We took a couple days to revisit some historic Korean sites that we had toured during our 1st trip to Korea. Pictures help reshape the story, so we wanted make sure we took Boaz around to famous Korean places and capture those experiences for him.
Gyeongbokgung Palace is one of five palaces in Seoul and inarguably the grandest. Dragons, a holdover from Chinese influence, are depicted in various places throughout the courtyard and denote strength and power. This one stands guard outside the palace.
This gigantic drum is sounded during the changing of the guard ceremony.
Our sweet friend and Holt tour guide/ social worker Summer. We met at our hotel to exchange gifts (Korea is a very gift - giving culture to show friendship and appreciation). She graciously took pictures of us for his baby book!
Korea's beloved King Sejong. He created Hangol so the common people could communicate.His reign is also famed for the Sundial and astrological mapping.
We are enjoying traditional Korean food! Bo gobbles up rice and fish soup like a champ, snacking on dried seaweed papers called "laver". We are still learning chopsticks!
This is a view from the top of our hotel. You can see the blue roof of their President's home (Koreans call it "the blue house " their version of our "white house ".) You can also see the grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace.
We walked through Insadong again; a quirky section of town with lots of tourism, arts and fashion. An escape artist was giving an impromptu show, generating a large crowd of spectators. (Yes; he actually made it out of these chains!!)
We ate dinner tonight at this restaurant in Insadong. It was a crowded tonight since it's the weekend. Bo's eyes lit up when they brought out the side dishes. This little guy will eat mushrooms, green seaweed, bulgogi and of course his favorite: bap (rice). It was delicious & we all ate heartily!
Koreans like to give the peace sign when posing for pictures but Boaz can only put one finger of the V up at a time. 😉
We've noticed more stares since we've been out in public with Bo. When it was just us, the looks were curious but dismissive; because we're tourists.) Apparently, Koreans don't quite know what to think of a Caucasian couple adopting a Korean.
We were told by a local that it would never occur to most Koreans to adopt a child; let alone one of a different race; especially if they already had children of their own.
Most of the long glances are just interested. But some of the looks, particularly from older-generation Koreans, tended to be more pointed and spoke wordless criticism.
We know it's not the first experience we're going to have as a multi-racial family. But we also know how much diversity makes God smile... and so we smile back in the face of their disapproval; feeling sorry for their lack of understanding and for missing the tremendous blessing we're a part of.
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