Woke up early this morning after crashing out early last night. We stayed up the entire night before heading to New Orleans on the third,and I got very little sleep on the plane.  We were surrounded by children whose mission in life had to be to aggravate as many people as possible. After a long 14 hour flight from Chicago to Seoul, we landed in Seoul, and made it through customs and immigration with little to no problems. The weather, although muggy, has not been terrible, but it does look like the next few days are going to be rainy.  We decided to stay near Kkachisan Station since it is close to Gimpo and to JJ’s sister’s house.  We grabbed a taxi after taking the limo bus from Incheon to Gimpos, and I was quickly reminded of why I never wanted to drive in Korea. Our driver was able to simultanesosly enter the address into his GPS, handle conversations on two different cell phones, get directions from JJ, and  weave in and out of traffic without hitting a couple of delivery drivers that drifted into our lane.

We met JJ’s sister, brother-in-law, and their son at a traditional Korean restaurant for dinner.  They treated us to a wonderful dinner, and it was a great first meal in Korea.  It was good to be able to catch up with family members that we have not seen in two years, and we both are ready to get back to the mainland to spend more time with them.  Their son is now eight, and it was amazing to see how much he has grown in the two years that we have been gone. 

Since I didn’t bring my card-reader, I will have to wait and upload photos, but I look forward to sharing photos of the hotel that JJ found for us.  I really wish cheaper “love motels” would take off in America.  For less than 60 dollars, JJ and I have a room with a huge jacuzzi tub, 50 inch flat-screen TV, two P.C.’s with huge flat screens, and touch screen computer that controls everything in the room. 

Today’s plan is to visit and have lunch with another sister who lives near Gimpo, and then leave for Jeju this afternoon around four. 

Photos and more tales of Korea later