365 Days

Today is my one year mark in Korea. One year ago today I found myself in this country far from home and began to make a life for myself here. My life this past year has been a whirlwind of experiences and learning about myself. I am so grateful for this opportunity, but so grateful to have such amazing family and friends that make returning home such a treat.

These 365 days have been some of the hardest of my life. I never thought I would get homesick the way I sometimes found myself. I never thought I would not like my job as much as I did. I never thought I was anything worth staring at for so long. I never thought I would feel as awkward and frustrated as I did at times. Despite all of the not so good days, there were plenty of fantastic days to boot.

I will really miss the people, places, and little things that made my time here so special. The nice comments from my students in the form of a "teacher, your earrings are really big" or "teacher, your belt is really pink", the smile and wave from my favorite crossing guard, the free juice from the security man at the bank, the goodies from my co-workers at school, all the small kindnesses that had such a large impact on me. I will miss shopping at A Land in Myeong-dong, running along the Tancheon, trying new restaurants in Itaewon, gelato smoothies at my favorite coffee shop in Bundang, and all night excursions in Hongdae. I'm convinced no other city can party as long as Seoul can. I will miss all of the people that made my time here memorable. Most of all I will miss my boyfriend, Sean, without whom I might not have made it the whole year here.

Besides my one year anniversary, today also happens to be Korean thanksgiving, so Happy Chuseok! In the spirit of giving thanks, I am so thankful for my year in Korea and I feel truly blessed.

2.5 weeks until I fly home.

Namaste

Weekend Update

This weekend Sean and I ventured into Seoul and explored the areas of Insadong and Myeongdong before meeting friends for dinner in Itaewon. Insadong is always my favorite neighborhood. This weekend it was teeming with foreigners and Koreans alike all shopping for gifts. There were tons of things going on in Insadong like reenactments from ancient times and lots of people dressed in traditional Korean clothing walking around the streets. We wandered around and tried to find this bird cafe I read about in my Lonely Planet until we discovered that my Lonely Planet is outdated and the place closed down a while back. We settled for some coffee bingsu instead.

in Insadong

outside the non-bird cafe

coffee bingsu

Myeongdong was also packed with people, so we shopped around and then people watched from a cafe balcony. I realized I don't think I have written about this yet, but it always makes me laugh. Koreans, especially younger Korean women and girls love to take photos of themselves with their cell phones while sitting at coffee shops and restaurants. Many people have a photo of themselves as a background on their phone. In America this would seem vain, but here it's trendy. Anyways, there was a girl at the table next to us at the cafe taking photos of herself on her cell phone for a good 20 minutes. That clicking sound kept going off and as soon as there was a lull and I thought she finally finished her photo session, another click would sound.

girl at the coffee shop, couldn't resist sneaking a photo

One of Sean's friends from home just moved to Korea with her husband who works for the Canadian embassy. They met us in Itaewon for dinner and we tried out a place called Marrakech Night. There was a buffet of Moroccan dishes, but the food was not my favorite. The conversation was good though, and it was great to meet some of Sean's friends from home.

Next week is Chuseok, Korean thanksgiving, and I have a whole week's vacation from work. Looking forward to it more than I can say.


Namaste

Rain, Rain Go Away

I'm sure that the childhood rhyme will not do us any luck over here in South Korea where the monsoon season has begun. Everyone warned me that the rainy season is bad. I had no idea how bad. Friday after work I walked about ten minutes to the subway station and arrived soaking wet. My jeans were soaked to my thighs, my shirt drenched, and my leather Marc bag was in a pathetic state full of unhealthy moisture. Did I mention I had an umbrella?

umbrellas are the new black

Due to the spontaneous torrential downpours and unpredictable wind, my weekend plans changed. Most foreigners made their way down to the west coast for Mud Fest, but I decided last minute to forgo the mud and rain and thunderstorms and stay somewhere dry. Instead, Sean and I spent Saturday afternoon at a local cafe and enjoyed some quiet time reading, listening to tunes, and sipping on tea and fresh juice. I hadn't had a cafe afternoon in a long time and it was quite relaxing.

the little stream has turned into a dirty river

After we cleaned up, we headed to Seoul to see the most critically acclaimed live show in Korea, Nanta. The live show features four chefs who are frantically trying to cook enough food for some weddings within an hour. During the show the actors were actually making music out of the ordinary kitchen utensils while dancing, doing comedy, and cooking. Because of it's audience interaction and wildly entertaining drumming, chopping, and acting, the show has had the longest run of any in Korea's theatre history. During the show the actors pulled audience members on stage for a few different things. At one point, a male chef came towards our isle and grabbed my hand to pull me on stage. I was taken to a cooking table, a chef hat plopped on my head, and I followed what the female chef showed me to do which was make mandu- grab a disc of dough, fill it with cabbage stuff, ball it up with my hand, ring a bell, and when four were made, roll it down the food conveyor belt. It ended up being a kind of contest between myself and another a few others pulled on stage. Sad to say my team lost because we were not fast enough, but it was pretty hilarious getting pulled up there in front of the whole audience. Sean tried to get a photo, but of course my camera had just died.

the stage of Nanta

Sean and I

show poster

When we got out of the show, the rain had not let out at all, so we jumped in a cab and headed to Itaewon to try a restaurant I had been wanting to eat at for a while, the Macaroni Market. The food and drinks were not quite up to par with the prices, but I did have the most excellent salad I have had in Korea, or maybe anywhere with gorgonzola cheese, red lettuce, apple slices, walnuts, celery, and honey dressing. Mmmm.

Today the forecast is rain, again. Of course. So Sean and I are headed to COEX mall to see a movie and eat some Mexican food. All in all, a great, dry, relaxing weekend. Looking forward to a four half-days workweek and vacation begins Friday. Olleh!

Namaste

Herro Kitty

Korea boasts a wide variety of cafes in and around Seoul. Many are your typical cafes complete with an array of coffee drinks, desserts, and cushy seating with an ambiance perfect for a chat with your girlfriends or a quiet spot to write or read. Cafes at home don't have themes. At least not that I'm aware of. Some Korean cafes have taken the cafe theme concept and ran with it. I have written about the Dr. Fish cafe combining coffee drinks with pedicures performed by hungry little skin eating fish. The wedding cafe allows you to try on ridiculous wedding dresses and take tons of photos with your girlfriends (and sometimes guy friends). There are Internet cafes otherwise known as PC Bangs. There are also pet cafes where dogs or cats roam wild throughout the shop and are even known to jump onto your lap or even the table.

Some girlfriends and I checked out a cafe in Seoul yesterday that was dedicated to one highly popular cartoon character out of Japan. The Hello Kitty cafe in Hongdae is worth a visit. The shrine, I mean, cafe, was covered from head to toe in Hello Kitty decor. The outside of the cafe as well as the walls indoors were painted bright pink. Some of the walls had cut outs in the shape of Hello Kitty. There were Hello Kitty paintings on the walls. There was Hello Kitty memorabilia filling every available in of space inside of the place. The bathrooms were donned with Hello Kitty. The cakes were baked in the shape of Hello Kitty's face. The coffee drinks had Hello Kitty's face sprinkled on top. There was Hello Kitty silverware, plates, and cups. Even the water pitcher was Hello Kitty. It was any 6 year old girl's dream. Probably a larger dose of pinkness than any female should be allowed to take in for one day, but it was a fun experience. I just felt kinda bad for those guys in there who had to have been dragged in by their girlfriends. That's harsh.

Hello Kitty cafe in Hongdae

outside sign

inside the cafe

Sam and I

Hello, Kitty!

cute wall paintings

inside the ladies' bathroom

women's restroom

men's restroom

kitty coffees

Namaste

Mom Visits Korea

I was fortunate enough to have a visitor in Korea this past week. My mom flew the 6,000 miles each way to set foot on Asian soil for her first time and see me after 5 months of conversations through a computer screen. We had an absolutely wonderful week.

Our fun filled, busy week included some of the following highlights:

Korean Folk Village: The Korean Folk Village outside of Yongsin City was somewhere that I had been wanting to visit since I first read about Korea prior to my arrival. Sam, my mom, and I decided to visit the village on Monday for the Lunar New Year holiday. It was a cold, muddy, but clear day. I really had a great time walking around, exploring traditional Korean homes, watching live entertainment of various sorts, eating yummy Korean snacks, and being outdoors away from the city in the fresh air. We listened to traditional Korean musicians play and march and dance. We watched a tight rope walker who must have been at least 65 years old bounce up and down on a tight rope. We experienced a reenactment of a traditional Korean wedding ceremony complete with procession and all. We marveled at equestrian acrobats as they balanced and hung from horses galloping around an arena. My mom had her second taste of Korean food for lunch; kimchi pancake and bibimbap. (Sam and I thought it best to go easy.) We left the village with muddy shoes, souvenirs, and a better idea of what life was like many many years ago in Korea.

Insadong: I knew that I had to take my mom to Insadong during her visit because she is crazy for hand-made crafts. This little neighborhood in Seoul is a traditional neighborhood that has become a huge tourist attraction. There are many little streets filled with restaurants, tea houses, shops, antiques, crafts, jewelry, pottery, you name it. Our first trip was successful and both my mom and I made some purchases. She liked Insadong so much that we even went back a second time later in the week.

Myeong-dong: I took my mom to one of my favorite shopping meccas in Korea, Myeong-dong. We really had fun checking out some of the Korean fashion and we even hit up some of the high-end stores in the famous Lotte Department Store.

Dr. Fish: I have written about Dr. Fish cafe before and knew I wanted to take my mom there when she visited. We tried both pools this time, one with little fish, and one with 'big' fish. My mom hated the big fish and reluctantly placed her feet in with the small fish for her pedicure.

Seoul Museum of Art: After telling my mom about the Andy Warhol exhibit at the Seoul Museum of Art she wanted to see it for herself. I went back for a second time and enjoyed just as much as the first.

Deoksugung Palace: This palace in downtown Seoul was built in the 1400's and now stands among sky-scrapers and modern architecture in the middle of this huge city. It is known as the "Palace of Virtue and Longevity". Most of the buildings in the palace compound were destroyed, so less than half the original size of the compound remains. My mom and I lucked out and were able to catch the changing of the guards ceremony outside the main gate just as we arrived. We snapped lots of photos and enjoyed walking around the palace grounds.

Namsan Tower: We woke up early one morning and caught a cab up to the cable car at the base of the mountain which Namsan Tower was built. We then took the cable car up to the top, climbed a few stairs, and we were at the base of the tower. After walking around outside we took the elevator inside the tower to the observation room. The 360 degree view of Seoul is fantastic and it was a really bright and clear day so we were able to see quite a ways in each direction. My mom raved about her visit to the tower and thinks everyone who comes to Korea should experience it.

Dongdaemun Market: I figured my mom would appreciate this large market which has a special section for fabrics, yarn, etc. We meandered through the stalls in the fabrics mall and checked out some of the clothing malls too.

Gangnam: Being one of my favorite areas in Seoul, I took my mom to Gangnam a few times. We ate dinner at an Italian restaurant there, shopped in the subway, went to Dr. Fish cafe, and met friends for drinks at Ice Bar.

Jogyesa Temple: On our way to Insadong, we stopped by the temple and I showed my mom around the temple grounds. We snapped some photos and even took a peek inside the temple. There was a service going on and there were many people worshipping. My mom pointed out that it was mostly women we saw there praying. She was impressed with their sense of devotion and the overall peacefulness of the temple grounds.

Dragon Hill Spa: My mom had read about the Korean spas before she came to Korea and wanted to check one out. Spas, or jjimjilbangs, are basically public baths with other pampering services available. We went to Dragon Hill Spa, the largest in Seoul, with seven floors of sport and relaxation. The floors are separate for males and females and spa etiquette requires you to be naked to enter the public baths and saunas. (I tried to enter the sauna with my shorts and tee shirt, but was told an explicate "no" by the woman working there.) I was not comfortable at all getting naked in front of anyone at the spa, so I hung out upstairs while my mom enjoyed the baths downstairs. I just couldn't do it. Maybe it was my embarrassment. Maybe it was my near-impossibility to enjoy spa-type relaxation. Call me a prude, call me lame, call me chicken, I don't care. Hanging out in a room full of naked Korean women nearly scrubbing their skin off while sitting spread eagle looking at themselves in the mirror and little naked Korean kids running around splashing in and out of baths is not my ideal way to spend an afternoon. I can find some other ways to relax; alcohol, for example, always does the trick.

standing in front of some Korean pottery in the Korean Folk Village

playing dress up

mom with a solider outside of Deoksugung Palace

changing of the guard at Deoksugung Palace

our heart at Namsan Tower

mom and I at Namsan Tower

fortress wall at Namsan Tower

takin the bus into Seoul

mom at the Buddhist temple bell tower

having tea in a tea house in Insadong

funky glasses

mom enjoying some shabu shabu

Check out the rest of the photos from our week together here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2772895&id=6804238&ref=mf

It was so so good to see my mom. We were really fortunate to get to do and see all we did in one week's time. I feel really blessed that she made the long trip to visit. It was hard to say goodbye when Sunday came.

Namaste

Here's to a New Decade

After a fabulous but tiring Christmas weekend, I was in need of a day to relax and spend some time alone. Sam came to stay with me for the week on Tuesday. We had an amazing time and did tons of great touristy things around Seoul. You could almost say the week was perfect minus a slight mishap on New Year’s. Sam’s purse with basically everything (ids, money, phone, camera, I pod) except her passport was stolen and she spent the better part of the weekend trying to figure it all out. I don’t understand people sometimes. If I’ve learned one thing for sure it’s that karma will always catch up with you.

I had heard about these ‘Dr. Fish’ cafes they have here in Korea so we decided to try one out this week. It was a really neat experience. I will let you check out the video I made so you can get an idea of what this place is all about. If I had to sum up this unique pedicure in one word it would be 'ticklish'.

white hot chocolate at Dr. Fish

pedicure

enjoying my visit to Dr. Fish

Check out the video of Dr. Fish: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10100128404687839&ref=mf

Sam and I also checked out the aquarium at the COEX mall. It was really well done and totally reverted me back to my elementary days as a kid at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

toilet fish tank

starfish

fishes

gigantic turtle

On New Year’s Eve we met up with a group of friends and headed to Myeong-dong for some drinks. Shortly before midnight we all made our way to Jongno, in the middle of the city to watch the countdown. There was live music, tons of people, and police everywhere ready to take care of business if things got out of control. After shouting down from 10 people began lighting off fireworks from the crowd and there was live music. The only thing I can compare it to would be Times Square in NYC on New Year’s. Such a cool experience. When the crowd died down and we finally made our way to the subway we migrated over the Hongdae to dance the rest of the night away at a club.

the ladies on New Year's Eve

Korean police force in downtown Seoul

New Year's Eve in Seoul

Jack and Sam

Check out a video of the crowd in Seoul: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10100128396673899

Sam and I wanted to visit a temple this week so we wandered over to the Jogyesa Buddhist temple. The shrine there, Daeungjeon, is the largest in Seoul. It was a peaceful and spiritual visit. After walking around on our own for a bit and checking out the inside of the temple we walked into the tourist office and a kind older gentleman offered to give us a short tour. He answered some of our questions and explained more about the temple and religion to us. Watching people lighting candles and incense, placing offerings on the tables, and worshipping inside the temple was fascinating. I am intrigued by the Buddhist religion and eager to learn more about it while I am in Korea.

lanterns outside the Jogyesa temple

Buddha statue

not quite sure what this was, but it was really cool

pagoda that you circle three times to the right and bow to after entering the front gate of the compound

lighting my incense- the candles represent lighting up the world and diminishing darkness like Buddha did and the smoke from the incense sends wishes up to heaven

one of the three giant Buddhas inside the temple- each has a specific name and role

lanterns outside the funeral house

the belfry

Sam and I in the belfry- one large bell in the center to wake humans, one to the left to wake up sea creatures, one to the right to wake up animals, and one in the back to wake up flying creatures each struck 28 times at 4A.M. and 33 times at 6P.M.

A group of girls met up in Seoul and walked down Ahyeondong Wedding Street, a famous street with over 200 wedding retailers. As we window shopped we saw everything from the most elegant and extravagant dresses to ones that were strange and tacky looking. There were modern dresses, traditional dresses, and dresses that I would never be caught dead in at my wedding. After browsing we found the wedding café we had been looking for and ordered some milkshakes while we waited to try on some wedding dresses for fun. It was hilarious and we had a terrific time posing for cheesy pictures and pretending like we were princesses/brides for an hour.

wedding street

Korean wedding dresses

my 'wedding' day

the lovely brides

catch

bride wars

with all the cheesy stuffed animals

On our last night of vaca a group of us got together and went to Gangnam for some laughs, drinks, hookah, and a good time. After getting rowdy at a Korean bar we made our way to Rainbow and enjoyed some hookah.

Hyun-jin, me, and Sam

Jackie S. and Jackie M.

Looking forward to the year abroad in 2010. Can’t wait to see what’s in store for me!

Happy January!

Namaste