A lot happened today. We were introduced to the staff, we learned about Korean culture, we met with the head of our divisions, I received my teacher's edition Biology text, we went to CostCo, and then had dinner 'off the hill'. Some things were more successful than others but all taught me something.
A little background on my school. I am teaching in a foreign school in Seoul. I live on campus with a the majority of the staff and their families. The staff ranges from young singles (like me) to near retirement married couples. There are at least 8 married couples that are new this year of the 35 new teachers. My school is situated on a hill in the Northern portion of the city right above a university. Above my school is a mountain. Part of the temptation for some folks is to stay safe and secure on the hill and only venture our when necessary. Some of us that are more adventurous decided to have dinner out tonight. It may have helped that we had two ladies fluent in Korean and a guy that has been living in the area for the last 11 years.
After a crazy shopping expedition at CostCo we came back, unloaded our goods and set off. We ended up at a 24 hour joint that had an English menu posted on the wall in addition to the Korean menus. I ordered gubap, a dish similar to sushi in that it is stuff rolled up in rice and seaweed. I ordered a vegetable gubap and a beef gubap. The table also received an assortment of kimchi and dumplings. As I had eaten some very spicy kimchi (fermented vegetables) at lunch I avoided the kimchi tonight. I enjoyed my gubap very much, but each roll was twice the size of a roll of sushi from the States. My dinner was less W 4,500 which is less than $4.50. I was able to try a bite from some of the other dishes. My favorite was a pork and sweet potato cutlet. It was breaded, fried, and served with a sweet sauce on top. It was amazing. Koreans also seem to really love their sweet pickles so I ate the ones my friend was served with her pork.
After dinner we wondered around a bit and stopped in a corner store for some ice cream. I had the Korean version of a Drumstick and it was a wonderful end to a full day.
Tomorrow the girls are going for manicures and then we will be going to dinner and theater in the city. We will be taking the subway for that adventure.
MY apartment is coming together. I have been doing a little every evening, and a good bit in the mornings. This weekend should get most of it situated. A few trips to my storage unit and I will be mostly clutter free, for a while at least.
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