Seoul: Day Four

An old friend in a new place.  What does it do to a relationship to meet with people in different locations?  It had been about 3 years since I'd seen Hyunsil and catching up with her was as easy as if it was yesterday.  In the meantime she had moved back to Korea after a decade in America, had met someone and gotten married and now has an adorable 4-month-old son.  She had wanted to show me Lotte World, a huge department store and the world's largest indoor amusement park, but it is closed every-other Monday.  She then drove me to a restaurant where we had a private room and in a few short sentences managed to convey something to the waitress that resulted in an onslaught of delicious traditional Korean foods.  It seemed to never end.  She also took my picture to help me document.  We went to her apartment and then to the lakes in the Jamsil area before saying goodbye. It was too little time but I'm hoping to take up her invitation to come again.

I headed back to Sinchon and to the Yonsei University where I heard a bit of Andrew's conference.  People from  all over the world, gathered here to discuss something together.  Afterwards we found the gymnasium at Yonsei and joined a Tae Kwon Class with Master Kim.  There was a lot that was different in the technique and  in the forum of the class, but just as with the class in Madison there was a communal group feeling that seemed to be as important as any technical advice and teaching that was offered.  Like with the dharma talks yesterday, it was so nice to have this resource in English, and like the talks yesterday, it was one of many options like this in Seoul.  We enjoyed some frozen mango with Master Kim and the rest of the class--including some visitors from Germany--in his office after the class was over.  So strange to make such good friends with a group in such a short time.  As we parted ways we wished one another good lives.  Likely we'll never meet again, but we had this night together.