A Good Day
"I got to say it was a good day...I didn't even have to use my AK" - poet laureate Ice Cube
The day began on the subway with a cup of coffee in one hand and an American Time magazine (I mostly get the international edition over here) in the other. I usually loathe the subway on weekends, but with a tasty beverage and some reading material, not to mention a smaller-than-usual crowd to contend with, my venture across the city was an enjoyable one.
I went to Itaewon to buy a new shirt. I couldn't find much that suited my taste at first. Itaewon has a large population of Africans. The style for this group seems to be over-sized FUBU and sports jerseys. All of the stores I went in to were trying to sell me FUBU shirts that went to my knees. I would have bought a shirt, but I didn't have enough money to buy the obligatory gold chains to go with. I ended up in a Columbia store where they had two shirts that fit me, so I bought one of those instead. All I'm saying, is don't be shocked if I am dressed like an Afican pimp when I return to the States.
As the sun set over the Han river, some coworkers and myself headed to an Indian restaurant called Ganga to meet up with the entire crew from work for a Christmas get-together. We had a delicious dinner of nan, curries, salad, samosas (delicious little "stuffed Indian buns,") tandoori chicken, prawns, red wine and Newcastle Brown Ale. The meal was great and the company better. The dinner also featured our Secret Santa gift exchange. My coworker Laurie had me and he bought me a Korean Cookbook (in English) so I can hopefully try to recreate some Korean delights at home.
After dinner, I was invited to a house party with a few friends. It was at a cool little apartment in an area called Haebongchong - an area with lots of foreigners. I enjoy parties, and I would say that generally my favorite genre of party is the house party, but there are always some concerns when you are going to a house party full of people you don't know. Turns out, the cat throwing the party was a real laid-back guy with some great friends. It was a small apartment with a DJ in one corner, Christmas decorations on every wall, lots of Santa hats and a sweet rooftop terrace overlooking the Namsan Tower (aka - Seoul Tower.) I had some great conversations with people from all over the world - Americans, Koreans, Newfoundlandians, Scots, Irish, Kiwis - and the surprising thing is I really liked pretty much everybody I met. It was a stellar party and I hope I get invited back for another. I can't imagine very many scenarios in the States where I would end up at a party with such a diverse group of people and these kind opportunities to talk to people from all over the globe is one of my favorite things about this city.
I ended up stumbling out of the party at some point and taking to the alleys with my iPod and my camera. I wandered aimlessly and took pictures of a very serene Seoul as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah screamed in my ears. I took pictures of kimchi pots, street signs and this one of myself in a motorcycle mirror:
With only a handful of weekends left in Korea, it is nice to have great Saturdays like this, full of memories to take with me. I have had somewhat of a love-hate relationship with Seoul ever since I got here, but right now we are all love and part of me knows it will be hard to say goodbye.
Much love from Seoul
The day began on the subway with a cup of coffee in one hand and an American Time magazine (I mostly get the international edition over here) in the other. I usually loathe the subway on weekends, but with a tasty beverage and some reading material, not to mention a smaller-than-usual crowd to contend with, my venture across the city was an enjoyable one.
I went to Itaewon to buy a new shirt. I couldn't find much that suited my taste at first. Itaewon has a large population of Africans. The style for this group seems to be over-sized FUBU and sports jerseys. All of the stores I went in to were trying to sell me FUBU shirts that went to my knees. I would have bought a shirt, but I didn't have enough money to buy the obligatory gold chains to go with. I ended up in a Columbia store where they had two shirts that fit me, so I bought one of those instead. All I'm saying, is don't be shocked if I am dressed like an Afican pimp when I return to the States.
As the sun set over the Han river, some coworkers and myself headed to an Indian restaurant called Ganga to meet up with the entire crew from work for a Christmas get-together. We had a delicious dinner of nan, curries, salad, samosas (delicious little "stuffed Indian buns,") tandoori chicken, prawns, red wine and Newcastle Brown Ale. The meal was great and the company better. The dinner also featured our Secret Santa gift exchange. My coworker Laurie had me and he bought me a Korean Cookbook (in English) so I can hopefully try to recreate some Korean delights at home.
After dinner, I was invited to a house party with a few friends. It was at a cool little apartment in an area called Haebongchong - an area with lots of foreigners. I enjoy parties, and I would say that generally my favorite genre of party is the house party, but there are always some concerns when you are going to a house party full of people you don't know. Turns out, the cat throwing the party was a real laid-back guy with some great friends. It was a small apartment with a DJ in one corner, Christmas decorations on every wall, lots of Santa hats and a sweet rooftop terrace overlooking the Namsan Tower (aka - Seoul Tower.) I had some great conversations with people from all over the world - Americans, Koreans, Newfoundlandians, Scots, Irish, Kiwis - and the surprising thing is I really liked pretty much everybody I met. It was a stellar party and I hope I get invited back for another. I can't imagine very many scenarios in the States where I would end up at a party with such a diverse group of people and these kind opportunities to talk to people from all over the globe is one of my favorite things about this city.
I ended up stumbling out of the party at some point and taking to the alleys with my iPod and my camera. I wandered aimlessly and took pictures of a very serene Seoul as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah screamed in my ears. I took pictures of kimchi pots, street signs and this one of myself in a motorcycle mirror:
With only a handful of weekends left in Korea, it is nice to have great Saturdays like this, full of memories to take with me. I have had somewhat of a love-hate relationship with Seoul ever since I got here, but right now we are all love and part of me knows it will be hard to say goodbye.
Much love from Seoul
posted by Kyle at 3:34 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home