Fall is Here

Koreans have a saying about fall: "The horses are fat and the sky is high". They say it as a kind of greeting during this time of year, when the horses are fat with summer grass and the sky is vividly blue. Why focus on the blue sky in fall? Because every other time of year the sky here is a drab white. Whether it's haze in the summer or yellow dust from China in the spring, it's true when they say that it's only blue in fall. This was hard to adjust to at first, coming from Maine where the sky is always blue. But once fall arrives, the sky not only appears bright blue, but the weather turns gorgeous and life is good. The first week of fall has rewarded us with cool, crisp mornings, highs midday in the 70's, blue skies, bright sun, dry air and comfortable sleeping weather. Perfection!

What better way to enjoy fall then to jump in head first. Last October we busied ourselves with so many trips we didn't have a single weekend where we weren't off doing something. It appears that we have done the same thing for this year without even trying. The awesome weather and good mood sneaks up on you and all of a sudden you've booked trips for nearly every weekend until Thanksgiving.


So, what's in store for us this coming month?

This coming weekend just so happens to be a nice 3-day weekend due to a national holiday here in Korea. We are taking full advantage and have booked a trip through a foreigner travel company to Seoraksan, Korea's most famous national park. We have been wanting to go since arriving here, but unfortunately Seoraksan is located in the northeastern province of the country and is not as accessible as other places in Korea. Lucky for us,  the Discover Korea group is leading a trip there, and so we finally get to hike one of the most talked about hikes in the country: The Dragon Tooth trail. It's going to be arduous to say the least, but I am so excited for a hard, 2 day hike in the most beautiful park in the country. The bonus is spending the following day at the beach before heading back!

The weekend after that, we are planning our engagement photo shoot. So even though we won't be going far, we'll be busy around Daejeon.

After that is the Daejeon Balloon festival, which we enjoyed last year with our friend Katrina who visited from Seoul. Maybe her and Justin will be able to make it down for this year's festivities?

The weekend of October 22nd is our anniversary weekend and we are headed down to Busan to enjoy the International Fireworks festival. We are excited to explore Korea's second largest city and to hopefully see a great fireworks display over a bridge across the water. A trip to an oceanside temple is also in the plans.

That leaves one more fun-filled weekend in October, just when the leaves are starting to change. We'll most likely do our favorite hike close to home: Gapsa Temple to Donghaksa Temple in Gyeryeong National Park. We've done it 4 times now and it never disappoints.

Wow! So much awesomeness coming up, I can't wait! October is going to fly, with all of these fun-packed weekend, midterm exams, school festivals, sports days and field trips. It's my favorite time of year here in Korea for sure.