0 minutes. Then transferred to a bus. Luckily the bus ride was only 20 minutes. The journey seemed to take forever. We were happy to have finally arrived. And even happier that the weather was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!! Seoul's weather is supposed to be a few degrees cooler than Busan so we could only imagine what it was like in Busan.Heyri is a small art village on the outskirts of Seoul. The small village took 20 years of planning to put together. It's filled with art galleries, and bridges and just different artistic things. It was so cute and beautiful. We were greeted at the gate by a giant blue man. It was hilarious that a lot of the Koreans were actually bowing to it. This guy is bowing with it, but 3 people were actually bowing TO it... I was just slow with the camera thing. We had fun just walking
around and exploring different areas, doing different things, etc. One 
cool thing we found was this old school bus. Inside is a little store. Tons of jewelry, knic knacs, etc. Real pretty inside actually, just a bit cramped. I also had to take a photo next to this building. It's ALL purple (my favorite color). Granted u can't see the whole building, but it was cool :) There were different bridges across little ponds and every bridge was different (here are Lacey 
and Gill at one). And then there are little p
layground areas all around too. So I had to take advantage and be a bit/little kid again. The playground equipment was a bit different than usual. I actually had to climb through a tiny little hold to get inside of this thingy. We sat down at a chocolateria for some ice cream, iced coffee, and relaxation. We met some other foreigners that we chatted with for a bit. We didn't go into any of the art galleries (w
e ran out of time and were tired from the journey) but just wondering around outside and in the little shops was great. We found this little store that had a bunch of little dolls that children had made in other countries (yes including US... not sure if the dolls were for show or sale) but I think they were for a charity. We had a great time visiting. Leaving, was ANOTHER adventure. We took a bus back that said it was going to the subway station. Remember, the bus we took getting there took about 20 minutes... this one took 45!! We were so confused. Definitely took the countryside scenic route. Once we FINALLY arrived at the subway, we took it back to the train station.... but the subway stopped midway, everyone got off, and the speakers said final stop... again... confused. This was the same subway that we took...???? To this day, we have no idea what happened. We got fed up, we were tired, hungry, etc. So we took a taxi to the train station, retrieved our things, and then headed to my friend Marcus's house in Itaewon.Marcus and I had been emailing for awhile. He is the best friend of one of my friends back in
see people here and there. There were foreigners right and left in Seoul. Very different. Why that's uncomfortable, I have no idea. It just is. To explain it, I have this comic strip :) A couple in Seoul draw these comic about foreigner life in Korea... I swear that EVERY comic is DEAD on. To get more of an idea 
of their comics and what life is, check out ROKetship.com. I'll post more comics cause seriously, they're HILARIOUS (maybe more so if you're here and understand some of them). So back to the bar story. Not much to tell. Went to a foreigner bar, met some new friends, 
had a drink or two. I met a girl who was literally my height. She was VERY excited (or just very drunk) to find someone her size. Granted to say we took a 
couple pictures. We ended the fun-filled evening by eating Kabobs on the street (a favorite Italy past time), the boys got McDonalds (yuck) and even ran into a guy dressed as Steve Urkel in there (apparently I missed that). One the way back to Marcus's place, we had fun making fun of many of the Korean couples who dr
ess identical. The trend here right now, is if you're dating someone, you 
wear the same shirts, sweatshirts, shoes, and yes, even underwear. It's crazy when you walk by a window and see lingerie for sale that is cute, but not sure if I'd wanna see my boyfriend in a speedo version of that same pattern. ROKetship, again has a great example.SO the next morning, we enjoyed a wonderful Western breakfast of pancakes :) And they were delicious!! Afterwards, we headed to Changdeokgung Palace near Insadong
(infamous shopping area :) ) The palace has been rebuilt in places a few times, but it is hundreds of years old. So big! and so gorgeous! We thought we'd be able to just go in and look around, but no, you had to sign up for an English tour (which personally I like better bec
ause it's very interesting to learn the history). The Palace was sooooo huge!! It was hard to keep track of what happened where. This picture on the left is Chong-jon Hall. The coronation ceremonies of the King or another grand official was done here. It's so crazy to imagine this room completely FILLED with Korean royalty. Then there was a secret garden that was absolutely beautiful. There was a pond area (though it was a bit dirty) with a bunch of 
little buildings and gazebo type things around. I love the traditional style Korean buildings. It's so different than what I'm used to back in the US, and even in Europe. Looking at one reminds me that I'm LIVING IN KOREA!!! Sometimes it is still hard to believe this. I get to see and do things that some people NEVER get to do in a lifetime. I feel so lucky in so many ways.So before I get all emotional (I'll save it for my writing group), I'll finish my story. After the Palace, we headed to Hongdae University where we met up with my friend Derold. Derold and I went to San Diego State University together. It was just pure coincidence that he was moving to Seoul just weeks before I moved to Busan. So we finally were able to get together. It was really great to see a familiar face. Gillian was CRAVING mexican food, and honestly, I don't blame her. We found a great little spot and ate burritos and margaritas. They were GOOD (it'
s not as good as Southern California mexican food, but I'm not complaining). After dinner, we went to Gio Cat Cafe. My friend Kiva, from my writing group, told me about this place where you just hang out and play with cats and have coffee/tea, etc...literally a Cat Cafe!!! This would NEVER be allowed in the US. Animal rights, sanitation laws, I could just see so many things going
wrong. But I'm not in the US and this is one of those places that just make Korea awesome. There were several cats around, some were very tired, others were playing. They had a list of all the cats, their names, their breed, and something about their personality (playful, stand offish, etc). Yes it was in English (these little things help so much). It really made me miss my cat, Lila. She's seriously the best cat in the world. I miss her cuddles. I miss her waking me up in the 
middle of the night chasing my feet. I miss coming home and seeing her stare at me in the window. It was so nice to play with kitties again :)So just a random funny photo. This plate of noodles was next door to the cat cafe. The chopsticks were moving up and down. Some electronic thing. I'm convinced it was blowing up air in order to keep the chopsticks up and floating around (but I couldn't feel it). There wasn't a string, etc but it was just really cool. Yes, i'm a nerd :) Easily entertained.
On Another AMAZING weather note... I've been getting more involved in hashing lately. Hashing is like a game type thing that involves working out and drinking (wierd combo i know). Apparently it's popular worldwide, though I'd never heard of it till here. I've gone twice and it's been really great. There is a person or two who lays a trail around a city, or up a mountain,
wherever they w
ant. Your job is to follow the trail... sometimes you may get lead in the wrong direction and told to go back to a certain point, etc. It's a lot of fun (pic on the left is a view from my first hash, and the pic on the right is the most recent one). Literally a game around a neighborhood area. Both times I've 
gone was more of a hike, up and down dirt hills. Technically everyone is supposed to run, but I hate running so I walk... and i still get a good work out in. Walking up and down hills for over 2 hours will definitely wear you out.The guy who leads it is in the American military stationed here. He offered to get anyone antyhing they wanted that was American at the military base. He is an ANGEL to me... because he brought me 2 12-packs of Dr. Pepper!!!! and for
$7!!!! I found Dr. Pepper at one place and it was $2 for 1 can... i just got 24 cans!! I don't drink soda that much, but Dr. Pepper is my soda of choice. It made me so happy :) Of course I 
had to carry it home for over an hour after that. That must've been pretty entertaining to watch. But I've met some more people and been having a lot of fun. The bartender at 
one of the bars we went to was wearing a San Diego Chargers hat. He used to live around the SDSU area so we instantly became BFFS. lol. Gotta represent! So I have pictures of the hash coming later. They're mostly on Lacey's camera so I'll post more later.This past week, we had Wednesday off school (the week went by so quickly
because of it). Wednesday was Childrens Day. As hard as the kids work here, they deserve a day off in their honor. On Tuesday, we didn't have regular classes. We planned a bunch of different games and a party. In this picture is my co-worker, Iris, and some of my students. Thsi room is actually like 3 classes combined. Most classes are only between 4-10 kids. Many Koreans like to share things. Sometimes this is awesome. When someone has food, you automatically get some too :) But some of the snacks these kids gave me scared me. Shrimp chips, dried squid. I like shrimp, and i like chips but the combo of the two didn't sound/smell too appetizing. I won't even get started on dried squid. One of the girls brought Baskin Robbins ice cream sandwiches.... she was my favorite :)SO on my day off, I hit the beach!! It was an amazing day for the beach. I had lunch with another friend, and we layed out for a bit. I don't know if I've ever experienced MY definition of PERFECT weather. Not in Florida or San Diego... I'm either too hot and wish for more of a cooler breeze, or the breeze is too much and I get chilly. The weather was PERFECT!! I was hot but didn't break much of a sweat because the breeze was just perfect. I was in heaven. A few hours later, I looked up and saw a group of Koreans on the stairs above the beach... they were ALL
staring at the othe
r foreigners next to me who were playing volleyball something. It cracked me up. (edit ROKetship comic here... I seriously could post a comic for EVERYTHING). Ironically, I actually got to finally meet Thom... the guy that I replaced at my school. When I interviewed with ELC, I got to speak with him and ask him about his experience there... this was back in September?? We'd kept in touch ever since but never met. He is now living in Ulsan but was at the beach in Haeundae for the day. I managed to spot him out of a crowd and we finally got to meet. Pretty cool to meet someone whose worked at my school and knows all my co-workers. Anyway, Once I got up and walking around, I realized that the music that was in the background was actually live music. It w
as actually good music. Some classical sped up a little bit, and slower type music. This girl was playing the violin and she was soooo cute! I didn't realize till she got closer how much older she actually was. All the women here try to look young and dress young and use lots of bows and things to make them look younger. She was around 30 or so. But so cute :) After here was a girl band. They were AWESOME too!! They played the electric
cello, electric violin, the keyboard thingy and something else. Again, some faster version of classical music. They were great... and ironically dressed like skanks. I walk out in a tank top and sunglasses and some of the older traditional Koreans think I'm the one dressing scandelous. But seriously!!! Look at those leggings!! You can't even see where her shorts start... and just because I'm showing my shoulders, I'm the bad one? lol. The difference between Western culture and Korean culture :) This pic isn't even that bad. There are girls whose skirts are WAAAAAAAY shorter. It's ok to show your legs and whatever else is up there, but still not 100% acceptable yet (tho it's getting better) to show your shoulders or God forbid a v-neck shirt lol. Never a dull moment :)One thing I'm very proud of is that I officially finished Script frenzy. Script frenzy is just a nation wide event where all the writers try to write a 100 page script in 30 days. Mostly just a motivator for people to start and finish something. I joined with another guy from my writing group. He was a great supporter and pushed me and challenged me all 30 days. There were some days that I was like 15 pages behind... but low and behold... I finished my 100 pages :)
So now as my life continues in Korea, I just wanted to let all my loved ones know how much I love and miss them. Mothers Day is this weekend (and Fathers day next month) and I wanted to tell my parents how amazing they are. Thank you for always supporting me and not laughing at me (to my face) when I did stupid stuff. I love you :) And on that happy note, my brother David is coming NEXT WEEK!!!!! I'm soooooo excited. We have big plans playing tourist around Busan, Seoul, and a visit to a smaller city as well. :) More to come....
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