About 5 years ago, I was standing outside the Louvre in Paris, when I spotted a
group of elementary students who were on a field trip! I remember thinking to
myself, 'Sheesh, fieldtrips in Europe are so much cooler than in California!'
But then I went on a field trip with my Korean students on Tuesday and realized
that they have it even better in Korea!
They actually take field trips to ANCIENT SITES!
First stop was Sokkuram Grotto, an actual World Heritage site!
It's a gigantic stone carved Buddha statue, which was built into a cave at the
top of Mt. Toham in 751, 1,260 years ago!! I wasn't able to get a picture of the
giant statue, but I did get some of my students outside of the temple cave!
This is the temple cave. The gigantic stone Buddha is inside.
Outside, they have this gorgeous canopy of colored lanterns!
Walking back down the mountain and stopping for a little break!
Lunch time is always a fun experience on Korean field trips! Students don't bring
sandwiches and chips! They bring meat, rice, soup, kimbap, fish, fruit, and fried
chicken!
And they're always willing to share it with you, but if mooching off your students
food isn't your style, it's okay, because the parents always prepare the teacher's
lunches for field trips! How awesome is this?!
Next stop was Bulgulksa, a compound of gardens, pagodas and pavilions, built in
535 (1,476 years ago)! It houses one of the oldest surviving monasteries in Korea!
Oh, and for the record, these are the ancient toilets of the Silla Dynasty! Ummm... no thanks!
Lastly was a trip to Anapji Pond, which was part of the ancient Silla dynasty palace complex. (57 BCE - 935 CE).
Hannah (one of my favorite 6th grade teachers, and 3 of her students! :)
There was even a small bamboo forest that the kids loved! Living in Yeongdo, they don't see many trees, squirrels, or spiders, but today, they saw plenty of all of them and were like little kids in a candy shop all day long!
This country is absolutely saturated in history, culture, and ancient sites! I love that my students got to see some of them today, and that I got paid to go along! Gotta love teaching in another country!
