Finding Friends

"Friends are important... So important, they make the world go round..." - Barney

Yes, I do agree with Barney that friends are so important, they make the world go round. Barney, by the way, is the purple dinosaur who captured the imagination of my daughter. Almost everyday does my little girl watch her Barney DVDs. That means, I too has to watch Barney shows almost daily. Well, I am not going to write about Barney. Rather, I will write about our new friends here in South Korea.

My wife and daughter had just arrived in South Korea for about a week when our doorbell rang one night. We were not expecting anyone nor had we ordered anything. So, we were wondering who could be at the door. When my wife opened the door, a Korean guy introduced himself and told us he and his wife had just moved in the opposite apartment unit. Giving a small pack of rice cakes, he explained that it is their Korean tradition to give some rice cakes to their new neighbor. Fortunately, the guy speaks english quite well. We thanked him and he soon went back to his wife. As we ate the delicious rice cakes, my wife was already thinking of giving something in return to welcome them also as our new neighbors. Luckily, we still had some Cebu delicacies which my wife brought over as presents for my team at the office. So, that weekend, we bravely knocked at their door and gave them a pack of 'Otap' (Cebuano cookie delicacy) and dried mangoes. And that started our friendship.

Allow me to introduce our new friends and kind neigbours Min Gyu Park and his wife Hee Jeung Park. They had really made our stay a wonderful experience as they invited us to their house for traditional Korean dinner, rode with their new car for some morning stroll at nice beaches in Goeje Island, and most importantly, our first 'snowy' experience in Muju Ski Resort. We really feel very lucky and blessed knowing these guys.

From the bottom of our hearts, we can't thank you enough - Min & Jeung. We hope we will be friends for a long time.