Weekend Round Up

Well that's one week down I guess. Only 51 to go hey!! Seriously though, I have immensely enjoyed my first week in Korea. The amount of things I have learnt in just 7 days is just ridiculous and I already have some good memories to look back on. Good thing I started this blog so people can share them with me too.

Friday night was extremely enjoyable and entertaining. It was good to be surrounded by a few more English speaking voices. Most of them were American's but it sounded like there were a few English people mixed in too. I got chatting to a couple of people and me, Charlie and Kevin had a good time playing some pool, throwing some darts and relaxing from the stresses of ESL teaching (not that there is many!)

We ill-advisedly decided to leave at about 4am when we realised we had to be up rather early on Saturday morning. Charlie decided he was going to take the bull by the horns in ordering us a cab back to Hwaeseo informing us that he was going to 'drop his Korean' on the cab drivers. That and his other antics of telling the guy about his life and trying to get him to play some English music had me and Kevin in stitches in the back. As if roads in Korea aren't dangerous enough without people running red lights, this guy also had a tv in his cab which Charlie was doing some commentary on. All funny stuff when you start being a little delirious at that time of the night!

Anna came to meet us at 10.30am so we could go and see some traditional Korean martial arts just outside Hwaeseong fortress. The martial arts themselves were very interesting and the fortress, well wow, it sure is an amazing piece of architecture. We got to walk through the fortress which usually costs and see some of the culture about the king who used to live there. We ventured a bit further into Hwaeseong and Anna took us for a traditional Korean meal which is basically rice with spam, hot dog sausages, bacon and noodles. It doesn't sound that nice from a description but it was one of my favourite meals in my first week here, very filling as well.

We took the bus back to Hwaeseo and along the way Charlie found a sports shop which he figures is the only place in Korea that sells American footballs. They seemed to have quite a bit in there so I think I need to get myself either a soccer ball or a basketball that i can use to get some exercise with.
After a little siesta back at Talkster we set off towards Yongsan which is where the electronics district in Seoul is. I got my first experience of the Korean subway which although it is as packed as the tube is a lot more effecient and certainly much nice. We decided to get some food there figuring that we could just find the electonics district after we'd eaten but sadly they decided to close the whole area down at 8.30pm. Must be some kind of wierd Korean tradition to close things at the prime shopping time.

We had only stopped there to break up the journey between Seoul and Hongdae where we were going to see a couple of our fellow teachers and watch the band they play in. Well after we had spent about an hour and a half walking wrong a place called Hwrangdae (notice the similar spelling but similar pronunciation) we decided to call a cab to take us to the right place! I don't do directions well in England so it's no surprise that we had our first confusing experience of Korea's transport system.
An hour later when we finally arrive in Hongdae we were just on time to see Josh and Michelle play. I haven't been to see much live music in my time but it was an enjoyable experience. Josh's drumming skills were top class and Michelle made steal drum playing look easy.

We experience another entertaining cab ride back with a blatently unlicensed cab driver who looked nothing like the i.d. which was stuck in the taxi. Charlie's quip of the evening was to respond to the taxi drivers question of 'English teacher?' to us by reponding and point back at him and saying 'English teacher!?' The guy was clearly confused but I must remember to start videoing these conversations as the last two exchanges between driver and passenger have been hilarious.

Sunday being a day of rest and all, I figured I was due a lie in this morning. We didn't get home from HowWrongDae until 3am so I think that was justified. I decided to test how much I had really learnt today by braving a walk to Suwon station. I managed to make it there in one piece, and even if jeans and a hoody wasn't completely appropriate attire for the 60F temperatures I was feeling pretty proud of myself! I walked around the mall for a little bit, rather predictably there were four Baskin' Robbins, a KFC, a Burger King and a Starbucks there; a couple of department stores too but I decided not to explore too much and save myself some money. I did what I went there to do which was prove that I could do directions in Korea!

Getting home was a different matter....

After ending up on a completely different side of the subway station it took me at least 30 minutes to find where I was actually supposed to be going. Once I was back on my way it was plain sailing though.
In the afternoon I decided to see what Kevin was up to and he and I walked around a park which is over the opposite side of the railway between Hwaeseo and Suwon. It was a beautiful day for a walk and it was pretty busy. There was a couple of basketball courts, some of these outdoor gym exercise machines which the Korean's seem to be big into and all of this surrounding a damned off lake which we walked all the way round. It was good to get in some good exercise and obviously learn a new area of Suwon. Hopefully this week I'll be able to find myself a basketball or a football so that I can make use of the courts and pitches which were there.

Despite having lunch in the mall I was feeling pretty peckish and decided to order my first taste of goobnee chicken. Boy was it good! Enough to save for some other meal during the week as well. 15,000 won well spent. Kevin went back to his room to play poker so me and Charlie decided to watch 'The Kingdom' which Jamie Foxx and Jennifer Garner which was pretty good.
Obviously didn't have my shreded wheat this morning as hunger was calling yet again! A quick trip to 'Ocha's for a number two on the menu (also known as bacon strips) solved that problem.

I tried to start some planning for Kindergarten class tomorrow but got distracted by the internet so I will have to get up and do that in the morning. My mum also started talking to me on Skype so any kind of work went completely out of the window! I'm sure I'll wish I hadn't decided not to do anything in the morning when it comes to getting up!

Time for bed me thinks, well maybe a bit of Match of the Day then bed!

Night x