ATV, Rafting, Pension in Daejon

The first weekend of October, Beth was awesome enough to organize a trip for 12 of us to go to a pension outside of Daejon. A handful of her coworkers from last year are just about wrapping up their contracts and heading out of Korea, and this would be a nice last hoorah for all of them.

We took a Moon Kkang school bus - nothing like a public school bus at home... it's decorated with the finest fabrics (see photo) and fully equipped with reclining seats, cup holders and of course, karaoke. And our good pal, Andrew, was ready to get Saturday started with none over than his version of "S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night!" by the Bay City Rollers. It was classic.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by some interesting insects. Another black and yellow spider on a massive web instantly caught our eyes, only this time, the spider was enjoying its prey - a dragonfly that had been captured in the web. Shortly after, an injured praying mantis was crawling about. Also, The mosquitoes at this place really feasted on me and the rest of us throughout the weekend.

The first day, we went out on a bunch of ATVs and drove about the terrain for a bit. After, we soaked up some sun while enjoying the endless draft beer that was included with the place. For dinner, they made us beef curry with various Korean side dishes as well as a mass amount of pork, which is not part of my diet. After some time digesting, the drinks continued flowing and the karaoke machine was brought out. The pension owners set up a huge projector screen outside with surround sound and hooked up the karaoke to it. It was a fun but steady night until the Korean group showed up. They inquired about the karaoke and asked to join, which obviously excited us. They really showed us how to "noraebang" it up with dance moves and the whole nine. It turned into somewhat of a dance-off. The night took off from there and the singing, dancing, drinking games and shots continued for hours.

The next morning we were broken for what we thought was rafting. During the drive, we realized that this rafting trip was not going to consist of any "white water." Fortunately, it turned out to be an insanely hilarious experience despite the lack of the slightest ripple in the water. Let's just say, everyone ended up fully clothed in the freezing water and partook in all orders made by the guides. I had some really hard laughs that definitely contributed to my ab workout.

ALSO - I've been trying my best to stay informed on the music scene while out in Korea, and I'm going to post videos of interest with my blog entries. Enjoy!

Morning Benders - "Promises"