Typos

I just wanted to apologize if there are any glaring typos in my posts.  When I post via my phone it's hard to read my post before I publish it and I'm not too skilled at typing on those tiny touchscreen keyboards yet.  Forgive me if you see a lot of "thd"s instead of "the"s and other sad mistakes!

An Evening Ride Beyond the Rice Paddies

Tonight after work I went for a bike ride that ended up being an about-two-and-a-half-hour trip. First I started down a concrete path that is often my starting point for after-work adventures.




What look like lush fields flooding all the way up to the mountains are actually rice paddies, but you can't see until you're closer to the water that they're springing from.

Eventually the path becomes a rough dirt road, and I'd forgotten to take this and the heavy rains we've had from monsoon season into account. The dirt had melted into mud, and it was the kind that grabbed my bike's wheels and kept causing me to skid or get sucked in. Seeing as much of the path is hedged on either side by steep drops or wet rice paddies, I resolved to come back by a different way, because I knew by then it would be dark.

I was glad to reach the old train tracks that signaled a paved road and decided to head off in the direction I'd gone last time. That way leads out to an interesting village and several old roads that slip beneath the highway bridge. It's fascinating to look at the abandoned train cars, disintegrating like big metal bones in grassy graves, but I was also thinking it might rain, and the overpass could be my shelter. (I should mention here that I'm relieved it didn't storm while I was out; riding around on a metal bike when I'm the tallest thing around would have been a little bit too hair-raising, I think.)

But in the end I went another way, a way I'd never been before. I drove past some old houses and a traditional restaurant, and finally found a road. I crossed it to return to civilization and found myself in a part of the city where I'd never been before.

After wandering around a bit I encountered a fascinating restaurant. I couldn't help but gape in awe at just the building (see below), so I hope I can return to eat inside someday.




At some point after this I began the long trek home. When I reached the highway I rode along the handy bike path and enjoyed some awesome scenic views:




At some point, though, I began to see signs only for other cities and not mine. Somehow I'd lost sight of all the buildings that stand starkly on one edge of my rice paddy rides. All I could see were fields, mountains, and the purple clouds growing deeper, darker.

I'd been going the wrong way, riding deep into the country, and it was getting dark.

I turned around and gained some speed, but soon I was getting nosefuls of bugs as I zoomed along the road. This had spoiled my nice evening ride before, so the other day I acquired a bandana for shielding all my airholes. I retrieved it and employed it and it worked even better than I had expected.

Soon I was zipping along, the cool night wind rushing through my hair, the bugs all strained out by my mask...and then there was a hill. A giant hill.

By the time I reached the top, I was panting and heaving, feeling tired, hungry, and dehydrated...but look!




The city was no longer lost! It was exactly where I'd left it, awaiting my return.

I sailed down the hill and home, sweet home, again.

Swashbuckling with Umbrellas

More swashbuckling occurred tonight. My coworker is awesome. He deserves mad props for putting up with me all day and then sparring with me in a public street using short umbrella swords. Why isn't everyone this cool? ;)

P.S.

Would a more fitting title for this post be Return of Swashbuckling with Umbrellas? Or maybe Son of...

Yeah, that's it.

Exploits of a Decliningly Picky Eater

Today I had shrimp soup with tofu in it, and I was astounded at how delicious the shrimp was. I think seafood is way better than I give it credit for.

I've also eaten squid tentacles, which are surprisingly bland, not to mention tough and chewy, and not nearly as disgusting as I'd previously thought.

I also got to partake of a fascinating array of fresh leaves the other night. Some seemed like lettuce, others more like mint, sesame, etc. - but some of them smelled like the grass in my back yard in the States and some reminded me of dandelion leaves. Here you eat a lot of things wrapped in other things (rice in seaweed, for example, which is also quite tastier than I'd envisioned), so eating meat wrapped in who-knows-what-kinds-of-leaves is both natural and delicious. Salads aren't too big here (with the exception of long-haired cole slaw under Thousand Island sauce) so it's one of the best ways to get fresh vegetables, I think.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll further the adventures of my palate and have a sequel entry soon.

Trying a New App

I'm trying out Bloggeroid, hoping it will have less glitches than the “official” Blogger app.

I hear you can include pictures within your posts so I'm gonna post a few and see how they turn out. Thanks for bearing with me!



A Watch Out for Lethal Giant Fish sign at the aquarium in Seoul.



Watermelon served on a frying pan, eaten at floor level, during a muggy monsoon season night in June.

Alright, let's see how this posts!

콘푸레이크 (Kone Pulaykeu)

Say the title of this post really quickly a few times and you might be able to discern the Konglish.  Sorry that I still can't get my Blogger app to turn the picture the right way. But check out Corn Flakes in Korean:

A Sunday Afternoon Well-Spent

I had a wonderful walk around the lake with my friend from church, and then she treated me at a cozy, hole-in-the-wall restaurant whose name translates to Mountain Village. Here are some pictures from our walk and our meal.

A Grand Opening

My friend (half of the couple who teaches me Korean) opened her hakwon (academy) today. It's a kind of English academy called a library hakwon with lots of different children's books, arranged according to their levels. Some of my favorites are there, along with tons of classics - the Harry Potter series, Robin McKinley's The Hero and the Crown, Louis Sachar's Holes, Andrew Clements' Frindle, etc. Parents pay a monthly fee and their children can come read any of the books they have.
I got to meet her family (and pet bird!), and a multitude of both Koreans and foreign teachers came. Part of the refreshments included pineapple rings soaked in vodka, and a watermelon with some vodka seeped inside.
When I first arrived, another foreign teacher told me, “Feed the pig!” I didn't realize at first what he meant, but then I saw a pig's head stuffed with money. I put some money in and noticed that the head felt moist and clammy, not like rubber or plastic.
So I had to ask: “Is the pig's head real?”
Yes. It was real.
When Korea was much poorer, everyone was thin. If someone was fat, everyone thought, Wow, they must be rich. Since pigs are massive animals, they came to symbolize wealth and fortune. So it is a Korean tradition to have a real pig's head at a business's grand opening. Apparently people bow to the pig and drink a shot of soju for good luck.
I'm not really into bowing to pigs' heads to gain wealth, but it was super interesting to see the pig's head there and hear about its origins.

Photo Quality

Wow, sorry everyone...those pictures looked great on my phone but awful on my blog.  Someday soon I'll find the time to sit down and transfer stuff from my phone to my computer, and then maybe I can post some clearer shots.

Views from My Bicycle

On June 6th I had the day off so I went for a nice bike ride. I saw a lot of awesome things, but here are a few of my photographic highlights.

태권도

I had my first taekwondo lesson tonight. It was pretty awesome. The grandmaster knows some English and seems like a good and patient teacher. One of the three masters knows a little less English but he's better than the other two. I'd say their level of English and my level of Korean are about the same. Even so I think it isn't hard to learn from them.

After class the kids (middle and high schoolers) went home but three masters sat down and shared ricecakes with me. I am looking forward to going back on Friday.

Master Y told me tonight, "To learn taekwondo is not easy. But also, it is not that hard."

I think I know what he means.

Need the Perfect Box? No Problem!

There's an awesome store called Daiso here (although I hear it's Japanese) and it's kind of like a mini-Target (but way cuter). They have one aisle with shelves of just cute boxes, and I thought, Wow, that's such a great idea! You can never find the perfect box when you need one but here you can come and get the best box for all your gifting/shipping needs. Hooray! I might send some stuff home this way. ;)

P.S. - Cuteness Bonus

For added cuteness, check out this cool cat notebook, too:

So Cute and Sweet

Even ice cream cakes are super cute here. Check out these sweet pics from the display case at our local Baskin Robbins.

Stickers in the Store

While shopping at Lotte Mart tonight, I encountered the complete set of that sheet of stickers one of my students gave me a few months ago.  Do you recognize it?

Here's a picture of it with its fellow sticker mates, as well as several other shelves of merchandise. Too cute!

Seasons

In Korea the change of seasons occurs with the change of months. For example, summer starts on the first of June, rather than partway through the month like in the West.

So, according to Korean measurements, I've now been in Korea for three seasons. I came in February and saw the end of winter, I stayed through the entire spring, and I am witness now to the new start of summer.

This year is flying by, and I take comfort in the fact that I have no intentions of returning home when I complete my contract.