Status: happy, healthy, and safe.
I'm sorry I haven't blogged in the longest time. So much as happened since my last post. I'm not experiencing anything completely weird enough to post about. I guess I've been occupied because I am meeting so many people. It's so easy to network over here. After meeting someone once, you can exchange numbers right away. I've seriously made more friends here in 5 weeks than I've made in the 14 years I lived in Houston, TX. I don't know if I should be happy or sad about it. I'm happy I have so many people to hang out with but once I go back home, I won't have a big group of friends anymore. I'll go back to being the boring little teacher who fills in the emptiness with extreme video gaming. Lol, just kidding. I'll miss the big group dinners though.
Lets see what has been going on lately... hmmm... I'll make a list so I won't forget what to write about.
1. I met a huge group of Vietnamese people here.
2. I think I have a Pakistani stalker.
3. I'm going to visit a palace this weekend.
4. There's a place called Hooker Hill here.
5. I took a personality test with interesting results.
1) I met Holly, a foreigner from Michigan, a couple of weeks ago. When I first met her she told me she had a Vietnamese boyfriend. She told me that he has a big group of Vietnamese friends and that it would be cool if we could all hang out. She asked me if I wanted to have lunch last Sunday so I agreed. What I didn't know was that the lunch was at her boyfriend's house. Homemade Vietnamese food- not the kind you have at the restaurants like Pho. They bought a chicken, plucked it, chopped it up, and cooked it. It was an interesting meal. More interesting than the meal was what happened during the lunch. I told them I was from America and that I didn't really speak Vietnamese. They believed me so they thought it was safe to talk about me. 50% of the conversations were about me. In the very end I started speaking Vietnamese and they were sooooo shocked. One of the guys turned red and said "You understood EVERYTHING?" It was pretty funny. They apologized and told me they were just kidding and that they knew I could speak Vietnamese the whole time. (yeah right) I didn't know there were so many Vietnamese guys in South Korea. Some have been here for 5 years already so they speak good Korean and Vietnamese but no English. None at all! I found that hard to believe because I thought English was a global/ common language. That's what I get for assuming.Out of the whole group, there were 2 guys who were really nice and we ended up bowling afterwards. First time bowling in Korea= 135 points. Wooohoooo. Those two guys text me everyday to tell me "Good morning and have a great day at work" "Did you eat lunch yet? I hope you have a delicious meal." "How was your day? Are you tired from work? Don't work too hard." and things like that. They're so caring that a part of me feels suspicious. I've had bad experiences with Vietnamese people last summer when I went back to Vietnam so I'm paranoid. What if they're nice to me because they want me to marry them so they can go to America?! Sigh, it sucks that I'm so suspicious of everyone.
2) Last Sunday, I was waiting at a bus stop when two Pakistani men started asking me for directions in Korean. I told them I didn't speak Korean and they figured I spoke English. They started talking to me and told me how they've been in South Korea for 5 years now that's why they can speak Korean. I was trying to be polite so I listened and made small talk. Before my bus came, one of the men asked me for my number. I couldn't tell him that I didn't have a phone because it was in my hand and I didn't want to tell him "No" because he would ask "why?" and I wouldn't know what to say besides "Because you're creepy and you look old enough to be my dad." I ended up giving him my number so he punched it in and called me right there. He told me to save his number so we can go hang out sometimes. I wanted to be open minded so I said "sure." I figured he just wanted to build his social network. 2 hours later he called me to ask me where I was, who I was with, what I was doing, and if I was with a guy. What the heck? I told him I was hanging out with a group of friends and that I was busy. On Monday, he called me 5 times while I was at work. He called non-stop so I turned off my phone. Later that night he called me again while I was on my way to dinner with Mary Ann. I picked up and asked him what he wanted. He told me to meet him in 30minutes. He didn't ask me, he TOLD me. I told him that I was going out to eat with a friend so he could join us if he wanted. This is what he said "No, 30 minutes I come to your town. We go eat something but don't bring your friend. Come alone. No friend. Just me and you." He was so demanding that it was scary. I told him that I wasn't going to meet him any where if he wanted to hang out then he would have to hang out with me AND my friend. He kept insisting so I said I'd call him back and hung up. At that point, I was feeling pretty scared. He knows what town I'm from and he works in the next town. He could easily run into me if he wanted to find me. During the dinner he called another 5 times. I guess he finally gave up because he hasn't called since then. I'm hoping he will NEVER ever call me again. Lesson: forget about giving people a chance. You know the saying "You shouldn't judge a book by its cover?" Well, men are not books. You should definitely go with your gut instincts and just say NO to creepy men. Next time I'm just going to ignore people who look like sexual predators.
3) It's really cold in Korea right now so I think it's the perfect time to walk around. I would never visit a palace in the summer because I would die from a heat stroke. Hopefully I'll be able to capture a lot of amazing scenery. There are several places I would like to visit while I'm here (in Korea). I would like to go to Jeju Island, Lotte World, Seoul Tower, the shopping district in Seoul, the Folk Village, and maybe a bath house. Jeju Island is a small island where a lot of locals go for their honeymoon because it's so romantic and beautiful. It's kind of like the Hawaii of Korea but not as nice. Lotte World is a small version of Disneyland. A bath house in Korea= you get completely naked in front of a bunch of strangers (same gender) and scrub your bodies or sit in a whirlpool. People of all ages come there to relax and everyone is naked. That's just insane! I don't think I'd be able to go naked. I'm pretty sure I'll get kicked out if I walked around with a bathing suit. Lol.
4) Let me explain Hooker Hill to you. It's exactly what it sounds like. There's a street on a hill that's lined with bars where hookers stand in the front. I've heard of the place, never been there, but I just want to know how obvious it is. Prostitution is "illegal" over here but I heard the sex industry is more lucrative than the agricultural industry. I don't know how it's illegal if everyone knows of this infamous hill. Oh yeah, "tranny" hill is located some where close to Hooker Hill too. I can only imagine how trashy this area must be.
Other news: New people are coming to town so that means more people to hang out with. Yay. This is James. He got here last Wednesday so I'm no longer the newbie!!!!
P.S. I went clubbing in Suwon, a city near my town, and it was... different. The way they were dancing= hilarious. I went to club TAO. They won't let guys over 30 into the club. I guess when a guy hits 30 he's supposed to be married already. If he's not then he should be at hooker hill. hahaha.
Funny news: I played Taboo with the students today and they described me as: a person, in the room, English teacher, from America, girl, tall, and.... BLACK SKIN. lol. REALLY?! I'm considered BLACK now?! In the states, I had a student (we will call him "Max") tell me I was white- like him. hahahaha. Man, I love kids. They always catch me off guard with the craziest things.
Broadcasting Thursdays: I feel like an anchorwoman every Thursday when I have to broadcast for the entire school to see. I'm a celebrity now! Lol. Just kidding. It's getting easier though. I don't feel as nervous anymore.
My first portrait from a 3rd grade student. Nice to know she thinks I have a big head but at least I'm not round! Yay! Lol.
It snowed yesterday so the city is looks pretty with the thin layer of white snow.
