I recently took a trip to see my sister in South Korea where she is living for the year, teaching English. She’s got a great blog (http://www.annaprietophotography.com/blog.html) about her experiences there (and I stole this blog post title from her, because it’s so witty and there’s hardly a chance that I’ll come up with something half as good.) I was able to see and do a lot with my two weeks, I don’t know how I’ll choose which pictures are my favorite!
Korea is such a beautiful country, it’s obvious that beauty is very important to them. Scenes like this one are common.
Here are a few of the children from my sister’s class. They were all very eager to have their picture taken.
At Jijik-sa temple in Gimcheon, during the week of celebration for Buddha’s birthday. The old saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” really sums up this one. I won’t write a thousand words about it, but watching these two people bow so deeply to Buddha made me search myself to see if I’m bowing as deeply to God with my daily actions.
This was at a temple located about half way up a mountain in Gumi; I didn’t know what to expect, so when I got high enough to see this site, it took my breath away. Like I said, beauty is very important to Koreans. These lanterns are part of the celebration for Buddha’s birthday.
This woman was very kind to me and made every effort to use the little bit of English that she knows. The lines in her face tell a story, but it is one that I will have to imagine, since we couldn’t really have a conversation.
The famous Cheonggyecheon Stream that flows through downtown Seoul.
My sister and I met some people one day while we were waiting at a bus stop. You just never know when you’re going to have an unforgettable experience! By the time our bus came, they were hugging us, kissing us, taking pictures with us and insisting on paying our bus fare.
The drumming sound that this gourd shaped ‘drum’ makes can be heard all throughout the temple grounds during ceremony times. I don’t know how to describe it other than ‘a little bit surreal’. This picture is my personal favorite from my trip, not for it’s beauty necessarily, but perhaps for being in the right place at the right time.
The gate to Gyeongbuk Palace in downtown Seoul…
I could go on and on, really. Such a beautiful place with such beautiful people. And in addition to seeing a new place, my sister and I had the most wonderful time together on our first official trip together, and I think we surprised each other with how compatible we are as traveling partners. I’m sure there will be many more of these trips in our lifetimes. Love you, sis!
