a little bit of Seoul

I am in South Korea visiting my cousin and her husband. They moved here for his job (a one-year assignment). My cousin has never lived outside the US, let alone in Asia, so I thought that spending the week during China's National Holidays with her would be a good way to avoid the mass chaos of travel within country since everyone is on holiday and nothing is easy when a good percentage of 1.3 billion people are in transit.

I arrived on Thursday evening, well-worn from a day that started at 3:30 a.m. and included four hours to teaching, getting to the airport immediately after class, flying from Harbin to Seoul and then taking a train from the Incheon Airport to the stop nearest my cousin's apartment. My seatmate on the plane ended up being a very generous resource once we arrived in Seoul. He is Korean-Chinese and goes back and forth between both countries. His Korean girlfriend met him outside of baggage claim, which is were we ran into each other after saying goodbye during the process of breaking up into different lines at customs. They both insisted that I use his girlfriend's cell phone to call my cousin to alert her to our arrival. They also escorted me through the process of purchasing a bus ticket and finding the right departure platform. We traded phone numbers and invited each other to meet up if I am in Seoul at any point this week or if he returns to Harbin in the next several months. Perhaps we will see one another again.

So far, we've toured around the area where my cousin lives, about 1.5 hours by bus from Seoul. Former student, Foster, is doing an academic exchange at a well-known university in the capital city, so when he found out I would be here for the week, he excitedly made plans to visit. He showed up yesterday and joined us for some sightseeing and then dinner last night. He developed a quick fondness for my cousin and her husband and even their ginger dog, Peanut. After he returned to his dorm last night, he sent me the following email:

I do not know how to put it, dear Meagen.Hardly can I hold my tears when I got on the train. My gratitude for God overflowed for he led me to meet such a nice and kind couple and made friends with them. I usually display the strong side in my everyday life. But this time, your cousin and her husband's hostiplit and warmth touched my soul. They are like a candle in the dark and cold winter,enlighting my life.The saying in Chinese is this:大恩不言谢, Which means we impress ourselves on the great kindness and when they are in trouble, we shall do everything we can to help them, to express our thankfulness and we shall be a whole life friends and stay loyal to them.

A rooftop terrace overlooking the city: