So this past weekend was pretty uneventful. Clinton and I had hoped to hike Suraksan, but no luck, as it was raining pretty constant both Saturday and Sunday. It made for a boring couple of days. Apparently we got somewhere around 12" of rain. Enough to satiate things for more than a while, I think. We sat around a good portion of the day Saturday and then barely got ourselves out long enough to get some food and grab a few drinks and movies for home. Mighty boring, for the most part. We vowed to do something the next day. After waking up somewhere closer to the afternoon than morning we decided to go to the biggest temple in seoul. It was still pouring, but we had to do something. The temple was just ok (under a lot of construction and restoration), but we did find loads of different Buddhist shops to look in. We also met a really nice women in one of the shops that had done her masters in DC. You just never know until they approach you and start talking, who has been abroad. We had a decent snackish dinner after that and went to look in one of the bigger book stores. I ended up getting a book and tape set to attempt to learn some more korean. It looked pretty good, and it certainly wouldn't hurt to actually study. I can say quite a few phrases now, but I really haven't "studied". It's just been things I've gradually picked up.
We got back in the subway to go home somewhere after dark and were standing just waiting to get back to town when another couple started talking to us. It was more than entertaining. Apparently they had lived abroad for 10 years in the Dominican Republic of all places. They were really sweet, and I just couldn't stop laughing when the husband started spouting out pretty much perfect Spanish. He started explaining his work and using all these gestures that only people from the Caribean that I've met use. It was just hilarious. I know I could have listened a little more closely, but I just couldn't get past the fact that there was a korean man standing in front of me speaking spanish just like a Puetroricanyo or Cubano. I mean, I suppose after 10 years, you'd most likely be able to speak, but still....it's not everyday that you meet a korean with that ability. They transfered stations after around 15 min. talking with them, but I still couldn't get rid of my surprise. It's amusing me even now, thinking back to last night.