"thank you for not eating me"

march 28th
Months 5 and 6 were difficult ones. I thought about visiting home often and how much I would love even just a quick getaway to see my family and friends. I've heard from other people that nearing the midway point was a difficult time for them as well. I really did start to feel a bit better with the warm weather and hitting my six-month mark on March 28th. It was an awesome feeling to know I can countdown now but also difficult to fathom that I have to do what I just did for six more months. I am hoping it will go by super fast. I'm fairly certain it will.


april 12th
I had brunch at the Ritz Carlton this morning. There was a family sitting on the patio enjoying their brunch as well. The father was walking around with his little girl in his arms, four years old at the most. Being the friendly gal that I am, I say "An Yang" to the little girl and wave because she was quite cute. Like most parents would do, he tells the little girl to say hello back but she's too shy. The dad then says in perfect English, "She's scared of white people." My friend and I just laugh because what else are you gonna do? He chuckled as well and walked away grinning. It was a strange thing to say I thought, but I was mostly amused. About a half hour later he comes back with the little girl. I'm thinking he is going to apologize or something. He comes out with, "She says 'Don't eat me." I am quite surprised and laugh and rub my belly and say, "Oh, I'm full. I've already eaten a big breakfast; I can't fit in any more little kids." He responds, "Thank you. Thank you for not eating me." Okay, buddy. That's enough. The little girl never said a word but he acted as though he were translating for her the whole time. Obviously these were all his own thoughts. He's the one that's scared of white people. The whole interaction was quite hilarious to me, but on the other side, it's kind of messed up too. It's an interesting glimpse into how people can subtly, inadvertently, or even purposely pass on their xenophobia to their children.


april 18th
I went to a professional baseball game at the Sports Complex in Seoul. Here they don't have home teams and away teams, just favorites, and they all play in Seoul. The teams are owned by companies. I watched the LG Twins vs. Kia Tigers game this Saturday. I wasn't sure how Koreans would act at a baseball game. I half-expected them to be as reserved as they are in other areas of life. Nope. Everyone had clappers, and they were constantly starting chants, even the wave. It was a real riot. Tickets to the baseball game: 6,000 won (4 bucks). Beer: 3,000 won. Rooting for the team whose section you sat in at a baseball game in Seoul, South Korea: pricesless. Honestly, this was one of the cheapest and most fun things I've done in Korea yet. I plan to go a few more times this season.


april 28th
I'm officially over the hump. Five more months left. Spring, monsoon season, September ...and I'm home!


random observations:
Koreans may be the scariest drivers I've seen yet. Yes, even scarier than massholes and newyorkers. I don't think you would necessarily guess this, but it's true. They do not obey traffic laws at all. Apparently there's no such thing as a one-way street, a red light, or a crosswalk. It's actually officially acceptable for buses to run red lights as long as they blow their horns. Although no one obeys traffic laws, everyone obeys pedestrian laws. I think these are related phenomena. No one would dare cross the street until they get the green light, and even then hesitantly looking both ways, aware they could get killed by a bus at any moment. In addition, people are also a fan of the motorbike here. All the food delivery places use them and others for their businesses or whatnot as well. The problem with the motorbikes is they weave in and out of traffic constantly. People are forever slamming on their brakes to avoid a motorbike that just cut them off on the highway. They also drive on the sidewalks and in any direction they please. It's kind of crazy walking on the sidewalk and seeing a biker barely avoiding the pedestrians and coming straight at you. Believe it or not, I've only seen one accident since I've been here. But it was a terrible sight that I'll never forget: a man on a motorbike lying on the ground in front of a bus in the middle of an intersection.

Even more random: zoning laws. There's a law here that a building erected next to a pre-existing building must respect the privacy of the occupants in the first building. This means you are required by law to either keep your blinds shut at all times or build blinders on your windows so you can only look up and out, not directly across. This is totally weird to me and also a nuisance as I have the blinders on my windows.


The new slideshow is of scenery and sights in bundang and seoul so far. The prettier ones are mostly of my suburban neighborhood, and the others in the city.