the cold here is new to me. it's unrelenting. it's got strength and will. you go in a cafe for warmth, and warmth is there, but you can see the cold glaring at you through the window as you sip your coffee, with it's right fist punching the left in anticipation.
we went to busan for three nights, and when we got back our amazing floor heater wouldn't turn on. the cold had gotten to it while we were gone, and wreaked havoc on the pipes. so sad. but some one will fix it for us tomorrow, i hear, and tonight we might seek shelter at a cheap hotel in our neighborhood... so the vacation continues: woo-hoo!
busan was a welcome break. can i tell you the frustrations and mishaps? not because they were important, but because they were funny.
friday night (vacation's birth) i went and got my hair did at a new place, because i wanted a playful, loud new 'do: a bright color, a cool cut. the young female hairdressers spoke very little english, and so we mingled languages and gestures and pointed at pictures and made exaggerated sounds until we came to some agreement over what should be done to my damaged, dull, confused mop. then the dying began (a two step process that was to be followed by a cut and style)... then food was delivered. the girls and two young guys stood over me, all four applying color with gloves and brushes while eating fried chicken. one girl would occasionally use chopsticks to feed me little balls of sweet and sour. then the girls looked at their watches and said goodbye as one of the boys took me to the rinse sink. once i was returned to my chair i realized they had communicated nothing to the guys at the end of their shift, and so i was left with the two skinny boys scratching their heads, completely unable to understand a word i said regarding what to do next.
total four hours and $80 later, i trudged home with a less-than-exciting ginger tone and the same amount of hair i'd woken up with... a bit more, if we're being technical. i gave myself a trim in the bathroom with our giant orange kitchen scissors.
the next day kevin and i caught a bus to busan, not understanding the significance of the city's 'traffic time'... so a 3 hour bus ride turned into almost 5, and i had to pee something fierce.
once we docked, i located the ladies rooms and kevin located a subway map. while on the subway car, i thought i had something stuck in my tooth and tried to get it out... 'it' turned out to be the protective filling in the hole created by my never-ending root canal (no joke, i'm on week 3)... so i was freaking out a little over the potential ramifications of my accidental dental 'unplugging'. then we passed our subway stop. we almost passed the one after it, too. i kicked over a full soda can on the floor of the subway car as i jumped through the closing metal doors.
there was further confusion trying to get the right cards to keep riding the subway. finally, i threw up my hands and whistled for a cab. turns out, i can't whistle worth a damn, but we were able to flag a cab down anyway, and i finally began to relax. about two moments later, i was in the much-missed embrace of my friend, tamara, who has been hiding in the states since, what, august? she's a good hugger... and did the runaround to find us a cozy hotel room before we arrived, so things got much better real fast.
our room's window displayed the ocean and a fair on the beach... though it was far too blustery to physically partake in either of the excellent endeavors. it was good enough to see them there, and to catch up with our buddy. we played darts and found a genius bar that offered pitchers of domestic with whiskey dropped in. i ate a CRAWFISH TACO! first crawfish i've seen in a while.
we failed to find good live music, but it was fun hunting.
the next day we had coffee at a stinkin' lovely beach-view spot, found me some new boots, played at a great arcade which had the coolest mario-kart and a horse-racing game... lots of general exploring of a new city, which, it turns out, is HUGE. tamara led us to a beautiful and delicious indian restaurant, and we double-dated to a 3-D showing of 'Megamind', which was way better than i ever expected-- two thumbs up.
the next day was for tower-climbing and movie-district (PIFF), then the awesome fish market. so many critters in tanks! tamara got a hug from a fisherman when she arrived. 10 points, at least.
on the top floor we found the buffet. wait, i mean THE BUFFET. we didn't take pictures, cause it would have ruined the beautiful moment. only problem is, now every other buffet will disappoint me.
however, if you're thinking about trying sea squirt, i would advise you to opt out.
ok, so that was our lil vacation. now i have to make plans for the next: in the first week of feb. we will hopefully be heading to japan! i mean, you know, while we're all the way over here- right?
otherwise, i'm really looking forward to coming home. a few friends have asked why the change of heart-- one day gung-ho to stay, then eager to return.
here is why, in a nutshell: now that i've been here almost a year, all those things that were so exciting and new are now normal and comfortable, and korea's kind of a small place... kind of homogeneous, too. so i'm getting restless, and want to see something new.
but also, i'm sick of being misunderstood and of not being able to fully get what's going on around me EVERYWHERE i go. in class, i don't know what the kids are saying to each other. at the lunch table, my coworkers chat and i quietly eat. sure, i could pull them into an english conversation, but that's work for them. standing alone in a subway, i don't understand what advertisements say. my hairdresser, my dentist, my server... everyone can communicate with me only so far... just covering the essentials. i miss big conversations about nothing, and stupid smalltalk with strangers, and eavesdropping over coffee, and all that.
and the thing is, it's all my fault. i really should have worked harder to study the language by this point, and i would be happier. but now i know.... so if i decide to come back for round two, i'll know what to do.
in the meantime...
i'm homeward bound and happy.
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