Korea: Non-Alcoholic

So it occurred to me that I've written a lot about drinking in the past few posts, and I don't want anyone to get the impression I've turned into a raging alcoholic. Sooooo.....here are some pics of Seoul that have nothing to do with alcohol (but it should be noted that all of the pics are the perfect mixers for alcohol....kind of like sprite or tonic....).

The first pic is of quite possibly my favorite neighborhood in Seoul, Insadong. It's downtown and is considered a "traditional street." Essentially, there are fewer cars, it's quieter, and lots of galleries, coffee and tea houses, great restaurants, and good shopping. There's always something going on, too, like a performance of sorts.

The second pic os of Korean kimchi pots. Kimchi is the national food of Korea. It's cabage that is fermented with red peppers, garlic, onions, and sometimes meat or seafood. Sometimes it's good, other times it's too vinegar-y, too sour, or too spicy. The pic is of the traditional pots they would put the veggies into for fermentation. The pots would then be burried somewhat under ground or in the side of a hill to keep cool.

The third pic is a night shot of another cool area, Hyehwa. There's a university there, so there's lots of quirky shops, cafes, and bars. That's typical Seoul at night. Lots and lots of neon. Think Times Square in NYC--even at night, it's never dark.

The fourth is a shot I took of Seoul from the cable car up to Seoul Tower. That is what Seoul *really* looks like: lots of grey, boring architecture, and ugly apartment buildings. BUT...the city certainly has it's rewarding characteristics.

The fifth pic is of one of THE best shopping areas in Seoul, Myeong-dong. It's on the south side of downtown proper. If you want designer stuff, you go here. If you want knock off stuff, you go here. If you want stuff in the middle, you go here. You can find anything in Myeong-dong.

The REAL Christmas Celebration

Officially, the Christmas festivities started Friday night after the school holiday party. And continued to Saturday night. BUT, as some of you know, all of the foreigners that I know (and some new faces) got together for a big turkey dinner on Christmas Eve. John (the guy who's moving to Australia) ordered a turkey and all the fixings from a hotel. We ate like kings and queens. And then we drank. Well we were actually drinking before we ate, but we drank even more after. That's the thing about Korea--always alcohol with celebrations. It's like peanut butter and jam. Or milk and cookies. They just fit so nicely together, but aren't as nice alone. Anyway, we were drinking red wine, which was great because I haven't had much of that since I left the states.

After we finished dinner, we went to a bar in the foreign district called Bungalow. It's fantastic because it's an island themed bar. It has sand floors and ratan chairs suspended from the ceiling. There we had more wine, and then left for our standard bar, Rocky Mountain Tavern (poker and trivia bar). Fortunately or unfortunately, I don't remember much of that place. But I did have a friend take me home.

When we arrived at my apartment building, we met one of my Korean neighbors in the elevator. He insisted that we go to his place for some food. We went and found ourselves in the middle of the biggest buffet I've ever seen in one small apartment. They were tanked as well, so I didn't feel too bad acting like the idiot I'm sure I must have been. My friend was speaking Korean with them, so I was just kind of in a food and wine-filled daze. Definitely fun though.

Ok....a pictoral summary: the first pic is of me and Keith. He's been here for several years and speaks Korean quite well. He writes books for a University English program. The second pic is of Lee and Keith. Lee has been here the longest (SIX years) and speaks fluent Korean. He writes the books my school uses. The third pic is of Patrick (a guy I met through the people I work with...isn't he cute?!?!), his girlfriend (they ALWAYS have girlfriends....!), and Su Hyun, who is Australia John's girlfriend. She has the epitome of Asian hair. It serously gleams, it's so perfect. To those of you wondering why there is only three pics documenting the weekend's escapades, I will say: pour yourselves a tall glass of shut the hell up, you're lucky I made it home all three nights WITH my camera. New Year's resolution: be less sarcastic. :)

School Christmas Party

So my place of employment is no different from any other in that we had an end of year holiday party. There was a ridiculous amount of food: bulgogi (which is kind of like a grilled beef stew of sorts), salad-y stuff, korean sweet potato noodles (yum-ee!), soups, and lots of fresh fruit. And the obligitory Korean celebration cake, which is a cake decorated to the nines purchased from a bakery. Oh, and lots of alcohol because that's what Koreans do best: drink when they celebrate. Here are some photos from the evening. Some pre-alcohol consumption, some post-alcohol consumption, but I think they photos speak for themselves.....

The first pic is of Suzy (one of my Korean partner teachers), myself, and Gilles (who I've mentioned before. The second pic is of me, Grace (one of the secretaries and a TOTAL sweetie. Seriously, I LOVE her!), and Hannah (another partner teacher). The third pic is of Sarah, a teacher who arrived a month ago from Missouri. She's fantastic. Silly, sarcastic, and fun. Sounds like me, right??? The fourth pic is of Jeffrey, the teacher who arrived in October when Geoff's contract was up. The last pic is of me and one of my most favorite people at work. Her name is Jina, and she is my partner teacher for my kindy classes. So she's the one that I bitch to, cry to, laugh with, and hug when days are good and when days are bad. She is an ANGEL.

My Apartment

Ok....this one has been a long time coming. Here are the long-awaited pics of my apartment. My laundry room is reminiscent of many American laundry rooms--not the most pleasant of places. But the green machine does manage to clean my clothes, so for that I'm thankful. Please note that there is no dryer here, so I have to hang all of my clothes and sheets to dry. This means that one load of laundry takes about 12 to 16 hours. Awesome, huh? My bathroom is actually not the typical Korean bathroom. I actually have a TUB! Most Korean bathrooms just have the showerhead mounted on the wall without a shower curtain or anything so the water goes everywhere. My kitchen is pretty standard for a Korean apartment: small fridge, a two-burner stove (no oven here!) , and minimal counter space. My bedroom is my living room. No sofa, no comfy chairs. My bed's sheet and duvet set cost me a little over $100--sheets and things are quite expensive here. And it's not even high quality. I have a rickety table and two chairs circa 1991. The table is where I have my computer and where I do my makeup in the morning. The metal rack is my "dresser" because the upright "wardrobe" box thing isn't enough to keep all my clothes. It only has my hanging stuff in it. Off my bedroom is the balcony. There's a closet out there. I keep my luggage and my vacuum in there. The balcony is nice in the warmer months because I can put the drying rack out there and it speeds up the dry time for my clothes. Miami also really liked hanging out there too. So there you have it. This is where I live :)

My View

I'm on the twelfth floor, so I have a really nice view of my neighborhood and a few of the nearby mountains. There are a lot of days when it's hazy and I don't have a clear view, but other days are fantastic! Blue sky, bright colors. These pics are from one of those fantastic mornings, taken from right outside my door. The ugly buildings you see are apartment buildings--I think they kind of look like project-housing. But they are EVERYWHERE! Most Koreans live in this style of building.