In Korea!

So I landed in Seoul at around 4:00 pm on Saturday. I did not sleep a wink on the plane, which I think worked out, because I might be on Korean time. We'll see how that develops over the next day or two. Anywho, the plane was uneventful. I watched a lot of movies:
*Brave (sorry Eric)
*Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
*The Hunger Games
*The Three Musketeers

I also ate my first Korean dish, Bibimbap. It was a bowl of steamed veggies with minced beef. You pour in some steamed rice, gochujang, and sesame oil, mix it all together, and eat it. It was quite delicious. It also came with some kimchee, which wasn't too bad. I could see myself growing to like it. The two very nice Korean women next to me were very helpful with explaining what it all was and how to eat it. They also had some good advice on not putting in too much gochujang on my first try.

Once I landed,  I was met by the very nice Mr. Kang (or Mr. Kang the airport man, as Caroline has dubbed him), and he helped me buy a bus ticket to Daegu. I had the front seat, which gave me plenty of room to spread out. We drove for about 2 hours and stopped at a rest area. I was pretty full from the plane, so I just had one of my Cliff bars. Black cherry almond. Yum. We drove for another 2 hours and finally arrived in Daegu.

I was not expecting that much neon. Good lord there is so much neon here. The director of the school, Mr. Bahn, met me at the bus stop and helped load my bags into the car. He drove me past the school so I could see where it was, and then to my apartment. It's very cool. I don't need any keys because the building has keypad locks. I just have to remember my code, which is (censored). You didn't think I'd be that stupid, did you? Mr. Bahn also had my cell phone from the Arrival Store. I now have an LG Sky, and I still have to figure out how to register it. The instructions are, of course, written in Korean. I got to skype with my Mom, Grandma, and Poppy really quick before I went to bed.


I woke up at 5, so I'm not entirely sure that I've adjusted to the local time just yet. I unpacked, organized, made a shopping list for my trip to E Mart (Korean equivalent of Walmart), and did a few Rosetta Stone lessons on Korean. I'm coming along nicely, if I do say so myself. I tried going back to bed, since I don't have anything to do until 2, when one of the other teachers will be taking me to E Mart, but I just couldn't fall asleep. I decided to head on out and walk around Daegu. I found a 7-11, and guess what?

They have Mountain Dew in Korea. So much for kicking that habit.

I also took a walk down towards the local river. It's quite beautiful with the mountains in the background. There is a running and biking path along the river, so I think I know where I'll be going for runs until the weather turns.

I also figured out a little bit more about the neighborhood. In other words, I know where I am on a map. Crucial information. I'm just north of Beomeo station. My school is somewhere between Beomeo and Daegu Bank stations. I look forward to seeing a lot more of the city later today!