Sabbath, March 25, 2006The day at a glance:The day gets off the ground slowly. We don’t arrive at church until after 11 o clock—too late unfortunately for the girls to meet and make some new friends.

A couple of hours from about 12 to 2:30 or so, trekking from our guesthouse to the church and back again and then taking buses to the home of a friend of ours who lives on the outskirts of Seoul where we had a late lunch.

We had planned to hike Mt. Pukhansan in the afternoon, but by the time we finished lunch it was 4:00 so we just stayed and reminisced about Saipan with our friend (he was the principal in Saipan before my wife was, so we used to work for him).

6:40 P.M.—More traveling, this time by bus and subway. We arrive at the Korea House at close to 8. Buffet dinner of traditional Korean food. The food was good but, at over $25 US per person, a bit pricey. After dinner we watched a performance of traditional Korean dances and music. The dances were generally slow and dreamy, full of languid, floating moves. At times the women in their bright long gowns seemed to glide over the floor. The music was discordant and dissonant to my Western ears but it began to grow on me. One piece, played on a two 12-string zither almost reminded me of Celtic or blue grass folk.

More journeying on the subway and we arrive back at our guesthouse at 11:15 P.M.The girls are doing well so far. They are handling the cold surprisingly well, and in fact, are not always bundled to the neck as I thought they would be. They are absolutely fascinated by the sight of their own breath—something they’ve never seen before. They love to exhale just for the fun of it. They hate riding the bus but they endure it without too much complaint. They like the subway better. The President tends to be negative just out of habit, but it isn’t too grating. My wife and I were both sick this week before we left, but both of us are healing and doing well.