Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Another work week begins after another weekend of adventure!

It's already Tuesday night here in Korea and it seems like this week is just flying by. Last weekend I traveled to Ulsan with my friend Nate. It was a great weekend in an even greater city. We arrived at 4am Saturday morning, after what seemed like a never ending trip there. After work Friday night we took a bus into Seoul in plans of catching the KTX(300mph bullet train) to Ulsan. After the hour and a half trip to the KTX station we were told that all the tickets were sold out. So we had to back track an hour to the Express Bus terminal and then wait two hours for our bus. Luckily the buses here in Korea are very comfortable so we were able to catch a bit of sleep on the way there. Once in Ulsan we walked to our hotel and crashed for the night. Saturday we met up with Nate's friend and had lunch. I spent the afternoon strolling around the neighborhood we were in. Afterwards we went to another part of town and walked around some more and then walked an hour or so back to our hotel.

This is the view we had on our walk home. Needless to say I am in love with this city! I plan to visit it more and will potentially look for work there next year. Saturday night we met up with Nate's friends for some Korean BBQ. I was the only girl crashing what would normally be a boys night out so I obviously had to keep up with the drinking. The good thing about being a girl in Korea is you rarely have to pay for anything! So after four rounds(four different bars filled with boozing) we stumbled home. Needles to say Sunday wasn't a very pleasant day. And like with all things, it seems that the world wanted to punish us for having a little fun. We took a 20 minute cab ride to the KTX station only to find out that it was, yet again, sold out. So we ended up taking it for only 20 minutes to Daegu and then taking a bus back from there. On a normal day it would have taken only three and a half hours to get home, but for some reason, this day the traffic was insane. We inched along and finally arrived home about six and a half hours later! Even with all the travelling delays it was still a pretty great weekend! I am happy I am getting the chance to explore Korea!

This weekend we are planning a girls night with all of the teachers at our school. Hopefully it will be a great time! Until then.....

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Nothing is coming up Caley this week

You know those weeks where it seems like a little black rain cloud is following you around? Generally nothing horrible really happens, just nothing seems to go your way? Well I am having one of those weeks and it just doesn't seem to end!!

I am in the middle of having a root canal done and have two appointments left. This week I had to sit through having a mold made of my tooth so they can make the crown to put on it. After the procedure I paid what I thought was the $160 the dental hygienist had quoted me. Turns out one of the problems with going to a Korean dentist is the language barrier, who knew? I ended up having to pay $600 and am left with a temporary crown for two weeks which means only eating on one side of my mouth.

After returning to work, I went to my next class where one of my kindergarteners asked me if I was having a baby, while I would normally not care that a 5 year old commented on the pudge I have, this time it seemed to cut like a knife.

I went to the gym after work yesterday and then went to my usual street vendor to buy some apples. The lady is really nice and is always giving me delicious oranges for free with my apples. This time she gave me my apples and then she handed me two ROTTEN tomatoes!!! It's almost like she could tell I was having a bad day and wanted to stick it to me!!

So I came home and went to visit my friend Nate and have what we like to call "complain fests". We both rant about work and life in general just to get it off our chests and then move on. So all was good and I was prepared for another day today.

I had to venture to the bank today to send some money back home. On my way I realized I had forgotten my passport. So I had to run home and grab it quick. On my way in the building I heard this weird banging but didn't think anything of it. As I was leaving my apartment I heard it again and looked over towards the windows in the hallway. And guess what, to my dismay, a giant bird was stuck in our building and banging against the window trying to get out. Now for those of you who know me, you know that I have a phobia of birds. Well, the word phobia is a bit of an understatement. I am absolutely terrified and will run away crying and push anyone, (including the elderly and small children) out of my way to do so. So here I was frozen in the hallway of my apartment trying to figure out what to do. Since the bird was blocking my stairwell, I had two choices: go back into my apartment and skip the rest of the day at work(likely getting me fired) or suck it up and run!! Obviously, (to your amazement Mom!) I took the latter. I ran out of the building so quick you would have thought it was burning down!!!

Of all things to happen to me during one of those shitty weeks, of course I would have to come face to face with my nemesis!

So after spending the rest of the work day worrying about how I was going to come home and if I would have to have another face-off with the bird, I convinced my co-worker Desiree to come home with me and do an inspection before I went upstairs! Thank goodness for friends! She checked every floor and shut the windows in the hallway to hopefully avoid this kind of incident from occurring again! Now I am safely locked in my apartment contemplating becoming an agoraphobic!

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Having a wonderous lazy Sunday

Today is a fantastic day. I slept in until 10:30 and then came online and had a chat with my friend Lynn, who I haven't spoken to since I have been in Korea. It was really nice. Video chat is so much better than a regular phone chat, it's like you are actually there with the person instead of hundreds of thousands of miles away! After our chat I made a delicious breakfast of an omelet and pumpernickel toast! I have since been sitting at my computer reading the news, chatting with friends, and pondering life and the decisions we make.

It's funny how we change over the years. I am currently chatting with a friend who had somewhat of a mini reunion with some of our high school friends last night. It is interesting to hear the changes that people have made in their lives. It seems that it is always the people who you thought were going to be the world travelers, who are the ones who settle down with the whole package: man, white picket fence, good jobs and the prospect of kids in the near future. And then there are the rest of us who are still wandering through life, unsure of what path to take and too afraid to settle down to one job or career decision. For so many years I thought that all I needed to do to be happy was to get a good job, find a man and buy a house and live happily ever after. I now know that is all a facade. Atleast in my view of what I need to be happy. The thought of settling down to one job, one city and one life is terrifying to me now. Ten years ago I thought that by age 26 I would be married and happy. I guess it's all a part of growing up and changing.

The experiences we have in life and the choices we make seem to have a direct impact on the way we look at life and what we need to be happy. I quickly learning the things that make me happy, and none of them have anything to do with a job or success in a career, or material possessions for that matter. I used to think that having the best clothes and the nicest things would make me happy, but it wasn't until I got rid of all those things and began to live minimally that I realized how useless they really are. This experience in Korea is helping me to see who I really am. For the first time in my life I am alone. Literally and figuratively. It is time for me to grow and figure out who I am and what I am doing with this life.