Korea Week 1 Recap

So I have been in Seoul for about a week.
Today Im planning to go to Japan so I decided

to look back on the things I have done.

First day in Korea- we just stayed near the airport.

On the first day in Seoul we went to Hongdae

This area is extremely hip, artsy and urban.

You can feel the youth spirit as you walk down

the crowded street.

Cafes, bars - and all the stores are extremely awesome.

Everything is very unique and cool.

We stayed out until the morning.

Loved it so much. Gonna go back next week.

The next day I met up with Hitomi & Chris.

Chris had just come off from his army duty

& took us to Insadong.

From research on the Internet I thought

Insadong was going to be some rip-off touristy area

with a bunch of foreigners in fanny packs.

But, it wasnt like that at all.

Yes, it had tourists and tons of traditional

souvenirs but once we turned the corner off the main

street it was like ... an amazingly cute paradise.

My God. Everything was so...mix matched , pretty

& t0tally adorable. It had a certain charm that

I cant explain.

On Sunday I met up with Young Il .

This is where we had our first subway experience.

Not a fan of subways. I always feel like they are

gonna crash haha.

He said he was taking us to an Electronic Store

so Lj could buy a camera.

Pretty sure that place was like 3 Bermudas. My lord.

It had like freaking tons of floors with everything you

could ever wish for.

Oh and p.s - Korean sales ppl are freaking amazing.

This young staff member convinced Lj to get a

Olympus camera instead of a pretty Sony one

after dunking it into the Staff's water dispenser and

doing the classic Peace sign required by all Asians

to perform from birth. He set the timer and

it took his photo under water. We were sold !

We did some other things that day...

Hung out with Sang Yoon...went and looked at

prostitutes just for fun...

The boys called it going on a 'Safari' haha

We had like a late midnight meal

and we went back to the hotel late.

The next day me and lj woke up at like 5 pm.

We were like Holy Crap.

We then decided to go to Itaewon.

This is truly Foreigner Central.

There were Indians, Black ppl etc - with their own

restaurants or stall. It was pretty random.

Haha. I felt very comfortable there though

because everyone was speaking English around us.
To be honest this area is known for being

kind of 'ghetto' & I didnt have the urge to take any photos.

to be continued...

I have arrived in Korea !

The trip to New York from Bermuda felt like
it lasted 20 mins. We must have got thrown into
the BDA Triangle Vortex and chucked out the other side.
Anyway, after that we had a 4 hour wait...
We wondered around and bought things.
Randomly a guy Lj knows was also in the waiting area
going to Korea. There was a few foreigners but
I couldnt help feeling kind of awkard...
Stepping on to the plane made me feel like I
was in a movie...There was a frikkin stair case
in the front & the under 25 yr old

Flight Attendants that looked like
they stepped out of a magazine !
It was cool. The plane was massive.
Never been on a 2 story plane before.
The flight wasnt as bad as I expected.
It lasted 14 hrs but...I didnt sleep at all.
The seats were just too uncomfortable to
be able to relax.

The 14 hours went by faster than expected because

I never once looked at a clock.

I watched movies and diff shows & there was always food

coming around.

I arrived yesterday around 5:45 pm Korea time.
Bermuda is 12 hours behind Korea.
So its 1:45 pm here and 1:45 am there.

Ate dinner with Young Il...and then went to sleep.

Surprisingly I dont have any jet lag.

I think because I didnt go to sleep on the plane

I was able to go to sleep at Korea's night time &

not Bermudas. So yay for that.
I like our hotel room. So glad we have a computer !!!





Later tonight Im gonna meet up with some friends
from High School. Yay !

I feel so weird going out alone though.

Although I can speak enough Korean to survive

Im embarassed to use it. I dont know why. Haha .

Its such little foreigners here.

We are such obvious outsiders.

Hopefully I will feel more comfortable soon.

Where we will be staying

in Korea :
http://www.hotelelleinn.com/english/accommodation/accommodation01.htm

in Japan :
http://www.bw-shinjuku.com/eng/index.html



Just in case your head starts falling off and u need to reach me

Going Tomorrow ! O - EM - GEE

Not looking foward to the god darn plane ride though

On that note...im off to buy sleeping pills !



[p.s i think i have a comp in my hotel room so i will upload lots
of pics asap]

What the hell is North Koreas problem ?

Now they are saying that they are going to

launch some type of satellite for 'peaceful purposes'

and some debris just might fall down and

smash things.

Err...sound fishy ?!

They want to launch this craft around

the beginning of April.

At the exact time I will be in Korea or traveling to Japan.

GOD !

Most people think they pull stunts like this to show

they are powerful & make people nervous.

Well, its working.

If it turns out to be a nuclear weapon Japan is standing

by with boats ready to shoot it down.

However, there would still be damage done to

the country. In the news reports thety are saying it

could reach the US.

But after only 3 years of further testing since

that plop in the water

they experienced in their 2006 test, its not likely it

will reach any further than Japan.

Oh Joy. Just where Im going.

Apparently they could be doing this solely for attention

so that they will be rewarded for not launching.

That makes sense. Its horrible but explains it.

Otherwise they are just wasting money & time.

Wtf do they need a satellite for ?!

They need a lot of help.

That country is so effed up on so many levels.

I wish they would stop doing all this crap !!!

God. Freaking Kim Jong Il.

This time next week.

This time next week I will be in Seoul, Korea

Although I type the words I cannot fully process the

reality of it in my mind.

For the first time EVER I will be on a different continent

Half way around the world !

The past few days I have been filled with

an unexpected feeling of dread & nervousness

Worried about every little thing...especially the

long plane ride & the language barrier.

Today I talked to a Bermudian the same age

as me in Korea & it made me feel a lot better.

I am starting to get excited again...like how I was

in the beginning.

Korea ! ! ! Leaving in 6 days.

Going to Japan on April 8 !