Asian Invasion: Day 10 - Giant Pandas!!

Good Morning! We've reached a double digit title, maybe we should make a cake or something. To celebrate properly for today, the desert should be in the shape of a Giant Panda, as today we visited the largest Panda Center in the world. It was incredible! We arrived at about 10am and watched a short video on the care and breeding of the Pandas, which is extensive. The pandas are specially bred, according to their strange mating behavior, which often prevents good procreation. Having a successful birth is quite a feat, and this particular center has a very high success rate for deliveries. When a mother has its first cub, the action and the new creature is so frightening to the mother that she often harms the cub, so veterinarians sometimes have to protect the baby from the mother.

Following our video education, we set off into the vast expanse of the Panda Farm to see the Pandas. At first glance, the park was a lot of greenery and not many Pandas. We walked for some time through lush bamboo forest until we reached the first enclosure for the Adult Pandas. The park constructed various enclosures throughout the park that were essentially the ideal habitats for a Panda, and usually these habitats contain one to three Pandas each. There are all sorts of things to climb on, bamboo towers, trees, bamboo forts, and the occasional tourist.. It is so fun to watch these animals in action, because they make so little action. Every movement is significant, as their source of nutrition is limited. Bamboo is their only food, and it contains so few nutrients that they must consume it almost constantly and very quickly to obtain the needed nutrition. Eating is their full time job.

In their eating, they are quite diligent, as they sat constantly eating bamboo piece-by-piece, slowly consuming their meals. The only time they didn't eat was when they were moving or sleeping. What a life... Also, these animals seem to have such great personalities, as they are quite sluggish and simply plop down on piles of bamboo. Seeing a Panda sit up is a joyous experience; i smiled everytime the great balls of fat and fur dragged their bodies into the upright position. I was fascinated to watch the consumption of bamboo. For each piece of bamboo, the Panda peels off the outer skin and bites off the moist inner stalk. It is a tedious process, but they must do this to survive. Seeing these cuddly creatures live and in person was a rewarding experience and was much fun.

After leaving the Panda Farm, we ate lunch at a nearby McDonalds (America, thank you for your world contribution...), and I spent a little time walking around the area. I found an interesting book and music store, in which I acquired an East Asian version of John Mayer's Continuum, and an excellent Asian dance cd. I couldn't leave Asia without legitimate electronic music. Then, tonight, we met with another family from the company, this time from South Africa, and ate Chinese food with them. My chopstick skills are light-years ahead of last Monday, and this meal also may have been my favorite genuine Chinese meal. Talking with the family was encouraging and it was great to hear all that Father has been doing for them here. Tomorrow, we leave quite early for our next country, this time in the South Pacific. So until tomorrrow, hakuna matada. (which means no worries)

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Asian Invasion: Day 9 - People, People, and More People

Good morning from East Asia! Tonight, I experienced a flash of homesickness as the residue of Fall Retreat began to leak onto facebook photo albums. My emotions began to swell as I looked back across the Atlantic to see all of my friends returning from such an awesome and rewarding trip. I have talked to our Father in the hope that Fall Retreat would be a great renewal of passions, and the little that I have heard confirms that He was listening. You all mean so much to me; I wish I could’ve been there with you. But, on another note, here I am across the world in East Asia, today setting off to see the sights. This morning we finally slept-in relatively late, at least later than the past two days of 5am wake-ups. First, we met with a local driver who was to take us around during the day, and we set off for Tian Fuguan Chang Square, a local attraction. The square held two uniquely designed spiral fountains, and a giant statue of Mao, the former leader.

The one feature that was most apparent in the city was the incredible amount of people. No where in the world have I ever seen such consistently large masses of Asians pervading an area of city. As you can see the in the above picture (click to enlarge), people filled the squares and moved throughout the city, going about their daily routine. Incredible. Also, taxi cabs in this city are an exciting exercise in adrenaline. It seems that all inhabitants of the city have created a mental block to all cohesive and orderly methods of driving. The streets are essentially a free-for-all, generally divided to the right and left sides (not necessarily always), with pedestrians constantly in the mix. When one must cross the street, he takes no heed to the color of the light, or to the position of traffic, he just goes. It really is a startling process at first. If nothing else, my invisible brake got some serious playing time today.

After lunch, we drove to a near-by Buddhist temple to see local beliefs in action. The structure and grounds of this establishment were impressive. The place was enormous; we walked through row after row of walkways and courtyards. Though its history goes back many years, the appearance was well-maintained. Especially the gardens, trees, and pathways are beautifully designed and maintained, and are filled with exotic plant life. Also, deep inside, the Buddhist priests had set up an area of incense and candles for anyone to use. It was so sad to see many young individuals come and try to speak to their divine one, but they were missing their Father, who loves them. Their devotion and respect were inspiring, as many Americans don’t experience that kind of passion for their Father. Also, I would love to have Westover come to observe the setting. Forget the new building; we need a temple like this.

Following our temple excursion, the driver took us to meet the family of one my Grandpa’s co-workers. The family consists of one daughter and three sons, one of whom cannot walk. By interacting with this individual, by helping him out of the car, by seeing his joy regardless of hard circumstances, I was humbled. I thank our Father that I have the use of my legs, and I can’t imagine what that boy must go through; I hurt for him. His happiness and laughter, however, were an inspiration to me and I’m so happy that I was able to spend time with him. Tonight was so much fun; to be a friend to younger ones who adore me as if I were their own brother. Giving piggy-back rides, getting pinched and tickled, and answering a thousand questions were small sacrifices for the reward of their love and admiration. Little kids are so much fun. Until tomorrow…


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Asian Invasion: Day 8 - Sitting in an Airport...

My apologies for two things. First my tardiness with respect to the date of this post. Obviously it is not Day 8, as I have posted 8 & 9 both today (how can this be?!?). Also, this day was pretty bland. We are on a plan through Cathay Pacific in order to get a reduced rate, but we have to go back to HK before leaving for each new destination. So, today, we returned to HK and then sat in the nice red lounge chairs plugged into the nearby wall outlet for the next 7 hours. The most exciting thing that happened today (besides my calculus hw :) ) was our boarding pass for East Asia through DragonAir. Seeing as it is a only a partner to Cathay Pacific, they couldn't give us a boarding pass, but there was also no desk for DragonAir in the Seoul Airport... So, in Hong Kong we had to go out of the HK airport, get a boarding pass (which was an ordeal), then go back through security, and finally we could go to our gate.

For the next 6 hours, absolute max & mins with respect to the FDT & SDT, acceleration vectors, debate transcripts, and hours of music were the fillers for my time spent in the airport. Finally we were able to depart and we safely arrived at our next destination. A short taxi drive, and a long conversation away, we made it into our hotel room for the night. Our check-in at the front desk was an interesting exercise in gesturing and body language, eventually resulting in a white room key and two beds. The picture to the left is our intriguing balcony light, one of which accompanies each room in the hotel. Sounds like quite an interesting day, huh? It was about as intersting for me, but it is a small price to pay for an incredible experience in Eastern Culture. Hasta manana!....

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Asian Invasion: Day 7 - Into the Jaws of Communism

Greetings from the free country of South Korea. Today I have spent time approaching, and eventually crossing into Communist North Korea, and, no, I did not attempt defection. Democracy and Capitalism have been great friends of mine, and I much prefer them to their red cousin. This morning, we set off to see the Korean De-militarized Zone at the 38th Parallel which separates the North from the South. The DMZ was established after the Armistice agreement, signed in 1953 by Kim
il-Sung and the S. Korean president after the Korean war. Today we first visited the area called the JSA, or Joint-Security Area, which can be seen in the picture of the blue buildings.


Buildings in blue are S. Korean, and the silver buildings are N. Korean, and the building named T-2 is the building where Armistice talks and formal meetings of N & S are held. Security inside the JSA is on perpetual high alert, as can be seen in the above picture of the N. Korean guard. We were able to enter T-2 and step across into Communist country. For today, we got to go red. When inside this area, we were not allowed to communicate in anyway, verbal or non-verbal, to the N. Koreans, as those actions could potentially be used as propaganda. When N. Koreans are within their safe-houses, we are are told, they, however, will guesture, taunt, and demean American military and visitors from the safety of their territory. Along with this childish interaction, the N. Koreans also have a superiority complex to always be bigger and better than the South.

At the JSA, the building on the southern side, called the Freedom Center, had been renovated and another level was added. Upon seeing this addition, the North added a layer to their building to be sure that it was taller. The U.N. quickly prohibited any further additions, in order to prevent a sky-scraper construction war at the JSA. Also, in the picture to the left, you can see the N. Korean village within the DMZ that is named "Propaganda Village", due to the loud speakers that used to play Northern propaganda convincing S. Koreans to defect. On the other side of the line, the S. Korean village is named "Freedom Village", and during the year that the Olympics were in Korea, a giant Korean flag was donated and sent to this village. To match this huge flagpole, the N. Koreans built the tallest flagpole in the world (as seen on the left), and it now holds a 31 meter long flag. Wow, really?.... come on guys, just let it go.

Leaving the JSA behind, our bus then went to visit the set of tunnels dug by the North in order to infiltrate the South. These tunnels were built after the creation of the DMZ and upon completion, would have allowed the passage of 35,000 troops to Seoul (the Southern capital) in one hour. We were able to walk down to the end of one of the tunnels where it had been blocked by the South upon its discovery. It is unbelievable how active the conflict is, even to today. I have always seen the DMZ as an out-dated fued that has mostly passed, similar to the Cold War. The oppression and division remain today. For those of you who are not intrigued by the subject of history and wars, you have my apologies. There was nothing else to write about today, as this trip took us from 6 am until about 4:45 pm, and then we just ate. But for all of you who love Kazakstan, at the end of our tour, since we made good time back to the origin, our guide said "it was great success!" I think I about cried. My best wishes go out to those at CWJ playing hard. I miss you guys and hope the retreat is fun and rewarding. Tomorrow, we are off to East Asia...

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Asian Invasion: Day 6 - "Go & Tell" and STU

Hello again from Korea! Today has been a long day filled with people and meetings, but it has been encouraging. This morning, we set off for the MTC, the missionary training center associated with OMS's church here, to see their new group of missionaries. These individuals have each gone through about 7 months of training, interviews, and examinations. to come to the point that they are at today--commissioning. After intensive preparation, these families have received their country assignments and will be released to raise support and subsequently, enter the field. Today was quite exciting, especially for my Grandfather, as I could see he was touched by the service that these young families have offered to their Father.

The picture to the left shows all of the families who are heading to the mission field, along with their instructors and beneficiaries. It was a significant morning for the Korean church. After the ceremony, we ate a traditional Korean meal, and it was ok. Not awesome, but it was edible, and a little on the bitter/spicy side. I'm glad that they enjoyed it. From that point, we set off to Seoul Theological University (STU), which was started by OMS missionaries about 100 years ago. I was thoroughly impressed by the place, as the campus looked as though a small Christian college was transplanted from the U.S. and filled with Koreans. We first met with the Dean of Student Affairs to discuss the University's centennial celebration.

From there, we went to meet with the President and the Dean of Academic Affairs in the main offices. It is in this meeting that I realized how small the world really is. The president of the University did some time researching at Duke University and attended church in Greensboro! How cool is that? Also, another professor in the meeting had lived in Greensboro for a few years and one of his nephews started a Korean church in the 'boro. I love coincidence. After finishing the meeting, we took some time to walk around and see the campus. The picture to the left is the outside of the music building which houses not only classrooms and practice rooms, but two chapels. One of these chapels is small, but one is larger than Westover, seating over 3,000 people.

It is incredible to consider the masses of people that are in Asia. Seoul is a city of 14 million people, which is many times the population of dear-ole Greensboro. Though the size and quantity of everything here in Seoul is impressive, one thing I miss about America is our easier driving and shorter transit time. Traffic here is intense, disorganized, and incredibly dangerous. I was told today that Koreans only stop at a red light if there is traffic coming the other way. Hmmm.... And, the greatest parts about Korean roads are the scooters going between the cars. When you think it is safe to merge... VROOM, a kindly old Asian speeds past with a wooden crate strapped to the back of his Gold Winds. In fact, I snapped a picture of J.P. and his scooter on the road today (to the left). Anyways, until next time....

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Asian Invasion: Day 5 - North Korea and Eating Weird Creatures

For today's post, it is appropriate that I begin with this picture of an egg with Chinese writing, for today was a day of interesting food. Breakfast began with this organic product in a scrambled form, along with some toast. It was not until lunch that things started gettin' wild. We ate at a Korean restaurant, and I ate many new things including the following: jellyfish, chicken stomach, sea cucumber, (here come the best two) preserved duck egg, and spiced dirt snail. By the end of the meal, my stomach was confused at the variety of new visitors that had entered its lair. Then at dinner, in stark contrast to my lunch, we ate at a place named Bennigans, which is what it sounds like--an Irish-American establishment. I never thought I would be eating quesadillas and nachos in Korea, but hey, there's a first for everything. And, my digestive system could once again rest in peace.

My morning began with this view out of the car window, looking into the dense traffic of South Korean streets. The OMS missionary who is taking care of us came by this morning and we had a prayer meeting with two other Korean Christians. One of the most impacting things to me is the Korean people's dedication to prayer. Twice today, we have gathered to spend time on our knees talking to God together. It has been awesome. Once we arrived at the KEHC (the church that OMS started almost 100 years ago!), we met with the new general superintendent of the church. In this interaction, I was struck with the significance of the Word of God. As I watched my grandpa and the superintendent converse through a translator, I saw how faith connected these two very different men. Two men who cannot understand what each other are saying are able to work towards the common goal of furthering God's kingdom. Thats neat.
Also, though the translating of every comment took time, it was interesting to hear the commentary on North Korea and OMS's vision. Currently, the country is open only for one area of S. Korea business that has established a factory to use N. Korean workers. The sad part of this arrangement is that first the N. Koreans are not paid as much as if they were southern, but also the little that they receive is taken from them by the government. They eventually receive a tiny fraction of the already miniscule amount. I thank God that I was born in a free country where I can go to school and am able to eat every day. Thankfully, the country seems to be allowing more and more outside input, and within the tunnel of oppression, a light is in the distance.

Hopefully, as the country eventually allows many more individuals to enter the country, we will be able to provide these hurting people with food, medical attention, but most importantly, hope in a God who will never fail them. On a lighter note, my parents would laugh at the fact that Koreans like to sleep in the hottest temperature possible. I swear, even though it is cooler outside than Hong Kong, the insides of cars, apartments, and buildings are like a big system of saunas. I have decided that it is a conspiracy against westerners and the cult of air-conditioning. If they can take it, more power to them. Today has been very enlightening, as the roads and infrastructure seem more like America than Hong Kong, but the culture is drastically different. Hasta luego amigos...

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Asian Invasion: Day 4 - A Day of Grey

Good morning America! It is strange to say that, as I am now another hour ahead of the U.S., this time in Korea. This evening, we arrived in South Korea, after coming through a typhoon in Hong Kong. The picture from the left is the sky outside the airport before leaving this morning. It was raining pretty hard and was quite windy on the way to the airport, but the second picture below is when the typhoon was directly over the airport. There was a lot of rain, as you can see. We made it safely out of Hong Kong with about a two hour delay. While we were boarding the plane, there was lighting that was striking within a second of the thunder, and it was raining very hard. Needless to say, our skillful pilot got us out of there, but the take-off was less than smooth. I would say that is acceptable under such conditions.

Today, along with slaving over some more Calculus homework, I finished the book This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti. After reading this book for the first time in a few years, I am amazed at the relevance it has to my life, and spiritual warfare. The way that the demons in the book spoke to their subjects and the subtlty of their seduction to sin reveals how little we attribute temptation to actual demons. For me, the book vividly portrayed the reality of geniune spiritual warfare and the importance of prayer to the community of believers and our well-being as Christ-followers. I tore through that book, as it is incredible well-written, action-filled, and fast-paced, but very pertinent to our culture. Props to Frank Peretti.

Upon arriving in Korea, a few things seemed akin to home, as opposed to Hong Kong. First, we drive on the right again. Woo! In Hong Kong, my driving reflexes screamed at me the entire time I rode in some vehicle on the roads. Also, the highways in Korea are very large, and the freeway resembles I-40, enough to be obvious to me. As we neared the city from the highway, the countryside resembled something that you might see driving along a highway in the mountains of North Carolina, until we actually reached the city. I think part of my cultural experience is not only going to a foreign countries, but also staying in large cities. After spending most of my life in small town NC and VA, even a small metropolis is something new to me.

The city, as you can see in the picture, looks as most large cities in the U.S. would, but all of the signs are in Korean. (Imagine that... ). My grandfather and I are staying in an apartment that is owned by OMS, and we are enjoying having our own rooms, instead of staying with someone as in HK. Today has been a grey day, as told in the title, not because it was a bad day, but because the storm was grey, the airport was grey, and the buildings in Korea are grey in the dark. Interesting. For me, however, it is time to enjoy the bed I have and to get some sleep.
Until tomorrow...


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