The first weekend in June there was a sand festival at Haeundae beach (the beach closest to us) to kick off the beach season. This year the beaches were opened earlier than normal and will be closed later. The morning started off with a fighter jet show and we had perfect seats... the roof of our apartment building!! We discovered that the roof was a perfect observation point when earlier in the week we watched a surprise firework show! The fighter jets were so close to us, it was unreal... and scary at some points for Ashley :). The beaches were filled with tons of people, beach activities, stages, sand sculptures and more people. It gave us a good idea of what we should expect once summer is in full swing. Haeundae beach is known for the tens of thousands of visitors it brings every weekend, making the beach experience a little less enjoyable. At the end of the boardwalk we found the Busan International Dance Festival with companies from all over the world, including Chicago!! The stage was outstanding with the ocean as it's backdrop. We went to the sand festival and the dance festival both Saturday and Sunday.
School has been going by quickly and now there are only 4 more weeks left until summer break/summer camp. We had our open classes (evaluation class) which seemed to be more nerve-wracking for the experienced Korean teachers than it was for us. Now the students are in full study mode for the upcoming tests at the end of the semester. We finally got our summer camp schedules figured out and will soon start planning our summer vacation which we plan to spend in Thailand and Bali. We are definitely looking forward to traveling and experiencing even more of the world.
We've made friends with the owner of a BBQ restaurant that has recently opened up down the street from us. He lived in London for 2 years so he speaks English well. Last night we decided to grab dinner there before heading out for the night and ended up getting free beers and drinking with the owner for a couple of hours.
Korean men seemed to love Adam. A co-worker of his, who Adam plays volleyball with every week, invited him to play with a club team every other Saturday. The game is followed by dinner, drinks and sometimes arm wrestling.
Last weekend, in search for a massage, we came across a new jimjilbang ( a public bath house/spa). We love our jimjilbangs and this one was very nice. This one was a little less luxurious than the last but more authentic. We were able to get an hour and a half massage for 60,000 won (about $55) that included a full body wrap, face wash, mask and a korean lady beating the crud out of you, in a good way of course. At some points in the massage there were 3 ladies, each working on a different limb. Massages here are very intense and well worth the money. We are very excited to try out another jimjilbang that is just up the street.
For these past 4 months Korea has been so good to us and we are loving every minute of it. We love you and miss you all!!
