Gimhae with the kiddies

On another beautiful day last week, we again boarded the shuttle busses, and set off with the kindergarten students for Gimhae, about an hour from Busan. 

After the hot and bumpy ride, we walked through a grassy field and into a small greenhouse.  

Each student took a spot at a table lined with mossy plants and waited for instructions.  An enthusiastic woman explained to the children that they would be making a teddy bear topiary. 

 

   

She encouraged each student to squeeze the water out of their plant and shape it into a ball. 

 

She then came around and encased each plant with tightly wrapped string.  Following that, the students stuck on small balls of mossy dirt for ears, and little plastic screws to represent eyes and a nose.  The final touch was a bow, making the creation a trendy bear.  The bears were almost as adorable as the proud students themselves.

Once the creations were complete, we found a shady picnic area where the teachers and students ate lunch together.  

We were provided with the traditonal Gimbap also known as Kimbap, similar to sushi, with rice, crab and vegetables rolled in seaweed and more fresh fruit than we could eat.  We had our first watermelon slices of the season and some delicious golden kiwi.  

After lunch was free time for the kids.  Although it was quite warm, the kids weren’t low on energy and had a wonderful time in engaging in play time in the field.  

We headed back to school and into a three day weekend.  More on that to come!