May 16th. Moving Day

 Sound familiar?  Moving to bigger quarters with the anticipation of Patricia and Jonah’s arrival later this week. And oh no rain. Beautiful Spring day. Today’s plan. Move luggage to new place in Mapo. What used to be a village outside of Seoul is now part of it fully connected. 

Mary Ann has a nail appointment around 12:30 so it will be the three of us, Jessica, Meghan and I running around today. First stop is the National Library so they can see our doner plaques and some of the artifacts we donated. Subway there and we do get close, but with my back close can be far when you add in hills. 

But we get there but I have not told anyone from the Library that we are coming. The front receptionists explain that it is by membership only. But once I show him one of our donation photos and give him Miss Lee’s name all is fine. Miss Lee comes to meet us and we go striaght to the Donner’s area and rare collection room. I must say it still gives me chills. 

One of the items is a wood block for printing Buddhist sutras. It was from the 1700’s which I never knew. When Jessica sees it she says “I took that to show and tell one day”. How funny is that. Down to Miss Lee’s office where she gives both Jessica and Meghan a small gift each and we are on our way. This time to a big open market. The one Mary Ann and I went to earlier. This time by taxi. 

The KwangChung market never disappoints. Made Semi famous by Netflex, it has more than what that show showed. 

We even found a nice place to eat. 

We are off next to Joegaysa, the temple Meghan and I went to yesterday for Buddha’s birthday in the rain. Meghan decides to just head home, so it is me and my daughter. Joegaysa is very different today. 

Nice and peaceful as I remember it. A refuge from the city noise outside. From her we walk to the house Mary Ann and I lived in mentioned in a blog earlier. Always nice to show family part of our life in Korea. 

I side we met a couple from Pennsylvania who wanted to discuss Korea’s rise from poverty of the 70’s to an industrial society today. I of course have guesses but no real answers 

Get a taxi home and he had lived in Tennessee for many years and wants to discuss a similar topic. He is really a nice man but we just want the peace and quiet of a taxi ride. 

Home and it is back to where we just were for Meghan’s farewell dinner. Back to a place Mary Ann and I were at earler in the trip. After much discussion on taxi versus subway, we decide taxi as it is getting late they may close. We get there at 8:45 and are told we are too late as they close at 9:00. So sad. Then the waitress from the last time remembers me and says. No No let them in. Come in Come in. And so we do to a meal that again was so good we forgot to take pictures. So from last time. 

The trip home was an adventure. Subway to Mapo but wrong Mapo station. Out for a quick taxi ride but no taxis and the ones available won’t take us. Back in the subway where not all the tickets work and of course it is always the last ticket so little help is available as you can’t go out without wasting a ticket. But we do get home to a new nice apartment and fall fast asleep so the blog will be updated tomorrow. 

Good Morning