In a little while, we (Helen, Leona, and myself), are off to Seoul for the weekend. May 2nd (4/8 on the lunar calendar) is Buddha's Birthday, a national holiday. This year it falls on a Saturday, so no day off school! Tomorrow, we'll visit Chogaysa (Temple). We always stay in a hotel right next to it, so we can hear the 4:30 a.m. bell, gongs, and drums. As hotels go, it's not a very good one, but you can't beat it for atmosphere.
Buddha's day is always one of my favorite holidays. The temples are covered with beautiful and colorful lanterns. Buddhists usually don't visit temples in a regular way, but they usually make a point to visit at least one on Buddha's day. One of the things to do is to pour water over the head of a golden baby Buddha statue. Delicious and vegetarian be-bim-bab is always served.
Also in the offing: an Egyptian mummy exhibit, a used book store run ("What the book", the best used bookstore in Korea), and walking through In-sa-dong, which is an "art street".
Happy Buddha's day! May your life be filled with love and happiness!
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