Berceuse

When depressed, listen to Messiaen's Piano Music (2 CD set by EMI Classics), especially his "Deux Berceuses." It helps. I had no idea that Messiaen composed music on such a small scale before. It's right up there with Faure's own Berceuse (I mean his free-standing one). Good night.

UPDATE: 1:50AM, Dec. 5th: Good heavens! I was clearly out of it, there! The name should read "Massenet"--NOT "Messiaen." Actually, the observation still stands, because Massenet was a prolific composer of large operatic works; I guess last night the Turangalila Symphony and Thais both belonged to the same category...

In any case, "Deux Berceuses" is still a good listen!

UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: Ok, I fixed the spelling error, and I'm still mesmerized by the hypnotic effect of the second Berceuse....but I need to get to bed.

Good night, again.

A Quick Currency Update

In an earlier post I wrote that I had lost a substantial sum of money on the year due to the surging loon. I am now pleased to report that the Canadian dollar has begun to slide against the American dollar again. When this happens, it slides against the Won, too, in my experience tracking these currencies so far. The current exchange rate is now the best since August 31st.

Deoksugung--Pictures with My Adult Students

Friends by the Pond 

Last Saturday my class of elementary schoolteachers and I went to Deoksugung, where we had a wonderful time! As I promised in my earlier post on this palace, here are some photographs of this wonderful place. The picture above shows most of my adult students (some weren't there, that day) in front of the pond. The palaces here usually have a pond or miniature lake in them.

In the next picture, you can see my adult students at the foot of the stutue of King Sejong, the king who commissioned the invention of Hangul, the Korean alphabet, about half a millennium ago. He holds a large book that reflects his status as the patron and originator of literacy in this country. It's quite fitting that my "students," who are themselves teachers, should be pictured under his tutelage. There was a shot taken by a passerby that had me in it, too, but that picture cut off the top of the statue, unfortunately.


The Statue of King Sejong 

The next picture shows the throneroom. This is the building that had the beautiful screen behind the throne, a small replica of which hangs on my wall. Notice the distinctive roof, which slopes down, out, and up; this is a characteristic feature of many monumental traditional Korean buildings. In the foreground are my wonderful students, and to the left, behind the throneroom, is a large building with a neo-classical facade that serves as a highly interesting museum on Korean history.


The Throneroom in Deoksugung 

Another fantastic group photograph! The lady in front, Sun, is wearing hanbok, beatiful traditional Korean clothing. I am a huge fan of hanbok, and think it the most beautiful clothing I have ever seen. More women wear it than men, and it is common for children to wear it at traditional holidays.


Hanbok 

This next picture shows a building that is rather unique in Korean architecture of the Joseon period (approx. 1600-1900 AD) in that it has two stories. A queen was imprisoned here, and a king was "reprimanded," here, according to the sign.


A Two- storied Building 

This last picture shows the beauty of autumn, and of Sun, the lady in the traditional clothing. I had wanted to take another picture of Sun in her hanbok underneath this tree, and one of my students hurried me into the picture, too. So, here we are.


Sun 

UPDATE, Dec. 12th: One of my students, Young Hye, recently emailed several pictures of our field trip to Deoksugung. She took great delight in throwing leaves up in the air, and in photographing them as they came down! I was directed to do likewise, and here is one of the pictures she took with her excellent camera.


Autumn 
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This post is dedicated to all the members of my adult class, in recognition of their graciousness.
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And, my thanks to: Mom, Dad, Sylvia, Youngjin, Rob, and Brian for their emails!