hello my loyal readers. my profound apologies for my lack of updates. life here moves at a fast pace... and one that doesn't console my procrastination tendencies. i often think of updating things, and wish i would have shown you my incredible experience i had with my boss' family celebrating the lunar holiday (over a month & 1/2 ago). but, you creative souls, just imagine an abundance of korean food at 6 in the morning, lots of bowing, betting on korean game play, and madagascar 2 in full korean.. and then imagine all the pictures you know i took, and there, my friends you will have the full event.
a lot has happened since i last wrote in. my opinion of where i am changes quite frequently upon the day. some days i wake up aching for familiarity that i grew so overly fond of in the great state of texas. other days i'm fully embracing this culture i ruggedly threw myself upon and all of its benefits. routinely, and all in my head of course, i come up with numerous pros and cons. and in the aforementioned, it depends on the day as to which side i'm leaning towards. this week, it's been a mixture. however, i'll lay it out so you can fully comprehend.
in america... you go to a restaurant... and even if it's new...you can read the menu (and most of them have pics anyway) or ask the waiter/waitress to explain what the dish is. if it is the wrong thing, you can explain that they messed up your order and they'll take it back and fix it. when you order something, it is usually all brought out together and you eat as one... with individual plates. somewhat of a "if you wanted this, you shoulda ordered it yourself mentality..."
in korea... we get told we need to branch out, try knew things, new places, new foods, and with a subconscious of a bit of reluctance, i uphold to those terms and undergo the sometimes grueling and even moreso annoying experience(s). example a: you go to a restaurant... the menu is in korean (of course). but hey, that's okay, we look for pictures and ask for 'anmepta' (not spicy) and take the korean waitress' word for it... only to be told what i decided on they aren't cooking that night. so, with a bit of annoyance i pick something else. "okay... i'll try this!" i say with newfound enthusiasm! and after i say it, i think okay, this will be much better anyway. her response "no. sorry. not today." i unabashedly roll my eyes and let out a laugh similar to that of 'are you freakin' kidding?!' so finally, i decide okay, whatever, i'll just take this here dish. and just as i am easing myself into a state of non-frustration... she responds in a familiar tone that i just really don't like. "no, sorry. not tonight." holy mother of pearls. i want to throw this skinny lady out the window with her menu of things that restaurant isn't serving! example b: in america, if they get your order wrong, you explain to them that hey, it's not right and they'll fix it. here... what you get put on the table... is exactly what you get to eat. no questions asked. that is that. doesn't matter if the simple aroma from the spice dish that they swore wasn't spicy is resonating your nostrils and making you cry... all that matters is you have your tiny glass of water and if your foot can reprieve itself of falling asleep in indian style position, long enough for the wake-up calls of immediate and transitory water refills. that's all you can hope for.
it isn't all bad though. here are the pros...
- incredible views. i live in a place of insane beauty. Jesus is all over this place, man. i am a 5 minute walk away from the most beautiful coastal scene no picture could remotely express. there are mountains galore to climb and there are over 120 islands to visit this summer. not to mention, the white water rafting, para-sailing, jet skiing, and scuba-diving... along with the intense amount of hours i plan to become a beach bum and get my sweet tan. so see, it's not all that bad, really, i live in one the most beautiful scenic parts of the world.
- swell people. i have never in my life met so many hospitable people. everyone is so respectful towards each other, and most especially towards me. i get bowed to non-stop and really find it quite humorous. i enjoy bowing, actually, and am quite afraid i'll take it back with me to the states. there is something about it, though, that says hey i'm really acknowledging YOU. sara actually bowed to an american a few weeks ago. ha. but yea, the respect level here is out the roof.
- 3K1A - this is my side project. it is my little korean band. we are called 3K1A. any guesses as to the name?
think...
keep thinkin.....
c'mon you hampered in thought... it's actually pretty easy.
okay, fine. THREE KOREANS. ONE AMERICAN. (3K1A...comin SOON) <--that's our slogan for now! ha
yes. that is right. since i first got here i started going to a studio of a friend of my boss' brother ( i know, it sounds complicated). anyhow, aside from previous beliefs my enthusiasm would die down, it just enhanced my desire to go. so i go there, every day.. for a couple hours. and we play music. together. i took drum lessons for 3 months and then switched to guitar to become more proficient with it. so, i play the electric guitar and sometimes drums, my teacher plays the bass, uni-2 ('uni' is what you call an older female whom you are close to... and there is uni-1 and uni-2.) plays the acoustic/electric, and uni-1 plays primarily the drums. and then we swop singing. we also swop languages to the songs. in the beginning we learned a song by a korean artist... i'm just glad i can read music! then i convinced them to learn the song yellow, by coldplay, (of which they all smiled in adoration upon first hearing the beautiful serenade!) anyhow, now we are onto another sweet korean tune. i love it. and waking up every morning knowing i get to go hang out with them and just jam and laugh makes it all worth it.
-the people i meet/other foreigners. recently we've had the opportunity to meet a new set of foreigners. they had their parents send them 14lbs of blocked cheese. and we others, whom haven't had cheese in the longest time, had a ball eating 4 lbs of it, and really look forward to the rest of it... ahh, cheese. ya just don't know whatcha got till it's gone. anyhow, yes, the people. they are a hoot. some of the most raw and honest people i'll ever meet. one, of which, is leaving next week. i think he is being replaced by a new zealander (fingers crossed) so that'll be wicked cool. almost every friday we go bowling, play bball saturday (which you know makes my heart leap!) then have brunches and dinners occasionally on sundays. they are truly a big part of why it is so easy to not be homesick.
- the kiddos. these kids...they are somethin' else. i adore them. and their adoration for me is nothing short than of that of mine for them. they reciprocate love like it's unheard of. each day they eagerly go to class (most of them, mind you) and can't wait to just talk to you in the halls. they are truly geniuses. their IQ could triple that of any child their age in the states. korea might not have the best food, but they understand the idea of smart little kiddies. i will be extremely sad to have to say goodbye to those kids. one, most especially, stole my heart from the beginning - ruby. she is incredible. so smart. so much life and conversation in her.
-pen-pals. that's right. i love getting letters from chums and responding later than i'd told them. ha. but i do it, eventually. it means something to me... a lot, really, that people go out of their way to make a conscious effort to send me something... and write down my 7 ong-filled address that makes you use four envelopes b/c you left out something or misspelled something on the first three. it's an appreciation that i'll always have. so if you write me, or send me something, please know how thankful and appreciative i am, and how much it helps being so far away.
- chopstick usage. that's right. i'm a bad ass. watch out. :)
however, with all good things there comes the annoyance and CONS:
- FOOD. never before, nor ever again once i leave korea, will i ever have as much rice intake as i do here. seriously, with EVERY meal. EVERY SINGLE ONE. the fresh fish markets is not a play on words.. it is most exactly what you think. if you even hint at a fish and they catch you, they grab it outta the batch (wiggly and all) and precede to chop it's head off right there... with the tail still wiggling... blood.... it's a site i could most assuredly do without seeing ever again. and if that isn't bad enough, they scale the fish, slice it open, rip out the cuts, cut it up into pieces then hand it to you... all being done by an old korean lady who is probably like 80. it is intense. the smell of fish here... some days is too much.... and then there is the fact that everything here is layered in spice. i swear. maybe the fish are even caught in a net coated in spice. it is inescapable. :(
- you know the only octopus i've ever seen before coming here was in the little mermaide. now, she wasn't a pleasant lady, i realize, but still... to see a live octopus being boiled. the little sucker thingy-ma-bobs... it gives me chills simply thinking about it. what ever happened to good ole' ham-n-cheese?! c'mon!
- language barrier. i ought to start off by saying i have learned the korean alphabet (all the flippin' tiny symbols, mind you!!) and can read korean...(without the knowledge of WHAT it is i am reading.. that is still to come) and have learned enough conversational words and things to make a conversation go not so counter-clockwise to swimmingly, but decent enough. but still, there are some days where i just want to be able to go into a store and ask a question and not get the "are you russian" question. i'd really like to be able to teach the kids better and explain to them better in their own language. i think that's what drives me to learn as many classroom words as i can. you just don't pay attention to all the chatter around you, until none of it is remotely comprehensible.
- exchange rate. as a lover of money, i officially hate the green pieces of crap. i send money home each month to pay off my oh-so-kind credit card debt... and there's no telling how much money i've lost going from korean won to dollars. it's just mind-boggling. it's at the worst it's ever been. hallelujah for timing! haha. depending on how the exchange rate is when my contract is up, will be a big part of deciding whether i stay or not.
-i miss my dog!!!! no explanation is needed for this. i genuinely miss coming home and being greeted by my buddy. knowing even if everyone in the world was pissed at me or annoyed with me or whatever hasty feelings i was attracting that day, that he would knowingly pee in excitement of my arrival. i see him each morning on skype and he thinks my mom is me. but i can't wait to get home to him. i really miss him.
so yea. life here. it's full of trivial and really not so trivial things. i feel like sara and i are extremely lucky to be where we are with who we are. i have had a smooth sail since being here and know it's because God is extremely good to me. i think of all of you often and wish i was better at updating this and my picture site.. and just all around snail mail. i really miss sonic. i mean... serious serious withdrawals. i've yet to enter the shock and shaking syndrome... but time tells me it's not far away. ha.
okay, this was my effort at an informative update for you all... but i didn't really tell you much but other than what i like and dislike. stay tuned for an announcement of my bands tour...
SIDENOTE: my mother's birthday is coming up on the 30th of march... so PUH-LEASE... go give her an over the hill hug or a dead daisy or something. :) (kidding mother! ha) but really... give her a hug for me.
sah-rang-heh (i love you),
kami
