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| The Taj is picture perfect, I really was there! |
Well Readers, if you are still there you will finally have something to read. I am not even going to try to catch you up on my adventures one post at a time. I will just a few big events that have been happening in a few posts. The first big thing will be to share some pictures and a little about my trip to India with you.
The trip to India was short, but enough time to open my eyes and heart wider to a different land in this large world I am living in. India is a big country and in the place I visited...New Delhi and Agra, there are people everywhere. My experience in India had some ups and downs just as most things do, but it was an experience I would not trade for anything. I want to share with you things I experienced for the first time and that I will never forget
1. TAJ MAHAL
I visited a wonder of the world that truly was breathtaking and remarkable. The Taj Mahal! It's beauty and story are unique. Your mind just wonders in the construction of the architecture and the purpose for it's build. It was constructed out of love to serve as a tomb for the love of one Sheik. I can't believe I had the opportunity to see this for myself, walk inside and around a place that has been marveled over for years.
RECKLESS words pierce like a sword but the tongue of the wise brings healing
On my way to see the wonder of the Taj, I had my first verbal fight with a man with a monkey. He tried to trick me into taking a picture by telling me he would NOT charge me. I hesitated and almost took a picture, he thought I did and I insisted I did not. After he thought I took a picture he demanded I pay, I tried to plead my case of innocence (not with much love in my voice or heart) however, eventually we came to a mutual understanding and I left learning a few things about myself as well as a few things about this man who will impact my life in a positive way when I remember him.
3. HARVEST
I saw many rice fields of my favorite type of rice, truly beautiful!
FOOD
Palak Paneer and Naan...I LOVE indian food! I ate palak paneer multiple time while in INdia it is a spinach based curry and the naan is a type of bread that you scoop the naan up with, delicious
4. TRANSPORTATION
Camels on the HIghway. I saw several camels hard at work passing cars, being passed by cars as they hauled some type of materials
5. TRADES
Bazaar's are shopping stores where business men and tradesmen display their handmade creations for tourists to purchase. I saw many scarfs, marble works, purses, rugs, and many other things
I remember when I was in elementary school, having field day. It was a day where us students played games and celebrated physical activity all day. Guess what!... They do that here too! Yep, we had field day at Anyang JungAng Elementary. I was instructed to wear athletic clothes and shoes. I had no problem with that. It was a lot of fun. The day started with a song played by the whole school on the recorder which was followed by a nice warm up consisting of none other than the national sport of Korea..Taekwondo. And then to get the celebration off right, they released balloons that contained an origami swan. The swan had the dreams written of each student on it. Of course there was a swan for each grade/class. It was a really neat thing to experience. The rest of the day consisted of many games directed towards grade levels. Running was the core activity. Wow, these kiddos can run. 
Like I said, both the USA and Korea have field days, but the games played are a little different. There was one game which was similar to pinata. The students had to throw little balls at a big ball until they broke it. They raced against another team. Surprisingly, the large balls were nearly impossible to break. But with a little persuasion from an adult they budged and set free some candy, confetti and balloons. Another part of field day I found very interesting was a display of pictures and art made by students. It was a great break from the field to take a glance into the lives and minds of these young athletes and dreamers that I call my students!
What is a athlete without their protein and bokki? Well, I don't know, but I do know there was plenty of this food to go around. I even got a unwanted taste of some delicate pig intestine. A student of mine came up to me and held this black thing on a stick near my mouth, as I opened my mouth to say a kind no, he slipped it right in. I was unable to chew it all the way through so I toughed it out and just swallowed it. At the time I had no idea what it was, then later found out that it was pig intesting. Wonderful ^^ Did you know that this is a heart healthy food for woman to eat after giving birth in Korea. Well you do now! 
