Today's lunch included two fish, which were very good, assorted kimchi side-dishes, and a large bowl of rice and vegetables. I ate all of my fish and rice, but was still hungry.
For dinner, we had a temple meal at a well-known Seoul restaurant, San-Chon. We sat on the floor, and were presented with an overwhelming number of small dishes of food, all vegetarian. I counted over 100 bowls on our 8 person table by the time dinner was done.
There was no menu or explanation of what things were, so we had a lot of fun tasting and trying to guess what we were eating. Luckily, the BYU professor who is accompanying us on the field trip sat at my table. He was able to explain some of the dishes. I particularly enjoyed a pickled radish - very cool and vinegary, and fried lotus root.
For drinks we had tea and a liquor made from pine needles. That was surprisingly good. We all practiced our "nunchi", which means our attention to the needs of others. In Korea one should never pour a drink for themself, so dining companions should always be on the lookout for someone who might need a refill. If you do need a refill, but no one notices, you might ask your neighbor if they would like more tea, and maybe they'll get the hint that you would like more, too.
On our way back to the bus after dinner we walked quickly through a crowded shopping street, but were unable to stop for fear of losing contact with our guides. There were 4 very young women, around 19 years old, left in charge of us for the afternoon and evening. When they said it was time to go, they hustled off quickly, rarely looking back to make sure they were being followed.
One thing I wish we'd had time to get were these deep fried, curly cones of dough filled with ice cream. There is a picture below.
For now, I'm happy to go down to the breakfast buffet and get some eggs, French toast, tater tots, bacon, and croissant.
Fascinating cultural differences!
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