I woke up, lazed around a bit, and then set off on my own to find my way through the Seoul subway system to get to Mokdong. I only got lost once - I asked a very nice boy selling overpriced shirts and he was able to point me in the right direction. Once I got to Mokdong I met up with Kyle and had a REALLY good lunch of donkatsu with ddukboki and three different types of kimbap (sort of like sushi only there is NO way you could ever claim it was the same thing to a Korean because they will KILL you). I was stuffed and extremely happy. The weather was smouldering, though, and I kept wanting to stop for water every ten feet (because I'm a "weak sweaty foreigner" of course!)
After lunch I went to 우리은행 (Woori Bank) which is now, officially, my bank!! I traded in all of my American cash for some good old Korean 원! I'm one step closer to being better at living here.
I then went to E-Mart which is a giant Target-like grocery store. They have the most intense grocery section ever, though. I encountered a lot of people that wanted to say random English phrases at me like "Baseball good!" etc. By the way, everyone in Korea LOVES the Cleveland Indians because we've got Choo! Seeing all of the Cleveland sports memorabilia around me makes me feel like I belong a little. I've never felt like my city was so appreciated until I left the country! When I tried to purchase tennis shoes for $20 (they were REALLY good shoes that sell for $80 in the states) I found out that...I am one half size bigger than the largest size in tennis shoes here. This is a problem. I stumbled through "this item...do you have bigger?" trying to ask he boy at the counter, but he just held up his hands about a foot apart and shook his head at me, as though I have to wear clown shoes or something! I wanted to protest, "no! Just a half size bigger! I don't have giant feet! You don't understand!" but all I know how to say out of that is "No! You don't understand!" and the thing is...he did understand...he just didn't have shoes for my enormous American feet. Guess I'll have to look harder! I finished my E-Mart journey with buying supplies to make dinner tonight - I wanted to try my hand at 김치찌개, that dish that I mentioned earlier (I got a version of it when I met with Heekyong for lunch) made with basically scraps around the kitchen but still has a great taste. I figured I should start easy.
I also stopped at my faaaavorite pastry shop, Paris Baguette, and got a strawberry cake and a green tea latte! Yummm...I was so satisfied :)
I made it home on the subway (not without having an awkward conversation with an old man about being American, of course) and walked around Hongdae for a while just browsing and familiarizing myself with the area. I'm getting better at not getting lost!
Making the kimchi jjigae was not so hard. I did pretty well! I ate well and had a sort of honey cake thing that I bought in E-Mart for dessert. I was full and happy. I've felt a little nauseous lately, so I'm thinking I might be more jet-lagged than I thought. We'll see what happens!
Today I'm going to 광화문 (Gwanghwamun) to meet with my friends Jamie, Alecia, and Gayin! We're going to grab lunch and hang out for a while. I still don't know what my afternoon/evening plans will be, but I'll probably study for a while (I REALLY need to brush up on Korean) and then more exploring!
Miss you guys!
Love,
Janet
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