What do you do if it is too cold to do anything in Korea?

Word of the month: Choo-Ah. Meaning: "Holy cow it's cold!"


Now, the temperatures aren't as low as they get in Missouri, but the wind, and all the walking, it really makes it hard to want to go outside and do things. On weekends for the past 2 months, we have come up with some new hobbies to keep ourselves busy.


The first hobby we have developed together in Korea is Texas Hold Em Poker nights. Sounds like stuff back home huh? Well, we don't have any fancy poker chips, or tables, or heck, even chairs!!!

We've used the following things as currency in the game:

1. Tooth picks. Our friend Fred who loves to play has about 4000 toothpicks in his place. We split em up into piles of 50, and can play for hours!

2. Random change. One of the first things to start piling up in Korea are the Baek Wons (100 won coins). They are worth a little more than a dime, but we sure do get a lot of them! Also, we use 10 won, 50 won, and 500 won coins. Doesn't matter the value, they are all the same to us.

3. I.O.U.'s. When someone doesn't have cash, they play with their I.O.U. We make em sign it, and then usually a picture is drawn on it, almost like a threatening letter saying "I really won't pay you back, or maybe I will."



Along with all the poker nights (Troy by the way, has won over half of them, and Sarah one night took 6 people down like it was nothing), we've developed a love for...

Ice Skating!

As most of you know, Troy's only tried ice skating once in his life before, and he didn't do so well. However, there is one just walking distance away from home, and we go there almost every weekend. Troy's gotten so much better, that he doesn't hold on to the walls anymore. The only problem with ice skating is that it gets really crowded if you don't go right when it opens up. The earlier, the better.







Those 2 things have taken up a majority of our weekends throughout the winter. But now, since it's warming up, we are starting to do a little more traveling again, and some old friends are coming out to say hi as well.

Hope everyone is doing well back home. We're doing splendidly out here.

Love and Miss ya!

- The Harkins