Seoul Food

So...I went to Seoul.

I stayed with a friend, Katie, in Incheon (a city near Seoul).  She picked me up from the train station and we went out for pizza (decided by paper, rock, scissors...the only right way to make a difficult choice) and then went to Seoul Tower.  Super cute...lovey-dovy...worth doing to say you did it...but you really can't beat the mountain views from Busan.  The next day we went to Body World (a collection of plasticised bodies for the sake of teaching science of anatomy).  I had a friend go when the exhibit was in Atlanta and she said it was good.  I was like..okay...why not?

So... Katie leaves the exhibit to go to the restroom.  She comes back and says, "Hey if you want to see something strange/interesting, there is this group of foreigners downstairs...a couple black guys...a couple white guys...and a bunch of video cameras and microphones.  I think they are famous..."



I was like, "Katie...something strange/interesting...haha...we are looking at a traveling exhibit of dead people.  What is more strange?"  I thought nothing of the "famous people"...perhaps filming some documentary or something.  Katie couldn't shake the thought that she should know the people...so she went looking for them and couldn't find them.  Then as we were getting coffee afterwards she asked the ticket collectors of the exhibit, "Who were those people with the video cameras?"  They replied, "Oh...They were Black Eyed-Peas!"  AND WE CALL OURSELVES AMERICANS!!!!  Ha ha ha...I picked dead people over living/famous ones.

OH!  And I almost got in a fist fight on the metro!  This guy was hanging posters every couple feet in the car.  He goes up behind Katie and elbows her in the back pushing her out of the way so he could hang his poster.  He muttered, "Waygook" (Foreigner) with disdain.  I said, "Chincha?" (Really?) And he went off muttering bad stuff at us and glared.  I said it again, "Chincha?"  Then he got up in my face and blew in my face then took off down the car.  I WAS LIVID!  But what could I do.  I just stood there shaking.

The next day we went to Insadong...a great place to get crafts and Kkul Tarae (a fermented honey desert made for the king and his guests).  After that we went to Itewon, which literally means foreigner street.  We ate at an All American Diner.  The menu was all in English...not a lick of Hangul in sight.  I loved it!  Ha ha.

Then we went on the army base for a prayer meeting at the church.  It was awesome!!!  And this was followed by visiting another EPIK teacher who was having a birthday in Incheon.  It was nice to catch-up a little with the few Incheon folks I know.

Overall, I say that Seoul has better food, hands down.  But, I think it's too crowded and the people are really rude.  Also, Busan has better senery.  I am greatful to live where I do.



Katie and I in Insadong



Unfortunately, I had a five hour train ride back to Busan to get myself worked up about coming back.  Mainly, I have equated being here to being unhappy...but that is a mistake.  I need to give myself some time to re-adjust to Korea.  I have been out of work for almost two months now...and this purposeless-ness may be adding to my anxiety.  I have been assured that once I get back into a routine, I will find myself in a better place.  Well, we will see.  I can't pretend to know what is going on in my life, what is causing my anxiety, and how it can be fixed.  All I can do is fight to stay positive and live one day at a time.

How's that for an update?