Korea so far.

I left for Korea exactly a month ago, even though it feels like I have been here a lot longer. I wouldn't even be able to list all the things I have learned and noticed while being here.

It is however becoming a bit of a routine. I don't even have to think twice at the direction I go when I am leaving the sub way station...in fact, on the way to work if I am in a hurry I know the exact train door to exit that will get me the closest to the stairs to the street level.

Public transit also runs without the annoyances it brought to me back in Canada. I used to always find myself listening to peoples stupid ass conversations. Never caring what they had to say but still being unable to block their words out. It annoyed me so much because I didn't care about their conversations and I felt bad just listening to them as well.

Here I don't have the problem of listening intently because I don't understand what anyone is saying. I don't need an MP3 player blasting in my ears blocking out random conversations because the conversations here are just noise to me.

On the rare time I do hear English, I am too excited to be annoyed. I'll open my eyes wide and roll up my sleeves in hopes they notice my skin is white, or that my eyes are light colored. People seem to love that here. I have had a student tell me he envies me for my light colored hair and blue eyes. What do you say to that? I think I just kind of laughed awkwardly.

I went to get a hair cut for the first time here in Korea today, and on my way someone asked me for directions. Well, at least I think thats what she wanted to know. She mentioned 'U che Guk' which is one of the few words I recognize. It means post office and I was able to point it out to her, it was just down the street.

The only reason I know U che Guk is because thats what I try to tell the cab drivers when they take me home after the sub way stops running. "Shin Dang U che Guk" I say and usually they don't understand so I hand them a piece of paper that says it in Korean.

I have managed to get home in a cab without that sheet of paper though. Not sure how as it was after a night of drinking, and the second try to boot. I think I ended up naming the University which is the area and the name of my sub way stop. Cabbie's also tend to drive even if they don't know where they are going. Drive first ask questions later. If they don't start driving you, they don't get any money. So I pointed to the road signs that said Kyemyeong University and eventually he figured out I wanted the U che Guk.

I wandered around a little bit yesterday too, traveling up and down side streets seeing what was interesting in my area. Right near the hair cutting place I went to, and pretty much right on my way to work I found a batting cage. That was pretty exciting and to top it off it only cost 500 won, or 50 cents! I tried it out after I got my hair cut...and I suck! But, at 50 cents a pop I can afford to practice, which I am quite sure I will.