fine arts, trees, and hardboiled eggs.

*warning - this is a fairly long post, bear with me!

What do fine arts, trees, and hardboiled eggs have in common?

Well normally, nothing.  However, in this case, they were all a vital part of a rejuvenating weekend.

Friday.

Walking 15 minutes in the rain is not the way I envisioned my Friday morning, and yet, there I was, speed walking with my umbrella hoping I wouldn't fall.  Luckily, my time in Ireland had prepared me for this and I have speed walking in rain down to a science.  The day went quickly by - 2 of my Friday classes are great with a frustrating class sandwiched in between.  Because it was Friday, I was in a wonderful mood and enjoyed the rainy walk home.  This is a part of the walk I do every day it's through a mini traditional market called Duryu Market.  I love the lights hanging in the stalls and reflection on the wet pavement.

Walking with umbrellas in a very populated area is quite a precise science - one that I'm not quite proficient in yet - definitely almost got my umbrella caught on others' a few times. whoops.

The evening brought on the fine arts portion of my weekend.  A friend had offered tickets to an "orchestra and dance" and as I love concert music, I said yes of course.  However, it was actually a modern dance performance.  Very different from an orchestra concert but interesting nonetheless. 

After the performance, we decided to go for a walk because we were already in Duryu Park.  This is Woobang Tower in Duryu Park (about 20 min walk from my house - where I go running).

Saturday.

Saturday morning brought slightly sunnier skies and an inner desire to be out in nature.  I really desired to spend some time journaling and in Scripture and a combo of the two would be ideal.  Holly had the same goals for the day so after a leisurely morning, we decided to meet and venture to the Daegu Arboretum. 
 I got a coffee on my way to meet her and saw this - cracked me up - they definitely meant "liquid"

About a 15 minute walk from the end of one of the subway lines, the arboretum was exactly what I was hoping for.  Beautiful flowers of varied shades from vibrant purple to classic yellow abounded.  There were tons of families with some of the absolute cutest children I have ever seen. We just wandered the pathways, enjoying each other's company and talking about life.

attempting to smell the gorgeous flowers.

Because we were the coolest looking people there (okay, it's because we're foreigners and stand out), we were pretty popular but in a good way for once! This group of girls asked to take a picture with us - and then kept coming by and talking to us the rest of the afternoon.  Their English was surprisingly great and they were so cute!

such vivid colors!

In the desert greenhouse (oxymoron? I don't know the right terminology)

central area of arboretum.

Thanks to my Gramma Swart, I know what a bonsai tree is and was able to appreciate the "Bonsai Walk" that much more :] those little trees are so funny to me!

Just another group of fans, no big deal.

The afternoon in the Daegu Arboretum was exactly what I needed. The combination of quality conversation, beautiful natural surroundings, and spending time with God was wonderful. Definitely fulfilled the introvert portion of myself for awhile. Now bring on lots of people! (not really, but kind of haha)

Sunday.

Easter was very quiet this year.  While about 30% of Korea's population is Christian, the holiday isn't mainstream like in the US. In some ways that's great because the meaning is preserved for the real reason - the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  However, it seemed to pass quietly and I missed family.  Holly, Amy, and I decided to meet for some comfort food before church - we went to a foreigner-owned restaurant called Holy Grill and I had the best bagel egg sandwich with hashbrowns.

Also, in Korea, the tradition is not to hunt for eggs, but to give them to one another.  So after a great Easter service at the church I've been attending, Dongshin Presbyterian (the English service), one of the Korean ladies had boiled eggs for everyone!

To round off our day, we decided to venture to a random subway stop and found a waterfront walkway - which had a small park and nice walkway along a huge canal type thing.  It was great to be outside again and I always enjoy Holly and Amy!

attempting to teeter-totter

they had swings!! I was sooo excited!

Beautiful sky - fitting for Easter.

Followed by a wonderful Monday morning of Skype with the family, I had such a great weekend full of variety. 
A few funny stories real quick:
-My pride in one class took quite a hit. I arm wrestled one of my students (long story) and beat the first girl really easily.  Never assume they are all the same.  The next girl kicked my butt and severely wounded my ego.  p90x failed me. (but it was oh so funny)
-I went for a nice run through Duryu Park yesterday and as I was running down the sidewalk on the way there, there was a group of older men taking up the sidewalk.  As I got about a block away, they split and I knew I would have to run in between them talking. Dreading the stares, I just kept going towards them with no other option. To my utter surprise, they all got really excited and made a tunnel -  yes, like the kind you do for sports teams when they run out to start a game - and proceeded to cheer me as I ran through while laughing sooo hard.  One even said "Bravo!" and was so proud of himself. Made my run sooo joyful and much more enjoyable!



Needless to say, I'm a pretty happy girl. Great family, great job, experiences of a lifetime, and adventures everyday. What more can a girl ask for?

by the way, thanks for going on this journey with me.