When I asked my students what they did for Christmas, responses varied, but not one said Santa Claus came, not one had dinner with extended family or received a gift, not one proved Christmas is more than a day off school and work, in Korea.
Chung wanted to make it special for me anyway, so he suggested a trip to Everland. He also gave me a letter and a pair of leather gloves (in the above photo). I asked him how he chose the perfect gift and he admitted he originally bought a singing Santa Claus and when his Mom saw it, she said, "Eva doesn't need THAT!" She suggested gloves. Smart woman.
Chung wanted to make it special for me anyway, so he suggested a trip to Everland. He also gave me a letter and a pair of leather gloves (in the above photo). I asked him how he chose the perfect gift and he admitted he originally bought a singing Santa Claus and when his Mom saw it, she said, "Eva doesn't need THAT!" She suggested gloves. Smart woman.
I could barely hold my head up when I got home last night. At noon, Chung and I took BUS 6000: a direct bus to the amusement park, and we didn't get back to Suwon until 10:20 PM. It was a long day on our feet!
I've been to Euro Disney in France, Canada's Wonderland, Disneyland etc. but this park was more like a (beautiful) travelling fair, surrounded by mountains. I thought it was slightly overpriced, but the perfet place to go on a date. See ticket & rate info here. You get a $2.00 discount for what? ... Being a foreigner! Print out your coupon here!
The highlight, in my opinion, was the SAFARI ride:
We took the safari bus at night, which added to the excitement. For the first time ever, I saw elephants, giraffes, lions and tigers (oh my!) The animals were in a natural habitat, apart from glaring spotlights and tour buses driving through every 2 minutes. Our driver tossed the bears treats so they'd stand on their hind legs.
I also liked what Chung called, "Korean Skiing"- tubes flying down an icy mountain slope. Our feet got wet but it was worth it. The rides were fun, and I braved the loop-de-loop roller coasters, but none of them gave me a stomach in throat sensation. Fireworks? beautiful.
North American parades conclude with a Santa Claus float. Not this one! Santa came half way through, and wasn't much of a crowd-pleaser. All of the elves were young Russian men and women with imitation Goldilocks hair. The Korean's camera phones were aimed at the foreign elves, not the floats!
I've been to Euro Disney in France, Canada's Wonderland, Disneyland etc. but this park was more like a (beautiful) travelling fair, surrounded by mountains. I thought it was slightly overpriced, but the perfet place to go on a date. See ticket & rate info here. You get a $2.00 discount for what? ... Being a foreigner! Print out your coupon here!
The highlight, in my opinion, was the SAFARI ride:
We took the safari bus at night, which added to the excitement. For the first time ever, I saw elephants, giraffes, lions and tigers (oh my!) The animals were in a natural habitat, apart from glaring spotlights and tour buses driving through every 2 minutes. Our driver tossed the bears treats so they'd stand on their hind legs.I also liked what Chung called, "Korean Skiing"- tubes flying down an icy mountain slope. Our feet got wet but it was worth it. The rides were fun, and I braved the loop-de-loop roller coasters, but none of them gave me a stomach in throat sensation. Fireworks? beautiful.
North American parades conclude with a Santa Claus float. Not this one! Santa came half way through, and wasn't much of a crowd-pleaser. All of the elves were young Russian men and women with imitation Goldilocks hair. The Korean's camera phones were aimed at the foreign elves, not the floats!
You have a pleasant blog. A great mix of photos and "early-day" observations of Korea. It will be interesting for people to see if or how your thoughts on korea evolve.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your encouragement. I have no real knowledge of Korean history/culture but I just opened a library account so a few books should help!
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