2003-06-09 - 2:45 a.m.

This is my contribution to a collaborative website, International Weblog.

June 5, 2003 (started writing at 23:35 on the train, near Guro.)

The last day at Gina's was quite amicable. There was one small flurry over the agreed-upon severance which got blamed on poor Mr. Min. I brought a copy of "Fun With Grammar" for the staff and a watermelon to share. The administration got me a nice china tea-cup with a lid, decorated with gold leaf and teddy bears (very Korean). Chelsea and Neil gave me a handkerchief and washcloth set (huh?), and the Korean teachers bought me socks by Pierre Cardin (double huh?).

These are the sorts of incongruities one meets regularly here. Who would think that roses and plaid would work together as a design on fabric? I've seen several variations on that theme. And, since when does Pierre Cardin design crew socks? Someone wove his name and a "border print" into three pairs of cotton socks in classic Corean colours,- peasoup green, dusty rose and grey.

After Neil got out of class, we headed to the beef kalbi place on the second floor. Kalbi is marinated meat cooked on a grill that's built into the middle of the table. It comes with loads of side dishes,- plenty of vegetables, soups both hot and cold, all sorts of good things. They really give you your money's worth there! It was 27,000 won for the three of us, Kiwi's treat. We had a grand time talking and didn't start toward our respective domiciles until 11 p.m. Neil walked me to the taxi stand. I needn't have hurried though, as I ended up sitting on the station platform for 25 minutes (doggoned slow #1 line). I'm sticking to it though, as it's now after midnight and this train is headed toward the car-barns at Chongnyangni.

At home, 12:35 a.m.

Caught a taxi from Jegi station for only 2000 won and landed by Siz Blue (my favorite PC shop). Hummmm, lots of muddy footprints in the entry-way. Rode the elevator up with a couple of gamers, but the lights were out and the place reeked of burnt plastic. They'd had a fire! No one was hurt, thank heavens! Good thing I saved my unedited stuff on-line. The edited info is in one of their computers, though not near where the conflagration was.

I ambled down toward home. Mrs. Coney was still open, so I stopped for an ice cream and a bit of a chat, she in Corean and I in English. What can I say, it works for us. ;-) She said the best way to get home is to tell taxi drivers "Anam-dong Ko-day Pyong-won." The last part means "Korea University Medical Center." I'd been trying to explain where I lived in reference to Anam Rotary, otherwise known as Anam Sah-go-ri. Sah-go-ri literally means "4 cross-roads," what we in Maine would call Four Corners. (Ko-day is what I usually say to describe where I live, by Korea University's back gate.)

The taxi driver had pointed out to me earlier that the socalled Rotary isn't really a round-about. You can't get around to the street that goes to my place when you enter the Rotary from Jegi-dong. We had to go up to Ko-day and make a U-turn at the front gate to get onto the street that goes by the subway station and my corner, where Mrs. Coney's shop is.

Thanks for reading.

Happy Trails!

~ Sil in Corea

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