I had a wild weekend. I felt like I was back in college.
Friday night Christina texted me that she was bored. I couldn't let a friend be bored. So I stayed up until 2am throwing rocks into a lake (my idea. I love throwing rocks) and taking awesome night pictures (I also love taking pictures).
Saturday morning I woke up at 4:30am, quickly packed my bag and met my friend Hyeon-hoon(현훈). We then took a taxi to the Yongsan train station where we met up with two other friends, Hu-yong (허용) and Dau-wua. Then we caught the train to Guangju. I think it took us about 4-5 hours to get there by slow train. During that time, we played games of chance and talked. At one point, Dau-wua received a penalty that required her to exit the train, do a push up, and then return to the train. She requested a "Black Knight". This is a person that will take the penalty for her, and may ask a favor of her in return. I volunteered. So at the next station, I jumped out the door and did push-ups, while Koreans gawked, and then I quickly hopped back on the train.
In Guangju we met up with two more friends Deok-hyeon (덕현) and his girlfriend Ji-yeong (지영). Then we hopped on a bus... The driver was a funny guy. He kept yelling at people for standing up too early for their stops. Then he quickly volunteered advice to us about how to reach the temple... while driving with one hand and looking over his shoulder as he talked.
After disembarking from the bus, we talked a taxi driver into letting us pack 6 people into his car (slightly illegal, but we were in the countryside). We followed a winding road beside a small river. Finally, we reached the temple, which was at the base of a mountain.
First thing we did when we got to the temple was greet the Buddha. Hyeon-hoon's aunt was actually the temple master and he had been to this temple before, so he led the way. We bowed three times to 3 different Buddha entities. Two walls were Buddha paintings and in front were three Buddha statues with a painting behind them. We then had lunch (vegetarian and very tasty. the various flavors were amazing.) I was the loser at a counting game we played, so I had to do the dishes. Everyone else went and got our two rooms set up. One room for the guys and one for the girls.
Next we met the temple master (Hyeon-hoon's aunt). She served us tea and snacks. We brought some traditional ginger cookies for her. The process of making tea was interesting to watch... it involved pouring the tea into various containers and filters and finally into very tiny tea cups. She chatted away while she worked. I didn't really understand much of what she said. At one point, I do know she started to tell some kind of childhood story about Hyeon-hoon that he got embarrassed about. The temple was for women monks (which are apparently called nuns, though I tend to associate that word with Catholic nuns).
The temple master then led us on a short hike. We talked and played word games while we walked. Upon returning we had dinner. Then we went to the temple and did "baek-pal baek"(108 bows). I couldn't read the Korean mantra fast enough (and I didn't know what it meant) so I didn't do the chanting. But I did do the 108 bows. These were not simple bows from the waste... these were full body squats... you go from a standing position down to your knees, then put your face down (still sitting on knees), palms go up, then down, then folded (classic prayer style), then you rock back on your heels to a standing postion again... repeat... 108 times. By the time we finished, all of us were sweating and our quads were burning.
After returning to our room, we played more games of chance. We created the classic children's origami paper mouth with four corners. Penalties were written inside the paper. A person would choose a number and a direction (north, east, south, or west). They would then have to do the penalty that came up. A number of other games were used to choose the person who would get the random penalty. They were:
[1]Baskin Robbins 31 - Each person can count 1,2, or 3 numbers... the person that is forced to count the number 31 loses.
[2]Game of Death - on the count of three, everyone points at someone. A leader calls out a random number. The number counts follow the directions people are pointing. The person the final number lands on is the loser.
[3]3, 6, 9 - the group begins counting up by ones. If the number contains a 3, 6, or 9 then you must clap instead of saying the number. The one who fails to do so, or says the wrong number is the loser.
[4]6 count - we had to count to 6. You simply shout out the next number in random order... if you say the number at the same time as someone else, then you both are losers. And if you count the number 6 (because there were 6 of us) then you are the loser.
[5]image game - a question is asked. For example:"Who do you think is the best dresser?" Then everyone points at their choice. The person with the most votes is the loser.
The loser then chose a random number and direction and the origami mouth was used to choose a random penalty.
Some of the penalties: everyone splashes you in the face with water, you must switch sleeping rooms, everyone flicks you in the head with their finger, the people on either side of you must kiss you, you must tell the group a problem you have and listen to the advice they give, everyone must compliment you.
It was really great fun. As for me... I played it smart, and was careful when playing the random games (there is some strategy involved.) I managed to only get two penalties. I was flicked in the head by everyone and had to kiss someone (on the cheek).
After the game we talked. Talked about life, about religion, about beliefs, about our struggles, about our dreams. We went to bed around midnight... and woke up at 2:30am for another 108.
Following our second 108 (which only took us about 30minutes, opposed to the 40 minutes the first time) we had breakfast and made a picnic lunch for ourselves. I did dishes again, others cleaned our rooms, and others made lunch. Then we started up the mountain.
I think it took us about 3 hours to reach the peak. It was a tough climb, but enjoyable. The weather was beautiful. At the top we hit a large patch of ice, but eventually we made it. We took pictures and ate lunch. On the way down, Ji-yeong slipped and slid down the hill and off the trail. As she flew over the side into the bushes, she grabbed onto Deok-hyeon and pulled him off the trail with her. They were laughing so much... and of course the photojournalist in me came out... and I snapped some quick shots. On the way down, we began to pass regular hikers in full gear... ski poles, hiking boots, hats, thermal wear, huge backpacks... so much of it is unnecessary, but it's part of the culture. Koreans don't do things by halves.
On a previous hike, I got chewed out by an old Korean man because I was hiking in Converse and not the standard hiking boots (I couldn't communicate the fact that I felt they gave me better traction and wouldn't cause blisters.)
After we got back, we rested for a few minutes. We said good-bye to the Buddhas (3 bows again)... and tried to catch the bus... we missed it by about 2 minutes. We ended up getting a ride with one of Hyeon-hoon's relatives. We decided to take a bus back instead of the train because it would be faster and cheaper. Tired and a little hungry, we made it safely back to Seoul.
I then drove my motorcycle to Itaewon to meet with some friends. Then brought one of them home and ended up having tea and a nice talk until midnight. Rode home and then got to sleep... only to wake up at 6am for swimming lessons (which were awesome).
Needless to say, I was pretty much a zombie at school. Over 4 days I got probably 10 hours of sleep max. And it was completely worth it. I'll save my swimming adventures for another day... this has got to be a record length post.
