The highest building

So I woke up earlier than usual today... about 3am... my room/house was freezing... We have one thin quilt that keeps us warm but today I found it was not doing its job. We don't usually have the heater on but I think starting tonight I might use it. Eddie slept soundly while I tossed around trying to find warmth. I finally grabbed one of my pillows and laid it on top of me. The morning was long and cold. I have recently been reintroduced to my old friend coffee and seeing as it has been quite a while since my last cup I am finding myself more vulnerable to its effects than ever! Everywhere I go people pour me a cup so I feel obligated to drink it. I am trying to drink it black to keep the sugar content low and in memory of my dad back home. He always says I have to drink coffee black like a man and not be a wuss.... anyways... I had a cup around 3pm yesterday so needless to say my eyes have big circles around them today. It was a rough night but when Eddie's alarm finally went off at 8am I was very relieved. I could finally get out of bed and hopefully warm up. I decided to take a shower and get ready for the day a little earlier than usual... I had spent enough time laying there thinking about sleep...

Today I met up with Sally and her mother. From the looks of their home and cars I think it is safe to say they are VERY upper class. I got ready for my day and headed for the subway in the cold. Its not the kind of cold a person dislikes its the kind of cold you simply remember to wear a warm jacket in. The sky is clear and the sun is bright. The wind is cold but not too sharp. I make my way to the subway and meet Sally and her mother (who still is nameless to me). They drive me to the highest building in Seoul or in Korean I am unsure. I don't know the name of it but it says 63city everywhere so I will conclude that this is its name. The building is high and signs direct people to the top floors to "Sit in the Sky". We go to a very very nice Thai restaurant and I order pad thai. It is delicious! This is a very upper class shopping mall. Everything is very expensive and very fancy. We then walk around the 63city building until we find a coffee shop called "Beans and Berries" which has smoothies and coffee. I tried to order a iced coffee but I ended up with a cup of iced whole milk with a 1/4 cup of coffee... It was thick but I drank it down so as not to be rude. Sally's mom bought some cookies and bread and gave me some to take home to my "husband" (Danny told me it is looked down upon to live with a boyfriend before marriage so I tell people we are married to make things easier for everyone involved).

After coffee Sally took me to a Sea World in the basement and I got to see some amazing fish and otter's and penguins. It was definitely the best sea world I have ever seen. She gave me directions to an even better one in town so I can take Eddie to it later. After we walked around for awhile we walked to a park and talked for a little then she brought me back to the subway station and I headed for the Kyobo bookstore. It was a good days work in my mind and I got a free meal and I learned a little more about Korea.

I got off the subway but I took the wrong exit out so I ended up exploring a little more of Korea than I was expecting to (for today). It was beautiful. The air is crisp. Its not so cold that you need to stay inside, it the kind of cold air that feels nice when you breathe it in. I have asked each student of mine which season is the best and they all say fall. I am really starting to understand this. The trees are bright shades of yellows and orange and the sky is beautiful light blue. I really enjoy the cloudless skies here. Don't get me wrong, it rains here too, and when it rains it rains hard but not like the rain in Olympia. It hasn't rained in about a week and when it does rain it only lasts a hour or two... at least that is what I have seen so far... Okay so I got off the subway at the wrong spot so I walked around enjoying the air and the sites until I found Kyobo bookstore (this was my 3rd adventure here) and I bought some movies for my students to watch in English (3 Disney DVDs for 10,000won =about $11) at a movie table down one of the hallways then I got a English/Korean picture dictionary for myself and for class with my students. I also bought Eddie a small pocket dictionary because he has been needing one for class badly. I also signed up for a discount card for the bookstore to get 10% off which really is a very good idea because I think I will be finding myself there a lot. On the way out I found a scarf table (everywhere I go there are tables of all kind of things for sale that are very cheap like movies, clothes, socks, food, jewelery etc.) and I bought a very nice scarf that I badly needed for today for 10,000 won. I figured I better head home before I spend anymore money so I headed for the subway station. At the station I bought some earrings for 1,000won which is VERY cheap and headed home. I made my usual stop at the little Frog Pond like shop and bought a melon Popsicle and now I am just waiting for Eddie to finish soccer practice so he, Kenny and I can go out for dinner! My legs are tired from walking up and down the stairs to the subway stations but I think I am getting some muscles so thats good!!

As far as school stuff goes I am still practicing my Korean and I am almost finished with my book Lost Names. It is a very tragic story about one boy's childhood during the war. He and his Korean family are forced to take a Japanese name and speak Japanese and bow to the Japanese Emperor while the Japanese are taking all of their food and destroying their life. Before now I only knew a little about this war but it is really fascinating and very sad. I am happy to be a little less ignorant after reading this book!

Learning Korean is harder than I could have ever thought. I can practice and practice and practice and my mind still jumbles everything all together. This is how my memory works and I am learning that about myself. I think the Rosetta Stone program works the best for me because it uses all the learning styles so hopefully this path towards speaking Korean will get a little less painful.... My head is pounding from the mix of the small amount of coffee I had and the very small amount of sleep I have had so I will rest before my hopefully eventful evening!

Tomorrow is Saturday so I will teach Jimmy and his friend then Emily and Melody...

I miss and love everyone and I hope everyone knows how happy and safe I am here!


ALSO THE WONDERFUL NEWS I GOT FROM MY MOTHER: I AM GETTING MY FINANCIAL AID MONEY SENT TO ME SOON SO THATS AN EXTRA $3600!!! I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO RELIEVED! NOW I CAN BUY A CAMERA AND START TAKING SOME PICTURES AGAIN!!