Getting Folksy

In an attempt to give my family a glimpse of Korean life as it once was, I decided they ought to visit the Korean Folk Village in Suwon.  When I went on this same trip last year I had the luxury of traveling direct via school bus but we had to get there the old fashioned way...by taxi, then subway, then bus.  It was a long trek but we arrived at the Folk Village just in time to see some acrobatic feats.  Daniel watched in awe as the trained acrobat, an older Korean man, proceeded to walk a tightrope (with no net) and do a move that Daniel called a "ball buster" as he dropped down and caught the rope between his legs, then bounced back to a standing position.  It definitely looked painful but was a very entertaining show.  

From there we doubled back to the photo studio where I convinced my entire family to dress up in traditional Korean costumes and get a family photo taken (coming soon!).  We spent a couple of hours meandering about the village, exploring traditional dwellings from different parts of the country, and watching master craftsmen at work.  

Mom and the totem pole dudes.

A master potter throwing a pot from special clay.

Leave it to Daniel to find the traditional toilet:).   It's a little too rustic for me!

Checking out the carvings made by another craftsman.

After stopping for a picnic lunch we checked out some of the traditional products being sold, then had a little fun hopping back and forth across the river on a variety of interesting and mildly dangerous bridges.  My dad is still in shock that there wasn't a safety rail to be found and on one bridge made entirely of stepping stones he stood in awe as a lady in high heels just about toppled off of the rocks and over the waterfall as she followed her children across.  

Two goobers...

...and two more:).

The aforementioned "stone bridge"...too bad we didn't capture the high-heels lady in this shot.

Traditional house...looks cozy.

Awwwwwwwww

Wazz up?

We ended our visit with the farmers dance performance (super cool drumming and dance/martial arts moves).  

It was then back on the bus, subway, and into a taxi after which we collapsed in the air conditioned haven that is my apartment.  Whew!