Teachers' day

Back in the States, I always thought that the holidays were so heavily marketed. Valentine's day started in January. Easter began in February. Halloween in September. Thanksgiving in October. And Christmas... It's recommended to work on the list all year round.

Although I didn't eat 짜짱면 (black bean noodles) on Black day, I had a tough time walking home from work with my hands full- sweets, flora, toiletries, and my personal favorite, handmade cards, just to name a few.

Just a simple hug would have conveyed the message, but I find myself with more reasons to be thankful.

Vermisse dich mien fallen engel...

The streets where I live...

It's not as crowded as 서울, but be sure that you can find PC방s, 포장마차s, casinos (게임랜드), movie theaters, a Starbucks, and much more.

My favorite spot is located in front of a dumpling shop near the subway station. There's a table that sells clothes starting at the delicious price of 5000원. It reminds me of the bargain basements my friends and I used to rummage through back in high school.

My friend took me to an awesome meat grilling restaurant in the city. There I had pig throat meat for the first time. In its raw form, red in color. Post-grilled form, the most succulent morsels I've ever tasted. The couple who runs the place are the kindest and friendliest I've met so far. Over dinner, we conversed about meat and the affection of Korean people. Did you know that a quick cure for 'gold dust', or 가루, is to eat 삼겹살? Mm... gotta love the home remedies.

One of the best experiences I have had here was being able to make it to the top, and the bottom in one piece, of the 북한 mountain a couple weeks ago. After feeling like a billy goat for two-thirds of the way, I sprained my ankle. An older gentleman who saw me in my distress gave me something to wrap my injury with. Fresh air, clean water, and goodness all found in one place.

Made it to the top of one peak.

엄마, 보고싶어...

One is the cleaning lady of our 학원 building. One morning, I bought two dozen donuts for everyone at work to munch on. My 원장님 wasn't in yet, so I invited her and the two women who run the front desk to come into our office for donuts and coffee. Being that I'm the only single Korean female at work, I felt a little out of place since the topic of conversation was about the married life and children. She was talking about how the feeling of enjoyment or fulfillment from the small "luxuries" in life, such as going to watch a movie or eating a snack at a 포장마차, became unimportant after having a family.

I remember when my mother would take us to McDonald's, and she would never order anything for herself. But she always would snatch a fry here and there.

Grr.

People here, I've noticed, tend to keep to themselves. Rarely do they bother the person next to them, even to be excused or to apologize. Perhaps it's due to the fast pace everyone steps to.

Life in Korea... where to start. It's been an interesting experience so far. Although I could say that this trip has opened my perspective about this culture, the country, the people, and myself, I think I knew much already before I came out here.

Admittingly, some of my experiences in America were not always a big bowl of strawberry cheesecake ice cream (one of the things I miss about the States)- racism, ignorance, and just plain impoliteness to name a few.

This place has taught me a lot about its psychological history, the reason for its 'cold shoulder' attitude, and most importantly, where evil exists (especially in condensely populated areas), kindness and goodness are even harder to find.

Objectively speaking.

To be fair, I don't think I've spent enough time at historical places or seen enough of Korea. My words are just rants and raves, an attempt to find my stability, something that lacked a firm foundation for a long time, in a country that seems to be barely held together.