It's Christmas time in the city...

Rebecca flew off to Canada on Friday, Dec. 19th, and we had a nice family Christmas celebration on Thursday night (one that involved a yummy Indian dinner at Indy and - of course! - treats at Starbucks). On Monday evening the four of us went out to admire the beautiful festive lights throughout downtown Daejeon. At one busy pedestrian intersection there was even a big Christmas tree-shaped sculpture constructed of soju bottles. Soju, for those of you who haven't tried it, is a fiery fermented rice beverage that sort of resembles vodka, and it is the national beverage of choice in bars and barbeque restaurants throughout Korea.

We are becoming authentically Korean...

On Saturday, December 13th, Brian and LeeAnne traveled across town to the home of Susan Kim, a colleague who serves as the TCIS Middle School counselor. She and her husband were embarking on a day of kimjang (traditional kimchi making) and we were able to take part. Susan had soaked the whole heads of baechu (napa cabbage) overnight in a salt water solution, and we learned how to process the cabbage from its naked state into fully-dressed whole-cabbage kimchi! We made everything from scratch, including all of the ground and cut ingredients (such as copious amounts of ginger, garlic, radish, green onion, etc.), and mixed everything with bagfuls of dried red pepper. The trick at the end of the process (which takes a full day) is to lovingly coat each leaf of the heads of cabbage with the fiery sauce, by hand, ensuring all leaves transform into the tasty side dish we love (well, three out of five family members love it!). It was a fantastic day, and we now have two large containers of fragrant kimchi fermenting in our fridge!

Skating at Nam Sun...

This past summer we packed up our skates from Canada, anticipating Sunday afternoons at the Daejeon arena once the weather turned chilly. And skating season has officially begun. A few weekends ago Brian, Hannah, Cora and LeeAnne traveled across town to the Nam Sun Sports Complex to join hundreds of other skaters at the rink (Rebecca was busy working on homework with friends). It was completely chaotic, with a lot of inexperienced skaters whizzing around the ice, arms flailing and legs pumping. We definitely had to watch out for incoming skaters from all directions and, as a consequence, it was a very entertaining afternoon. The zamboni show half-way through the public skating session provoked as much interest in Daejeon as it does in Peterborough!

Delivering coal to some beautiful 할머니 (grandmothers)...

In Korean the word "halmoni" means grandma, and on Saturday morning we had the privilege of helping bring coal bricks to the homes of four beautiful elderly women in Daejeon. Our school's NJHS group connected with Social Services and a local pastor who heads up a ministry that delivers coal to the homes of very poor people in our city. Many of the very old and traditional little homes in Korea are still heated with circular coal bricks, and it takes between 1000 - 1400 bricks to fuel a home throughout the winter months. We delivered 200 bricks to each of the four homes we visited, so our grandmas will have a source of heat for the next month or so. Thankfully, this ministry is ongoing so these grandmas will receive another visit when they run low on coal and, as a consequence, they will be able to survive the winter. We traveled to these homes in the van of the pastor in charge, followed by a flat-bed truck laden with coal. When we arrived, we would figure out where the coal needed to be stacked, and then we would make a line so we could pass the brittle bricks carefully from one person to the next. Brian was at the end of the line, piling the bricks into neat piles so the grandmas could easily reach them and put them into their small coal furnaces as needed. One grandma (the one featured in the close-up photograph) was in tears as we prepared to leave. She lived in the smallest and oldest little home I have ever seen. It consisted of a tiny courtyard with two little sheds, and her home seemed to just have one very small and old little kitchen (which probably measured only about 4 feet x 4 feet) with a little sleeping room behind. Her face was beautifully etched with wrinkles and seemed to tell a story all its own. We think she might be about 75 or 80 years old, which means she has seen a lot of history unravel in Korea. She would have been in her early 20s during the Korean war, and the way her nation has transformed itself during her lifetime must be truly mind-boggling for her. It was the coldest morning we have ever experienced, temperature-wise, in Korea (about -11 celcius). In a way, what a fitting morning to deliver coal bricks to these wonderful women. We were blessed in so many ways by being able to participate in this project, and came away reminded of the beauty of pouring our lives out for others in acts of love and service. We desire more of these opportunities as we live and grow with our girls.

Christmas at the orphanage...

On Saturday afternoon, while Rebecca and Hannah played basketball in Seoul and Cora made crafts at home, Brian and I spent a few hours with our school's NHS kids at the Village of Peace orphanage for our annual Christmas party. Our students had arranged for a Christmas craft and songs, as well as a time for the distribution of gifts and, as always, it was such a reminder to us of the true meaning of Christmas. Being with these kids as they sat patiently and raptly, waiting to receive their gifts, was magical. The sense of anticipation, and of the appreciation of small treasures in their packages, was refreshing for our souls. A bunch of the children we know from our regular visits crawled onto our laps to show off their gifts and receive some hugs and love, and it was a wonderful afternoon. The Prince of Peace - with everything embodied in His love for the world - seemed very present in the midst of the festivities. God is so good.

Savouring the Sights of Hong Kong

While the girls were getting in the Christmas spirit back in Daejeon, several administrators, teachers (including Brian!) and Student Life ministers attended the International Christian Educators Conference in Hong Kong. As a special administrative district of China, Hong Kong is a unique blend of Chinese and British cultures. These photos provide a glimpse of some of Hong Kong's famous sights, including restaurants, temples, shopping districts and a 5.7 km long cable car. Spectacular!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Hannah played in a Christmas concert on Thursday evening last week, and Christmas lights are going up all around the city. We even had a few snow flurries yesterday (for a brief five minutes, but they still added a nice feeling to the day!). Brian has been in Hong Kong all weekend, at a conference, and the four of us girls spent Saturday afternoon decorating our apartment for the holidays. To celebrate our successful decorating session, we went out for dinner (with a last course of donuts and coffee at Krispy Kreme), and then did a bit of shopping. The Christmas season really feels like it has begun, although I think we're all in shock that the year is almost half-over!

Traditional Korean Dance...

On Thursday evening, LeeAnne and four other wonderful women from TCIS attended a traditional dance presentation. Six traditional Korean dances were presented, some featuring the most famous dancer in Daejeon. It was a truly cultural event. LeeAnne and her friend, Rachel Dewey (a fellow drum dancer from last year), could appreciate the complexity of the dances as the result of their dance lessons from 2007. Korean dance looks simple but the movements are very complex and measured, with every movement involving intricate poses of the feet, knees, hands, arms, shoulders, neck and head. It is tricky, indeed!

Faces from the orphanage...

On Saturday afternoon our Serving Hands student service group traveled to the Peace Village Orphanage for a visit. We spent the afternoon playing and making crafts with the kids, and it was a wonderful time. Here are some beautiful faces...

Family & Work Photos...

We spent part of Sunday afternoon enjoying some lovely fall weather with the Willoughbys (our friends and neighbours who live directly below us in our apartment building), taking family photos. I thought I'd post a few of my favourites, along with a few photos of me dressed up with two of my colleagues to introduce Macbeth to my IB students today. Very fun. Fair is foul, and foul is fair...

Hanging out downtown...

In a rare convergence of cosmic energy last night, all five members of our family happened to be home at the same time. Taking advantage of this miraculous moment, we all went downtown to enjoy some fancy drinks at Starbucks and wander around the brilliantly-lit downtown area. It is a fun place to be in the evening. Crammed with people, with neon shining everywhere, you never know what may happen. In fact, as we stepped out of Starbucks, a crowd was gathered in the plaza and a young man was down on one knee, holding a big bunch of flowers, proposing to a lovely young lady. Everyone cheered and clapped for them. One photo in this post features a bunch of colourful boxes containing pepperos (little cookie sticks that resemble mini baguettes, dipped in chocolate). Tuesday is Peppero Day here, and these sweet little treats will be distributed with wild abandon as people declare their love for one another.