April 8th! Do a good deed...

http://www.onedaywithoutshoes.com/

Sunday

Today I met up with Charis at the City Hall metro station and we went to the palace nearby that also had a museum inside. It was fun and we saw the work of Noosan Pak or something like that. We were going to go to the contemporary museum after to check out the Andy Warhol exhibit, but the line was insane, so we got back on the metro and went to Seoul Station metro station. There we thought we would find a ton of stuff because we always hear that name, but really it was just the train station and a department store. So we ate around there and then headed to the Express Bus Terminal metro station. There we shopped underground...lots of stuff down there and pretty cheap. I bought a bag/purse and a couple headbands, a scarf, and a sweatshirt for 35,000. Then we decided it was time to head home (we have report cards to do this weekend).

An entertaining game: whose purse is that? This is a fun game because a lot of men wear purses. And not like...man purses, like a woman's purse.

Something cool: on the way to switch lines to line 7, we saw a cool glass restaurant on the side of the highway/river. I will try to go in the future...

more on korean culture

When they get an answer right, they circle it.

When they get an answer wrong, they put a check mark or a slash

This creates some confusion...

I'm getting a cell phone! It'll be here on Tuesday. I went to the Seoul Global Center. Their website does a good job of describing how to get there, so I had no problem finding it. What I didn't know was that the only phone company offered there is LG, which I think is the biggest, and the only bank there is KEB. I had read somewhere that they can link your Korean bank account to a foreign one and you can transfer money back and forth for free, but this is not true. First of all, you need a bank account with KEB and second, it costs 8,ooo per transaction. So I got the information for my bank, Woori, from the girl there so I can call and talk to someone in English.

As for the phone, I bought the standard plan and it's for a year. If I decide to terminate early, I'll have to pay 7,500 for every month early I cancel. So if I complete 10 months, I'll have to pay 15,000. On this plan I pay 11/12,000 and 18 won per talking minute and 20 per text message. If most of the people I know end up having LG too, there's a cheaper plan that has like 200 free minutes a month for calls to LG users. Receiving is free.

The funniest thing I saw though was coming out of the metro. You have to walk a decent ways underground, an while I was doing this I saw a bunch of policemen crowded around a tiny square area, almost as if they were having a meeting. But it turned out that they were trying to detain a man in a motorized wheelchair! When I came out of the SGC, I saw them trying to stop him above ground! I don't know how it could have possibly been so difficult...I mean, the man can't walk...

I also saw some musicians, but that was about all that happened to me during the day.

Last night we ate dinner across from my apartment at a chicken place. They have one huge round plate in the center of the table and everyone takes from that communal dish. It was very good. Then we went to a karaoke place (nori bung it sounds like to me, but I don't really know how to spell it). Here the karaoke is in a private room and you just sing there with the TVs. First you pay for how long you want, then they take you to your room (you take off your shoes and they put them in cubbies for you before you step up to the place where all the rooms are). We had fun, stayed for about an hour.

Then I came back and worked on some report cards. These things are absolutely obnoxious. It's a terrible interface and only works with Internet Explorer, the worst browser known to man. It's super finicky and right now it won't even pull up the website for me. We have to enter in all the test scores for every student, all their homework information, and evaluate them using these drop boxes and then put in comments. It takes a lifetime. Terrible system. Oh well, hopefully I'll get used to it. But I really wish it was available in another browser. I hate IE.

Today, Saturday, I'm going with a co-worker, Peter, to have lunch and go to Korean class. Hope it's a good one...

It's snowing again. I have to take another three days of medicine...the weekend was uneventful as I was in bed for most of it. I got my ARC today though, which is exciting, so I'm going tomorrow to the Seoul Global Center to get a phone.

So it turns out I need to wait until after I get a bank account (which I'm going to do tomorrow with Sora and Mindy) before I go get a phone. I think it'll be easier that way.

Also forgot to mention that the reason I went back today for more medicine was that I thought I had gone on Friday originally...this makes a difference because they give you your medicine per dose, meaning each dose is in its own little paperish like sack. I got 12 but thought I had only gotten 9 or that I had gotten all 12 but lost the other 3. So I went back because I thought today, Monday, was supposed to be my last day of treatment instead of yesterday. I ended up having to go back up to the clinic where she checked me out and said I'd need another 3 days worth of medicine, they shot me one in the buttocks again and sent me on my way. Now that I look, it's sort of bruised, but whatever.

It started snowing like crazy during class, but petered off by the time we'd gotten out so we walked back in a nice wet slush. Gosh...isn't winter supposed to be over already?

Now it's a bright, sunny day, and apparently I have brochitis. I went back to the woman I saw about my throat and she told me that. Then they gave me a shot of something and pills to take for the next 4 days. So I feel sort of loopy. And I'm exhausted. And today is a long day. Go team!

it's snowing on my gmail page. guess why. yup, it's snowing in Seoul. wtf, i thought winter was over

Seoul Immigration Office

On Tuesday morning, I went to the Seoul Immigration Office. Before this you must have your health examination (as I talked about before), the application forms (usually given to you by your employer), 2 passport photos, your passport obviously, and 10,000 or 50,000 won (10 for Americans because we initially get a multiple entry visa. I know if you're Canadian and want multiple entry you need to pay 50,000. If you just want single entry, I think it's only 10).

I left at 7:55 am, stopped in the metro to buy a waffle (yum) and got on the purple line. The office is at the Omokgyo station (exit 7) in the west of the city. It took me 55 minutes on the metro and then you have to walk a few blocks. The metro shoots you out onto a street that you just walk straight on for a few blocks before it curves to the right. Pictures to follow, but they have a couple of signs on the street that let you know you're on the right track. Also, when you see the SK gas station (red and orange logo), you're close. You'll have to cross the street. The curve turns into a dead end and you cross the street and the Immigration office is practically right there.

I got a number first (the room to the right with everyone waiting), then went downstairs to take my photos (6,000 won!) and buy my stamps (I bought one, 10,000 won). I didn't know the booth was about to take my picture so I had to pay another 6,000 to redo it. I heard hana (one) and was like uh-oh. Apparently they only count to two...

I should have then gone to the 2nd floor on the right to sign up/buy delivery. They will mail everything to you for 4,000. I didn't though, and waited downstairs. I was called up and she took my papers and then I had to go to the 2nd floor and pay for delivery. I went straight to her and handed her the confirmation and I was done!

On the way back to the metro I stopped at a bakery. The bakeries here are strange and don't sell too much bread. They have pastries and strange things....

Found out this is what I saw in Insadong the other week:

eondaegi (번데기), stewed silkworm pupa, or you can try sucking the insides out of boiled sea shells.

also, the cherry blossom festivals are soon! yay!

Saturday

Last night I went out with Sheena, a friend I met in Chile, and we had dinner and then met up with Charis and her friends. I met Charis when we were both waiting for the plane in Seoul. So we went to Gecko's in Itaewon, a place where there are a ton of foreigners. After that we went to another bar in Hangae that was underground and decorated like a cave. There we sat on pillows on the floor and they brought us a hookah. After that some of the group went to a rock club and the rest of us stayed for a bit before walking to the next bar, a hidden place that Jason knew about.

We hung out there for a bit and then finally Charis and I left with Jason in a cab...he dropped us off at Dragon Hill Spa by the Yongsan metro station. The metro wasn't open and neither one of us wanted to take a cab home, so we decided to go here. You go inside, pay 12,000 won, and they give you a locker key. The first locker is where you put your shoes. Then you keep going and the women go up one elevator and the men another. This takes you to the dressing rooms. Once inside, we then went to find our locker, took off all of our clothes, and went downstairs to shower. After you shower you are then allowed to go into the hot pools, sauna, etc. They offer a full body scrub which I wanted to try, but didn't have enough money for (20,000). We sat in a couple of the hot pools for a few minutes with the jets on. After that we put our scrubs on (they give you shorts and a shirt) and sat in a massage chair to try to catch some z's. Basically it was too hot, so we explored the rest of the place and then headed out to the now-open metro. I got home around 8 and then slept, woke up around 1 and then showered, etc. I feel fine actually and had a great time! Very cool to see the spa. EVERYONE is naked. That is, until you get to the Main Hall, where everyone has to wear their scrubs.

Odd things

When they raise their hands in class, it's always a fist.

If you write someone's name in red, it means they're dead.

You hail pets here the way we beckon people at home (palm up). To motion to a person or taxi, you do it with your palm down...sort of awkward.