This weekend I was invited to go with some people to Namhae. Namhae is an island just a two hour bus ride away.
You can see that Namhae is just west of Changwon, where I live. I met up with a couple people on Saturday at the bus terminal and we were on our way. It was so lovely when we arrived on the island, because the was shining, the ocean smelled lovely, and of course (as per usual in Korea) there were gorgeous mountains to look at.
We stayed at a pension for the night. A pension is Korean, community style accommodations. This means you will sleep on thin mats on the floors with a small blanket and pillow. I know sleeping on the floor sounds awful, but Koreans have heated floor systems, which make it quite nice to stay on the floor. Also, since there were 30 of us, we had the entire pension to ourselves.
The pension was located right on the ocean with a beautiful view.
Being blessed with a beautiful day like this did not make it feel like December 1st at all. I just stood there on the beach enjoying the sun and taking in what a marvelous experience it was to be there at that moment.
But of course I had to take some pictures...
Just as the sun was beginning to set, the pig arrived and we were ready to grill. I was so excited to have this roasted pig and just enjoy good company. This weekend was also a potluck, so we all stuffed ourselves with some good home cooking that tasted nothing like Korea. Some of the lovely dishes included: baked beans, potato salad, stuffing, baked ziti, bean salad, pineapple, bananas, pork of all sorts, and apple crisp.
I felt very "new" at this gathering, because most of the people there have lived in Korea for at least a year and many for multiple years. It was interesting to hear their stories of Korea and how it has shaped their lives or what role it played. I especially enjoyed talking with these people about their travels outside of Korea. I left this weekend with an itch to just hop on a plane and see the world right now....
Unfortunately, we woke up Sunday morning to some rain, which motivated us to leave quicker than we expected. By noon we had reached the bus station, bought tickets, and were waiting to return to Changwon. Finally around 3:30 we were back home and ready to relax some more before the week begins. This was when it hit me that Changwon really DOES feel like home. I was looking forward to being in my apartment and cooking dinner. Also, I knew exactly how I would get from the bus stop to my apartment and didn't have to question which bus to take or how I might tell a taxi driver to get to my apartment. I don't think Korea will ever be my true home, but for now it is feeling like a place I can call home.
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