They play classical music in the parks here.

It's beautiful. I really enjoy walking to work, past the park, hearing smooth jazz or a piano sonata coming from the trees. It's almost as if I lived at Disneyland and I love it.

Speaking of Disneyland, I have discovered something ultimately better. It's called Everland and I had the wonderful privilege of visiting this magical place yesterday. And yes, I did say that it was better than Disneyland and I mean it. Us Californians think there is nothing more magical and wondrous than Disneyland and we all wish we were there all the time, but all you doubters need to come visit me in Korea and learn the amazingness of Everland. Google it, I dare you.

So, yesterday was my birthday and it was an amazing one. John and I were invited to go to Everland with a group of Johnny's adult students--an amazing group of Korean women. We had shadowed their class the week before and they had told us that they would be going to Everland and wouldn't we please come with them? Well, we couldn't really say no, nor did we want to, and so we agreed and made plans to go on Friday.

We didn't really know what to expect, going to a Korean theme park. We had anticipated something a lot smaller than what we got though. Instead of the carnival-sized theme park with lame rides that we thought we were getting, Everland ended up being HUMONGOUS. Imagine a theme park probably twice the size of Disneyland built on the side of a mountain containing anything and everything you could possibly think of: an entire waterpark bigger than Water World; one of the world's largest and scariest wooden coasters in the world; a huge safari area complete with lions, tigers, and bears; gondolas or "human sky" as they call it, that carry you throughout the park; lots of monkeys and talking birds; an amazing sea lion show; a rotating house; roller coasters of all sizes; an unbelievable bird show with hundreds (seriously) of trained flying birds; and last, but certainly not least, a boat ride that is a total rip-off "It's a Small World."

Needless to say, it was an incredible day. And really the most incredible part was hanging out with those amazing Korean women. As Korean cultural rules require, because they invited us along on this outing, the women paid for everything. Our tickets into the park (including an all-access pass to any ride), all of our food and snacks, and even a birthday present for me! Their generosity baffled me--they went above and beyond any "cultural rules." And they are so kind! And their English is so good! Thank you Lord for those women and the ways they have blessed us.

Our trip to Everland was most memorable and wonderful. Unfortunately, we have no pictoral documentation of our day because we forgot to put the battery into the camera. It was a horrible discovery to find that we had brought the camera and that it had no battery in it. Nevertheless, it was a birthday that I will not soon forget.

Besides exciting trips to amazing theme parks, life in South Korea is going swimmingly and we are really loving it. John and I have gotten more and more acquainted with our new city and are slowly learning our way around town. This week has been particularly busy because we have been intensely preparing for the beginning of the new semester. Classes start on Monday, Sep 1st (no Labor Day for us in Korea), and we are really excited to start teaching.

So, that's all for now. I wish that all of you could come and visit us here in Korea so that you could hear the classical music in the parks.