On the weekend of the 12th and 13th, I went to Seoul for an orientation weekend with CIEE, the group I used to find a job in Korea. There were almost 20 other teachers from the US and Canada who had arrived in Korea at about the same time I did. We were all meeting with representatives from CIEE. We were given a tour of Seoul and talked about the Korean culture, food, how to be effective as teachers, what was expected of us, and more.
I took the subway to the center of Seoul. The subway here is unlike any I have used before. It is very clean and all of the passengers seem to know the proper etiquette. There are several seats in the front of the car that are for disabled, mothers with children, or elderly people. These seats are kept free at all times even when the car is full (except for rude foreigners who don't understand). There are another 2 to 4 seats that are designated for pregnant women. These seats can be used until an expecting mother arrives and then are expected to be vacated. If a seat is empty it is catch as catch can. I gave up my seat to an older woman once. When another seat was vacated, she tried to get me to sit in it. I told her no, it was ok, but she moved to the other seat so I would take my original seat. She was very kind. The subway was confusing when it was explained to me by my school administrator, but after I realized how it worked, it was not nearly so daunting!
The CIEE group met at a hotel and traveled to an American pub/restaurant called Phillies to meet. There were people from many places in the US and even one from the town in PA I was born in! He knows my relatives there. There were several from NY, NY. They seemed more different from me than the Koreans I have met here. Isn't it strange that I can see similarities between myself and others when we have to understand only the most basic of communications but when we can communicate better I start to see just how different we are. Some of the teachers seemed nice and others made me see why we are "ugly Americans". Maybe ugly is too strong and it should be ignorant Americans. I guess I thought if they traveled here they would have some idea of the culture or just how to be polite! Also, there were several of the teachers who are vegetarian. I find it a bit odd to travel to this country of meat lovers when you are a vegetarian.
We went to see one of the palaces. It is in front of the Blue House which is Korea's version of the US's White House where the Korean President lives. The palace has been rebuilt as it was almost totally destroyed during WWII and the subsequent Japanese occupation. I took some photos, but I would like to return when there is green and leaves on the trees! I realize I don't appreciate buildings without gardens or trees to go with them.
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| The palace building with the throne room. |
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| Throne Room of the Palace |
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| You can get in free if you wear the native dress. Our group photobombed this group of Koreans who were only too happy to cooperate. |
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| The Blue House where the Korean President lives. |
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| They are trying to save the trees. Each is individually wrapped and propped up. |
We found the area of Seoul where all of the foreigners hang out. I found a bookshop with used books in English! I also found a large bookshop that sells new books and has a decent English part. It is much busier than any Barns and Noble I have been in except around Christmas time!
I also found a Starbucks and was able to buy some real coffee beans so I can brew my own at home. One of the things here is when you order a drink at a restaurant, it is not very large, and you can't get refills. If you want more, you just buy a second soda. Also, there are not very many restaurants that serve diet soda. Apparently the frequency of diabetes is rather high here due to the fact that they put sugar in almost EVERYTHING. Even the chips that are cheese chips are sweet!
We stayed in a hotel that is called The Hotel The Designers. Every room is different, designed by a different designer. The room I stayed in had a fancy toilet that sprayed water at you. It also had a bathtub the size of a child's swimming pool. What a luxury! It was the only bath I have had since being in Korea! The breakfast was interesting though, it was a mix of breakfast and lunch type items. No, it wasn't supposed to be brunch. You could eat nachos or pasta salad with your eggs. Oh yes, and no meal is complete without pickles!
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| A bathtub fit for a queen, but the tub and sink are in the room with the beds. |
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| Pasta salad and pickles for breakfast anyone? |
Love those fancy toilets. Just hope their aim is true. Sounds like a great weekend trip.
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