FINAL FOUR: Part 2- The Places I Will Miss

I wonder which places in Daegu I will miss the most, once we return home. My previous missionary service taught me something about my personality. During our mission in Colorado Springs and after our return to our home in Great Falls I learned that I mostly miss the familiar places we see in our daily routine. Some common sight will pop into my mind as if with a life of its own. It might be the parking lot of  my favorite grocery store, our front porch, the homes of family or even a street I drive down every week. Seldom do I long for the centers of social life or exciting attractions. I miss the places we conduct the business of life. I think it will be the same when we return home this time. I will miss the places that tell the real story of our experience here. So here are a few… just a few… of the places I will miss.

 

For nearly 18 months we lived on the 13th floor of building 108 in Epyunhan Apata. I was surprised how quickly we adapted to apartment living. It was our substitute home and we were very comfortable here. I cooked literally hundreds of meals in our tiny kitchen. We taught lessons, played games, hosted over night guests and holiday celebrations. We also had lots of time that we just conducted routine daily business. Bills to pay, cleaning to do, television shows and phone calls from family- all the things we need to do no matter where we live. This is the entrance to our building. Approaching it meant we had arrived to our temporary home. Our Korean refuge. I won't miss hauling groceries up and garbage down 13 floors. I won't miss waiting for the elevator. Yes, there are a few things I will not miss about apartment living. But I know I will picture this entrance fondly and miss our cute Korean apartment where we made so many memories.

This is the little library where we taught English every Wednesday afternoon the last six months of our mission. We would slide open the front door and be greeted by giggles or hellos in English and Korean. The children inside had finished their day of formal schooling and were about to begin their after school study. This library is part of a government subsidized program to provide a "hagwan" experience for less advantaged children. The focus was reading in English. Fred taught the children ten years of age and older. I had the children from four to nine. Fred played games and taught grammar to the older students, who had a some skills in English. I created lessons using coloring pages, games and primary songs for my students. We fell in love with these little people and their mothers. We will miss this completely Korean experience.

This is the subway entrance to the underground mall in Bangwoldan. We spent a lot of time here shopping or just walking. Riding the subway was one of our choice adventures. You never know what you will find when you drop below the streets. You also never know what you will find when you pop back up at a random stop. This is an experience we will not be able to duplicate at home. Yes, we will miss our subway adventures.

We love to explore Daegu on foot. There is no substitute for walking along the streets and through the alleys. There is no better way to see the people and get a feel for their daily life. In Daegu it pays to look down every alley you pass. You could see be a shopping street, a traditional market or a Buddhist temple.

Here are some of the sights that will always be dear to us. Beomeo junction is one of the busiest intersections in Daegu. The traffic is much like a clumsy poorly orchestrated ballet. It is a fifteen minute walk from our apartment.

Memorial park is across the river from us. It has beautiful trees, a very Korean monument and this fun tunnel. It is also a center of celebration and activities quite often. They set off an amazing display of fireworks from here on New Year's Eve. We had a bird's eye view from our apartment.

One of my favorite routes took us through two small markets and one very large one- Chilseong. It was a long walk, probably at least ninety minutes. Much longer if I stopped to shop along the way, which I usually did. As we walked from one market to another we passed a school. The cement wall surrounding the school was decorated with replicas of children's art. I love seeing these colorful pieces of artwork created by Korean children.

Here is a vendor in a market. Probably Seomun market. But it is symbolic of the common places of Korea I will miss. There are vendors everywhere. In the traditional markets, on streets downtown, set up in apartment complexes, in little alleys- everywhere. They sell produce, clothing, fish, prepared foods, bedding, well just about everything. I think going back to shopping without street markets will be a little boring.

This is the stone path across the Sincheon river. We probably walked hundreds of miles along this river. The view was lovely and was an escape from the closed in feeling of high rise living. The exercise was good but the interaction with the Korean people was a real treat. It will be one of my favorite memories and a place I will forever miss.

Here is the Seusong Stake Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I think of all the places I love, I will miss this the most. From the first day we walked through the doors I felt a sense of belonging and purpose. The members of the Daegu Military Branch quickly became family. We taught, learned, testified, sang, socialized and served many hours in this small Korean church. English and Hangul blended as we rubbed shoulders with the Korean members who shared this building. I will always remember the time spent here with tender feelings.  I will always be grateful.