So for Christmas eve, we didn't know what to do. We almost considered just ordering take-out. But at the last minute, we gathered some Koreans and foreigners together and made a fusion feast with everything we could muster from the local E-mart store.
Steak
Kimchi
Rice
Mushroom Mandoo (dumplings)
Champagne
It even had Christmas colors. Look.......
After the glorious feast, we headed over the the Noribang (singing room) to celebrate with Christmas songs. But since many of the English teachers were fatigued from having taught English Christmas songs all day to our students, we didn't stay long.
The next day, I went to church with Sangeun. We met her sister and her sister's fiance and headed over to a small but warm place of worship in the basement of a building. The congregation wasn't large, but very much alive, as it opened with children's Christmas presentations both modern and contemporary. One girl even recited the gospel by memory in English (I later learned that they had her prepared that just for me). Since I can read Korean phonetically, I was able to sing the Joy to the World and Away in a Manger in Korean. During the sermon, the pastor pointed me out and joked that since I was there, his small church was now an international church. After the service, I talked a little with members of the congregation and we drank tea and ate Dak (Korean rice cakes).
When I'm with Koreans, I can never tell whether they plan activities or just do them spontaneously. It's best not to ask. So when I asked what we were doing next, Sangeun just smiled and said, "wait and see." We went to an outside market in Bupeyong and picked up some ingredients, and to make the story short, Sanguen's sister's fiance fixed us one of the best meals I've had since I'd been in Korea.... seafood pancakes.
It was a Merry Christmas and I had a lot to be thankful for.
