'I would walk 500 miles'

Since I have arrived, I feel like I have done nothing but walk. It is what people do here. I don't mind the walking. I actually quite enjoy it. What I don't enjoy is the 100 degree weather I am diong it in, or how gross I feel by the time I get wherever I am going!

On Monday, Turk and I went to school together and met up with Jenny on the way. When we arrived, we found we had a new teacher, David, and 2 more were comming within the next two weeks or so. It's the first week of the international school (which is the first 5 classes of the day) and the students will be on a religious retreat for the week so all we have to teach is the afternoon school which is the English classes for the little kids. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we don't have to arrive until 2, so Jenny and I make plans to do a bit of wandering and have lunch Tuesday morning.

Monday night we all go out for a goodbye dinner for Claire since Tuesday is her last day. We had a type of Korean pork barbeque and fried kimchi and it was actually quite good. Then, Turk, Ben, and I went to a local pub which is conveniently located right across the street from my apartment. The place is called Sonny's after the guy that owns it. It's kind of a dive place but it's super laid back with couches as seating. Sonny is actually a really rad guy and he makes some really great food from what I hear so I am all in for the place.

While at the pub I made friends with a couple American guys, Howard and Jeremy. Jeremy was from Kansas City so I was stoked to find a fellow Missourian and we chatted about how things were back at home for a bit.

The next day was my birthday so Jenny came by my apartment and she brought a cookies and cream cheesecake from Paris Baguette for Turk and me which we decided to take to the school and share with everyone so it was like a real office birthday party. Jenny and I spent the afternoon walking around the shops in search for her sister a birthday present. Around lunchtime we were in search for a place to stop and grab a bite. As we passed by shops with things we couldn't identify and had no clue how to order since neither one of us can read the hongul yet, I commented on how I longed for a nice sandwich shop. Jenny mentioned she had spotted one in between her apartment and mine and so the decision was unanimous! The place was called Sand Day and it was like a little sandwich/coffee bistro. All I can say is that it was the most delicious sandwich I had eaten in forever! After almost a week of Korean meals, I was craving a good old western sandwich and I couldn't have asked for a better place to find! Sand Day has officially become my sanctuary in case of a lunch crisis!

From Sand Day we walked to the school, which takes about 45 minutes. On the way, David ran into us and we walked a bit together until he gave up in the heat and decided to catch a bus. I am actually quite proud that I have taken to walking so much. At the school we found that Claire and Pamela had also gotten Turk and me a cake and so we decided to have one that afternoon and save the other for the next day. I only had one class to teach that afternoon and so I got almost all of my unit plans for my day classes done. In between classes, a group of the children came into the teachers' office and told me happy birthday and one of the little girls gave me a charm for my cell phone. It was really sweet.

After school, Jenny and I walked back to our apartments to freshen up and then to Sonny's for the evening. Turk, Ben, and David also showed up. We drank a few tall glasses of Cass (a common Korean beer) and Sonny gave me a flaming shot of Bacardi 151 (it was a birthday shot, he insisted) and we played pool and hung out. We met half a dozen other foreign teachers like ourselves that night and Howard from the night before was there as well. All in all it was a pretty spectacular birthday.

Tonight I am going to have to quit procrastinating and go to E-Mart and pick up an external microphone so I can Skype home. I also need to phone Lee to see what he is doing this weekend because Jenny and I are making plans to do the Seoul tour on Saturday.