After a long week of teaching my precious and trying students, I have a Friday night full of finishing a book and lounging in my pajamas. I did not have a chance to write last week, but the teachers and I had a wonderful Saturday night out at a venue called Club Caliente. I was getting a bit homesick for some Latin sabor (flavor) and so las mamacitas (+Alejandro and Paul, two other teachers) ventured to the oasis. We all had a really great time and margaritas were only $5.50! The bar was predominantly comprised of U.S. military personnel due to it's proximity to the base. Mer1, Darcie and I met a Johnny from Moca, Puerto Rico and Rafael out of the Dominican Republic. They were decent guys and immediately after they told us that they lived on base, my reply was something along the lines of "Wow! I have been trying to get on base, I want to eat some Taco Bell!"
Inappropriate as usual and I'm sure you are all shocked by my behavior. Rafael then got his friend Travis on the phone who is from Ohio (like the three of us). For some bizarre reason, Rafael attempted to summon us on a trip to the DMZ with he and Travis (it was midnight, mind you) to watch the OSU and Michigan game. Thank God for Mer1 and her logic, with a smooth and flawless response of "Maybe some other time, not tonight."After getting a peep at the Latino population of Seoul, it was time for delicious street snacks! A South East Asian vendor had the BEST chicken kabobs I have ever tasted in my life. This phenomenal snack wrap consisted of chicken seasoned to perfection, succulent lettuce, homegrown tomatoes and dressing wrapped up in warm rotis (Indian tortillas). At that moment, I felt as though I had hit the peak of my life and as the last morsel of my snack wrap was gobbled, I would face a perpetual and steady decline. (Just so you know, I have had a wonderful week and that was just the drama queen in me talking). After the kabobs, Mama Hen (fellow teacher, Imee, who always takes care of us when we lack sense) said it was time to go home. Mer1, Darcie and I hailed a cab and were hauled home, which in retrospect, was probably a better alternative to the DMZ...
Early in the week, Mer1 and I booked seats on a trip to Uljin in Gyeongsangbuk-do, (about a 4-5 hour bus ride outside of Seoul) where we will be doing some "Special Autumn Trekking." Mer1 really
would like me to tap into my earthy, liberal, flowers in my hair, hippy side. Let's just say that it does not exist, but a trek through some woods with crazy foreigners sounds delightful. I will just need to bring a water bottle so my throat doesn't get parched. This endeavor will take place on Saturday, November 1st and we will return home on Sunday evening. I am excited to get out of the city and check out the surrounding greenery. This may sound incredibly odd to my parents (particularly my father...in his Keen sandals) who took us on a few daring/outdoorsy vacations and my adolescent hostilities had surfaced in [minor] fits of rage. To this day, those adventures are referred to as "Richard Simmons Vacations" in the Denbow household. I have climbed the godforsaken sand dunes of Michigan, white-water rafted the New River, seen the moose of Maine and ridden the ponies of West Virginia. Yes Mother and Father, I am sure you cackle as you read the descriptions of our experiences... and I'm going to go do all that jazz again next week!
As I may have previously relayed to you all in a discreet manner, I love Mexico, anything associated with Mexico and particularly margaritas. Thursday was margarita night at On The Border. Apparently this restaurant is a chain and in the U.S. but I have never heard of it until now. One Thursday each month, the restaurant has a special where you pay 25,000 Won ($25... well until the world markets crashed and got completely charred, so now equivalent to $18.25) for unlimited margaritas and a dinner buffet. I had to meet up with my running crew after work but just in time to order tortilla soup. Only 30 minutes were left of the buffet so Mer1 ordered 12 margaritas (it's ok, there was a precise ratio of one drink per person) to our table to achieve the "bang for our buck." It was a great night out, especially because the teacher that I had taken the place of had just rolled back into town from the U.K. He fled the land of J.K. Rowling and Hugh Grant to come back and kick it with the Samsungs.
That being said, I've had an eventful week and tonight has been perfect to lay low and unwind. A Korean teacher has rallied Mer1, two other Korean teachers and myself to attend some international club party tomorrow evening. I have 40,000 won (previously $40, now $29.21) to live on until payday so I better take it easy. Ramen doesn't taste so bad I guess.
would like me to tap into my earthy, liberal, flowers in my hair, hippy side. Let's just say that it does not exist, but a trek through some woods with crazy foreigners sounds delightful. I will just need to bring a water bottle so my throat doesn't get parched. This endeavor will take place on Saturday, November 1st and we will return home on Sunday evening. I am excited to get out of the city and check out the surrounding greenery. This may sound incredibly odd to my parents (particularly my father...in his Keen sandals) who took us on a few daring/outdoorsy vacations and my adolescent hostilities had surfaced in [minor] fits of rage. To this day, those adventures are referred to as "Richard Simmons Vacations" in the Denbow household. I have climbed the godforsaken sand dunes of Michigan, white-water rafted the New River, seen the moose of Maine and ridden the ponies of West Virginia. Yes Mother and Father, I am sure you cackle as you read the descriptions of our experiences... and I'm going to go do all that jazz again next week!
As I may have previously relayed to you all in a discreet manner, I love Mexico, anything associated with Mexico and particularly margaritas. Thursday was margarita night at On The Border. Apparently this restaurant is a chain and in the U.S. but I have never heard of it until now. One Thursday each month, the restaurant has a special where you pay 25,000 Won ($25... well until the world markets crashed and got completely charred, so now equivalent to $18.25) for unlimited margaritas and a dinner buffet. I had to meet up with my running crew after work but just in time to order tortilla soup. Only 30 minutes were left of the buffet so Mer1 ordered 12 margaritas (it's ok, there was a precise ratio of one drink per person) to our table to achieve the "bang for our buck." It was a great night out, especially because the teacher that I had taken the place of had just rolled back into town from the U.K. He fled the land of J.K. Rowling and Hugh Grant to come back and kick it with the Samsungs.That being said, I've had an eventful week and tonight has been perfect to lay low and unwind. A Korean teacher has rallied Mer1, two other Korean teachers and myself to attend some international club party tomorrow evening. I have 40,000 won (previously $40, now $29.21) to live on until payday so I better take it easy. Ramen doesn't taste so bad I guess.
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