This is the kpop band I randomly got to see perform in Hongdae!
The Blonde on in the Skirt Waved at me!
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Embarrassing Story Time!
Caitlin and I moved into our apartment on Thursday (pictures will be posted once we get the place in order) and our hot water hasn't been working. Our landlord (not really one of the owners of the place... he works with the real estate people but takes care of stuff in the building like the cable people and issues like the hot water not working) came by yesterday and took a look. He told us he would come back later.
Caitlin and I waited around for awhile last night because in Korean, people don't tend to specify when is later. In English later for me usually means the same day, unless I clarify later this week/this month/etc. But in Korean later is just later and could mean the same day or any time in the general future. Anyway, he didn't show up last night, so we figured he meant later in the sense of anytime in the future.
This morning at 9am I heard the intercom go off. I was, like any proper teenager, sleeping. But the intercom woke me up and I figured it must be the landlord again to tell us what was wrong. So in my sleep-state I jump out of bed and hurry to the door, not wanting to keep him waiting, completely forgetting that I was only in a giant t-shirt with no pants on. (Luckily, it's big enough you can't tell if I'm not wearing shorts.)
So I answer the door and the landlord starts speaking to me in Korean. For some reason, I always have a hard time understanding his Korean. I could understand the landlady and the realtor, but I can not understand him. So he's trying to tell me something, and he just keeps repeating the same thing. I'm standing there smiling nervously and apologizing in Korean because I don't understand so the landlord goes over and rings the intercom on my neighbor's door, upon which a young Korean guy comes out.
So I'm standing in my doorway, can't see anything because I'm not wearing my contacts or glasses, in my pajamas, no pants on, with my retainer still in my mouth while my landlord is asking this young Korean guy to translate into English for me. I was so embarrassed!
But anyway, he said that our gas was working, so on the upside, I got to take a hot shower this morning.
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Hongdae Fun Times!
So tonight is our last night at the guesthouse in Hongdae! I'm sure we'll be back to hang out in Hongdae, the nightlife is really fun. There's great food and shops and street performers!
Last night Caitlin and I ate REALLY spicy noodles at Noodle Box, then rushed to find some pat bingsoo to cool down our mouths and stomachs. Pat bingsoo (팥빙수) is kind of like ice cream. It's shaved ice mixed with sweetened condensed milk. It's usually served with sweet red beans, but lots of places have fun flavors like oreo or strawberry, etc. Caitlin and I decided to be daring and try the pumpkin flavor. It wasn't bad, but tasted more like acorn squash than pumpkin.
After that we walked around and watched some street performers. One guy was saying the name of the English song he was going to play and he called Caitlin and me out, "Can you understand my English!?" I responded, "네, 너무 잘 했어요!" (Yes, you spoke very well!) Which made everyone watching laugh. Another group of street performers were middle school or high-school aged boys. They were really flustered and embarrassed, but they were pretty talented. Caitlin and I watched them for awhile because we wanted to encourage them and we also found it funny how we made them kind of nervous. We could hear them talking about us at one point, probably because they didn't know that we understood Korean. XD
Tonight we went to Hongdae again and found the Eat Your Kimchi Nasty Studios! Eat Your Kimchi is a couple who started out as teachers in Korea, but now run a blog all about Korea and kpop and stuff. Caitlin and I are fans, so we took a picture of their studio!
Later, we were approached by some guy who was talking to us in English and asking where we were from. He told us that he was producing a music video and somehow talked us into letting him film us doing a head-bobbing dance. Soooo embarrassing!
But there was a group of a young Korean girls with signs waiting around so Caitlin and I waited around too and a kpop group showed up! Caitlin and I hadn't heard them before, but we read from some of the signs that they're called History. They were pretty cool, and the cutest one waved at us!
We've definitely had a fun time! Will definitely be hanging in Hongdae more in the future!
Last night Caitlin and I ate REALLY spicy noodles at Noodle Box, then rushed to find some pat bingsoo to cool down our mouths and stomachs. Pat bingsoo (팥빙수) is kind of like ice cream. It's shaved ice mixed with sweetened condensed milk. It's usually served with sweet red beans, but lots of places have fun flavors like oreo or strawberry, etc. Caitlin and I decided to be daring and try the pumpkin flavor. It wasn't bad, but tasted more like acorn squash than pumpkin.
After that we walked around and watched some street performers. One guy was saying the name of the English song he was going to play and he called Caitlin and me out, "Can you understand my English!?" I responded, "네, 너무 잘 했어요!" (Yes, you spoke very well!) Which made everyone watching laugh. Another group of street performers were middle school or high-school aged boys. They were really flustered and embarrassed, but they were pretty talented. Caitlin and I watched them for awhile because we wanted to encourage them and we also found it funny how we made them kind of nervous. We could hear them talking about us at one point, probably because they didn't know that we understood Korean. XD
Tonight we went to Hongdae again and found the Eat Your Kimchi Nasty Studios! Eat Your Kimchi is a couple who started out as teachers in Korea, but now run a blog all about Korea and kpop and stuff. Caitlin and I are fans, so we took a picture of their studio!
Later, we were approached by some guy who was talking to us in English and asking where we were from. He told us that he was producing a music video and somehow talked us into letting him film us doing a head-bobbing dance. Soooo embarrassing!
But there was a group of a young Korean girls with signs waiting around so Caitlin and I waited around too and a kpop group showed up! Caitlin and I hadn't heard them before, but we read from some of the signs that they're called History. They were pretty cool, and the cutest one waved at us!
We've definitely had a fun time! Will definitely be hanging in Hongdae more in the future!
Friday, August 23, 2013
Arrived in Korea!
So my friend from OSU and I arrived in Seoul yesterday! The plane ride wasn't too bad for me. I ate, and then slept till the next meal, and then slept a bit more. I will say that the plane was SO HOT! It was the first time I've been on a plane where it wasn't freezing.
So we got to Incheon International Airport, customs was a bit of a wait but not too bad. Then we got our bags, exchanged money, and picked up my cell phone. We took the airport limo (actually a bus, I don't know why it's called a limo) to Hongik University and then walked to the kimchee guest, which is where we're staying for the time being. The walk to the guesthouse was not fun. It's not too far, we did the walk this morning and it was no problem. But we didn't know exactly where we were going and we had so much baggage! My arms are sore today from dragging the suitcases around!
Gut reaction to Korea: I really like it so far! I think because I can play the foreigner card I don't get as embarrassed by things. People expect me to look lost and confused and mess up the language because I'm white so I'm much more relaxed here than I would be than if I were in a major city that I was unfamiliar with in the US. I guess it also helps that I have a smart phone now, and the maps app is a life saver! It is weird to have people kind of stare at me. Not everyone does, but it does happen a little bit. I think Caitlin's more sensitive to it than me. (She also looks a lot whiter than me, with her red hair.) But I have had some people when I was at Sogang for my placement test come up and talk to me. Ask why I was there, where I was from, etc.
One thing that I've noticed about Korea so far is that there's a completely different vibe than in the US. For example, our guesthouse isn't on a main street, it's tucked away into a back alley. This would probably make me nervous in the US, but not here. There are a bunch of other hostels located near by and I've seen other people walking by with suitcases and nicely dressed koreans walking by. So it's cheap, but not sketchy. And Caitlin and I only paid about $175 each for our double room at the hostel for a week, and the accommodations aren't bad at all. (Though Caitlin has many complaints about how hard our mattress is! XD It's much harder than any mattress I've ever slept on in the US.) So Seoul has a lot of back alleys, it's kind of hard to avoid walking through them as you navigate. I'm sure there are some sketchy ones, but it's pretty nice near the universities and in the foreigner areas.
Anyway, that's all I've really got for now. My Sogang language placement test is over with and Caitlin and I are going to look at some apartments tonight! :)
So we got to Incheon International Airport, customs was a bit of a wait but not too bad. Then we got our bags, exchanged money, and picked up my cell phone. We took the airport limo (actually a bus, I don't know why it's called a limo) to Hongik University and then walked to the kimchee guest, which is where we're staying for the time being. The walk to the guesthouse was not fun. It's not too far, we did the walk this morning and it was no problem. But we didn't know exactly where we were going and we had so much baggage! My arms are sore today from dragging the suitcases around!
Gut reaction to Korea: I really like it so far! I think because I can play the foreigner card I don't get as embarrassed by things. People expect me to look lost and confused and mess up the language because I'm white so I'm much more relaxed here than I would be than if I were in a major city that I was unfamiliar with in the US. I guess it also helps that I have a smart phone now, and the maps app is a life saver! It is weird to have people kind of stare at me. Not everyone does, but it does happen a little bit. I think Caitlin's more sensitive to it than me. (She also looks a lot whiter than me, with her red hair.) But I have had some people when I was at Sogang for my placement test come up and talk to me. Ask why I was there, where I was from, etc.
One thing that I've noticed about Korea so far is that there's a completely different vibe than in the US. For example, our guesthouse isn't on a main street, it's tucked away into a back alley. This would probably make me nervous in the US, but not here. There are a bunch of other hostels located near by and I've seen other people walking by with suitcases and nicely dressed koreans walking by. So it's cheap, but not sketchy. And Caitlin and I only paid about $175 each for our double room at the hostel for a week, and the accommodations aren't bad at all. (Though Caitlin has many complaints about how hard our mattress is! XD It's much harder than any mattress I've ever slept on in the US.) So Seoul has a lot of back alleys, it's kind of hard to avoid walking through them as you navigate. I'm sure there are some sketchy ones, but it's pretty nice near the universities and in the foreigner areas.
Anyway, that's all I've really got for now. My Sogang language placement test is over with and Caitlin and I are going to look at some apartments tonight! :)
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Packing
- cloths
- shoes
- winter coat
- comforter
- pillow
- travel toiletries
- brush
- straightener
- contacts
- computer/ipod
- sheets
- towels
- ibuprofen/dramamine
- pads/tampons
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