Fun Friday Field trip

Last Friday we went to Gyeongju with the school.  Every other Friday we go on a field trip.  The other Friday the kids get to play outside (usually soccer).  So this lucky day we went to what I found out later was the Forest Environment Research Institute.  This place was a nice size of land that had all kinds of green houses and manicured lawns and parks.  We went into some of the green houses and they had of course many types of plants.  They also have a small zoo with various animals.  We couldn’t see the animals because apparently one of them had a cold.  Ya, whatever, I was a little disappointed.  That’s Korea for you.  But on a good note they had a great little “museum.”  You could think of it as a natural history museum.  They had all kinds of tree trunks and different things people used the specific wood for.  They had all sorts of nut, pinecones, stuff trees make in cool glass jars.  And then!  They had a large handful of taxidermy animals.  But not just any taxidermy animals… horribly done taxidermy animals.  These were so poorly executed it was funny.  The tiger at the entranced look like something you would win at a fair.  It was stuffed so tight and without any shape but its skin.  It looked like is was going to pop.  And then its claws were glued on top of the skin.  Much like a false nails little girls would use.  And then, there was a pygmy deer.  This little guy had seen better days.  Its hair was coming off on its cheek, as if it was shedding its skin like a reptile.  These poor animals must have been there for 30 years, and no one dusted them.  Oh, and the eyes.  The eyes were not nice glass real looking eyes, nope.  They were more like googley eyes but instead of white they were amber.  Note to self: don’t get anything taxidermy in Korea.  That made the day all worth it.  If only we were allowed to take photos.  

Lovely Korean architecture

The little little tikes

Eric, Noah, Julie, Emily

Vicki is with some of the other kids.  She is another teacher at my school.  She is my age and very kind.  I hope we can become friends.  We are in one of the green houses filled with cacti.