Right after we got off of the riverboat, it started to rain. A Typhoon was scheduled to roll in the following morning and so we hurried back to our hotel and prayed that the storm would not prevent us from making the trip down to Kunsan the next day. Apparently they have Typhoon warnings all the time in South Korea but they rarely amount to much. However, this one was pretty legit. We woke up at 5:30 in the morning to the sound of the wind howling outside of our hotel. The building shook a little bit under the gale force winds and the cracks in our windows made a whistling sound like a train was passing by. I knew we were safe but it was so loud that I couldn't go back to sleep. If that was only a category 1 storm, I'd hate to see what a category 5 hurricane is like!
(See video at the bottom of this post. The wind really kicks up about half way through).
Thankfully, the storm had pretty much blown over by 9 am so we were able to catch the train south to Kunsan as planned. After dropping my stuff off at Claire's apartment and getting James' parents settled in to their high tech Korean hotel we drove on base and met up with Jon who was getting ready to go in to work that night. Nancy was overjoyed to see her son, which made all of us happy too. I know it was hard for her to wait three days to see them! James had to work late on Thursday so we didn't get to see him until Friday. But I still enjoyed my time with Claire and Jon. We went out to dinner with some of their friends and then stayed up late watching TV - geeking out in true Wentzel fashion. B^)
Friday morning we all drove back on base and Jon took us up in the control tower where we got to watch some of the F-16s take off and land. Many of them were from my squadron so I enjoyed seeing them work. James was not flying, though, because he was doing a verification test that afternoon. After that, Bob and Nancy drove with Claire out to see the sea wall they have constructed off the coast while I went shopping and hung out with my friend Corrie. She and her husband Matt will be moving to Italy in a few months so I wanted to take advantage of this final opportunity to spend quality time together.
Finally, Friday night the entire family was reunited! We all got dressed up and went out for a big Korean BBQ dinner. Korean food is definitely not my favorite, though by the end of this trip I had enough of it to begin to appreciate it more. Their main staple is grilled meat that you wrap up in lettuce leaves - better known as "Beef on a Leaf." They have a similar thing here in Japan called Yakuniku, with a grill in the middle of the table that you use to cook your own food. But what makes Korean food unique is all of the side dishes. They completely pack your table with all kinds of small bowls filled with pickled veggies. If you eat all of one, that means you liked it and want more - so they give you an endless supply of refills. I really don't care for most of their side dishes. They look and smell very unappetizing. But Jon and Claire are big foodies and love native cuisine so they dove right in and chowed down on the pickled, fermented, gelatinous spread.
Saturday morning, the true adventure of the week began. We hopped into two cars and drove 7 hours up to the north east corner of the country in order to explore Seoraksan National Park. I really didn't know what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised as we pulled into the neighboring town of Sokcho and were greeted by a spectacular sunset behind some rocky mountains on one side, and a beautiful beach on the other. Sokcho has a big international shopping district similar to the one in Seoul called "Rodeo Street" (an homage to Rodeo Drive in LA). In a lot of ways Korea is fashioned after America, but as you can see, they never get it quite right...
That night, Jon exercised his traveling skills and found us a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant down by the docks that supposedly had some of the best seafood in town. The line was out the door, but they got us in quickly because we're foreigners. Sometimes being a minority has it's perks. ;^) I'll admit that I was not at all excited about our fresh seafood dinner. I don't like fish, and definitely have an aversion to eating things that look like their former selves. You can imagine my dismay when they plopped a few fish, heads and all, down on the grill in front of us. However, there was nothing else to eat except yucky Korean side dishes so I decided to be a good sport and try a little of the fish. Then I tried a little more. It was actually very good - not fishy tasting at all, and the meat was nice and flaky like tuna fish instead of the rubbery texture I've come to associate with fish in the past. Before I knew it, I'd finished off 3 sizable cuts of fish! James said he was proud of me for my courage. =^)
After that, the in-laws went back to get some rest while we went out on the town with Jon and Claire. We found a giant bull statue that (from what they told me) looks exactly like the one on Wall Street. Power Posing with it was, of course, a necessity. Then as we were wandering around we happened upon "The Bar Dumb". One of many hilarious attempts by Asian business owners to sound cool by using English words in their titles. We couldn't pass that up either and so we went inside. The owner was great - he brought us some very western chips and salsa with our drinks and asked if he could take a polaroid picture of us for his memory wall. We were happy to make our mark on the city of Sokcho. B^)
The next morning we were up bright and early for the drive into the park. The greenery up there was extraordinary. After taking in the scenery for a bit, we went on a hike to see a waterfall. On the way back we stopped at a small food stand for some potato pancakes and a green salad made from locally grown plants and mountain berries. Then we took the gondola up the mountain and ate some ice cream while taking in the view. The big, rust colored rocks up there made me homesick for Garden of the Gods. James, Nancy and I had a good long talk while Jon, Claire and Bob hiked to the summit. Finally, before it started to rain we rode back down the mountain and got a quick picture in front of the big buddha statue that marked the entrance to a local temple. I took a ton of pictures that day, but I'll limit what I post to a few of the best ones.
They had bears all over the signs there.
I love the mist in Asian mountains!!
That night we went on another authentic dinner excursion. Here we sat on the floor at tiny tables and ate either spicy sausages or fried squid stuffed with veggies. I may have been adventurous the night before but I could not bring myself to try the squid balls. Everyone else said they were fabulous though.
After that we went off in search of the local night life. Jon and Claire really wanted to find a bar where other "round eyes" hang out, but we failed in that attempt. So instead we went and sang karaoke for 2 hours. Asian karaoke is pretty fun. Instead of making you stand up in front of a bunch of people you don't know, they give you your own little private room and provide you with drinks and snacks while you sing your heart out. Much silliness ensued.
Rockin' "The Dancing Queen" by ABBA
Probably my favorite picture of the trip.
Those Wentzels know how to party!
Finally, as the week came to an end, we drove down to Osan AB where I would catch the rotator back to Misawa early Tuesday morning. We spent the afternoon shopping and eating in all of the fabulously cheap establishments right out the gate. For lunch we had authentic Thai food, and then for dinner we went to a Brazilian restaurant. I'd never had Brazilian food before, but it was actually really good. They roast all kind of meats on a stick, then bring the stick out to you and shave off as much of the meat as you want. We had beef wrapped in bacon, chicken, top sirloin, steak and they also brought out some lung which I did not try. Then for dessert we had roasted pineapple sprinkled with cinnamon. SO delicious!!
Jon and James had to work on Tuesday so we had to say good bye to them after dinner. It was a tearful good bye for a few of us. Even though I knew I'd be seeing James again soon, I was pretty emotional. It had been fun being with him again. It was a great week in general - always good to spend quality time with family. Hopefully Jon and Claire will be able to come visit us in Japan before they move on to their next duty station next Spring. At least we've got some fun pictures and memories to tide us over till then!
Typhoon Winds
We stuck around for a couple hours afterward to welcome the others home and take pictures of their wives. There were many joyful reunions - especially for the people with small children, or babies that were born during the deployment. Now we have two weeks off to relax and get settled back into living together before the guys go back to work. Such a blessing! Thanks for all of your prayers for his safety!
