Mudtastic

              

Lucked out and found people selling tickets to the Boryeong Mud Festival less than a week before the event. Buying those tickets may have well been one of the best decisions ever. That and my GoPro. Thanks Molly :)

We took a 6 hour bus ride from Ulsan to Boryeong on a "party bus". Cheesy lights flashed and norebang took place on the trip at the lovely hour of 9 am. Nothing like Korean karaoke and soju cocktails in the morning to really get me going. That's a recipe for a good time.

We stayed in a pension, which until this point I had never heard of. It's one GIANT step down from a hostel, where mass amount of people sleep on floors. They give you a big empty room with pillows and blankets. The rooms weren't clean when we arrived so 60 people ditched their things in one large room and changed into the clothes they intended to be doused in mud. We didn't have time to waste. 

                

Once we finally got to the festival my desire I be covered on mud from head to toe had reached an all time high. We walked into the mud pit and unfortunately we couldn't bring our glass soju bottles in. Or fortunately? I ditched shoes the second I had the chance and the last thing I wanted was a bloody mud foot.  I elicited he help of one of the cute little Korean security guards to watch over our drinks, and he did so diligently. While waiting in line for wrestling the girls and I took turns running back to him and taking soju shots. 

There were loads of mud things to do. Giant mud slides and games and even a mud prison for those people who, for some odd reason, were not covered from head to toe. The lines were quite long for everything and we figured a wrestling game was priority. We choose a numbers game where 20ish people stand in a mud pit and have to get into groups of people depending on the number the announcer calls. 

We got in line and immediately made friends with the people around us. There was a cute little Korean family who absolutely loved us. We chatted and they asked to take pictures with us. A lot of Koreans did that. You'd think we were famous. When we were chugging soju - there were Koreans with cameras snapping away. When we laid in the mud, snap snap snap. There was a thick group of Korean paparazzi stationed just above the mud pit, cameras protected with plastic and special casings. I'll be searching the internet for years trying to find out where all of these photos ended up :)

The game was a blast and ended way too quickly. The second round I was hurdled up with a group all hoping we had the correct number of people  - we were one over. So what happened? I was thrust from the group and left for dead. As I was pushed into the mud you could hear the, "ohhhh!"'s from the crowed of people watching. Anyone who loses and doesn't have a group when the times up gets put into the middle and everyone else showers them with mud. Fine by me. I took my mud bath like a champ.

 

I got mud in my eye, however. I think it happened at the very beginning in the mud sink when an Indian man tried to help me cover my face. And then during the game the problem intensified. After that I could have easily been a one eyed mud pirate. It was so bad I had to have my momma goose walk me to the medical tent where a woman syringed my eye out with some sort of eye wash concoction. I obviously wasn't the first.

We then decided to get beer and go to the beach to wash off and chill while listening to some live music. It was a challenge pulling my muddy money from my swim suit and paying the cashier. I can only imagine the cleaning up that has to be done after this festival is over. There is mud on every damn thing. 

We swam and played and had a grand old time. I made so many friends, a few of which I had to record on my GoPro spelling their names so I could remember to add them on Facebook.

The rest of the day/night is a giant blur. We got back to the pension and showered, and then there was dinner. Loads of meat grilling and ssamjang and rice. I ate and drank WAY too much. Then eventually the sun went down and we went back to the beach for more music and fun. Once we got back to the pension we relaxed on the patio area and chatted and drank the night away. I can barley remember most of their names, but I do remember trying to learn Korean and someone kept bringing me ice cream. I was happy. 

Then, at 2 in the morning I decided to round up all the people who were still awake and got them to go to norebang with me and my new best friend Samuel. He was the KING of norebang on the bus earlier that day. He inspired me. A group of 10 people staggered down the street to the first karaoke room we could find and started singing. And drinking, MORE DRINKING. I did a beautiful rendition of Baby Got Back... But mostly everyone just sung together. Even the Korean songs that I didn't understand and could barley read. 

Water. Sleep. WATER. By the time we got back to the pension, no one could find anywhere to sleep. Some people were pissed... I on the other hand found the first spot I could and passed out. I woke up on the floor pillow-less with no covers in between two people I have never seen before. 

Our group was a pathetic sight to see the next morning. Some people were taking shots, most people had a startling resemblance to zombies and were eating noodles for breakfast- myself included. Best hangover cure.  It's crazy how this group of people went from strangers on a bus to friends who shared some insane experiences together, and a lot of drinks. Foreigners or Koreans, didn't matter. Language barriers, PSSSH. There is such a thing as an universal language my friends - ALCOHOL.

 

I've put together a little video compilation with footage from my GoPro :) enjoy!

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. 

Drunk in Spain - Barcelona

La Boqueria (aka Heaven on Earth) - Barcelona, Spain

Like the rest of my time in Spain I don't remember much and am lacking in photographic evidence of most of what happened, but I do remember that Barcelona was absolutely amazing. We stayed at a hostel right off of La Ramblas which gave me quick access to La Boqueria, a market filled with treats and meats and other amazing things. I could walk around this place for hours, and actually came back later in the summer because I loved it so much here. La Ramblas is a street lined with touristy eating spots and stalls selling all and any souvenir you could imagine, but it is in central Barcelona and close to a lot of great things. The Gothic Quarter starts here and really exemplifies Barcelona's past even though it is mixed in with new, developing parts of the city. The nightlife here is my favorite part, there is something about wandering the dark, narrow alley ways that had me hooked. 

Treats on Treats on Treats

Bar hopping in the Gothic Quarter - Barcelona, Spain

A great place to go if you are looking to have a really gnarly hangover is Chupitos. Now this place, this place is wild. There are hundreds of shots plastered across the wall, and you don't know what any of them are. You. Just. Order. The red ones involve fire and they are all 2 Euro, except for about 5 of them. And those ones are SERIOUS. The Monica Lewinsky shot can be found here - be warned, it's vulgar. My personal favorite is the Boy Scout shot. They give you a marshmallow on a stick and light your shot on fire. You roast the mallow over it before taking she shot. The only downfall to this place is they use their own "branded" alcohol - it's all really cheap and every shot is mixed with loads of sugar. If anyone has ever partied here and NOT woke up the next morning feeling like they were hit by a bus, it would be a miracle. 

        

You also shouldn't leave Barcelona without visiting La Champaneria. You have to go early, because they close by 10pm-ish (if I remember correctly). This is VERY uncharacteristic of Spain, but that's their thing. It's a great pregamming spot. It will undoubtedly be packed, you will have no room to stand or sit or breath but delicious Cava (Catalonian champagne) and even more delicious tapas. Manchego quickly became my favorite cheese. Writing this blog has me drooling. 

La Champagneria - Barcelona, Spain

My time in Barcelona wouldn't be complete without visiting a park. Not just any park, but the most amazing park ever in the world. I wonder how many parks that I have been to I have considered "the most amazing". Probably every one I've been to, because dammit I LOVE PARKS. Park Guell was designed bu Gadui, which is pretty self explanatory and I don't even need to go into details about how beautiful it was. It, however, isn't your typical park. It's situated on a hill, and a lot of the walking is up. 

We spent some time at the beach, which was so incredibly beautiful and had such good vibes. We were desperate for flotation devices and spent the afternoon in the water with drinks, enjoying each others company. We didn't do too many "touristy" sightseeing things, which was fine. I'm not big on that anyways. We did walk past The Sacred Family cathedral. I'm also not big on lines. The view from outside was unreal. One day I will go back, maybe when it's finished :)

The trip ended in chaos. One member of the party lost his green card. And by lost I mean that a hooker stole his wallet. Him and another guy had to go back to Madrid to visit the consulate to ensure that he would be able to get back to America with no problems. The last night in Barcelona I decided to stay in because we had an early flight the next morning. The majority of what was left of the rest of the group went to a stock market bar, where the prices of drinks fluctuate based on what people are drinking the most of. They were supposed to have an early night. PSSSH. Please. I woke up at 6am and most of them weren't back, and the ones who were back had brought new friends with them ;) Our flight was at 8:45 and by the time we left the hostel one of them hadn't even returned. We had no idea where he was. We left without him. WE LEFT WITHOUT HIM. When we finally arrived at the airport around 8:15, they wouldn't let us through because no one had checked in online for the flight. Before we could get to Mallorca we were stationary in the airport for many, many hours. I tried messaging our fallen solider, Conner, but the attempts were unsuccessful. 

 

Drunk in Spain - Madrid

A bunch of hooligans in Parque del Retiro - Madrid, Spain

The picture above was taken shortly after having beer taped to my hands. Spain was one big fantastic mess. It definitely stands out from the rest of my trip, mainly because I was with a group of friends who's travel style includes massive amounts of alcohol. 

I'm not gonna bother trying to piece together my trip bit my bit. 

A group of 8 people spent almost 2 days in airports and on planes trying to get to Spain. Me and Zach however ended up at Hostel 007 in Madrid on time and made the absolute most of it - wandering the streets, buying drinks in bars only when I had to use the bathroom. Employees usually throw a fit when you try and use their bathroom without purchasing any goods. We weren't bothered, and my bladder was extremely weak.  It set a good precedent for the adventure that was to come. I vaguely remember running into prostitutes, trying to work up the courage to talk to one, and instead settling for one of my all time favorite things to do - people watching. 

Very drunk man laying under a statue in Madrid, Spain

Gazpacho!

As you can imagine, international airport drama can make you go a little loopy. When the crew finally arrived a day later than they expected, they had already come up with drinking games and activities abound. Insane tasks would be written down and numbered - numbers would be drawn to conclude which task you had to do. Shotgunning beers with locals, getting a kiss from a member of the same sex, and my lovely task - Edward 40 hands. Thankfully this game didn't last through the rest of our trip, one of us was bound to get into trouble. 

The last day we were in Madrid we spent the day at Retiro Park, definitely the highlight of my time here. Typical. Not much makes me happier than a big, juicy park. This one has art exhibits, a man playing an instrument (don't remember which) who refused a free beer and got mad when we didn't give him enough money, and a lake with a massive line of people waiting to paddle around on one of their many boats.