It pays to be loyal

I am a big believer in shopping at mom and pop stores... especially ones around your home.  In Korea, I have chosen 1 grocery store, 1 corner market, 1 dry cleaner, 1 pharmacist, and 1 kimbap place to frequent as often as possible in order to get to know my neighbors and contribute to their business!  

Since I'm living here alone, it's been important for me to get to know my neighbors, and the merchants in my area.  Being able to wave to all these people in the morning on my way to work, or at night on my treck home, has made me feel part of this community!!

Tonight, I did some grocery shopping and was stopped at the door, by the clerk, who motioned for me to drop my bags.  I was confused by the gesture, but followed her directions anyway.  She asked me where I lived (in Korean) and I told her.  She explained (mostly with hand motions) that she would take my groceries to my apartment on her auto bike so I didn't have to carry them up my hill!  

Sure enough... a couple minutes after I arrived home, I had a knock on my door!  Can you believe they delivered my groceries for me?!  It pays to be a loyal customer... in more ways than one!!  

Where does this bus go?

These are the typical Bus signs in Korea... believe it or not, I can actually read and understand these signs!

The night I took this picture, I had to read this sign to figure out which bus to take home. I took bus 103, because I read that it stops in 괴 정 시 장(which means: Goejeong market), which is near my apartment! Who's impressed?! Anyone, anyone?!!

What are you guys doing?

Last friday, after lunch, I was walking up the staircase at my school and saw some of the 5th grade girls climbing all over each other. It was one of the strangest and funniest lunchtime activities I think I'd seen, to date. Stella told me it's a popular Korean game... The girls put their heads between another girl's legs, and then someone jumps on their backs! If I didn't have pictures to go with this, you'd think I was describing an adult film!!

I have no idea what the purpose is of this game, but if I have to lean over and put my head between someone elses legs and then have everyone fall on top of me to play it , I don't think I'm interested!!!

The Honor System!

I was shopping with Jess at this store in Gukje market and noticed this hanging basket and asked what it was for. The girl in this picture worked there and spoke perfect english. Her response was, "It's for people to put their money in when they want to buy something. It's kind of like an honor system."
How ridiculous is that?!!! I love how trustworthy Koreans are! It's incredibly refreshing!

Charge it to my subway card please!

Yesterday, I was waiting for the subway, and noticed a korean girl buying a drink with her subway card at this machine!  

I couldn't believe it!  I had to try it for myself!  Sure enough, I just held my subway key charm up to this little box, chose my drink, and wala, 1 diet coke fell! 

I love the level of technology and resourcefulness in this country!

Go Barbie Go!!!

Believe it or not... this was NOT the first time I'd spotted one of these scooter/jet ski deals in Korea! ....Although, this was definitely the first pink one!

Happy Thanksgiving!

For most of you, it's about 8:30pm on Thursday, November 27th! I hope that you have all had a fun filled day of relaxing and lounging with family and friends, eating the most amazing food you've tasted all year, cheering for your favorite football team, drinking coffee while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, and most of all, reflecting about what you're thankful for!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Thanksgiving, Italian Style!

I couldn't get over the fact that this would be my 1st thanksgiving away from family and was determined not to spend my Thursday night at home, eating cereal! So, mid afternoon, yesterday, I called up Jessica, Carlos, and Aaron and asked if they were up for getting together for a special dinner, since it was Thanksgiving afterall! I was so excited when they all jumped at the idea! We ended up going to an awesome Italian restaurant in Kyungsung (a college area of Busan) called Aiola.


We ate risoto, seafood alfredo, caprese salad, garlic bread....

and drank the most delicious wine I've ever tasted!

My Korean Thanksgiving family!! :)

Throughout the restaurant, they had these really beautiful trees, where you could write notes on little circle cards and hang them on the trees. I wrote this note to commemorate my first Thanksgiving overseas with friends! While I missed Kevin's mom's mashed potatoes and my mom's delicious Turkey, I'm thankful for the chance to experience having Thanksgiving dinner overseas with amazing, amazing friends!

Learning to Drive at 40!

Remember when I told you about the 40 year old teacher at my school who just bought her 1st car and hasn't driven in over 20 years!? Well, yesterday, as I was leaving my classroom, I looked outside and she was driving around the playground!

At first I was shocked and thought it was really funny, but then when I thought about it, I realized I don't blame her! I would never, in a million years, drive for the 1st time on the streets of Korea! People cut each other off, drive like maniacs, and definitely don't care if the light is red! Hopefully she'll get the hang of it soon and offer to drive me home from work everyday!

Good luck Charity!

Wait, "Kitchen" or "Chicken" ???

Stella always gets kicthen and chicken mixed up and ends up saying the funniest sentences in class! Last night though, she asked me where the chicken towels were at my place... I looked at her like she was crazy, and then we both realized what she was trying to ask for and died laughing! She was so embarrassed when I picked up my camera to document the moment!


I love this girl!

Culture Day!

Once every 2 months or so, some Korean schools have what they call "Culture Day," for the teachers, where after the students leave school, the teachers are free to leave and do something pertaining to the Korean culture. This can be visiting a museum, going to see a movie, taking a walk through a park, etc... Anything basically!

So, yesterday was my school's Culture Day! All of the teachers went to see a Korean movie at the movie theatre in Nampodong, but Stella, Josh and I went to a DVD Bang to see The Taking of Pelham (Josh's choice)!! I assured them I would be fine watching a Korean movie with the rest of the teachers, but they insisted that we go to the DVD bang instead! It was sooo much fun!


Us in the elevator...


This is my favorite DVD bang because it's really nice and clean! Some of them are pretty shady looking...


After the movie, we realized we had 40 minutes to kill before the other teacher's movie was over, so we walked through Nampodong...


... and ended up at a pool hall (AKA: Pocket Ball Room as the Koreans say)! Stella and I were on our game and beat Josh in the 1st round! We like to think we're pretty great at pool!

After playing a couple games, we met up with some of the other teachers and went to a really great Italian restaurant! (from left to right: April, Ella, Lisa, and Jason... Those are the English names I gave them!)


Josh and Stella

After dinner, they decided it would be fun to move the party to my place!! This was the 1st time I'd ever had work friends over (other than Stella). This is actually not a common thing to do in Korea, but they all wanted to see my place and hang out!! Little did I know it would turn into quite the party!

We stopped by the local market and picked up some anju (Korean appetizer type food) and Josh did the cooking! :) We had Kimchi Chamchi Chigeh (Kimchi-tuna soup), Ohdeng (disgusting fish thing), Whey (raw fish), and some vegetables! It was soooo great!

They played some Korean drinking games (which I think is really weird to be doing on a work night... but for them it's totally normal!)

and basically just laughed and had a great time together! :)

It was such a funny experience to have a bunch of people at my place for a party and them to not be speaking English! Just imagine... When they left, around midnight, they thanked me profusely (in English!!) for letting them come over and stay till midnight, and kept saying how comfortable and great my place was... which is always a nice thing to hear, since I love decorating!

Overall, Culture Day was fabulous! I still can't get over how awesome it is that I get paid to do this stuff!

Bali

It's official, tickets have been paid for, and I'm going to Bali for Winter Vacation!!! I'll be leaving Korea on January 11th and returning January 31st, with a nice brown tan and hopefully a relaxed and rejuvinated body to go with it! I think if I'm hanging out at places like this, it shouldn't be a problem!!

Originally, the plan was to go with Jess, Carlos and my friend Aaron. We'd been talking about it for a while... but this week, Jess's school told her that they are only going to allow her to travel 10 days, instead of 20, like the rest of us. So, she and Carlos decided Bali was a bit too expensive for a short vacation like that and will be going to the Phillipines instead...

I'm planning to island hop all through Indonesia on the islands surrounding Bali... and yes, I will be visiting the Gili Islands... These are 3, very small, uninhabitted islands off the coast of Lombok, Indonesia. Cars and scooters are not allowed on the islands by local ordinance, so if I need transportation here I'll either be riding a bike or taking a horse-drawn carriage! How awesome is that!? Snorkleing and scuba diving in, and around, the Gilis is suppossed to be amazing because of the abundance of fish and coral formations too! I'll definitely be doing some of that!

One of the beaches in the Gili Islands...

... and I'll definitely be staying at least a day or two on Komodo Island (Obviously I'm a bit terrified... but Aaron really wants to do it!)

The island is filled with Komodo Dragons, the largest living species of lizard, growing to an average length of 6.6 to 9.8 ft and weighing around 150 lbs!! While they don't eat humans, they can tear a large deer or pig to pieces in seconds! They are not poisinous, but there is sooo much bacteria in their saliva that it can kill whatever it touches! Don't worry mom, I'll be careful and walk with a guide!

That's all I know, for now, about what I'm going to see.... More info to come! Just wanted to share my excitement!

Bali, here I come!!!!

Men and their games!

It's not uncommon, in Korea, to walk down the street and see a bunch of old Korean men, huddled around a makeshift table, sitting in plastic chairs, smoking and playing one of Korea's many traditional games!


Yesterday, I was walking down the street and spotted these guys playing 고 스톱 and decided to take some pictures! Could you imagine if you saw a bunch of old American men, sitting on the sidewalk, playing games?!


These are the 고 스톱 cards...


I've been tempted to jump in and play a game... maybe Stella will teach me so I can hang with the guys! :)

Heart Shaped Rocks!

When I was in Thailand, Carlos found a heart shaped rock and gave it to Jess one night.  I thought it was one of the most romantic gestures, and one of the coolest things I'd ever seen!  I remember thinking, "a heart shaped rock... I wonder if that's the only one in the world?!"  To my surprise, it wasn't!  These were the rocks we found down by the river in Bennegol last weekend.  I finally took a picture of them all together!   

How awesome are these!?

My new PJ Sweatshirt!

It's been getting really cold in my apartment at bedtime, so I went on the search for a sweatshirt with no hood to wear to bed!  You can imagine my excitement and how hard I laughed when I found this one!  For the equivalent of $4.00, I couldn't resist adding it to my PJ wardrobe!

"Don't touch with me!  my uncle is in the ARMY"

I'm on a Christmas mission!

Jess sent me a link to a Christmas blog this morning as inspiration for our Friday nights together! It had a list of awesome ideas to get ready for Christmas! I've edited it down, and added a few of my own ideas. I'm dedicated to making all of these things happen before Christmas comes! Check back to this blog on Christmas Day, and I'll have pictures posted of each event / thing that I accomplished! I'm on a mission folks!

1. Go Ice Skating!
2. Watch It's a Wonderful Life!
3. Exchange gifts with someone!
4. Address and mail Christmas cards!
5. Download one new Christmas Album!
6. Make hot chocolate and marshmallows!
7. Host a Christmas Sweater Party!
8. Put up a ribbon sash for Christmas cards!
9. Give my apartment manager a present!
10. Put up a Christmas Tree
11. Make a Gingerbread (cookie) house!
12. Make a popcorn garland!
13. Read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever!
14. Sing (or listen) to my favorite Christmas songs!
15. Go out and see public light displays (If there are any here!)
16. Read the Christmas story from the Bible!
17. Sew a stocking and fill it with candy!
18. Go to a seasonal movie!
19. Host a Christmas dessert party!
20. Write out a Christ-centered goal for the New Year!
21. Have a full traditional breakfast while listening to Christmas music with friends!

Merry Christmas!!

I love November for 2 reasons: Thanksgiving and decorating for Christmas!

Usually I bring out all the Christmas boxes the day after Thanksgiving and hang the garland, string the lights, unpack the ornaments, remake the wreaths, and assemble the tree... This year though, I don't have any boxes to unpack, garland to hang, lights to string, ornaments to unpack, wreaths to remake, or trees to assemble. It's the first Christmas, in my lifetime actually, where I didn't own any Christmas decor! In a way, it was a little sad, but on the other hand, it meant I could go shopping!

So, yesterday, I rode the bus to HOMEPLUS and picked out a tiny little tree, about 20 red and gold ornaments, and a string of white lights! It was nothing like walking into Target or Walmart, where there are isles and isles and isles of Christmas decor to chose from. There was literally 1 display at the end of an isle... that's it! In a way, it was kind of refreshing to see this level of simplicity when it comes to Christmas decor!

I was going to save the decorating until after Thanksgiving, but I couldn't resist! (ARE YOU SURPRISED?!) I went ahead and decorated yesterday!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Dinner Party

Last night, after Jess and I's backs were aching from sitting on the floor, we invited Carlos and Aaron over for a little dinner party!

We ordered andong..... (I can't remember the rest of the name) from a little restaurant down the street from my apartment.  They delivered it to my place, free of charge!  (Looks gross, but tasted delicious!)

After dinner, we played trivia games that we found online (boys vs girls) and the guys completely worked us!  Why are guys always sooooo good at Trivia?!

Later at night, we had some smore making on my stove!!!   Aaron and I were the official smore chefs!


I had found some Korean marshmallows at the grocery store and some cookies with chocolate (because there are no graham crackers in Korea) and roasted them on my gas stove!!

I love this picture of Carlos eating them because it captures the excitement of the deliciousness!  

At some point in the night, we decided to get on skype and change our status to "skype me!"  If you've ever done this, you know how funny it can be!  We got people from all over the world wanting to talk, etc...   I haven't laughed so hard in years!!   It was the perfect ending to an awesome night with absolutely amazing friends!!!

Craft Night

Friday night, Jess and I had our 2nd official craft night! :)   We have committed to meeting every friday night to do crafts and catch up on life!  This week, Jess made these gorgeous origami crane Christmas ornaments to send home to her family members...

... and I made some Christmas cards (made completely from construction paper, glue, string, and some beads!)

We stayed up crafting until 1:00 am, and then decided it was time for a movie!  We both fell asleep watching Whicker Park, and woke up in the morning, ready to finish it! (Great love story by the way... I'd recommend it.)  I was ecstatic when I asked Jess what she wanted to do in the morning and she responded with, "I wanna make Christmas cards!"  So, off we went again, into our craft world in my little apartment!

We ended up staying in our PJ's, making Christmas cards until about 3:00pm in the afternoon!  It was such an awesome 22 hours worth of girl time!!

Here are all the cards I ended up making: