First Impressions

I have already been in Seoul for one month, and am just now beginning my blog. If you know me, your first guess would be that I haven't started blogging yet because I am procrastinating. This is only partly true. I just got Internet in my apartment, and so begins the adventure.

Since I have already been here for a little while, I feel like I have a lot to write. Too much. So I decided that I will try to keep this first one simple and let you know what my general likes and dislikes of living in Korea are thus far.

LIKES
*I am starting with this to be optimistic, and this is in no particular order
**I will also include a "downside"to each of my likes, and an "upside" to each of my dislikes
1) Big city! I love, love, love living in a gigantic city. Many of my "likes" stem from the fact that a big city has a lot to offer. Downside: there are A LOT of people. Sometimes it is hard to just walk.
2) Great public transportation. This means I don't have to worry about driving my car. In fact, I don't think I should be allowed to drive at all and I think most of my friends and family would agree. It is much less expensive to run into someone on the subway than it is to crash into another car (or mailbox, or lamp post, or brick wall...am I forgetting anything?) and it is all in English which makes getting around that much easier. Taxis are also very cheap. This makes me happy. Downside: Taxi drivers do not speak English. I sometimes get lost.
3) Nightlife. Of course this is going to be on my list. As far as I can tell, nightlife in Korea basically has two gears: "intense" and "more intense". "Intense" refers to going to a bar where you can sit down, but there are lights of the strobe and laser variety, very loud music (often Korean pop...which deserves a whole blog in itself...), lots of smoke, and very drunk Koreans. "More Intense" refers to going to a club where you cannot sit down because of the mega dance party that is going on in the midst of the smoke machine while you try to yell "TEQUILA" to the bartender, who gives you a confused look until you pantomime taking a little shot, which inevitably turns into you doing the worm in the middle of a break dancing competition (thank you, Jen, for not letting me do that), lots of smoke, and very drunk Koreans. Downside: Intense nights mean intense hangovers.
4) Food. I am diggin' the food. Sushi here is called gimbap, and I can get a roll for two dollars. I do this everyday at work. I am finding that there are very few Korean dishes that I do not like, the food is spicy and me likey. Downside: American food is hard to come by...especially my dear sweet tacos.
5) My job. If any of you know the complete and total nightmare that I had teaching in inner city St. Louis, consider this the complete and total opposite. The kids at Roosevelt killed me and I have died and gone to Korean teaching heaven. Bliss. I teach kindergarten to middle school (which is different here, my oldest kids are 16) and it is so fun and so easy. This subject will get its own blog in the near future. Downside: While I really like my coworkers, I am the only native English speaker at my school and it can get a little lonely when they are all speaking in Korean.

DISLIKES
1) I do not speak or read Korean. This obviously causes some problems.
Example #1: My boss has to do A LOT of interpreting for me, setting up a bank account, taking me to the doctor, getting my cell phone and Internet and so on. Either this makes me feel guilty that he has to spend so much time doing me special favors, or it makes me feel pissed off because it limits my independence...I am undecided which feeling is really going on here.
Example #2: I rely on pictures to buy everything. My fabric softener came in a blue bottle with a picture of a woman who looked like she was sniffing and saying "ahhh" with her arms outstretched in a sea of clouds. I got lucky. Two days ago I bought a bag of chips that had a picture of what looked like cheese puffs on it. When I opened it the cheese puffs were covered in this nasty yogurt and did not taste anything remotely close to even fake cheese. Not so lucky. There are many, many more instances where the language barrier has caused me some strife, this too will be confronted later. Upside: No one can understand what I am saying, ever. For instance, if I am on the subway with another English teacher, I can say "Oh my god, this homeless guy next to me smells so horrible, and look how dirty his hands are!" and he will never ever know.
2) Tiny water cups. At restaurants, the water cup that you get is about the size of a dixie cup. One drink. This irritates me to no end. And if you are lucky enough to be at a restaurant that has normal sized cups, they NEVER fill it to the top. "Three-fourths of the way will do" must be what they are thinking. It kills me. Upside: I can refill it myself and do not have to wait on a server.
3) Yellow dust. Wikipedia it. I have recently found out (after two trips to the doctor, two days off work, a horrible cold and laryngitis) that I am allergic to it. I now have a humidifier going constantly in my room and a pretty pink surgical mask that I am supposed to wear when I go outside. Good news is that it should be gone in a couple of months. Upside: There is NO upside to yellow dust.
4) Cold food. There is so much food here that would be so delicious if they would just serve it hot. Too many times have I been at a restaurant and said to myself "Wow, that little circle vegetable thing looks really good!" and then I take a bite and it is cold and gross. This includes nacho cheese. What a disappointment. Upside: The cold food does cancel out the spicy when you need it.
5) Korea smells weird. It comes in pockets, some places smell more than others. If I were a better writer, I would describe it for you...but then again if I could describe it perfectly, the mere process of your brain pretending to smell it might make you vom. Upside: I know I smell good since I am still fresh from America. However, I don't know if over time I will also become smelly.

I wish I could write more, but Sex and the City just came on in English on my Korean cable, and when that happens, you watch.