I have been learning some basic Korean dialogues in class, which I try to practice when I am dinning outside. The owners of the restaurant I’m sitting in are an old Korean couple. It is interesting to communicate with them when ordering food. Besides the Korean I just learned in the program, body language and a little English helped our conversation go well. I will keep working hard to achieve my goal of communicating more with locals.
This weekend, I went to visit the Seoul Tower. I took the cable car to get to the foot of Namsan (if you would like to exercise, you can choose to climb the mountain as well). There was a free traditional acrobatics show at the Seoul Tower Plaza in the afternoon. Those performers dressed up in traditional clothes and played games with tourists. It was amazing. Moreover, the Seoul Tower is famous for love locks. On the way of the plaza, handles of stairs are full of tens of thousands of locks. This is a tradition for lovers —— to write down their names and wishes on the lock, and lock it on the handles. It represents lasting love.
In the evening, I went to Hangang River which is the mother river of South Korea. We ordered take-away food and had a picnic under the bridge of Hangang. Every weekend night, many local bands and dancing groups get together and perform around the Hangang Bridge. Residents get together and enjoy the show for free. I was surprised that not only the young go to see the show, but also 1-3 grade children and elderly residents.