C O N T E N T S :
D O N G G U K U N I V E R S I T Y
Y A N G D O N G V I L L A G E
I . B R E A K F A S T
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| Breakfast at Hongbeopsa... |
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| ...incredible, as usual. |
S E E I N G T H I S makes me powerfully nostalgic and reminds me just how special each and every breakfast at Hongbeopsa was. Of course it was incredible simply to be staying at a Korean temple, especially one as lively and enticing as Hongbeopsa, but the temple offered much more than its atmosphere and allure alone. Consider the food, for example: The variety of dishes, textures, tastes, and smells that greeted us each morning in the dining hall added intrigue to the act of breaking one's fast, while the knowledge that each incredible option had been produced by volunteers and was given freely to monk and muggle alike humbled us greatly. The food, therefore, sustained both body and soul, and reminded us that we were incredibly lucky to be in such a privileged position.
Yet the food was just the foundation-- it was the fellowship that truly made each early morning something worth waking up to. You never knew who to expect in the dining hall at dawn-- did my fellow students and travelers roll out of bed, or would I be eating alone? Were the monks off attending to business or were they occupying their reserved table at the front of the hall, waiting to be served special dishes colored by fruit and fresh salad? Or had an army of visitors snuck in while I slumbered, making it hard to find a place to sit and flooding the room with the delightful sounds of the Korean language? Whatever the case, Hongbeopsa's dining hall was always overflowing with intrigue.
Click below to read more!
Yet the food was just the foundation-- it was the fellowship that truly made each early morning something worth waking up to. You never knew who to expect in the dining hall at dawn-- did my fellow students and travelers roll out of bed, or would I be eating alone? Were the monks off attending to business or were they occupying their reserved table at the front of the hall, waiting to be served special dishes colored by fruit and fresh salad? Or had an army of visitors snuck in while I slumbered, making it hard to find a place to sit and flooding the room with the delightful sounds of the Korean language? Whatever the case, Hongbeopsa's dining hall was always overflowing with intrigue.
Click below to read more!