Hanji Weekend Recap

*Warning:This post is picture heavy. 

A few weekends ago, my dear friend Angie came down to Wonju to visit with us and to see the kitters. We worked together last year and you might also recognize her as the amazing woman who did my hair for the wedding! Anyway, we love us some Angie.

So, first we hit up a coffee shop and then we rode the bus up towards Chiaksan. We meant to have a look around the national park and to hike in for about an hour or so and then back out, but we didn't have time and the weather was kind of crap. So, we settled for a craft session at the Hanji Museum (it's really more like a store than a museum though). Hanji is Korean handmade paper and Wonju hosts the Hanji Festival, although there are other hanji spots around Korea. We purchased small DIY hanji kits and then proceeded to an upstairs room with big tables and a hanji expert.

 Clearly, we went straight to work. Well, Kenny did anyway.

Angie and Kenny finished well before I did. Mostly because every other step I would freak out because it wasn't perfect. And the hanji lady would come over and fix it for me. I liked painting the glue on the paper and then painting the paper onto the box with even more glue. We walked around downstairs in the "museum" part of the building while we waited for our hanji products to dry.

This is part of a series they have set up in the museum. It depicts the hanji-making process. Each step in the process is made of hanji. Pretty cool, huh? They had all sorts of furniture, dishes, art, and even a hanbok made entirely out of paper. I liked this little paper guy.

Angie's masterpiece.

Kenny did the big green thing with the bird. And when I saw his bird, I wanted one. So I begged the hanji expert lady for one. And what do you know, she went and found one for me! So I have a little blue bird box. I had a great weekend with Angie, and I'm pretty sure she had a great weekend with the kitters!

This one's for you, Ang!

What a Weekend!

Last Saturday, we headed to Seoul for an excursion with our friends Sandra and Philip. They are expecting a baby in November! (Squeeeeeeeee! I pour an enormous amount of my baby cravings all over Sandra, but she takes it well!) We picked them up from their doctor's appointment early on Saturday morning, and after one tiny, inconsequential, life-threatening left turn, I drove us all to Seoul successfully. We had a great time stuffing our faces with Kraze Burger and shopping around Coex. Although we are running out of money, AND HOW, I still managed to purchase three new albums of Korean music and two Korean movies. I am serious about this language immersion thing and trying my best to study hard, or at least study some, everyday. Also, you may congratulate me. 
I spent about half an hour in a bookstore and DIDN'T BUY A SINGLE BOOK. It's like a world record for me, seriously. I can't remember ever walking out of a bookstore empty handed.

Anyway, two things that made me happy: One, my husband's smiling face and getting to spend some quality time with him after a week apart. Two, HOTDOGS from Costco!! Thanks Sandra and Philip for indulging my craving for both pizza AND hotdogs, because the ChubbO is still thriving!

We headed back on the deluxe bus with enough room for our feet, seats that seriously reclined, and an old Korean man behind me giving a serious lecture on Taoism to his poor neighbor. After he stopped talking, I slept almost the entire way home. Never riding standard buses again! Now we're spoiled.

On Sunday, my friend Jennifer came down to Wonju on a day trip. We had lots of fun and visited the Wonju Herb Farm. That's where most of the pictures are from. It was a beautiful garden with pond and after pond of waterlilies, beds of flowers, rows of birch trees, and a greenhouse full of herbs they encouraged you to touch and smell. Here are a few highlights... okay, a LOT of highlights!

(This is Lamb's Ear, or Lam's Ear if you're Korean.

It was indeed soft and like a lamb's ear!)

(Creative use of roof tiles.

Made me want to start my own roof tile garden.)

(Me and Jennifer looking lovely,

with cleavage conveniently cropped out!)

(We bought two basil plants and got to decorate the pots. But the battery on our camera went dead.

The pot on the left was done by Kenny and the one on the right was done by Jennifer. Miso was very curious about our basil. It smells so good and always makes me want pizza with basil on top!)

It was a beautiful weekend for us, filled with lovely friends and wonderful outings. (Do I sound 60 years old? Yes.) Still loving it here in Wonju. Except when it rains. And I don't have an umbrella. And the skies are gray and making me want to sleep through all my classes instead of teach them. But other than that, still loving it.