Nightwalkers

Eating bread in the streetz

 Karyn and I went on a little mini adventure around our neighborhood after work one evening. We experienced a part of our immediate living quarters that we didn't know existed and are happy to have discovered. I can already imagine the drunken nights out staggering through these streets ahead of us.

We started off walking down the market street. Most of the stalls were closed and the few that were open had small groups of people crowded around eat and chatting and enjoying their evening, trying to sell what they had left of their goods. Fruits and veggies and things boiling in huge pots that I had never seen before. Teenage boys sitting at my favorite Tteokbokkistall eating their dinner and chatting with the friendly ajummas. 

I wanted bread, naturally, so we made a stop at the market to visit my friend. I need to figure out this man's name. I am always greeted with a big ole' two handed high five and hugs. I always leave with baked goods that I don't need, but a smile on my face nonetheless and a little bit more practice with Korean - something I desperately need.

 We decided to venture off and ended up walking down a street filled with bright lights, loads of chicken and beer establishments (chimek), norebang for days (karaoke), people drinking outside convenient stores, and traffic. So much traffic. There were cute little Korean men walking up the street holding hands and the younger crowd walking with their faces in their phones. The ability they have to not get hit by a car or scooter while walking down theses wild streets continues to amaze me,.

I've walked down this street several times during the day and was surprised to see how different it is at night. Everyone is always so bust during the day working, and usually working HARD. At night is when most places around here come alive. Kids don't get out of school until 10pm sometimes, adults work shifts as long as 12 hours. Work hard and play harder has never been more applicable than it is in this country. 

If you wanna see more pictures I've added some of my favorites to a photography page for your viewing pleasure, enjoy :)

Discoveries

                           

Ordering tteokbokki from a street vendor was fun and hard and easy all at the same time. I stopped at the first big bowl of red saucy deliciousness I found along the market stalls. I smiled at the lady and said it just how I practiced. Tteokbokki hana juseyo! And then a whole bunch of Korean followed I didn't understand. I later figured she asked if I wanted to sit or take away... my head nod signified I wanted to sit and eat and she made am a bowl and set it in front of me. Fine by me. I got to listen to cute Korean ladies probably make fun of me while watching her, and all the others, cook. After I finished eating and went to pay her, I handed her 3000 won assuming that would be enough to cover my meal. I haven't engrained into my brain how to ask how much something is yet. It ended up being only 1000 won a serving, and instead of paying and leaving I somehow agreed to getting another bowl - and her handing me 1000 back. Fine by me. I was hungry anyways. Even though I already stopped by the stall before hers and got some delicious chicken thing on a stick. Couldn't tell you what it was for the life of me. Then I spotted a bowl of fried mandu (like a wonton) and I definitely wanted one of those, so I pointed and said Hana. And then there was more confusion - that is, until the lady from the next stall sensed our troubles and walked over to tell me that one piece was 200 won. Despite not being able to talk to my lovely street stall lady, she never seemed mad or annoyed or anything. She was laughing the whole time and so was I, and so was her friend. I'm going to try and eat tteokbokki with her once a week and practice talking to her in Korean. Food and language practice for under 3000 won, it's a pretty good deal if you ask me. 

Octopus legs, anyone?

                         

Then I stopped and talked to a little Korean man with a dog that looks just like Honey, my pupsters back home. He could speak a bit of English though and was very excited to use what he knew to try and have a conversation. He was so friendly, and we chatted a bit about his life and how cute his dog is.

I also tried to get a little android phone set up at a mobile store. The lady was kind enough to call her help desk so someone could translate for us. We kept handing the phone back and forth to each other, and she smiled every time. 

All in all, the Korean people I've interacted with this far have been more than happy to accommodate and deal with our language barrier. I can't wait until I can communicate better, that way I can start impressing people. 

I was sitting in my new found park on a rock next to a stream practicing Korean numbers when an elderly engineer walks into the stream and starts squatting. I got a little nervous about what was to follow, but to my delight this man dips his cupped hands into the water and splashes his face. He then picks up a bit of a muddy rock concoction and starts rubbing his hands clean, or dirty. I guess that depends on perspective :)

                                

JAPAN! It's almost here. My evenings have mostly consisted of figuring out what I wanna do and when I want to do it and eating yukgwa. I'm thinking of splitting my time up between Osaka and Kyoto - maybe a day trip to Nara and a day trip hiking somewhere if I can find a good spot. Regardless, I'm not trying to go to every temple and I'm definitely not trying to go to any museums. Wandering aimlessly sounds like a better plan for this trip. 

My bosses took me to apply for my Alien Reaident Card and afterwards treated me to a meal. They took me to a noodle house and ordered some delicious mul-neagmeyong - buckwheat noodles served in an icy broth garnished with Asian pears and cucumber and beef and egg. I was in love. They slurped all of their noodles down despite being tiny Asian men, and I barley made a dent. Then they grabbed me some tradition Korean snacks for me to take home. 

I've been trying to eat at home more than eating out in order to save some money and be a little healthier. Instead I just eat yukgwa as much as I possible can. It's the most delicious treat on this planet.

Friday was a special day in Korea - the beginning of the "dog days of summer" - meaning it's supposed to be HOT. Traditionally they would eat dog meat so9.up on these days, but recently the dad has shifted from dog meat to samgyetang - Ginseng chicken soup. A whole chicken stuffed with rice in a delicious broth. YUM. My boss, once again, treated me and my coworkers to lunch and coffee. 

A night out in Dong-gu

 

I live outside of the downtown area of Ulsan. Regardless, my neighborhood provided me with a damn good night out. It helps when you have great group of coworkers and new foreigner friends. I AM A FOREIGNER. It is still surreal to me. I've been meeting people who have been here for a few years and I'm a bit envious. They know the "in's and out's" - they know enough Koran to have conversations with strangers and they make new friends easily wherever they go. I can't wait until I can say the same for myself. Patience Ellie, patience. 

                            

The night started off at Uncle's Beer, a bar plastered with post-it notes and random English phrases. The decor is adorable, which applies to a lot of places I've been so far. The people here know hot to create a good atmosphere. My Canadian coworkers wanted to introduced me to their group of friends. Definitely a good crowd of people that I'm excited to get to know better and make more memories with. So excited.

We made our way to another ridiculously adorable bar for a drink before we would get cheap drinks at 7-11 and retire to the beach. Always the best option. On the way to the beach a Korean man trying to make a few bucks started hounding us to play his hammer game. It's simple. You get 3 tries to hammer a nail into a piece of wood. My coworker Shaun tried first, and failed miserably. Then, of course, he convinced me that I had to do it. The little man decided to give me 5 tries, that angel. He thought I looked weak and assumed I had horrible aim apparently. He was wrong! I hit that damn nail, 3 times I think. There was only half an inch left that needed to be nailed in before my last try, and I missed of course. Which was upsetting because I really wanted the husky stuffed animal to remind me of my sisters pup, Shiloh. But it was good entertainment, as per usual. 

                    

Emma, my new Scottish friend, was hungry. And I'm always hungry. We quickly found some street food where a kind Korean woman was offering corn dogs with french fries engrained into them or bugs. We opted for the fried death sticks. Although, trying the bugs is on my agenda. They are called beondegi, and according to some of my students they are quite tasty. I'm not convinced. We ordered and patiently waited for our treat to fry. The woman pointed to a granular substance and asked if we wanted any. Thinking that it obviously is salt, we agreed. As she started dipping the mound of greasy corn dog into the tub a sparkly caught my eye. I realized before it was too late that it was indeed NOT salt - but sugar.  Not only did we have a fried carb load on a stick, but it was covered in sugar. Emma threw hers away. I ate half. Should have ate the bugs. Lesson learned.          

There is a makeshift arcade and batting cages on the beach in my neighborhood. The boys played games as us girls tried to eat food, and then we headed off to the beach. One of the guys started talking to a large group of Korean youngsters. One of them was turning 20, and we invited them to celebrate with us. We shared birthday traditions from our cultures, and this poor kid ended up getting smacked and hit by his friend and then almost thrown into the ocean. He loved it. And then they used some of the guys to try and go pick up poor, unsuspecting girls on the beach while we sat and drank and watched their pathetic attempts. 

And then instead of cabbing home at 4 am I was much happier to take the 20 minute drunk walk home. Because I love my neighborhood and the people I'm surrounded with. I'M SO LUCKY. 

There's a storm a brewin'

My apartment on the right

Normal. It's wild to me how normal everything feels. I've set my heart on being in Korea for so long that really, it just feels like I've come home. It's been relieving. I  didn't hate Las Vegas exactly, especially the last few months I was there. I was so happy spending my time with people who love and care about me, making amazing memories - because I knew I was leaving. I am so thankful for the memories I have to hold on to - with new friends and old friends alike.  If it wasn't for the people I surrounded myself with, there probably wouldn't be much for me to miss.

Coming into this experience I was most excited about my job. A REAL job hasn't been on my agenda for over a year, since before I left for Europe in  June 2013. I can't explain how ecstatic I am to finally be putting the past few years of studying in affect. I have a job that I am passionate about. A job that makes me feel like I am making an impact. One that is always challenging me to be better, for myself and for my students. Teaching English isn't just something I want to do for a year to get away - this is a career choice. A life choice. To finally be taking the first step towards my future is exhilarating. 

Edward the Snow Prince blowing out his birthday candles

And my own apartment! Which is paid for by my employers? The best. It is bare as hell right now, and will be until I get my first paycheck - but it's MINE. Soon enough it will be decorated in memorabilia from my travels and cheap furniture from Gmarket. It will really feel like home in no time. I am even sewing my own pillow cases.

I love living alone. I'm such a loner on the inside, it's nice to be able to come home and not worry about anything and to have my own space. Mine, mine, mine. Anyways, I have a friend right next door if loneliness ever creeps up. 

This week there is a typhoon headed straight for Japan, my next door neighbor. It's missing us, thankfully - but we are still getting loads of rain and lightning and thunder and I LOVE IT. It's ironic, because Vegas is having similar weather which isn't typical for them at all. The weather here, although humid, is a refreshing change from the Vegas heat.

My first month here is going to be very grounding. I don't get paid till August. I'm on a budget where won't be able to do all the things I want to or, more importantly, EAT all the things I want to. The good thing is, I have plenty of time. When I first got here I was excited about going out and experiencing EVERYTHING. I've now realized that's not going to happen all at once. I want to be here for a while, there is no rush. I have time to learn the language and discover the country, and more importantly Ulsan - my city. I have time to eat at every whole in the wall restaurant my that lines the streets of my neighborhood. I have time to travel to other Asian countries, but I'm not going to make that a priority like I first intended too. Instead, after I'm done living in Korea I would rather save money and take a chunk of time off to travel. 6 months should about do it :) A long weekend here and there simply won't cut it for me anyways. That's not enough time to fully explore a country, or even a city for that matter.

Korean Pancakes - kimchijeon and panjeon

Anyways, Japan is on the agenda for August. Let me tell you how damn exciting it is to be planning my trip and figuring out what I want to do while I'm there. I'm starting with Couchsurfing. That's the way to go. Free, number one. And you get the chance to meet awesome locals who always show you a different side of a city. Not your typical tourist agenda. Sign me up. I'm taking baby steps with Japan. It's close to my home and flights are cheap. I want to explore every nook and cranny of that country, eventually. For now I'm sticking to Osaka, Kyoto, and other places in the Western Honshu region. I definitely need to check some cultural experiences off my list.

Lucked out

I can't believe my first week of teaching is over! My transition to Korea has been made ridiculously easier thanks to the remarkable people I work with and my perfect recruiting agent. She's getting flowers this week, because I owe her a big fat thank you for finding this job. It's the perfect fit.

I was worried about working in a private school because set curriculums taught out of textbooks sound like a drag to me as a teacher. Luckily, our boss gives us the capacity to be creatively free with our lessons as long as they correlate with the book and we stay on top of our shit. He isn't constantly breathing down our backs or checking up on us. He trusts us.

I was gung-ho about teaching at a public school, it seemed like I would get more out of my experience here. I interviewed for a position and got offered a job, but there was so much confusion about where I would be teaching and I had such short notice to accept - my gut told me to hold off. I couldn't have made a better decision. 

My first day teaching was my first day at work and only my second full day in Korea. I was anxious as all hell and I felt incredibly unprepared, but my English coworkers promised I had nothing to worry about. They were right. How could I be worried when my biggest class size has only 10 students? One of my higher level classes had only 3 students. I had my book as a guide for my lesson and with my uncanny ability to be flexible and adapt, I did just that for my first day as an English teacher. 

A student-designed apartment, complete with a room for Burgers.

This week I've been getting into the swing of things. Overcoming jet lag and trying to get on a normal sleeping schedule has proved to be more difficult than I thought. I'm waking up at 5am when I don't work until 3pm. At least I have loads of time to do normal life things, like blog and paint and study Korean and explore.

My new friend making me my favorite cheap dinner, Gimbap

                                   

Food. So much food. And surprisingly I've been eating more foreign food than Korean. My boss took all of us out to an Italian restaurant for lunch my first day. Korean Italian, however, takes a slightly different spin on things. We had a bulgogi (불고기) salad, which may have been the most delicious thing I've are thus far. I celebrated Canada earlier in the week with my coworkers at a western cafe and ate eggs Benedict and poutine, and then had Indian food the day after that. 

Spur of the moment on our way home from work Karyn and I decided to go out for chimek - a shortened version of chicken and the Korean word for beer, mekju. There are fried chicken places on every corner. Other than it being completely western influenced, it has definitely earned it's place in modern Korean culture. 

Daewangam Park

Pinch me

 I couldn't imagine a more perfect place to live, and I've only been here a few days.

Love at First Sight

1. You can camp practically anywhere. On the beach, in the park, over here and over there. Everywhere.

2. Deawangam Park is next to Ilsan beach, a mere 20 minute walk away from me. The beach turns into a mountain park paradise. Green and trees and rocks and beach and the ocean all in one? I was tickled pink when I found this place my first morning here. I probably looked crazy to all the ajummas (little Korean women speed-walking around). I was giggling the whole time because I was so unbelievably happy that this was my new home - it was almost a joke. An awesome joke. 

3. Korea is called Land of the Morning Calm. I'm a morning person through and through.

4. The Market a few streets away gives me the chance to get delicious treats and eats for cheap, plus I can haggle! 

5. Koreans are active. They like to do things. Walk, run, swim, boat, fish, jet ski. 

6. Health is a part of their culture. They consider their food a source of energy. Their cuisine is filled with philosophy and science - it is traditionally meant to strengthen their minds and souls in addition to filling their bellies. There is so much food to try, but it's hard when I can get kimbap down the street from my school for a buck. 

7. They share. Bill splitting doesn't exist here.

8. The conversion rate between dollars and won is an easy 1 to 1. 5000 won is 5 bucks. Cake, much easier then when I lived in England.

9. Wifi is everywhere. All over. For free and you can usually find one that doesn't need a password.

10. There is a Korean man singing mantras on his morning walk behind me right this second. 

11. Respect is a priority in their culture.

12. Confucius. 

13. Hiking and camping are national pastimes. The majority of the country is covered in mountains. I LOVE MOUNTAINS.

14. Seafood. Korea is surrounded by water on 3 sides. They fish, a lot. Which is good for my belly. 

15. You can get coffee out of vending machines.

16. I think I see a jellyfish

17. My coworker/neighbor likes to do pretty much all the same things I do. Partner in crime? Yes please.

18. There isn't much crime here. Except for car accidents, I'm pretty safe.
19. Most things, as long as they aren't imported, are cheap.
20. Their flag symbolizes yin and yang and four trigrams which represent movement and harmony. It's beautiful, really. Every time I look at it I get an overwhelming sense of happiness.

I am right where I am supposed to be. That's crystal clear.

My neighborhood is awesome. I live in Dong-gu, which is a "newer" area of Ulsan. My apartment does not smell like kimchi. It's a bit out of the way of the city, but that's perfect for me. It's a quaint little block and I have everything I need close to me. On my first morning I wandered around the streets surrounding my home, checking out all the little hole in the wall restaurants and businesses. My first stop was a bakery where I found treats on treats on treats, all only 1000won (about a dollar). This little man pulls a cart around his waist collecting cardboard. I'll figure out his name one day. There are 7-Elevens everywhere. But no slushies.

Elderly Korean couple enjoying the view of Ulsan

The shipyards and industrial areas of the neighborhood aren't as menacing as I would have thought. It's actually pretty damn cool seeing all these giant ships being built along the coast and the ones already fit for water through the morning haze. Karyn, my coworker, and I are planning to your Hyndai soon. 

I am thankful for google translate and the fact that I learned the Korean alphabet prior to getting here. It's making things much easier. I spent some time my first morning translating all the symbols on my AC unit and washing machine. I WILL learn how to speak Korean, that's the goal. 

 

Oh, and they don't eat ALL the dogs. Most dogs hang outside of their owner's store front happily, like these guys that I pass every morning on my walk to the beach.