Couch surfing in Seoul

Aug 25

Seoul, S. Korea

In the back of the palace was “the SECRET garden” which became the focus of our jokes as it wasn't secret at all

Everything in airport immigration went smoothly. I took a bus to my next hostel in Seoul and on the bus I met an Islamic scholar! Wow! That seemed really random to me, but he was a professor from England who teaches Islamic studies at a university in South Korea. He had traveled a lot in the middle east and I asked him all about his experiences. He was really friendly until after he asked what school I went to and I told him the Academy. Then he hardly would say anything and only would talk about the war memorial in Seoul. Note to self: don't say I'm from the Academy. The hostel I stayed out was more like a house converted into a hostel. It was tiny but about 20 people lived in it. Everyone was really nice that I met and everyone taught English somewhere in Asia, either Japan or S Korea. I ate a dinner of dumplings that only cost a dollar fifty! Online was able to contact my S. Korean contact who I would spend the rest of my time with.

Aug 26

Early in the morning I went on my first run in a long time. I had grabbed a korean bill to buy breakfast with but when I went to pay I realized I had only grabbed a 1000 wan note (approx 1 dollar). The sore keeper laughed at my stupidity. All those zeros are difficult! I came back with my 10000 wan note. At 11am, Hyewon, my couch surfing host, came and picked me up at the hostel. She was really cute and sweet! We first walked around some historic districts in Seoul, ate a traditional meal (lots of Kimchi), and then went to a palace. The palace required a tour for foreigners but it was fun to meet other travelers. Two guys from New York took a liking to us and we made sarcastic comments the whole tour. The palace had really pretty colors painted on it, but it didn't feel old like places in Japan do. In the back of the palace was “the SECRET garden” which became the focus of our jokes as it wasn't secret at all. Hyewon then took me to some interesting shopping districts equivalent to Shinjuku in Tokyo. We looked in some shops, went to a department store where we sampled everything in the grocery section, and then ate dinner at a Japanese restaurant. I like seeing the Korean script all around, it looks cool. After a long day of walking we went to her flat where she lives with her parents, brother, and dog. Her mother was adorable!! So sweet. I slept in their study on a futon.

Aug 27

In the morning Hyewon and I rushed to her university so she could register for a locker. It was a women's university so it was a good chance to see the Korean girl's fashion style. We met a couple of her friends. They all spoke excellent English and we had some interesting conversations about the standard of beauty in our respective countries and how that affects the popular plastic surgeries. One of the girls was a psychology major and wanted to go to the University of Oregon! I was shocked. Since we had woken early to register, Hyewon and I were exhausted. Conveniently, her university has a sleeping room dimmed with tons of beds and blankets. We took a two hour nap, did some shopping around her school, and then ate lunch at a Chinese restaurant. At night we went to the national museum and looked at the displays. The audio commentary was really dry, but I enjoyed the Asian art gallery the museum had. Hyewon's mom picked us up and took us to a dinner of Korean sushi and really spicy ramen (it looked bright red). At night we watched an illegally downloaded version of Kung Fu Panda.

Aug 28

Today we slept in and took a walk with her dog, Tomi, in the morning. At noon we went out with her mom to a Korean barbecue restaurant. Her mom ordered so much food: meat, salads, soups, rice, fish, raw crab (did not like it), kimchi, and dessert. I ate so much. I thought I was about to burst. It was delicious, but later it would become the bane of my existence. After lunch we went to the Olympic park, walked around, and sat and talked. We then went shopping in a ritzy section below the World trade center. I found an adorable passport cover that can hid the gold eagle on the front of my passport. I was excited. We then went back to the most popular shopping district in S Korea where we met her cousin to watch a show. The show was called Ballerina meets B Boy. It was great! It was all dancing, no words, but the plot was about a Ballerina who gave up ballet to become a hip hop dancer because she falls in love with another HOT hip hop dancer guy. It was really entertaining and made me wish I could dance!!!!!!! Afterwards we all took pictures with the hot guy, and went out to eat. I was still more than stuffed from the lunch we had, so I just sat while they ate but I did try one of the sautéed snails they had ordered (it was yummy). At Hyewon's apartment we looked at her photos of her trip to India, took photos with her family, and then went to bed. In the middle of the night I woke to a terrible bout of food poisoning. In and out of sleep and going to the restroom, I finally ate enough peptobismo and immodium too sleep till morning. I didn't want the Korean family to worry about me, so I didn't tell them about it even though at one point I thought I might have had to go to the hospital.

Aug 29

In the morning I still felt a little ill, actually a lot ill. The last thing I wanted to do was eat, but on the kitchen table was a huge feast the mom had prepared for me. AND to make it worse, it was another Korean barbecue like the one the day before that had made me so sick. I couldn't not eat because I was the honored guest! So...I tried my best to make it look like I ate a lot even though I didn't eat much at all. I felt so feverish when Hyewon and her cousin rushed me running to the park where we were going to catch a boat ride on the river. I thought I was going to pass out, but I was able to pull through my fever. We missed the boat and returned defeated to Hyewon's flat. I helped her fill out her Couch surfing profile, and then I packed my bags. Every hour her mom would give me more food. First it was fruit, then it was ice cream, etc. I finally convinced her that I really couldn't eat any more. We went to the park again to catch a boat but they canceled the only other time we could make the ride. We talked for our last hour together, and Hyewon and her mom dropped me off at the bus stop to go to the airport. It was really nice to get to stay with a Korean family, and the family was extremely kind and generous to me. By the time I got on the plane, I almost felt completely normal. Alhamdulilah!