April 2023
They call Jeju Island “The Hawaii of Korea,” and while I have not yet been to Hawaii, it certainly is a lovely place and somewhere I will definitely return. The Friday I left for a four-day weekend on Jeju, a student gave me a little figure from a project they had just finished. I found this little dude in my pocket while in the airport, I named him Hank, and decided to document his journey to Jeju.
Hank was looking forward to his trip to Jeju. 
He was excited to hike to the highest point in South Korea, a volcano named Hallasan in the center of Jeju island. So he ate a big breakfast to get ready for his big day. 
Hank could tell that on a nice day it would be a great hike.
Hank and Colin were unprepared for freezing rain, and it was almost a problem, but it worked out fine because they pretty much ran up and down the volcano to stay warm.
It was very peaceful to hear the rain falling on the leaves.
Hank was pretty exhausted after his hike and passed out hard when he got back to the hotel.
On Sunday, Hank went to a traditional Jeju village. Where he saw a Taewoo fishing boat and so much more.
Including a traditional 711.
He also made some local friends
And tried some new games. Hank is not afraid of a challenge.
Hank got a little too wild in Jeju Village and had to spend a little time in prison.
Jeju Village has lovely landscapes.
And some wild shows.
A traditional school.
Hungry bunnies.
Jeju island is famous for its delicious black pig pork. Nowadays these pigs have a special diet with herbs and spices. Back in the day, the pigsty was next to the waste hole and the pigs dinned on human waste.
Lots of wonderful waterfalls around Jeju Island.
A local potter, so much better than me, but I have had some fun playing with clay this year.
This was the house of Lee Jungseop, a famous Korean artist, for about a year in the early 1900s.
He lived in this room.
But had a nice yard.
Hank had a nice time on the beach.
In addition to black pig pork, Jeju is also famous for its oranges and citrus.
I would definitely recommend Jeju Island.
From here on I am looking back at my first year in South Korea.
In May we had our outdoor education at a local park.
Worked the salt flats.
And went out onto the mudflats.
Family fun day at school.
Field day.
Lax day.
The last day. The kids were secretly making these paper flowers for months to surprise us. We had a really great class this year.
In December I went to Insadong, Seoul to do some Christmas shopping.
Had a great view from my hotel room.
In October I headed to Busan.
Hiked Bukhansan in Seoul in September.
Amazing how you can escape to nature and still be so close to a city of about 10,000,000.
Met a cool dog at the temple.
Dressed in a Hanbok for Chuseok.
Korean baseball is wild!
This is the bridge by the park where I run.
I post this picture of my first day at school on the last day of school.
