I'd like to start this blog with a picture of my hard at work on my slippers at sewing class. I know my glasses are huge (and hugely unattractive), but I don't care. They are my Asian flair. I was intently listening to the directions the sewing ajjuma was telling us, although I didn't understand one word she was saying. I was telling the story of running into the old man at the park to Joon. Normally we talk about stuff and don't really bother to check our language at the door since everyone there is an old lady who speaks Korean. I knew my teacher didn't speak English too well, but I had no idea she understood some of it. After my story, she told me that maybe the old man has a daughter that he could introduce me to. I immediately froze and was hoping that over the past 5 months I haven't said anything too outlandish and offensive. I asked her if we could take a picture so I could post it on my blog, but she told me that it was too all-of-a-sudden and she needed some time to prep herself, so hopefully tomorrow I'll get the shot.
Our creations. Which ones do you like better? Hopefully the light ones with the green insides, cause those are the ones I made.
Joon recently got a new job and was going out with his co-workers for the first time, and asked if I'd like to join. One of the people he works with was from North Hills! He talked a lot but he was a pretty cool guy. However, the other guy was 38 and from Canada and I have never met anyone in my life with as little social graces as this guy had. He was pretty drunk, but still he was saying things to me and Joon that I never expected anyone to say to anyone, especially since this was the first time I met him.
On Saturday, I met Suzie and Peter out for some drinks and to watch the Soccer game. On Sunday, Tyler, Joon, Jenny and I went out for dinner and some drinks. For dinner we had barbeque.
For second dinner we had pajeon, which is a variety of pancakes filled with vegetables, tofu, or fish, and had some Korean rice wine. For third dinner we had boneless chicken and some more beers. I don't know how we ate so much, but Joon loves to eat when we go out. I would never eat as much as I do when I'm with Joon, but I'm thankful for it.
After work one day this week, Cecily and I bought a bottle of Korean rice wine and a can of beer and strolled home down the creek. When we got to our building, we were sidetracked by the noodle man. The noodle man has a truck/tent that he sets up outside our apartment building with tables and chairs and sells noodles for $3.50. We always get the jjajang, which is veggies in a black bean paste sauce, and is Korea's version of Chinese food.
The noodle man hard at work.
Today at cooking class we made snails and noodles. I wasn't too excited to go to this one, I'm not a very adventurous eater, but you only live once right? Gotta try it. On a side note, we are planning on sometime in the future going to the fish market, where you can pick out an octopus and eat it live. But these were the snails, although they look more like brains. I couldn't help but think that I was eating Spongebob's pet snail, Gary.
The finished product. It took me a while to work up enough courage to eat some of the snail, but it wasn't terrible. I only had one or two pieces. The snail really didn't taste like anything at all, but it was a consistency unlike any other thing I've ever eaten. We also made steamed eggs, which is also served at barbeque restaurants. This was the only meal Cecily and I didn't finish. We ate all the eggs, but had some of the snails left over.
Alas, my date. I really didn't want to go at all. I had lunch with one of my Korean teachers the other day and told her the situation. She told me not to go to his house, but to tell him you'd go to a coffee shop. I thought that this was a pretty good argument. Anyway, I didn't really want to go and was thinking about blowing the whole thing off. We didn't set a time, he just said he would call me in the afternoon. I went to the park where we met and started reading a bit. An hour went past and I thought I was safe, until I heard my phone ring. It was him. He said he'd be there in ten minutes. I was running through situations in my head to get out of going to his house. I had a pretty good argument brewing in my head when he showed up. He was carrying his "Introduction Book", one of those books you take with you when you are traveling to other countries to show whoever you meet what your life was like in your country. He said he made it because he was planning on going to Australia, but he never made it. It was actually pretty well made. I found out that he has a wife, a son, and two daughters, although they are all old and married. At the back of the book he had a section titled "foreign friends". Right then I knew that he's been doing this for a while, which made me feel kinda used but less sketched out. There were pictures of him and his foreign friends, all different ages and backgrounds, in his house. One was even a girl my age who taught English. She must have been really brave to go to his house, but you should have seen the look on her face in the picture, priceless. Anyway, he asked if I would like to come back to his house for some coffee. I immediately forgot everything I was thinking and just said "sure, why not." He owns his own little apartment building villa type thing with 8 different apartments that he collects rent from. His apartment was on the fourth floor and took up the whole floor. I was always wondering what Korean homes would be like, so this was exciting for me. He had 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a living room, a kitchen, a laundry room, and a study room. He had me listen to one of the tapes that he learns English from with him, and he started repeating along with it when the tape told him to. After that, he asked if I knew the game "Baduk", which is a Korean version of checkers. I always see old men playing it in parks and admitted I was interested. He showed me his book on Baduk rules and started making coffee and cutting up tomatoes and oranges to eat. I have always heard that Koreans, especially the older ones, were very open and welcoming and very great hosts, but I never knew someone could feel this comfortable with someone they don't know at all. I was flipping through the book and 7 pieces of paper fell out of it, each with a different foreigners name and phone number on it! This guy gets around.. I immediately thought it fit the perfect profile for a serial killer, like something you see on CSI, but he gives off good vibes (also another serial killer trait). Anyway, we started watching tv and he showed me his book that he keeps all English words in that he doesn't understand on CNN, like "prostitution".. He studies English everyday, and watches shows and reads books on Baduk, a total intellectual type of guy, which I liked. He asked what I did in my free time and I said last weekend I went to the baseball game. He got so excited and asked if I wanted to play catch with him, and started talking about all the baseball gloves he has and how he used to play with his son. How could you refuse? I felt like it was something my dad would say. He only had right handed gloves, and I didn't feel like telling him I was left handed because it would seem like and excuse and he would be let down, so I pulled off my best playing catch right handed. All those hours at practice switching gloves with right handers has finally paid off. Anyway, we went out on the street and played catch for about a half hour. Just a 66 year old Korean guy and a 22 year old Westerner. His wife came home and we went back inside. His wife was a really sweet old lady. He doesn't know how to drive a car, but his wife does. I asked him why he never got his license and he said it was because he was poor growing up and his family couldn't afford cars. He was growing up during the Korean Civil War, and for fun him and his friends would walk around picking up gun cartridges! I asked him what his wife did and he said she was a professional housewife, like his daughters. We sat on his living room floor and he taught me how to play Baduk some more and we started playing a game. His wife brought us some water and some bread to munch on. She said something in Korean and he said it meant that I was handsome and looked smart, and that she would love to have me for dinner. I told him I had to meet my girlfriend for dinner at seven, cause I had the feeling he would keep me there forever. But he insisted I come for dinner sometime. He asked if I could meet next Thursday, too. I told him I had a meeting and probably couldn't make it, to which he said what about the Thursday after. I knew going into today that it would be next to impossible to get rid of this guy, but I have proof that Westerners have done it before. I have mixed feelings. He's such a great old man, very intellectual, self taught, humble, active, but I don't know if I can commit every day off I have to spending time with him. It sounds awfully selfish when I think about it, cause he's such a sweet guy, but I don't know. Suggestions? He insisted on seeing me off and took me to the bus stop. He helped me pick out a bus and insisted on waiting with me until the bus came. I got on the bus, took it one stop, then got off, walked back to where I started, and got some Taco Bell, which was the original plan all along.
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