saturday would be my only day to see the Taj Mahal. I had hoped to find someone in my hostal that was also going and when I heard one guy chatting to another traveler about potentially going to the Taj the next morning, I butting myself into the conversation excitedly and invited myself along. He seemed interested and we decided that that evening we would make plans. Well, I waited until about 9 pm for him to return and at that point I realized I had better start figuring out something as I had heard it was a 3 hour train ride away. Fortunately in the hostel there were two travel agents that I could talk to about figuring out the logistics of getting down there and back. They said that the train was a bit complicated, especially so late the night before, and similarly, there was a very efficient bus that takes the highway which is also just 3 hours form Agra, but I was also too late to sign up for this as well. The only option left was for me to talk a 5 hour bus ride which they told me might take even longer than 5 hours depending on traffic, fog, etc etc. I was hemming and hawing over this when the guy who said he would come with me came back and just said "What the hell, let's just go." So I did. </div>
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The travel agents booked a place for us on the bus and it was to pick us up at a gas station in the middle of nowhere in Delhi at 7:30/ "Do we have a ticket?" I asked, "No, he'll know you." was all he replied. Ok... so we rushed down to this gas station early in the morning suddenly realized that we had a little problem. Every single bus from Delhi going south stopped at this particular gas station to fill up, and every bus which arrived asked us if a) we wanted to go on their bus and when we said we had already made a reservation they asked b) "Do you know your bus number?" to which we had no response. "Dont' worry, bus is coming." they would reply as they drove off. Finally one man asked us if we had made a reservation and when we said yes, he made a call. "Ok, your bus number if 4329." Who did he call? How did he know? It's a mystery to us still today, but several minutes later 4329 rolled in and we were told to hop on. </div>
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We knew pretty quickly that we had made the right decision to take this bus when a vendor came on tried to sell an orange juicer. His sales pitch, which was mixed with Hindi and English was too hilarious and that was before the demonstrations started. He told us how good it was for "pregnant lady" and "newly- married lady" and then he pulled out a baby bottle nipple and stuck it on the top of the juicer showing that you could litterally use an orange as a baby bottle. Next thing some lucky (or unlucky) bus riders found themselves subject to the demonstrations where he would push the juicer inside the orange, then tip someone's head back and pour orange juice straight from the orange into their mouths. At least one guy looked like he was enjoying it a lot. </div>
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After about 2 hours of driving we stopped for breakfast at a little outdoor restaurant on the side of the road. This was my first proper meal in India, and we were both quite satisfied with our veg curry for 30 rupies each. We realized when we got the bill, however, that we had accidentally ordered the most expencive naan (it was filled with vegetables), so we still wound up paying a whopping $3USD each for this meal (one of my most expencive meals so far). <br />
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Finally, around 1pm we arrived in Agra and the bus driver announced that we would be going first to Agra Fort, then to the Taj Mahal, and would stop at each place for 1.25 hours. We were a bit dissapointed by this, as we wanted time to just wonder the city after seeing the Taj Mahal. Just at that moment, the man pictured above came to us and told us that he would take us on our own directly to the Taj Mahal so that we could have more time there, and that this service was included in the price of our tour. So we hopped out and got in his tuk-tuk and he whisked us away to the Taj Mahal, giving us a leisurely 2 hours to see the site. <br />
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Before we even reached the Taj, we passed quite a few monkeys and camels....<br />
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And finally we got to the Taj Mahal. The crowds were enormous, but fortunately or unfortunately we were forced to buy a expencive tourist ticket to enter which let us through all the lines without waiting. <br />
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So in case you are wondering, yes, it is just as big as it looks in photos, if not bigger, and the reason why you never see photos of the inside is that there is no light inside and all you can see (and not well because of the crowds) are the two tombs for whom this structure was built: the tomb of Shah Jahan, emperor during the Mughal empire and his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, his third wife and a Persian princess. <br />
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Before stepping foot on the marble of the Taj Mahal, one must put on shoe covers to protect the stone. <br />
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Here is the entrance into the mausoleum. I have no photos from inside to show because a) it was too dark, b) there were too many people and c) technically photography was not allowed, however that didn't seem to stop most people. I tried taking one or two shots in here quickly, however none came out well enough for me to show here. <br />
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Next we checked out the side building which is a mosque made of red sandstone, a very typical stone used for building in this area. <br />
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Here, too, we were expected to enter shoeless, and while it was not the Taj Mahal, I found it to be quite impressive as well. <br />
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After finishing with the Taj, we still had some time and decided to do a little wondering around the backstreets in the area. We were starving, so we stopped for some samosas first. </div>
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While wondering the backstreets in India (or even the main streets for that matter), you never know what you'll find. <br />
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We didn't have much time left before we were supposed to meet our driver, but we found a little rooftop restaurant with a view of the Taj. We were still full on samosas and we didn't have much time, but we ordered ourselves two beers (much bigger beers than we expected) and enjoyed them watching the rooftop scenery around us. <br />
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<i>Imagine if this were your view every day... </i></div>
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But finally we had to go back and meet our driver and of course, we were next brought on the typical tourist shopping tour. First to a clothing store. Now, my friend who had been to India several years ago advised me, don't pack many clothes because clothes in India are unbelievably cheap. Well, I couldn't just pack no clothes, so I just packed about three warm outfits and figured I would take her advice and do the rest of my shopping in India. So, now I was brought to a store, where undoubtedly our tuk-tuk driver would receive a commission for anything purchased. upon asking the price for some clothing, I found it to be... cheap... but not unbelievably cheap as my friend had told me. Finally after seeing that bargaining was going no where, I gave up and left the store. Our tuk-tuk driver was clearly not impressed that I had not bought anything. We told our tuk-tuk driver that we weren't really interested in shopping but he insisted that we go to see an inlayed marble seller. While I did find it to be fairly interesting (though not enough to buy one), my travel companion was at this point visibly pissed off that we were being dragged around like this and our tuk-tuk driver, perhaps still hoping to get a good tip offered to take us back to our bus so we could walk around there. <br />
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<i>Our driver, guide and my travel companion (looking not so impressed at where the day was going)</i></div>
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Ah, yes, and how could I forget. As we were headed back to the bus, our guide pulled out a joint and tried to convinse my companion to buy it from him at just 300 rupees. Fortunately, my companion had the wits to say no, even when he offered to split it with him for half the cost. Ha, and while I had been inside the clothes shop trying on clothes, my companion was offered oral sex by another man, also for 300 rupees. It does not pay to be a male traveler in India (or basically anywhere for that matter) as you get solicited for all manner of terrible things. </div>
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Finally we were dropped off at the bus and it was time to tip our driver. In the end we agreed to give 100 rupees each, or the equivalent of just under $4 USD. Not sure whether or not we did the right thing, as we did basically get a free ride around town (although how much of our tour fee covered his expenses, we don't know), but feeling the victim of sales pitch after sales pitch doesn't put one in the mood for generosity at the end of the day. Not to mention $4USD can go quite far in this country as well. <br />
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But we thoroughly enjoyed our walk about while waiting for our bus... <br />
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Finally our bus departed and thought we would be back to Delhi before midnight, but oh no, they had more in store for us. Around 8pm we were awoken to visit a temple to Krishna. The temple complex was quite big and because they closed at 8:30, we didn't have much time to look around, but it was quite interesting watching the worship services in various small shrines about the complex.<br />
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Then we were back on the bus and off to another temple to Krishna, now at 10:00pm. We really had no idea what was going on, though one other tourist on the bus tried her best to explain, even though Hindi was not her native language and she also seemed to not understand completely what was going on. <br />
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Finally at 11:30pm the bus stopped for dinner at another roadside restaurant. This time I joined some of the other tourists (which turned out to be students from a university in the far east of India, explaining their very different, more South-east Asia appearance that I had been trying to figure out all day) and their professor bought my dinner, a delicious Dal Makani with naan. <br />
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We finally got back to Delhi at 1:30 am. We took a tuk-tuk back to our hostel and crashed. But, that was one unbelievable day! </div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India27.1766701 78.00807450000002126.9506581 77.685351000000026 27.4026821 78.330798000000016tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-83323019520241891682014-01-07T16:13:00.000+09:002014-01-07T16:13:00.883+09:00New Banner, New Cross-Cultural Experiences<div style="text-align: center;">
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So, my lovely and patient blog readers. You may have noticed a long interruption in the blogging, and that was because I've been busy with crazy grad school/wedding/honeymoon/and work schedules. However, now that all that insanity is over, I'm preparing for my newest adventure: teaching in a five-week winter camp in northern India teaching Tibetan monks. As my teaching schedule should allow for ample time for blogging, and since there should be plenty to blog about, I have updated my banner to reflect the next two months or so of my life.<br />
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Not only will I be posting about teaching and living among Tibetan monks, I am also backlogged on posts from my travels through China, the most memorable of which was spent in a Tibetan area of Yunnan Province, so before I get to the India posts, expect plenty of China posts which will include plenty of Tibetan cultural info as well as the photos here allude to.<br />
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So, over the next two months or more, expect posts about my time in China, India and mostly about Tibetan culture and life. 조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-17255300713979618462014-01-07T02:28:00.001+09:002014-01-07T14:39:26.427+09:00Yunnan Province Part 1: Kunming Typically, when you think of honeymoons, you imagine a tropical atmosphere, a fancy resort by the beach, and maybe some champagne in a luxurious hotel room. The last thing you would probably imagine would be trekking through the foothills of the Himalayas, spending $6.00 USD per night to stay in rustic guest houses, and gorging on oily Chinese food.<br />
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...However, as I'm sure you can guess if you've been reading my blog for a while, we're more of the trekking, cheap lodging and new and unusual food types, and that is probably how we found ourselves spending two weeks in Yunnan province of China for our honeymoon.<br />
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But all good trips need to start somewhere, and for a trip to Yunnan, the most logical starting point is Kunming, the capital and largest city of the province. <br />
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We flew in to Kunming late at night on September 13th. As the airport railway was already closed for the night when we arrived, we hopped in the first cab we found (avoiding the numerous obnoxious people in the airport trying to get us into their cabs) and got into town for just 100<span class="st">¥ (about $16.00 USD). As it was late at night, we went straight to our room and passed out.</span><br />
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<span class="st">In the morning, we started wondering around. First thing first, I wanted to get a cell phone as I was to stay in China for the next month. We found me a smartphone for about 900</span><span class="st"><span class="st">¥ and then we started to roam about the city. </span></span><br />
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<span class="st"><span class="st">The first place we found was a large park with many small ponds. All around the park were various performances and just plain things happening. The photo below was a group of people playing music. We couldn't quite figure out if this was a band having their practice, or a performance, or just a bunch of random people who accidentally met and started playing spontaneously. </span> </span><br />
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Next we stumbled upon <span class="vcard" id="Yuantong_Temple"><span class="nickname"><span class="non-latin">Yuentong Temple 圆通寺. This temple is no less than 1,200 years old and is considered the most important temple in Yunnan Province. As we walked around, we found not just the average temple-goers lighting candles, but also a group of adult students who seemed to be there for some Buddhist education.</span></span></span><br />
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The temple itself was decivingly large. While the street entrance seemed fairly modest, the temple expands quite far behind reveilding more and more interesting buildings, pools and statues. <br />
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While I don't have any photos, one of the most exciting places we visited in Kunming was the Flower and Bird Market. Lots of good shopping and interesting sights. Probably the best place to pick up bird flu, too. <br />
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The next morning we were up at 4:00 am to catch an early flight to Shangrila. Yes, there really is a place called Shangrila. I'll save the next adventure for the next post... <br />
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<i>Not so far from Shangrila</i></div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-76727837974331290432014-01-03T06:04:00.001+09:002014-01-03T06:04:42.444+09:00Our Korean Wedding at The Korea House (한국의집)Finally it's the post you've all been waiting for! It's taken me quite some time to get this post up, between honeymoon/ one month in China, and then almost immediately starting to teach a 7 week intensive course in Gangnam after coming back, and applying for jobs during every break time I have, I've had no time for blogging. I miss it so much! After some time, I've finally gotten this post up.<br />
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<b>Our Korean Wedding Day:</b><br />
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It's amazing how much build-up there is to a wedding, but when the day arrives, the time just flies by before you know it. Our wedding was scheduled for 12:00pm on a Sunday afternoon, but that meant we needed to arrive at The Korea House by 8:30am to start preparing. As soon as we arrived, with our hanboks in hand, I was whisked away by the stylists and they immediately went to work on me. <br />
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The hair went quite quickly, actually. For a traditional Korean wedding, the hair style is quite simple, just parted down the middle and tied in the back. I had been growing my hair out for over a year in hopes that they would use my real hair for the hair piece, however that probably would have been impossible, so instead they just put my hair in a bun at the back of my neck and put a fake braided bun over it, which was strong enough to support the hair peice that would come later.<br />
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Next was the make-up. I must say, while there were some fake eyelashes involved, after they had finished with the make-up, I still looked like myself, which I can't really say about the photo shoot we had had the week earlier. <br />
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<i>Getting my make-up done</i></div>
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The make up and hair took some time, but once it was done, it was time to suit me up. First went on my own hanbok. This helper whipped it on in no time. However, since I had bought the hanbok myself, I had not bought shoes (I tried on the nice shoes in the shop, but found that they were all too uncomfortable, so I decided not to buy them). Since I knew that the men were given shoes, I assumed the bride would be, too. I was wrong however, and the woman nearly flipped out when she realized I didn't have any proper shoes to wear with my hanbok. Fortunately, my friend who had rented a hanbok got shoes with hers, so even though they were one size too big, I just wore hers instead. <br />
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<i>Getting dressed</i><br />
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After I had gotten my own hanbok on, I was then given the bridal jeogori (top part of the hanbok) to wear over it. Actually, this worked out great since I found that the back of my hanbok sometimes flipped open showing my petticoat, and the bridal jeogori was very long in the back and covered the back of the dress. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfwJT-cwD_USdjgXaF-R_AOapRmLpVDHhcu6AeKHeHbe4l5Ml6cP9BU-GI3n2l1xQP2DWHZyqTLPAYTdm6Bh7ffKs2_3ZvYnC4eojjSQfCtDS0w1nyMKSzF5gGXnys0DVeXLuKhw_0pBs/s1600/P1260537.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfwJT-cwD_USdjgXaF-R_AOapRmLpVDHhcu6AeKHeHbe4l5Ml6cP9BU-GI3n2l1xQP2DWHZyqTLPAYTdm6Bh7ffKs2_3ZvYnC4eojjSQfCtDS0w1nyMKSzF5gGXnys0DVeXLuKhw_0pBs/s400/P1260537.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div>
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<i>Fitting the hair piece</i><br />
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My groom didn't take quite as long to get ready as there wasn't really any make-up for him. Once I was done, I headed out just in time for my photographer to arrive and take some pre-wedding photos. I should note that this is quite different from the American wedding ritual where the groom can not see the bride before the ceremony. Modern Korean weddings generally do the majority of the photography before the ceremony, unlike American weddings which would do couple photos after the ceremony. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFNfFL-IQaIgkApoWhd8icySZGv8kjrutNZyJUYphhippZDUYdqSl9t1ZaPXYP_QV2SihcfwQBH2hbPe5mfEEIyAxpFlNik28yao7RNy_Ay3mXmwAvbF8L4fLL8RAnAX6uG2beKLw3WNk/s1600/P1260564.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFNfFL-IQaIgkApoWhd8icySZGv8kjrutNZyJUYphhippZDUYdqSl9t1ZaPXYP_QV2SihcfwQBH2hbPe5mfEEIyAxpFlNik28yao7RNy_Ay3mXmwAvbF8L4fLL8RAnAX6uG2beKLw3WNk/s400/P1260564.JPG" width="400" /></a> </div>
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<i>Pre-ceremony photos</i><br />
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Since our wedding was at <a href="http://www.koreahouse.or.kr/eng/" target="_blank">The Korea House</a> in Chungmuro (which is open to the public and tourists can visit), the traditional hanok setting made for perfect photography. We recently got our wedding album back and we're quite satisfied with the way the photos came out (thanks again to <a href="http://www.aand.co.kr/" target="_blank">Aand Studio</a>). </div>
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<i>Waiting in the 신부대기실</i></div>
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Once photos were done it was nearly 11:00, time to wait in the 신부대기실 or the bride's waiting room. While waiting here, guests can come up and take their photo with the bride (me!) before the ceremony. The groom and the rest of the family members wait by the door and greet guests as they come in.<br />
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At 11:45 I still had not received even one word of instruction on what to do for the wedding. I know that the men had run through their part earlier, but no one had explained anything to me. Just before it was time to head down, my two helpers (you can think of them as bridesmaids) came up and "taught" me how to bow. I thought I knew how to bow, I do it all the time in Korea, but this bow was totally different. Rather than getting down on my knees, I was taught to squat down all the way to the ground (being supported on each sides by my two bridesmaids) and then once I had gone down as far as I could, push back so my bottom was on the ground. Then I was told to lean forward and bow my back and head down, keeping my arms in front of my face, the big sleeves would keep my face covered.<br />
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We practiced this several times and it felt quite awkward but they assured me that I did a really good job, better than most foreign brides (probably helped by the fact that I could understand them as they couldn't speak English. I imagine most foreign brides must struggle terribly with the language barrier). After practicing bowing down, they whisked me down the stairs and into the house where I would wait for the ceremony to begin.<br />
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While waiting in the back, they also brought my mother in from the crowd. No one mentioned to me that she needed to play some role in this all. Suddenly, my helper was firing instructions at me at what my mom needed to do and what I needed to do. In the stress of the moment I was freaking out that I wasn't translating it right. "<i>Ok, one more time... who follows who?</i>" Finally the helpers very slowly explained what we all needed to do and I translated for my mother. Basically, my groom would put a wooden goose on a table in front of us. My mother needed to pick up the table and bring it inside and then we would all march out together in a line. <br />
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The video here shows the rest of the process better than I can explain in words, so take a look! Thanks to Steve the <a href="http://www.qiranger.com/" target="_blank">Qi Ranger</a> for our beautiful video.<br />
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<br />We concluded the wedding with a little pansori, because, well, you can never have too much of that! </div>
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After the wedding was finished, it was photo time. First was photos with family, and then with friends. We were really overwhelmed by the number of friends that came to our wedding. There were even some friends who ducked out of the photo, believe it or not! <br />
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<i>(not) all of our friends</i></div>
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After the official photos were taken, my new husband and I were being pulled on all sides by friends wanting to snap photos with us in our wedding get up. But, way too quickly, we were whisked away by our helpers. I couldn't quite figure out why until we were brought into a room with all our family and we realized that we still had to do our pyebaek.<br />
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Pyebaek (폐백) is basically the Korean wedding tradition in which the groom's family welcomes the bride into the family. It is typically done privately with just family watching<br />
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There are several Pyebaek traditions. First we had to take the customary family photos. For my family, my friend Megan was a stand-in for my father who could not come to Korea. <br />
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Next we served rice wine (cheongju) to our families. I held the cup precariously over my hands covered with several layers of cloth while my groom poured and served it. Then our families took a few bites of the traditional snacks prepared. My mom and friend looked frightened to death of trying them. <br />
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Next it was time to toss dates and chestnuts into my cloth. The groom's mother and father each take a turn at throwing a handful of dates and chestnuts while we try to catch them in my cloth. The dates represent the number of girls we will have and the chestnuts represent the number of boys we will have... fortunately his mother completely missed and his father only got five in our cloth, so we're only having five children... don't want to think about what would have happened if they had both had better accuracy...<br />
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<i>Getting ready to catch the <strike>dates and chestnuts</strike> our children</i></div>
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The only thing missing from our pyebaek was when the groom carries the bride on his back around the room. Don't know why we didn't do that, but I'll bet my groom paid them off because I know that was probably the part that he was least looking forward to.... suspicious... <br />
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Finally, it was off to eat with the rest of our guests. Actually, it was more like walking around and chatting with everyone we could and then finally when the staff told us that they would be closing up our buffet within the next 5 minutes we grabbed a plate of food for ourselves and scarfed some down before packing up our things and heading out. Then we went on to our after-party in Itaewon... which is a whole other story...<br />
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<i>what we were wearing under the wedding garb</i></div>
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com10Chungmuro, 125 Chungmuro 4(sa)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea37.561603 126.9936720000000612.039568499999998 85.685078000000061 63.083637499999995 168.30226600000006tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-9402398692882834902014-01-02T03:38:00.001+09:002014-01-02T03:40:43.751+09:00Ringing in the New Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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In honor of the new year, I thought I would briefly explain one Korean New Year's tradition and my own personal experience along with it.<br />
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On January 1st, Koreans literally ring in the new year by ringing the Bosingak bell by Jonggak Station. This bell was traditionally rung during the Joseon dynasty to announce the closing of the city gates or to notify citizens of any emergency situations. However, in modern days, the bell is most famously rung at midnight on New Year's Eve to ring in the new year. The bell is rung 33 times starting exactly at midnight of New Year's Eve. See the above news report from YTN to see some images of the ringing of the bell and the immense crowds that gather to watch. <br />
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I however, did not spend my New Year's Eve here. In fact, I was not even in the country, and I've never even been in Seoul for New Year's Eve (I'm usually skiing or traveling). But, that does not not mean that I have never run the Bosingak bell.<br />
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Yes, that's right. I have rung this famous bell. It was an amazing moment for me. I was probably more excited about it than your typical tourist, as I pass this bell quite often since I have been working in the area for the past year and a half, and am slightly obsessed with anything historical. <br />
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Here is Bosingak belfry. It can be found on Jongno at Jonggak Station, across the street from the unmistakable Jongno Tower. Generally the entrance is blocked, but you can see it quite clearly, just as in this photo.<br />
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However, one fateful day in September, I was passing by just before noon with my mother and friend, who were visiting from out of town, and I noticed that the front entrance was not blocked. Not only was it not blocked, but a staff member was encouraging us to come up to the second floor where the bell is located. <br />
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Having passed this building many a time, I jumped at the chance to see the bell close up (the current bell was newly made in just 1985). As we reached the second floor and approached the bell, some staff members were collecting volunteers to ring the bell. I couldn't let this opportunity pass by, so I pushed my way to the front (ok, actually there weren't that many people clamoring to ring it). I passed my camera to my friend and waited my turn. <br />
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As you can see in the photos, the bell is enormous, and it takes five people to ring it. The man in the back guided us. As you can see in the photo, when ringing a bell of this size, you don't just strike it any way you want. We swung the wooden ringer several times, then all together pushed it toward the great bell. I was shocked by the vibration released by the bell, I felt it throughout my whole body. <br />
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They let us ring it several times before we had to pass it on to the next group of four volunteer bell ringers. So, I reluctantly passed on my post to the next person. <br />
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According to the <a href="http://visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264135" target="_blank">Visit Korea website</a>, Bosingak has a bell ringing ceremony every day starting at 11:40am, except for Mondays. On your next trip to Seoul, be sure to pass by Bosingak just before noon to get a chance to ring it for yourself! 조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com1Jonggak, 44 Jongno 1(il)-ga, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea37.570169 126.9830990000000412.0481345 85.674505000000039 63.0922035 168.29169300000004tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-67740777202315583852013-10-29T11:44:00.000+09:002013-10-29T11:44:16.289+09:00Preparing for a Korean Wedding<div class="MsoNormal">
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-->As I prepare to marry in September, here in Korea, I thought I would share some of the planning process with my readers. Perhaps some of you out there may be curious about Korean weddings and perhaps others of you are thinking about your own wedding here in Korea. If so, this will hopefully give you some insight into the process of planning a Korean wedding. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBV6NUYwjf6fqFI9higC1HlhfSHUfiMIonJCtEi1bkPbKfzO2eiqFGUTCKByVaasoEtYzz7MltUKS_A1MrdKwwoBJTcNuu9z3zU1tCwrLfOnCbMZhNBykw25xKbzD6XfqCElpcZglJU7Q/s1600/IMG_2920.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBV6NUYwjf6fqFI9higC1HlhfSHUfiMIonJCtEi1bkPbKfzO2eiqFGUTCKByVaasoEtYzz7MltUKS_A1MrdKwwoBJTcNuu9z3zU1tCwrLfOnCbMZhNBykw25xKbzD6XfqCElpcZglJU7Q/s200/IMG_2920.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg41mQWzmqMXzcxj4txNVlTR3qzJXyFNhi4m3NlUCz9ic2WTXnBBcJwlzK0uqDTGEzhFLwKSEnrfQayJx6SZXGwlmkNU-cqVT6d0JdrOqam2TcZFVYei65Yi8fkCAhVIT7KL1P7SU-i-l0/s1600/IMG_7226.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg41mQWzmqMXzcxj4txNVlTR3qzJXyFNhi4m3NlUCz9ic2WTXnBBcJwlzK0uqDTGEzhFLwKSEnrfQayJx6SZXGwlmkNU-cqVT6d0JdrOqam2TcZFVYei65Yi8fkCAhVIT7KL1P7SU-i-l0/s200/IMG_7226.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<i> Western wedding or traditional Korean wedding? </i></div>
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<b>Type of ceremony:</b></div>
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The trend these days
in Korea is towards having western style ceremonies wearing your typical white
dress and tuxedo. Interestingly, however, many multicultural marriages here opt
for the traditional Korean ceremony. I, personally, opted for this choice as
the lesser of two evils. The western style wedding here felt too contrived for
me (cutting a cake without eating it and pouring a champagne fountain that no
one gets to drink). That’s not to say that the traditional Korean ceremonies
are any less contrived, but as I don’t know how they were conducted in the
past, I can’t see their shortcomings. Plus, I look terrible in white ^^.</div>
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<b>Venue:</b></div>
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White weddings take place both in churches and in wedding
halls. There is no dearth of wedding halls in Korea, so shop around and find
the one that suits your taste best. Hotels tend to be pricier offering meals
served individually to your guests during the ceremony. Wedding halls tend to
be the more affordable option of the two, generally offering buffets where your
guests will eat in a separate eating area, possibly with guests from other
weddings as well as yours. Be sure to check out public facilities such as courthouses
and even Seoul City Hall. These places tend to have very affordable rates for
weddings (however, your guests may be eating in a cafeteria or you may need to
find a restaurant to host your meal after the service). </div>
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Traditional weddings are offered in a number of places. In
Seoul, Korea House, Namsangol Hanok Village and the War Museum of Korea tend to
be popular locations, but do your research as you will find many others. Meal
offerings will vary greatly between locations. </div>
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As for price, you will find that the sky is the limit for
both types, however there tend to be a lot of affordable options for
traditional marriages. If you are willing to hold your wedding in a public
place, you could even have your ceremony
conducted for free! </div>
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<b>Photography: </b></div>
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Perhaps you have seen some spectacular Korean wedding photos
and wondered how anyone could take the time to take those photos on their
wedding day. That is because they don’t take them on their wedding day! While
weddings here will always have a photographer snapping photos, the majority of
wedding photos that get shown off at house parties and on Facebook are actually
taken before the wedding. Visiting a photo studio can be a full day affair
which includes make-up and hair stylists and a variety of costume changes. Why
settle for one wedding dress when you could get your photo wearing five
different ones?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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For the photos of the wedding day, many wedding venues are
able to provide their own photographer if you wish. The price may be
reasonable, however the photo packages may be fixed. If you aren’t happy with
your venue’s offerings, most photography studios also offer wedding day
photography as well. Shopping around for different photographer’s styles and
prices will help you get a better idea of what to expect. </div>
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<b>Attire: </b></div>
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For those who don’t like the idea of spending huge amounts
of money on a dress that you will only wear once, there is good news. Women
rarely buy wedding dresses/hanbok but rather rent them. Same goes for men as
well. The bad news is that often times the rental price is often as much as
purchasing a new one (albeit, the quality would be much higher).<br />
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Another option is buying a
used hanbok. Hanbok, like wedding dresses and prom dresses, rarely are
worn more than once, meaning that any used hanbok you purchase is like
new. I chose to go this route meaning that I could get a nice hanbok for half the price I would have paid for a new one. </div>
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The wedding
attire is often supplied by the venue for traditional weddings. For my own wedding, the clothes for the ceremony are completely provided except for the skirt and shoes. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSPj0aKY_Be7Z4ca2P9wx9qDBzRlZeJVDrc3r7Km122dLTUPXo_R7lZAr_uIWksDUA8Xge7hirJke4v9XDTqRAm8dCPL8fKzpf79Vss8m-Gti43MrmJq89G_mjRGvuTrM37QvDmsCiFIM/s1600/IMG_8870.JPG"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSPj0aKY_Be7Z4ca2P9wx9qDBzRlZeJVDrc3r7Km122dLTUPXo_R7lZAr_uIWksDUA8Xge7hirJke4v9XDTqRAm8dCPL8fKzpf79Vss8m-Gti43MrmJq89G_mjRGvuTrM37QvDmsCiFIM/s400/IMG_8870.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Paebek</b></div>
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What’s paebek, you ask? Paebek is the formal Confucian
portion of the wedding ceremony where the bride and groom formally greet their
parents and parents-in-law. During this portion of the ceremony, hanbok is worn by the bride and groom, and often the parents will also dress in hanbok as well. There are several traditions which
take place during the paebek including bowing to the parents representing
fielel piety, carrying the bride on the groom’s back, demonstrating both his physical strength and parents tossing chestnuts and dates and the bride and groom catching as many as they can, as chestnuts and dates
represent the number of children the bride would later bear.<br />
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This ceremony is viewed to be quite important in Korean
culture; however these days some people choose to opt out of this tradition. It is an
added expense and not all couples view it to be important. Most Korean parents,
however, will probably expect to have a paebek. </div>
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More information here: <a href="http://www.mybridestory.com/paebaek/">http://www.mybridestory.com/paebaek/</a></div>
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<b>Reception: </b></div>
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Korean weddings do not typically have a reception as you may
be used to in the west with music, dancing eating and drinking. Korean weddings
tend to be short and sweet with just a ceremony and a meal. The meal may be
served during the ceremony or guests may file into a buffet hall serving
several weddings at once. If that isn’t sufficient for you, you may want to
look into holding your ‘reception’ after the meal at another venue. Plenty of
bars and restaurants are willing to open their space to group reservations and
many small bars with low traffic on weekend afternoons will even allow you to
book the entire bar without charge, as long as you bring a certain number of
people. <br />
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Photos and stories from my own wedding will be coming soon I hope! Just started teaching a new intensive course which will keep me busy for the next 7 weeks! </div>
조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-45237708329884206872013-10-22T11:58:00.000+09:002013-10-25T14:26:24.985+09:00Behind the scenes at a Korean studio wedding photo shoot<div style="text-align: left;">
These days in Korea it is very popular to not just take photos on the
day of your wedding, but to shoot some photos, either in a studio
and/or outside, and publish them in a big photo album (not to mention
all over Facebook, KakaoTalk etc. etc.). Before getting these photos
done myself, I never imagined how much work goes into taking these
photos, especially as the bride, but last month I learned for myself how
much effort it takes to make one little wedding album.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA42SkMRZtma1_S80pMu7xbkTRj-JsINvZRlnG_RXd67d4bzutWUTRlsabj6unggaKfedTKg-KHDtrWrU2l-ZOu5UjDHst-n4ajrf7mOti01hY2gAdbA_XU6V0ExxD3qKmsqhEUI1lf_o/s1600/IMG_0506.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA42SkMRZtma1_S80pMu7xbkTRj-JsINvZRlnG_RXd67d4bzutWUTRlsabj6unggaKfedTKg-KHDtrWrU2l-ZOu5UjDHst-n4ajrf7mOti01hY2gAdbA_XU6V0ExxD3qKmsqhEUI1lf_o/s400/IMG_0506.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div>
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<i>Preparing for the studio wedding photo shoot </i></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
First
thing on a Sunday morning, we headed to the photo studio by 9am. I was
immediately put in a chair and the hair and make-up artist spent over an
hour doing my make-up and hair. I've never had my make-up done
professionally like this before. After layers and layers of make-up and
fake eyelashes, I couldn't even recognize myself. Then came the hair.
She expertly straitened, curled, twisted, braided and hair sprayed my
hair until it looked just right.</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
They also spent a little time on
my husband-to-be as well. They quickly brushed his hair and styled it
into place and put some make-up on him too, however, they only spent
about 15 minutes on him compared with over an hour on me.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsY7mBg9KWSLKuVNzW2qdUxI-yRR46JyaBxUPyCDDdq02Ke8-8W4YGn8nsI-5jcM9ZWO4ksulN_9K9gpWawAzii2Nqow4aNmDw5XmLI8isNhdMIF9O1mUPnBHCgeUbXR_UvoRA0vyzr74/s1600/IMG_0514.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsY7mBg9KWSLKuVNzW2qdUxI-yRR46JyaBxUPyCDDdq02Ke8-8W4YGn8nsI-5jcM9ZWO4ksulN_9K9gpWawAzii2Nqow4aNmDw5XmLI8isNhdMIF9O1mUPnBHCgeUbXR_UvoRA0vyzr74/s400/IMG_0514.JPG" width="400" /></a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>A book showing all the dress choices</i></div>
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Then
it was time to play dress-up. They had a whole book of dresses and they
asked me to go through and pick out four dresses that I wanted to wear
throughout the day. It was too hard to choose from the photos, though,
and in the end another assistant who was to be my personal attendant for
the rest of the day just picked out several dresses she thought would
suit me and let me try them on myself.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHWWQM-LGBi8c5Ug4IX5FKGZNwAAsAAU8g6P505PpKUxoSlc_eh55n81j6lKGyRSKaiN-vm0AUWmomBE2_ITo36rOtpFNYPxSrZlcLFXmOh0ut_gUoG3orZwVFU70vmjDj9nOiC6rgdo/s1600/IMG_0515.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHWWQM-LGBi8c5Ug4IX5FKGZNwAAsAAU8g6P505PpKUxoSlc_eh55n81j6lKGyRSKaiN-vm0AUWmomBE2_ITo36rOtpFNYPxSrZlcLFXmOh0ut_gUoG3orZwVFU70vmjDj9nOiC6rgdo/s400/IMG_0515.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i> Trying on my first long wedding gown</i></div>
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After
I had picked out the first long dress, and my husband-to-be had been
given a tuxedo to wear, we were set up for our first shoot. The most
classic pose, sitting on a sofa with some flowers. But, getting the
perfect pose is no easy feat. I had my attendant on one side tugging at
my dress here and there to make it perfect, while the photographer
continued to give commands, "turn your head left, tilt your head up,
point your bouquet this way..." I can't imagine being a famous person
who has to have people saying these things to them all day! I realized
that all those natural looking poses I had seen in my friends photos
were not so natural at all!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtfTLipNzmmPaCTV24MAkgztn6UG3K3ufq7Z5KMdc3jCibIV3q2FsXlO9rubEtmkqVsmLJFFmYGjvaWPd02nBAsEz4sUos5RAULUWQLOFDn-SQz5LSYvGPZLKxbq7wQyL9Ev2fAlGMzJo/s1600/IMG_0542.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtfTLipNzmmPaCTV24MAkgztn6UG3K3ufq7Z5KMdc3jCibIV3q2FsXlO9rubEtmkqVsmLJFFmYGjvaWPd02nBAsEz4sUos5RAULUWQLOFDn-SQz5LSYvGPZLKxbq7wQyL9Ev2fAlGMzJo/s400/IMG_0542.JPG" width="400" /></a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Adjusting this way and that for the perfect photo</i></div>
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<dt class="wp-caption-dt"> </dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TBvsCSxujGz3qmhkS1OxKReSvkPPk_l2Vhe0AzNEFbqPpWzQiQCjLiaOKM_YNngwIalcwleQQlQ6fwyTUCKhvU06_FMrbS9hsuHddix4mLA8RX1XxHxfFM0PgMtu66GkpwbLfHpS3g0/s1600/IMG_0549.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TBvsCSxujGz3qmhkS1OxKReSvkPPk_l2Vhe0AzNEFbqPpWzQiQCjLiaOKM_YNngwIalcwleQQlQ6fwyTUCKhvU06_FMrbS9hsuHddix4mLA8RX1XxHxfFM0PgMtu66GkpwbLfHpS3g0/s400/IMG_0549.JPG" width="400" /></a> </dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><i>Sitting on the floor in a dress this big is no easy feat</i></dt>
</dl>
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After
more photos with the long dresses, I put on a short dress and we went
out to the patio of the studio to shoot some more photos. It's amazing
how some simple props can make for such nice looking photos.<br />
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<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSeyQja-9z6UnbTZTb7k0-e-rMpCzTUMUTcSXRaic3rppjuFPOz0V8sjRgG3G9ndVGxcj8KS-yTjcqC74xX1dhJmKBFh9PAkSAg0_XtNv23biOstGjY5QZvc7wFvXVYmspaPJ87wcTh0/s1600/IMG_0640.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSeyQja-9z6UnbTZTb7k0-e-rMpCzTUMUTcSXRaic3rppjuFPOz0V8sjRgG3G9ndVGxcj8KS-yTjcqC74xX1dhJmKBFh9PAkSAg0_XtNv23biOstGjY5QZvc7wFvXVYmspaPJ87wcTh0/s400/IMG_0640.JPG" width="400" /></a> </dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><i>Some outdoor photos</i></dt>
</dl>
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I
must say, after nearly four hours of shooting photos, I must say that
there was no end to the tiny photo studio's creativity in creating
scenes for photos. While each scene was quite small, the whole studio
fitting into the size of one two-floor house, the photos create an
illusion of being taken in a really huge, vast space. Not to mention all
the props and scenery they use, everything from giant balloons, to
bicycles, to picnic tables to chandeliers, in the end the photos look
amazing and as if we really went to many different places.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCeHWDETAbb067eqO_7EMyjPxr2mqRMkFyZ10oUAVF5AYSF5Lh_aBPPwoWiCtWK-Camof4Zpo7Q2HXqTJZMc0oZjfal0QjbfZj7qKQ39Jjv2Rp0gvCKB7SiNkHRLMoxJukUIP7uyrxFJk/s1600/IMG_0722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCeHWDETAbb067eqO_7EMyjPxr2mqRMkFyZ10oUAVF5AYSF5Lh_aBPPwoWiCtWK-Camof4Zpo7Q2HXqTJZMc0oZjfal0QjbfZj7qKQ39Jjv2Rp0gvCKB7SiNkHRLMoxJukUIP7uyrxFJk/s400/IMG_0722.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><i> Strange, yet interesting props</i></dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"> </dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnK1Qmjn9W59_A6MzG18uWCGKpDG7HnWC5vZSOOasvZ_u-6TXQ1LBjdmNbhJo1H3hbhyphenhyphencApo6KfmQn6elPHIEOElOhk48Th5KzmTkoFyAI8xm3f0mJtqxOrnKIlzZmkajJslT-Dna0x40/s1600/IMG_0684.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnK1Qmjn9W59_A6MzG18uWCGKpDG7HnWC5vZSOOasvZ_u-6TXQ1LBjdmNbhJo1H3hbhyphenhyphencApo6KfmQn6elPHIEOElOhk48Th5KzmTkoFyAI8xm3f0mJtqxOrnKIlzZmkajJslT-Dna0x40/s400/IMG_0684.JPG" width="400" /></a> </dt>
<dt class="wp-caption-dt" style="text-align: center;"><i>Got to love the astroturf...</i></dt>
</dl>
</div>
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But
after hours of shooting photos, we were certainly exhausted and ready
change into our street clothes and not having people adjusting our our
clothes, position and make-up every 30 seconds. Now we are looking
forward to picking up our albums from the photographer and seeing the
final results. While this tradition of dressing up in a wedding gown
before the official wedding is quite different from my own American
culture, it was quite fun to dress up and have people dote on you for
hours on end, and get a book of nice photos after it's all done as well.
I recommend getting wedding photo shoot!</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIEygeiRVQ3y73u2YeXHKurtlYWqoPh9Jq8T6JjBPRSt9y04h-_MFSTA3ANA0kyCIVnPSp7LvFFK1GPHsi0xI7ZT6W3pYwUsTBmhcFD0xMhxwWZpycwjyymmXZvinnoFsqNIl9UPqliY/s1600/IMG_0740.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIEygeiRVQ3y73u2YeXHKurtlYWqoPh9Jq8T6JjBPRSt9y04h-_MFSTA3ANA0kyCIVnPSp7LvFFK1GPHsi0xI7ZT6W3pYwUsTBmhcFD0xMhxwWZpycwjyymmXZvinnoFsqNIl9UPqliY/s400/IMG_0740.JPG" width="300" /></a> </div>
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<i>We were exhausted by the end of the day</i></div>
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For those interested in the cost, I think we got a fairly good deal, though I think they can personalize your photo package to fit any budget. We paid 1,500,000 for four albums: One album of studio photos, one album of photos from our wedding day (which they also shot for us), one small album of family shots, wedding shots, and paebaek shots for his parents and one larger album for my mother including some studio photos, wedding photos and paebaek photos. On top of that, they also will give us two framed 8x11 photos for free. Or we could have chosen one giant photo for free (which is usually put at the entrance of the wedding ceremony). We opted not to get that photo since we had no idea what we would do with such a huge photo after the ceremony though! Please visit the studio where we got our photos done: </div>
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<a href="http://aand.co.kr/" target="_blank">Aand Studio</a> </div>
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85-17 Nonhyun-dong</div>
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Gangnam-gu, Seoul</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Tel: 02-511-7350</div>
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Email: info@aand.co.kr
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조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com7Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea37.5172363 127.0473248000000737.4164528 126.88596330000007 37.6180198 127.20868630000007tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1343716143682288385.post-82525287959595849632013-10-12T21:58:00.001+09:002013-10-12T21:58:46.297+09:00Long time no postHello world, it's been a long time, I know. I've graduated with my master's, gotten married, and spent a month in China (where Blogger is blocked)... I've been a bit busy. But now I'm unemployed (hopefully not for long, we'll see) and have a bit of spare time, so I'm hoping to get caught up on all that blogging I've been missing in the past few months. Hope to see you soon. 조안나.<br />
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<br />조안나http://www.blogger.com/profile/18436544214416169575noreply@blogger.com6