This week we had our biannual workshop trip. Our workshop trips are like no other. Our bosses take us for a two day one night vacation to experience Korean culture. This trip we went to Geoju-do, Oedo, and Tongyeong. We left CEV early Thursday morning in two vans. I (Lauren) was shocked because I was told it was going to be boys in one van and girls in the other, but much to our surprise Richard put Nick and I in the car with him, Suzi and So-Hee.
The first stop in our adventures was a roadside rest stop that overlooked the ocean and the entrance to a tunnel that goes under that ocean to get to Geoji-Do.
This is where the road goes into the tunnel!!!
Our second stop was the house of President Kim a former president of South Korea. His childhood home was donated and converted into a museum depicting his life and struggle to lead South Korea away from the dictatorship it was heading toward. During his presidency he gave much of the power back to the people and that has laid the groundwork for what South Korea has become today.
Took a selfie next to this picture.... Bill Clinton and President Kim.
Playing a little pretend!
Giving a short speech!
Our third stop was a Korean war memorial museum built on the site of the largest South Korean prison camp. The museum lead us on a journey chronicling the timeline of the Korean War. While the majority of the information presented at the museum was in Korean, we were still able to get a better sense of the chronology of the war and the deep impact it has on the Korean culture.
Next stop was the Windy Hill, it was beautiful and windy!
Can you see Nick? Let me zoom in..........
There he is!!!!!!
Beautiful windmill.
Our first day of the workshop ended at our motel with a beautiful view and take out pizza for dinner. The next morning I woke up super early and decided to go on a walk and take some pictures.
I climbed some rocks and ended up here.. My foot in the picture is just proof that I did it!
When I got back I woke Nick up and we packed up and loaded our van for another day of adventures. We grabbed breakfast from a convenience store on our way to docks where we took a boat to Oedo. It is an island with a Botanical Garden on it. Way beautiful, just like this whole trip.
Nick took this picture to see if anyone would notice the craziness in this picture. When you see it...
After the gardens the boat picked us up and took us around some other islands.
After, we headed to Tongyeong for a huge lunch and a beautiful ride up a mountain it was one of those 'Don't look down moments'
Richard and I having a little fun!!!
Nick and I acting scared!
Suzi and I trying to take our mind off of the heights!
Our CEV Family at one of the overlooks.
Nick and I went all the way to the top. We could see a whole 360 and it was BEAUTIFUL and well worth the million stairs.
When we got back down to the bottom we headed back to Changnyeong. It was a wonderful workshop trip that reminded us how much we love visiting the ocean and listening to the waves. Korea is wonderful in that you can visit the mountains and the ocean at the same time! We got to ride boats and Hike beautiful mountains without ever losing sight of either. I was so happy and grateful that we were able to go on such a lovely trip with such a great group of friends and coworkers.
