korean tea

korean tea is different from what we commonly regard as tea because it can be made by using fruits, grains, and roots... much more than just leaves.

korea's commitment to eating seasonally extends beyond fruits and vegetables. it has been said that by ingesting the season's bounty as tea, our bodies assimilate the season's vital energy (chi). traditional teas embrace centuries-old wisdom used to link human life to nature. just as we naturally desire water after eating salty foods,  teas made with seasonal ingredients provide elements our bodies crave at particular times of the year.

autumn's tea is omija. in korean, 오미자 (omija) means 'five taste berry'. the five flavors of this berry - sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and pungent - are uniquely distinct but can be somewhat compared to a cranberry.

our region of mungyeong is said to be the finest omija-producing region in the country. the pristine conditions deep in the mountains provide the perfect environment to cultivate the berry prized by epicureans and herbalists alike.

the omija harvest has just come in and i was oh-so-pleasantly surprised to receive a gift of the idolized berry from one of mayo's co-workers. i delightedly washed my three kilos of omija, layered them in a large glass jar with equal parts white sugar and sealed the lid to start the 100 day fermentation process. i'm thrilled to observe my berries as they ferment into the sweet and sour fruit extract i will be using to make omija tea to keep me warm in the new year!

autumn glow

autumn's last glow over the rice fields...

a festival of apples

the region we live in is home to several agricultural products of which the locals are extremely proud. apples, shitake mushrooms, rice, korean beef and omija (5 taste berry) comprise the list of tasty healthful foodstuffs that are grown/raised on mungyeong's local soil.

this weekend was perfect to head up to the mountains to enjoy, perhaps, our region's most famed product: the apple. there were more than twenty five orchards at the annual apple festival selling dozens of varieties. we sampled all of them. when we finally settled on which one was more delicious and juicy than the rest, we bought a five kilo box for a very fair price and spent the rest of the perfect afternoon strolling lazily through the provincial park and soaking up the autumn sun. ahhhh.....

you may be wondering where i've been...

i admit i'm a bad blogger. i haven't posted since we've moved to the countryside four months ago. certainly, we have been spending so much time enjoying the natural world that surrounds us that sitting in front of a computer is the last thing i want to do.

however, something else has been keeping me busy these days... mayo and i were filmed for a documentary about our life in the country. for two weeks, we were followed by cameras from morning to night. at first, we declined the offer out of bashfulness and in attempt to keep our personal life private. we were convinced that it would be a great opportunity and decide to go for it.

the theme of the show is slow food/slow life. it was quite strange adjusting to a camera in my face during routine tasks such as chopping vegetables for dinner, making tea, washing my hair... but it quickly became easy to forget the cameras were there and it was well worth it because we were afforded beautiful experiences that we would never have stumbled upon on our own.
stay tuned for a video post once it airs!

neighborhood charm

yesterday, i didn’t rush home to make dinner.  i took my ride home slowly, taking photos of my favorite spots along the way.  i felt a strong connection to my path and saw things i somehow missed before, even though i pass them everyday.

i stopped to say hello to my dog friends that live outside a tiny and very rustic farmshed. the owner, a toothless old woman whom i’ve never seen before, came outside and i apologized for bothering her and told her i couldn’t resist taking photos of her cute puppies. she smiled and said “no problem! come in, it’s dinner time.” i entered the clay and concrete shed to find six old men (probably farmers) taking a break to have dinner and  some drinks together. the woman’s small stove was aflame with pots of boiling stew and rice. i couldn’t believe what i thought was a shed is a restaurant! the old men were delighted to see me and invited me to sit with them for some steamed squid and makgoli (rice wine). i fared well with my korean conversation skills and, after a glass of mokgoli and a new excitement for life, i said goodbye, promised i’d come back soon with my husband, and hopped onto my bicycle... smiling all the way home.

home

the apartment is still not furnished and, thus, not photo ready...
but, in the meanwhile, here's a peek at the world outside our bedroom window...

life on the farm...

...or in the apartment next to the farm :)

we have made it to our new town and have met our new co-workers. the people here are some of the most friendly strangers we have ever met. we've already met both of our co-teachers' families and have been given the warmest of welcomes. we're really enjoying our adventure into small town life and look forward to the new friendships to be made here.

i am working in the city and mayo hit the jackpot with a beautiful little school in the mountains. we were lucky to find a brand new apartment in a small village between the two schools... there is even a farm next to our building which i hope to use while working on my green thumb this spring.
we'll be settling in this week making our house a home and will be posting photos soon!

mungyeong | a move

from here...

to here...

문경. MUNGYEONG. the mountain gateway. our new home...

a quieter kind of year awaits us...