Hanel-nari=Heaven

So what do you do when you want to fall back in love ....or, perhaps, fall back into tolerant fondness with Korea? Get the hell outta Seoul. Which is exactly what I did with my new co-workers Annabelle and Jenny on this particular weekend.

Our first stop was to an old train station with, lo and behold, an old train. I am told it had been in a famous Korean movie, but the fame must have gone to its head because it was really snobbish and didn't do anything. I suspect it also had a drug problem, but it wasn't my place to say.

Here's Jenny, Annabelle and the famous (ahem..*coked-up*) train.

Just before arriving, the mayor of the area boarded our bus and welcomed us, the first ever foreign visitors, to his small village. It was kind of like Star-trek. Going where no white-person had gone before. Excititing! When we finally got to Hanel-nari we discovered that there are still places in the world where 1987 has not yet arrived. What a utopia for 3 children of the '80s! No internet, no cell-phones, no Britney Spears...aaaah. It was fantastic.

To make up for the lack of digital, cellular, or Teenbeat entertainment Hanel-nari provided a number of more "rural" passtimes. Eating being a favorite of our group. We were set up in homestays and soon sat before the most incredbile Korean meal I have ever seen! Fresh mountain vegetables, and all the tofu this little meat-abstainer could handle! Such rich flavor too, I think I found new tastebuds! For those of you unfamiliar with Korean Traditional food, don't worry, it's suppose to look like that.

After dinner we were set to work making Beeswax candles in bamboo chutes. Everyone got really into the hands on craftiness. It felt like girls scout camp, minus the mac n' cheese and minivans.

The next day we did some hiking around the countryside and picked wild herbs. Then the old ladies in the village used them to make a special rice cake. Which we ate with fresh honey comb from their bee farm. Did I mention how much we ate on this trip? I was one of the sacrificial few who "got the opportunity" to go into the hive area and purloin some heavy, dripping golden comb. So I got the first bite.

After that it was time to say goodbye to our little haven. All the cute little Hanel-narians came out to wave our bus goodbye...so sweet! Must be all the honey.