Bruce & Joan Visit!

Well, our much anticipated visit with my mom and Bruce has come and gone. It was a very fun filled two weeks, and even though I had to work more that I wanted to, we still had a great visit. First off, Dana and I were very impressed at how quickly my mom and Bruce were able to recover from the jet lag. It seemed that they were raring to go from day 1.

They flew in on a Thursday night and that Saturday we went on a road trip to a historic Korean park. Since it was a Saturday (and a beautiful day at that), it was packed with people. One thing that we got a great laugh out of was the battery powered scooters and cars that were flying around the park. Mostly little kids were riding them, but we found this man in a business suit (Korean's dress up for everything!) quite amusing! We also did some shopping at the park. This is a picture of my mom and I enjoying some Korean tea in a pottery shop (she bought some small Korean vases here).The second weekend of their visit, we made the trek up to Seoul. My mom and Bruce both greatly enjoyed the traditional Korean theater (music and dance) that we saw. Below is a picture of them with the percussionists.
We also took the opportunity to partake in some delicious Korean food. My mom didn't like it quite as much as Bruce, but she still managed to find something to eat. Of course, Bruce raved about the food wherever we ate throughout their visit.
Another place we visited in Seoul was an historic palace. This palace was different than some of the others we've visited because of its gigantic garden/park. It was particularly beautiful because of the time of year and the dramatic colors on the trees.
Bruce seems to have a Starbucks radar built in. It didn't take him long to recognize the all to familiar green circle emblem of Starbucks in Insadong. Though a bit more expensive than in the States, Bruce and I still took a second to get a good cup of coffee on more than one occasion during their visit!
After our trip to Seoul, we came back to "bustling" Waegwan where we enjoyed the last two days of their visit. Of course we managed to squeeze in a couple more games of Mexican Train dominos! Overall, it was a wonderful visit, and, as always, it was great to see my mom and Bruce and show them some of the highlights of life in Korea. We have no more scheduled visitors for the remainder of our time, but would surely love to have anyone come!