Fun in a Korean forest - our Christmas Adventure

On the 26th we headed northeast for a cabin in one of Korea's many recreational forests. It wasn't until we checked in and headed up the road to the cabin that Ben's car gave us trouble. It just didn't have enough power to get up the icy road and so the park people took control and got the car up there. Needless to say, the couple of days that we stayed there, the car didn't go far. I was still feeling under the weather, so the first day we pretty much stayed in the cabin. We watched a movie and played some games. I did a little work and Ben studied some. It was pretty relaxing. The cabin was small, but nice at the same time. There was very little furniture, but the floor was heated (this is common in Korea) so that was nice. We had to sleep on the floor, but at least there were thick blankets or quilts. It wasn't the most comfortable sleeping arrangements, but at least the floor was heated. The floor was the only thing that provided heat. We had a thermostat inside and we were thrilled when it hit 16 degrees Celsius (about 60 degrees Fahrenheit). We brought the crock pot and cooked beef stew one day and chicken tortilla soup the next. It was a great idea and really easy. It cooked while we wandered around and explored. On the 27th we went hiking. We used poles we borrowed from Mr. Roo (we think he worked or owned the forest). I felt really old hiking with it, but it was helpful. It was so cold, and maybe not the best idea for a sick person, but we spent some time out exploring the forest. I felt like a wimp turning around, but I just didn't feel great and couldn't warm up. Definitely some beautiful scenery though.
After hiking we went back to the cabin, had some lunch, and then played games and watched a movie. Again, pretty laid back and relaxing. We left the morning of the 28th. Ben had driven the car down the hill on the 27th to avoid the iciest part of the day. Before we left the park, Mr. Roo invited us to his house for some tea. We can't seem to say no, so we went and had tea. His house was close to the forest and looked down upon the mountain side. It was really pretty. We had jasmine tea with him and his wife and chatted sort of for 10-15 minutes. Mr. Roo spoke pretty good English so we could talk about some things. The tea was really good. Then we headed back to Ben's place and I took the 3 hour bus back to my place.