So what's a typical weekend? This weekend was only my 3rd since being here but here's what I do most weekends.
Friday: Hang with 203 in his apartment after work until we head out to a nightclub or pub around 10pm with some other friends. This weekend we unknowingly picked a sleezy joint that I won't name and will not go back to. Last weekend I s.o.s. texted him to save me from this leech of a guy that was hanging around me and he was there to save me from the creep. This weekend I could return the favour when a chick wouldn't leave him alone at the club we went to. On our way home we either stop to buy a kebab from a guy called Ian or a toasted sandwich from Issac's Toast. They are opened until all hours of the morning. I actually never expected kebabs to be popular here as an after partying snack like it is at home, but it is.
Saturday: Wake up late and explore a different part of the city. Preferably an area where I can shop. Sometimes I go with a mate, other times by myself. This Saturday I headed out to Nampodong by myself on the bus. I have been there before, but always with friends so it was the first time trying to remember the stop to get off. Of course, I went too far, got lost and had to catch the subway back to Nampo. I spent the day shopping and buying cute Korean stuff.
Saturday night: I can never do two nights in a row so on Saturdays I usually have dinner with a friend and hang at a cafe or visit a coworker at her sister's cafe and hang there for tehe night. Last night I met a friend of a friend for the first time and it was so funny because we had never met before. We were meeting at a local Starbucks in KyungSung and I was going to call when I got there but when I walked in the door, I hadn't even got my phone out and we instantly recognised each other. She jumped up to meet me and I headed straight for her. So funny, because KyungSung is full of foreigners on the weekend as there are heaps of bars so there were lots of people out and the place was chock-a-block full. But for some reason we just had this weird instinct about each other. We had coffee and went for dinner at a Hong Kong restaurant. We ordered fried pork with sweet and sour sauce (nothing like we get at home at all - it looked like styrofoam with the sauce on the side) that melted in the mouth and a spicy mussel ramen soup. It was beautiful. I am so glad to have met Yoonseok. She is lovely. Her boyfriend didn't come but had asked her to take a photo of me so he could see who I was, so we had lots of photos taken. I can't wait to meet the two of them together next time.
Sunday: After another late start I walked to Gwangalli beach (about a 40 minute - 1 hour walk depending on whether you go through Pukyong Uni or not). There is a great walking trail around there and information on this massive walk that goes for about 8 hours. I am determined to do it when the weather gets a bit warmer and when I can rope someone into going with me. When I got to Gwangalli, I camped out at a cafe along the beach on the second floor so I had a great view of the beach and had some brunch while I read my book. It was great. My mobile was going off the whole time making plans to catch up with all different people I have met since being here so my next week is nearly full already. What's great is that there is so much to do at night here as it's pretty much a 24/7 city. Shops and cafes close really late - early morning - so there's a never ending list of things I want to do and places to go. On the way back I stopped by Mega Mart, bought a sloppy cardigan, went home and watched some Taiwanese tv.
One of the things I love about Korea is that the restaurants are so cheap. It's actually cheaper to eat out than to cook at home. My area is a uni area so there are LOTS of pubs and LOTS of restaurants. Basically from the time I walk out of my apartment everywhere I go has somewhere to eat or drink. I can't really explain it because we don't really have anything like this at home. I used to be a bit wary of going to a restaurnt here by myself if they didn't have pictures or an English menu. I got over that this weekend and I have decided to go and just order anything. Kind of like pot luck and hope I end up with something good.
Tonight I went to this little mama and papa restaurant a couple of streets away. I was so proud, I spoke Korean the whole time! Yay! Ok, it wasn't that impressive as I only said 4 things the whole time. But the point is that it was all in Korean.
I ordered: 자장밥 주세요 (jajangbap juseyo - I'll have jajangbap [black bean rice with fried egg] please). The lady who cooks there walked by and she saw that I had mixed the rice, egg and sauce but was eating the side dishes first. I think she was worried that I didn't like the 자장밥 because she pointed to it on my plate so I said to her 맛이 있어요 (Mashi-esawyo - it's delicious). She smiled this massive big grin and nodded approvingly at me. At the end I went up to the woman's husband to pay: 감사합니다 (Kamsamnida - thank you) 안녕히 계세요 (annyeonghi gyeseyo - goodbye [to the person who is staying. You say it slightly differently if the other person is the one who is leaving]). I said before that food here is really cheap. My dinner tonight cost me 3,500won. That's the equivalent of AU$2.95 and this is a picture of what I got. I had already started eating it so it doesn't look too great here. It was really yummy. I don't know how they can charge such low prices as it also came with pasta salad, coleslaw with a mayo/tomato sauce, radish, kimchi and a noodle egg soup.
Water is free at every restaurant. It's usually self serve so don't be afraid to go and grab a jug of water from the fridge and a couple of cups. More often than not they won't bring it to you.
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