Hello all! I have been enjoying my 4th host family a lot, and there is never a dull moment. I always have something to do or somewhere to go. When this is not the case, I sleep. I am now a master of falling asleep just about anywhere.
My host family owns a lovely Cafe and Restaurant, called Mayflower. The food is amazing. We never eat out, since we literally sleep in a restaurant. Mayflower is one large building with the restaurant at the front of the building, the Cafe at the back, and the family space in the middle and the second floor.
The family is very nice, though often busy with Mayflower. I have learned to help out with different chores and odd jobs (I also have access to lots of tea and coffee!). I room with my host Sister, So-Eun, who is taking a break after finishing her big exam last month. I spend most of my time with So-Eun, who takes me all over the countryside to see and experience new things.
Yesterday So-Eun and I attended Mass together. It was peaceful, though I couldn’t understand anything except “Father,” “God,” “thank you,” and “Amen.”
After hiding from the heat all day, So-Eun and I went out for a night hike with So-Eun’s friend Ji-Eun. We went to a mountain that was famous for it’s night view of the city Jecheon. I was excited for the hike, but So-Eun was still sore from a rather difficult hike we had done a couple days before. When we reached the half-way point up the mountain, So-Eon and Ji-Eun decided to stay there and wait for me. “Just follow the light!” So-Eun instructed.
While I wouldn’t normally trust such a statement, it fit the situation, since lampposts lined the trail up the mountain. So I followed the light. It was steep and difficult, I won’t lie. I enjoyed the challenge, though, so I kept going. The humidity made it more difficult, I have no previous memory of ever being as sweaty as I was by the time I reached the top of the mountain. Normally I’d feel gross, but I was too warm and tired to care.
The funny thing was, there was no view point from the top to see the city. I could barely glimpse the city lights through the trees, and that was only when I tried going down a dirt path. Unfortunately, there were no lights to guide me on that path, so I was lighting my way with my phone flashlight. Not a great light source, but it was a short trail and the ground was clear and easy to walk. The trail lead to nothing.
I was a bit disappointed, but was also grateful for the hike up the mountain. On my way back down, I met So-Eun and Ji-Eun, who were calling out to me as they climbed up the steps. I was a bit confused until they explained that they asked everyone who passed them if they saw an American and where she was when they saw her. Apparently, the last guy to pass them told them he saw an american reach the top and keep going. He also explained to them that the view point we were looking for was not at the top of the mountain… it was at the bottom of the trail.
Needless to say, we were all a bit put out by this revelation. Nonetheless, we slowly made our way down to the bottom of the trail. We found the point we were looking for, but it was closed off with caution tape. We started walking down the road to return to the car, but ended up finding another point along the road that had a beautiful view of the city!
I have to say, things almost never go as planned, but things always turn out well in the end anyways.
