BIRTHDAYS:
In October, we celebrated my birthday with the Kali Himagsikan crew at an all you can eat Brazilian BBQ restaurant in Yokohama.
In November, we celebrated Bern's special day with tickets to the Janet Jackson concert at the Saitama Super Arena, which is a little bit north of Tokyo.
And because he was underway, we also celebrated Bern's brother Chris' birthday by taking him to the Hooters in Shibuya with Melissa (Bern's cousin) and her family.
HOLIDAYS:
For Thanksgiving, the three of us decided to take a four day trip to Seoul, South Korea. We couldn't pass up the great deal we got through the travel agency on base; the price included airfare, hotel accommodations at the Dragon Hill Lodge located inside the Yongson Garrison Army base, and two guided tours. We arrived in Seoul on Thursday evening so decided to eat at one of the hotel restaurants that served a Thanksgiving dinner buffet. The food was mediocre at best but at least they served all of those traditional Thanksgiving dishes.
The next morning we had our first tour, which was of the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone). The armistice that put a halt to the Korean War (1950-1953) divided the Korean Peninsula into North & South Korea. The two sides were separated by the DMZ which runs along the 38th parallel north. It's basically like "no-man's land" that serves as a buffer zone between the two countries. The first stop on our tour was at Dorasan Station. This $40 million dollar project was constructed in 2002 and was the final train stop before heading into North Korea. At first, the trains only carried limited freight and a few workers. But only after a year of opening, fluctuating tensions quickly escalated and the North Korean government no longer allowed trains to come in; which meant the closing of this train station.
Right above the Dorasan train station was a hill top that overlooked the border of North Korea. The weather was kind of cloudy that day but we still managed to get somewhat of view...
The next stop was the Third Infiltration Tunnel site where we walked down approximately 240ft underneath the DMZ. Pictures were strictly prohibited but the tunnel was built by North Korea in case they wanted to invade Seoul; with about 30,000 men. North Koreans claimed that the tunnel was used for coal mining but there was no evidence of coal to be found. The scary thing is that this is only one of three tunnels that have been found by South Korean authorities; it is believed there about nine more in existence leading into Seoul. CRAZY!
Unfortunately the tour did not include the Joint Security Area of the DMZ where the two sides are literally face to face, constantly standing guard 24/7... but that didn't stop Bern and I from posing next to anime-like statues of South Korean soldiers...
On our way back to the hotel, the bus stopped at a rest area for lunch where we had our first Korean meal that included all of the typical sides like kimchi and other pickled veggies.
The rest of the day was spent shopping at the Namdaemun Market where street vendors sold a variety of items. This was a great place to load up on all the souvenirs....
After a few hours of shopping in Namdaemun, we then headed over to Dongdaemun where they had a number of food vendors cooking up so many different Korean specialties.
Our tour guide earlier in the day suggested we try pajeon, which is a like a fried Korean pancake. It was pretty tasty and came with this onion-infused soy sauce for dipping.
The third day of our trip was a tour of Gyeongbokgung Palace, located right in the heart of Seoul. This was once home to the Korean royal family during the Joseon Dynasty. It was slightly snowing that day but we still got to walk through the palace grounds which was a pretty big compound to say the least....
The changing of the guard...
Standing next to our Chinese zodiac animal characters
Even though we were freezing our butts off, we still had a great time in Seoul, South Korea!
On Christmas Eve, we went to midnight mass and then on Christmas morning we opened our presents. During the day we watched the classic Christmas Story along with a few other holiday themed movies building up an appetite for an All You Can Eat Christmas Buffet dinner on base with the Cariaga family. To burn off some of those calories, we all decided to go bowling afterwards which was a fun way to end the night.
You've heard of "Elf on a Shelf," Bern wanted to start a new tradition called "Mark in the Dark"
For New Years Eve and New Years Day, we had the Cariaga family come over to our place so we could watch the fireworks at Verny Park which is right across the street from our apartment. Ted and I both wanted to cook something new so I decided to make the Vietnamese soup pho and Ted made salt and pepper chicken wings. Although both of our dishes weren't nearly as good as what we were used to back home, the taste/flavor was at least there which was fine by us. For dessert, Bern made cookies and Kristine made truffles which were all delicious.
Bern and I want to wish all of our family and friends happiness and success in 2016! We appreciate all of your love and support throughout the years and look forward to the day we see you again.
