The Roberts in Korea

the end of an adventure . . .

“. . . we found ourselves looking upon a familiar sight. We were home. How do you pick up the threads of an old life?” –Frodo, Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (movie)

A little more than eight years ago the Roberts family of four packed our bags and we left our home in Boise for what looked to be a two year adventure in South Korea.

Little did we know that two years would turn into eight!

For Ryan, Dina, Becca and Sarah, South Korea was eight glorious years of high adventure and unique experiences: new schools, job opportunities, sports, music, travel, theater, new cultures, sights, sounds, tastes, challenges, education, growth, opportunity, loss, gain, precious memories and many new friendships.

It is has been said that even though the days may be long—and at times arduous—the years are short. Touché.

Eight years . . .

Becca and Sarah both spent all of their junior high and high school years at an international school in South Korea. They thrived in their academic studies, played sports, performed lots of music, traveled the world and made many friends along the way.

Dina loved on, invested in and taught scores of Kindergarteners from different countries throughout the world.

Ryan completed a doctoral degree, interacted with professionals throughout the world in the realms of education and ministry and learned more about school leadership, business, finance and administration than he ever wanted to know.

Over eight years we all learned so much about the Korean culture. We lived into its rich depth and beauty with the help of the gracious Korean people. There are no words to express the love and appreciation we feel for our Korean friends.

Through it all, the Lord Jesus Christ helped us and sustained us. What a joy it was to experience the adventure of Korea together—as a family. God’s presence went before us and blessed the work of our hands. We thank God for the many good gifts He bestowed upon us over our time in South Korea.

Now, eight years later, we (Dina and Ryan) find ourselves “home”—living again in our house in Boise. Our girls are both away at college. Our years in Korea exist as a treasured memory. On the outside things look the same, but in reality they, and we, are very different.

“How do you pick up the threads of an old life?”

Maybe the answer to that question lies in the midst of a new adventure . . . and a new blog.

With this post, The Roberts In Korea blog comes to an end. What a joy it has been to record and share on this blog - in word, picture and video - the moments and memories of our life in Korea.

Thanks for your interest in us as we have, “lived the adventure of life on the other side of the world.”

Sarah and Becca singing at graduation

Sarah's high school graduation was a special day.  As a dad, I (Ryan) couldn't help thinking, "could it get any better?"  But it did!  Sarah and Becca were asked to sing at Sarah's graduation ceremony.  They sang a beautiful song (For Good) and they did a wonderful job.  What a joy it was for Dina and I to see Sarah graduate and to hear Sarah and Becca sing together.  Take a look at the video below:

 

 

 

 

 

we have visitors!

We are happy here in Korea!  Becca and her friends, Christy and Kraymer, flew into South Korea on Wednesday and we are enjoying their visit.  During their first 24 hours we took them out for some late night Gong Cha (tea), we ate some delicious food at Jaeyoung's place and we visited the old TCIS campus in O Jung Dong. They are battling jet lag, but we are keeping them busy.

 

pro volleyball experience

One of the last things we did before Becca and Cody headed back to the USA was attend a professional volleyball game in Daejeon.  We showed up early to the event only to find that it was sold out. However, that means different things in different places. 

Here in Korea it didn't stop us from getting into the event.  Sold out meant that we didn't have seats for the event.  We stood in the entry way (along with lots of other people) and took in the excitement.  When I say excitement, I don't mean the volleyball game, I mean the crowd, the cheer leaders and the announcer.

Everyone in the crowd was involved in singing, cheering and making noise at the Daejeon volleyball game.  There are lots of big screens all around the stadium so it was easy for us to see the game, even though we were standing in the entryway.  We had a blast and made some memories.

foreign food with friends

Part of the fun of having friends visit us here in South Korea is the chance to expose them to some of the food here in Korean.  We took in lots of different Korean food while Becca and Cody were here over Christmas Break.  Some of our meals included:  dakgalbi bokumbap (fried chicken and rice in a spicy sauce), Korean bbq (duck, pork, sausage, beef) and shabu shabu (boiled beef with rice and lettuce).

Cody liked some of the different food options here better than others.  Some Korean meals are bigger than others.  On one occasion we had a great meal and then had to stop at McDonalds to fill up.  Fun times!

downtown daejeon with cody

It was fun to have Cody visit us here in Korea.  We love to show people that visit us all of the fun places that we have found here in the city of Daejeon.  One of our favorites is the downtown area, with all of its people, lights, sights, sounds and activity.

We had a great time eating downtown at a dakgalbi place.  We took in the light show flashing overhead the main walkway.  Becca and Cody took some sticker photos and we finished the evening with a cold treat at Baskin Robbins.

a gathering with friends

After the fun and celebration of Christmas and New Year's settled down a bit there was still quite a bit of holiday food and snacks around the house.  So, we decided to have a party.  Really, it was just a gathering of friends. 

We invited the Millers over, plus Adam (Brittney's boyfriend), we had Jaeyoung Shin and his wife Eunjoo over, James, Sarah's friend came over and there were the five of us (Ryan, Dina, Sarah, Becca and Cody).

There was nearly twenty of us crammed into our apartment and we had a blast.  Everybody ate lots of food and then the kids engaged in a game of "Uno Attack" in the living room while the adults sat around the table in the dining room talking, laughing, looking at maps of Korea on our cell phones and talking about how good it was to see the kids having a fun time.

After a great time of hanging out together the evening ended, but the good memories linger.  Oh, and the excess holiday treats (calories) are gone.

new year's day hike

Because of its location near the International Date Line, New Year's Day in South Korea happens earlier than most of the New Year's Day activities like-parades and football games-take place.  So, with limited options on the TV we decided to go on a hike up Gyejoksan Mountain, otherwise known as Chicken Foot Mountain.

New Year's Day was a bit chilly so we bundled up, packed some snacks and met the Millers at the base of the mountain.  The climb up included steep trails and even steeper stairs.  It didn't take too long to get to the pagoda at the top of the mountain and the view was fabulous.

We took in the sights, took a few pictures and made our way down the steep trail.  (Going up is tough, but going down hurts.)  Once we all got down the mountain we laid out our snacks on the hood of the Miller's car and enjoyed a feast.  It was a good time.

From there we all drove to the movie theater and took in the movie, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty."  It was a great show and wonderful way to kick off the new year.

new year's eve 2013 in daejeon

New Year's Eve in Daejeon, South Korea wasn't too crazy, but we had a lot of fun.  It is not only the last day of the year, but it is also Ethan Miller's birthday.  So, we did a bit of celebrating with Ethan and his family.

We enjoyed an afternoon of bowling with the Miller family.    The pins were happy to see us and the gutters were glad to see us leave because we wore them out.  We did a lot of laughing at and with each other at the bowling alley. 

We had a great meal together at the Outback Restaurant and hung out together for the rest of the day.  We watched movies until the clock struck midnight and then Ryan went to bed.

Happy New Year!

Seoul Tower with Cody

Part of the fun of having Cody with us here in South Korea was the chance to show him around a bit of this amazing country.  On one of the days during his vist we jumped on the KTX bullet train and made our way to Seoul at an average speed of about 200 mph.

From the train station we went down, down, down, into the underground world of the Seoul subway and we made our way to the stop near the Seoul Tower.

We ascended from the subway and trudged up a hill to the cable car station and then we boarded a cable car that took us up to the base of Seoul Tower.  It was a cold, but clear day, and the view was great.  We spent nearly an hour at the top of Seoul Tower taking in the 360 degree view of the never-ending city of Seoul.

We took in a bit more of Seoul during the day riding subways, taxis, trains, and cable cars.  We had lunch at "On the Border."  Cody seemed to be happy to eat some familiar (Mexican) food. 

We had a blast taking Cody to Seoul.