KOREAN T.V.

Korean t.v. is rather odd here.  You can watch an American movie on regular t.v. and they don't edit the bad language.  They allow the swear words.  But the other day I was watching an American movie, and in one scene the woman took a knife and pointed it at a man and they blurred the knife.  When she dropped the knife, they showed the knife on the ground.

This is some kind of weird talk show, and the host wears this traditional Korean outfit...VERY strange!

 

A FEW RANDOM PICTURES

Some of my pictures have sort of gotten lost in the shuffle of things...they're kind of random, so I thought I would share them now.


This is a picture of a little girl that has severe epilepsy.  Molly told me she almost died when she was an infant.  I snapped this picture while we were in Chapel one Sunday morning.

A lovely Kimchee pot!

This is one of the residents that lives in Molly's house.  Her name is Kim, Ga-Hyun.  She has stomach cancer and often doesn't feel good.  This particular day she came out of her room, and had a meal with us.  So I took the opportunity to get a few nice pictures of her. 

Molly told us they could have put a feeding tube in her, but Molly said no.  One of the few joys these residents have is to eat (they LOVE to eat!) And Molly said she didn't want to take that joy away from Ga-Hyun. 

A feeding tube would have made things easier for the house mother's.  Ga-Hyun tends to eat and then will "erp" it up (as Molly would say), but the house mother's will clean her up and feed her again.  Truly an act of love.  One day I was teasing Martin about having a big appetite, and Martin made a funny face as he stuffed rice into his mouth.  To our surprise Ga-Hyun started to laugh! so Martin stuffed more rice into his mouth as she giggled!

TYPICAL KOREAN HOME

This past Sunday, I was given an opportunity to see inside a typical Korean home in Seoul.  Amanda's adoptive father (Randy) knows a man here in Seoul that he used to work with at 3M. The man invited all of us to his house after dinner for tea and dessert.  We met his lovely wife and their twin daughters.

  Shoes obviously are left at the door.


Here is the livingroom, the cream colored appliance in the right corner (looks like a refridgerator) is an air conditioner - which is VERY MUCH needed in the summer in Korea!

Here is the kitchen, which by Korean standards is quite large (believe it or not). 


Korean's tend to do everything with style.  They don't just cut up fruit for dessert, they place it beautifully on the plate...presentation is EVERYTHING.  That's Amanda's birth father.

Everyone is enjoying tea, coffee and fruit around the table.

Cutie 10-year-old twins!

With a little coaxing from Amanda, one of the twins showed us her hoola-hooping skills!

WORK BELTS BEING USED

Here is one of the house mother's with one of the work belts I brought over with me.  Money was donated by friends of mine, so I could purchase several of these belts.  House mother's use them when they have to lift some of the residents.  Throughout the day, a house mother may lift a resident several times into a wheelchair, out of a wheelchair, into/out of a bed, into a chair...house mother's are very camera shy, but I managed to click this picture quickly before she could really refuse.

The work belts that are made here in Korea, are really poorly made and give no support.  Ilsan loves to receive the ones that come from the U.S., because they are much sturdier and last longer.

ODUSAN UNIFICATION OBSERVATORY

Opened in 1992, the Odusan Unification Observatory has welcomed over 10 million visitors and is a popular destination for international visitors interested in seeing the DMZ. From the observation platform, located at the summit of Mt. Odusan, visitors can see Mt. Songaksan in Gaeseong, in North Korea as well as the 63 City Building in Seoul, South Korea.


Shaped like a naval vessel, the Odusan Unification Observatory is a stone building with five floors above ground and one underground. Its remarkable architectural beauty makes it a favorite model for architecture students. On the first and second floor, photos and videos show life in North Korea and the past and future of the Korean peninsula. Visitors can also purchase North Korean products sold here.
 

 
 
 
 
Looking to north Korea. Equipped with 20 times the zoom - you can look through these binoculars.
 
 

This is a remake of a typical middle class north Korean bedroom.

North Korean fashion.

Items that were made in north Korea.

A DAY OF KOREAN HISTORY

Sunday we went to Imjingak in Paju.  This was not here back in 1999/2000 when I last visited Korea.  What we were told was this place was created so ALL Koreans could come and visit.  Many Koreans aren't allowed in the DMZ.  Now they have a place to go.  Here's what the brochure says about Imjingak:

"Imjingak Tourist Resort is the most representing unification tourist spot after the two Koreas' joint statement was declared in 1972. The sadness and pain left by the war that started on June 25th, 1950, can be felt here through the various remains and displays. It is a place where over millions of visitors come annually to pray for unification of the nation."

Molly has affectionately been calling Martin and I, "M & M" so we thought it fitting to get our picture taken in the big "M" at the park.

The Bell of Peace repesents the peace of mankind and unification of the Korean nation for the new millennium.  To commemorate the 21st century, the bell weights 21 tons and has 21 stairs.

The Steam Locomotive at Jangdan Station of the Gyeongui Line, is a symbol of the tragic history of the division into North and South Korea, having been left in the DMZ since it got derailed by bombs during the Korean War.  First found near the Jangdan Station in the DMZ, the steam locomotive was nothing but rusty metal with a lot of bullet holes. On February 6th, 2004, the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea registered the steam locomotive as Registered Cultural Heritage #78.  It was finally unveiled to the public in June of 2009. 

On December 31st, 1950, in the midst of the Korean War, a steam locomotive train driven by train engineer Han Jun-gi was running on the Gyeongui Line to deliver war materials. When the train arrived at Jangdan Station via Gaeseong Station at around 10 at night, a rain of bullets hit the train.

Born in 1927 in Japan, Han Jun-gi returned to Korea in November 1945, just after Liberation, and had driven the steam train which connected North and South Korea since 1946.  "When passing through the plains in Paju and Munsan; departing from Seoul, I used to wave hands to the farmers on the fields, who used to wave back as well.  I never forgot the railway sound.  When the train was crossing the bridge over the Imjin River yet." he said. Even during war through gun fights, he had delivered military supplies running onthe railways between north and south.  December 31st, 1950 is the day that train engineer Han cannot forget.  When he arrived at Jangdan Station driving the freight train, the train, was rattled away with machine guns, which let it to be halted.  "Leaving the train with difficulty and heading south, I felt my heart-broken as I left my baby.  It was a day that the last train on the Gyeongui Line was stopped.  However, my heart is always with the train traavelling all over.  I earnestly ope that the unification will come true as fast as possible and then my dream would come in reality." He added.

The Bridge of Freedom was built to free 12,773 prisoners in 1953. The prisoners reached the Gyeongui line bridge by car and walked across the Bridge of Freedom.

When you visit the Bridge of Freedom, you can buy a ribbon for $1,000 Won (about a dollar), and write a note; and leave it on the fence.  Of course I had to do this!

This was a really cool exhibit - unfortunately there isn't any information in my brochure about it.  What I can tell you is it's a collection of rocks taken from war sites over time and all over the world. The earliest being from BC 231 - Punic War, Italy, Napoly.  The second oldest being from 1911 - the Crusade War, Cypress.

This is the Worship Alter - it was built in memory of the ancestors who were left in the north. 

I had to include this next picture, because in the true form of Koreans - come learn about the division of your country...and ride some amusement park rides!

INTERESTING MEETING...

Saturday afternoon Molly took Me, Martin and Amanda to a meeting of an organization for Korean adoptee's.  I don't want to name the organization, because if the name is Googled by anyone; then my blog will appear. 

Molly was on the Board of Directors for this particular association, and she encouraged us to join.  It cost $40 US, so all three of us joined online.  The purpose of us joining was so we could attend this meeting (since we were in country), and vote for a new Counsel General (the person who will run the organization).  Molly was very diplomatic about the situation, gave us information about each of the candidates, and told us to make up our minds ourselves. 

The organization was also going to vote on renewing Board Members as well.  Thus my earlier statement, Molly "was" on the board.  She was voted off the board tonight as she sat right next to me.  Apparently, the three of us walked into a very political situation within this organization. 

There are a handful of Korean adoptee's that are VERY angry about their adoption experience.  They believe that international adoptions must be stopped.  Thus they don't want Molly on the board.  Many are Holt adoptee's but feel like Holt is responsible for their bad fortune.

It was very eye opening to see this side of adoption. It's a side that I know is out there, but it's not a perspective I can relate to; or support for that matter. I feel like Holt saved my life, they gave me a better life than the one I probably would have had. 

Two of the candidates were previously known to be candidates.  Suddenly at the meeting, another woman was nominated for Counsel General; and she was allowed to be added.  Several of us thought this was unfair, but a core group apparently knew about this last minute candidate; and challenged the addition so late in the process.  Suddenly we were witness to a coup d'état taking place.  The woman was allowed to be a candidate and almost won the vote.  But the majority of the group abstained their vote, so no one was seated as Counsel General. 

Here are the three candidates expressing their desire to be Counsel General. 

The gal with the microphone works for Holt in Oregon, and flew to Korea for this vote.  When she addressed the group and said she worked for Holt, she immediately was asked if she could stay "neutral" as Counsel General?

Molly said she knew being kicked off was coming at this vote, but she took us anyway.  We had no idea until we got there what was going on.  After the meeting Molly told us that she lets go of what she can't control, and accepts responsibility for what she can do in the meantime.  She said no organization can be perfect, there's going to be issues.  She then told us she was kicked off the Holt Board for 12 years! and look how things turned out? ... she's now the Director and has been for 10 years! and Holt-Korea is flourishing under her direction.

Molly showed great humility today, and really demonstrated compassion in the face of discord.  I admired her so much for that, and felt proud to walk out of that meeting beside her.  I don't care what they think, I hardly believe they've ever seen what this woman does day in and day out?

All in all, this got way too political for the three of us, and we decided we didn't want to be a part of the "angry adoptee" group. Especially if they kicked Molly off the Board. So the three of us are going to ask for our money back.  

BBQ AT ILSAN

Today a group of young people (they have a band), sponsored a BBQ here at Ilsan.  They paid for all the food, and came and fed all the residents!  Since it was so cold outside, we had to have the BBQ in the gym.

The food was delicious! Kimche (of course), BBQ pork, rice, lettuce (to put the pork in) and soup.  It's not often the residents (or the volunteers) get meat, so it was a special treat had by all. 

This cutie little guy isn't a resident, he was the child of a volunteer.  But he was too darn cute NOT to photograph.

Now let me begin to tell you about the way Korean's throw out garbage. It's quite the process. Each county has their own garbage bags. These bags MUST be used to throw your garbage away. If you don't use them, you will receive a fine from the county. EVERYTHING must be separated out - paper, plastic, aluminum, etc... all leftover food must be put in a container that can be taken to a special location for compost. But you can only throw compost out a certain time of day, on certain days. It's quite the process!

These are the folks that helped sponsor the BBQ.  So of course a picture with Molly and Director Kim was in order.  Notice the gal in the front to the left of Molly holding the little girl...yes, her hair is purple - she is a member of the band.  They apparently played for the residents, but I missed that part because I was with Soo Hee getting her hair done.

After the BBQ some of Holt's para-olympic basketball team were on hand for pictures as well.  We haven't seen them actually practice, but hopefully one of these days we will get the chance.