Saylor reunion, Korean style

A couple weeks ago, my loving parents came to Korea, and nothing stopped them. Not mysterious white powder swirling in the cabin of their plane, not a flight cancellation due to a box of Kleenex jamming itself in the air ventilation system, producing said white powder, and not even the prospect of the six remaining Saylor kids left to their own devices in Ohio.

So, with their younger children "safely" at home, roof-climbing, fire-setting, and mud-rolling, Mike and Laura set off in pursuit of their older but no more mature daughter, Yours Truly, and embarked upon a series of adventures on this side of the planet. 

The trip nearly lost footing on the very first day, when Dad's foray into genuine Korean cuisine was less impressive than one might of expect of a man having eaten monkey and goat in Africa, but regained balance in the air conditioned comfort of a Mr. Pizza. 

To capture their week in Korea in a mere blog post is far beyond my abilities, so let us focus on these important points:

1. Dad befriends everyone.

There was the owner of Bob Dylan's bar, whom all Sokchoites have come to know and love. Despite the language barrier, Dad did his best to convey his enthusiasm for the impressive record collection. And the kind man played the record dad had been eyeing. Coincidence? 

Then there was this thing:  

And this thing:

Oh, and let's not forget the students! The day after Mom and Dad visited school and sat in on classes (and Mom crushed all my fifth graders in a class game, earning her very own sticker), I was greeted with shouts of "Mike-and-Laura! Where is Mike-and-Laura!" 

2. I beat Mom at bananagrams. I beat her. This does bear including in the list of most important points from their visit to Korea. Do any of you understand how rare this is? I beat her. 

3. Hiking! That is a whole point in itself because it's late and I'm tired and opted to write this at 2 am after a Friday night out with friends instead of at 7 pm after a normal workday. Also, because hiking in Korea is beautiful, and the Saylor family is one of hikers. The two people who taught me to hit the trails returned to them with me, and that was a wonderful thing. Also, mom still shushes me to listen for wildlife, exactly like when I was little, so it's nice to see that some things don't change. :)