A night with uncle...

I think the person most excited to see me here in Korea, besides my grandma and my dad, is my uncle.  He calls me his favorite nephew and said that he wanted to do all the things he couldn't do for me the 20 something years we've been apart.  So last night we went to go shop for groceries to grill at his place for dinner and drink.  The quality of beef at the market was remarkable, the marbling on the meat was similar to what Kobe beef looked like...yummy!  The store we went to is called "E-Mart" and had 5 or 6 levels with escalators taking you from one floor to the next.  The first floor had the groceries and as you ascend to the higher levels there were things like appliances, clothes, a food court, makeup, etc.  You hear that?  It's the sound of my mind being blown.  Anyway, after we got all the groceries we picked up some alcohol for the night.  I was so happy to see that they had a section for foreign beers and liquor :)  My uncle asked if I've ever had Hennesy but I told him that it was always too expensive for us to go buy so he got me a bottle of that and a couple of beers, Kostritzer to be exact.  The shopping carts were designed so that they locked into place on the escalators to prevent them from rolling down the slope, awesome!  We picked up some ice cream for the girls and were off to the house.  

     I was surprised to see how nice the apartments in Korea were these days.  My uncle's place looked like a penthouse you would see in New York.  Spacious and all modern appliances.  I entertained the girls until we were ready to grill.  Now grilling in Korea means using like a flat top griddle or something similar and then cooking the meat at the table along with onions and garlic.  Then you wrap it in leafy lettuce, cabbage, or some kind of vegetable along with hot peppers and chili or soy bean paste.  We started with a couple of glasses of the Hennesy and let me tell you, that stuff is delicious and smooth!  Then we shared a bottle of Soju, kind of like a rice liquor similar to sake.  We finished the night off with a couple of the beers we picked up.  Since we were eating as we drank, I wasn't too intoxicated which is always a plus.  We had some nice dinner conversation and then went to bed soon after.  Good night ^-^

    This morning I went to eat this soup that people usually have after they drink the night before.  It was similar to menudo that Mexican people eat except it had bean sprouts and veggies along with the expected organs and stomach.  Don't hate, it was delicious and super spicy.  I got home around 1:30 pm which is about 20 minutes later than I usually leave the house for work so I changed in less than a minute and was off to the subway.  My teaching job here is pretty easy for me.  Not much to prepare and I mostly cater to the student's needs and level of proficiency so the book that I was given to teach out of is just a reference tool for material.  For my English conversation student, I Skyped Rob Adelman as he was the only one up back in the states since the difference is 4 hours behind me and opposite time of the day.  The student was really shy and was anxious to be speaking to an English speaking stranger.  He was amazed with Skype but I also got the feeling he appreciated my unconventional methods of teaching.  I'm sitting here now, pecking away at this entry while my writing student is working on the essay prompt I gave him.  I'm awesome.  Anyway, more pictures:

Grilling some duck, hater, what you know about that?  It had a smokiness to it, almost tasted like bacon too.

Escalator in the "E-Mart"

Thank you trade for foreign beers!

Drankin' that Hennesy and grilling' meats!

Baby cousin. 'Nuff said.

The driving range from my uncle's apartment.  

Hangover soup with rice.

Kimbop (rice wrapped in seaweed with filling).  This is not traditional kimbop but it's sold in the convenience stores here as a quick snack for students who go to their after school study programs.  My conversation student bought one for each of us to snack on as we walked back to the hagwon.  What a nice kid :)

Fish Market Goodness!

    What was supposed to be an afternoon lunch turned into a whole day affair...thank you Seoul traffic, you may be worse than New York's.  My uncle, grandparents, and I left around 1 pm and got to the fish market around 3:30.  I was blown away when we got there.  It was about half a mile to 3/4 of a mile long stretch of straight fish mongers and shops setup in a long line.  Everyone there had ridiculous amounts of fish for sale, almost all still alive in the tanks.  There were sea scallops the size of filet mignon medallions, 2+lb alaskan king crabs, shrimp, and of course tons of fresh fish.  They have a service there where you pick the fish and whatever else you want to eat and then for a small service fee, they take your food to one of the neighboring restaurants and prepare your meal.  My uncle and I each got a whole king crab to eat and my grandparents got the Korean version of a red snapper prepared as fresh sashimi to eat.  It was all so delicious.  They also prepared a fish stew with the leftover bones with meat on them called "Maewoon Tang."  It was so much food, all I could do was just sit there in a food drunken stupor.  My uncle's kids and wife came as well so it was fun.  The youngest one, Yeh Won, is sooo cute!
    After dinner, we went to a district of Seoul called Yonsang, which is known for its' electronics and video game shops.  We made a stop there to get the girls a Nintendo Wii.  I played with Yeh Won while we were waiting for the guy to setup all the stuff for the games.  She found my making goofy faces too funny and proceeded to shower me with love.  Yeaaaaus!  I couldn't get a picture with her because she was worn out and fell asleep in the car.  By the time we got home, it was around 8:20 pm.  A little ridiculous for what was supposed to be a lunch trip don't you think?  Before we left the fish market we bought some more live squid to eat tomorrow, winning!  Having family here to take care of me and hang out with is great, it's like I've known them my whole life.  Well, I actually have, just haven't been able to see them or be around them like this.  But I also miss my "family" back in the states, no one could replace you guys.  The only reason I've been able to stay so strong throughout this transition is because I think of you guys all the time.  Skype and Kakao Talk also help a little :)  I've been texting my 20 year old cousin in Korean to practice writing and my speech has improved a lot since I landed here.  Thank you, Lord, for technology and all of its' bounty!  Anyway here come the pictures, enjoy and until next time, stay funky. ^_^

Fish mongers on both sides as far as the eye could see.

Where we picked out our crabs and fish.  Just look at all that!

Yummy feeeeesh.  Just waiting to be devoured :)

Where we got our food prepared.  Most traditional restaurants in Korea have floor seating like this.  They give you mats to sit on.  It takes a little getting used to.

A little appetizer to stimulate the palate.  I forgot what it was called but it tasted fresh lol.

My uncle and I were ready to dominate some crab.  There's also a little bit of the sashimi I was eating before they hauled the crabs out.  The girl there is Yae Ji, the older of the two girls.

Pure domination.  Take that crustacean! /flex

Maewoon Tang.  That broth is derricious.

Goodbye fish market, until we meet again!

Adjusting to life in Korea

    It's been almost 2 weeks since I've landed in this country.  Damn those 2 weeks went by fast, mostly because I was being dragged around all over Seoul running errands and doing interviews.  Speaking of interviews...here's how my Air Force officer test/interview went.  Apparently I didn't understand the scope of this whole experience because when I arrived at the shuttle site to be picked up, I was the only one not dressed in a suit lol.  Total jackassery.  The test and interviewing would take all day.  The essay portion of the test, which included translating a passage and the essay prompt in Korean to English and eventually writing an essay, started at 9 am.  Now, the only Korean I'm able to speak is because my mom emphasized that not forgetting my native language was important.  Outside of the house I never had an opportunity to speak it to anyone else or in any scholarly capacity.  All the Korean used in the testing phases were academic Korean, as in "hard as hell for a southern boy from Arkansas."  I took out bits and pieces I could recognize and wrote to the best of my knowledge lol.  The listening part of the test I breezed through, thank you Amurrica.  We were served lunch at the academy's cafeteria around noon and then the afternoon portion of the tests began.  By the way, the total applicant pool was 87 and they only pick 20 (the biggest pool they've had in a long time).
    The afternoon test consisted of listening to a passage in Korean and then interpreting on the spot into English and then vice versa.  All of this in front of three Air Force officers that speak both languages damn fluently.  To say the least, I choked hardcore and felt embarrassed.  I walked out feeling defeated.  At least the hard part was over with, all that was left were the two interviews, one in English and one in Korean.  The Korean interview was conducted by a 1 star general in the Air Force.  He was surprised that I could speak as much Korean as I did during the interview after finding out that I'd lived in the states for over 20 years.  I tripped over words in Korean during my interview but whatever, I had nothing to lose at that point.  The English interview was super easy, it was with a Colonel from the USAF.  Afterwards, I went and picked up my confiscated cell phone (not really, they just collected everyone's when we got to the base) and went home with my dad.  For the next 2 hours on the way home, I felt like a complete and utter failure.  I didn't know why I was going through all this trouble, breaking my ass traveling to these bases and subjecting myself to humiliation like this.  I've never had to face much failure in life but I am familiar with its' bitter taste and in that moment, I missed home the most I've ever missed it...EVER.  I wanted to drop everything and just come back but I knew that wasn't going to happen or be possible anyway so I snapped myself out of the bitch moment and realized I couldn't let failure or the fear of failure impede my journey.  Fuck you, failure!
    When we got home, my dad told me that the Marines had called him to make sure that I wanted to come and do the whole test/interview thing for them so I could go in as an interpreting officer.  My dad told them my whole situation about not being able to speak Korean all that well yet but they assured him that I'd be able to get in with no hassle.  That was some good news and it cheered me up a little bit...let's just hope they weren't blowing smoke up our asses.  I also have an interview with the Navy lined up as well next month so all hope is not lost.  Anyway, that was the biggest thing that's happened to me while I've been in Korea besides my new teaching job at an after school test prep center, similar to the Kaplan classes you can take in the states, called a "hagwon."  I'm teaching English writing, note taking(outlining), summarizing, and all that good stuff.  I've had to write my share of papers, scholarly and not during my engineering days, so this is no hassle at all for me.  As long as I can help some poor Korean student learn Engrish so he can do well on his tests, I'll be a happy camper.  Oh yeah, I met my two cousins that I hadn't seen since I was here in 3rd grade.  20 and 23 years old, the younger one is going to take me out once she's done with her college entrance exam.  The older sister is already married and is pregnant!  I also met my other uncle's kids who are 5 and 7 years old (met them the first night I was in Korea).  Adorable little girls but I prefer the younger one since she likes me more haha.  After we ate dinner out at a restaurant one night, my uncle asked the young one if she wanted to be held by me and she just shook her head yes and just latched onto me like a koala bear.  She's so cute!  She even fell asleep in my arms on the car ride home.  Pictures of them to come.
     Anyway,  I've got some more food pics for you peoples!  I know you enjoy these.  Other than that...I still miss seeing your faces but it's all good because we got Kakao Talk!  If you don't have it (*cough..Camille..cough*) yet, it's FREE.99...that means FREE for people who think that means .99 cents (*cough..Camille..cough*).  Just like What'sApp but I like it better.  Free international texts, send videos, voice notes, pics, group chats.  My id is johnkim1987 on it so add me.  So until next time my Craigs, I love y'all! (gotta keep it Southern)

Oh, BTW...I had an interview with another hagwon today in the neighborhood where my parents first met and bought our first house when I was a baby.  Three guys, all spoke English very well, noticed my Southern accent.  That made me happy.  I can't notice it when I speak but I guess it's really true, once you get that twang, you can't get rid of it.  It comes out one way or another, sober or not :)

Fruit vendor right outside of the house.  Someone I know would enjoy this place.

Bunch of street side stores ranging from eats to produce/meat/fish to clothes and other randoms.

Monk fish with prawns and bean sprouts (super spicy)

They apparently take rice and mix with the rest of the sauce that comes with the monk fish.  It's derricious.

Pretty little walking path by the bike trail.  10 minutes from the house.

Eating some chicken wings (they served them with a pair of gloves so you don't get your fingers dirty lol) at the mall (it was 7 or 8 stories!).  The food court here is nothing like you'll see in the states.  

Lunch with grandma at the mall.  It's called Bibim Naeng Myun which is just buckwheat noodles mixed with veggies and sesame oil in red chili paste.  Topped with sesame seeds and a boiled egg.

Lunch with dad in the neighborhood where my parents first lived when my mom was pregnant with moi.  Spicy seafood soft tofu soup.  It always tastes better when it's scalding hot :)

Physical/Drug Test

    Today was a full day, dad and I had to go into the city to some military personnel compound to get my physical and drug test done.  I felt like a complete moron because all the paperwork and the computer testing stuff was in Korean so I had to have a translated English version on paper and just answer accordingly on the computer.  Luckily there was someone who spoke some English so I was able to go through the paperwork pretty quickly.  After all that mess was over with, we had to go change and get ready for our physicals.  Now for those of you who know me, I'm a big dude lol.  Being raised in the US, I was lucky enough to play school sports like football and go to the gym while growing up.  I swear I felt like the Hulk walking next to these scrawny little Korean boys.  Anyway, after all the blood work and pee testing was over, the last thing left was to get our weight and heights measured.  Apparently there is a weight limit you have to meet to go into the military...WTF.  I was over by 4kg (8lb) lol.  I don't even think the kids bigger than me (I don't want to hurt their feelings by saying fat, not saying I don't have fat but I've got a pretty good deal of muscle, yeah?) went over the limit.  It's almost as if they're saying I'm not fit enough to join, which I think is utter bullshit.  So during the checkout process I was told that I had 1 month to lose that excess to meet the weight limit, haha.  I've got to lose weight to meet their standard of what a man in the military should be...do you sense a theme of vanity in this country anyone?  I won't have any problems losing the weight but I think it's funny.  If this were the US, there wouldn't have been any problems.  Maybe I need to start thinking more Korean.

    Afterwards, we went to one of the big service providers phones main offices to see if they could transfer their services to my iPhone.  Since my iPhone hasn't been jailbroken/unlocked, they couldn't, so we just got a new iPhone, LIKE A BOSS (instantboss.org).  While we waited, the pops and I enjoyed our ice creams that he bought while we were waiting for the paperwork to go through.  When we got home, I finally got to have some food I haven't had since I was here last, which was 10 years ago.  Pics down below.  Other than that, I'm happy I got a new phone, I'm happy I have an uncle who's willing to take me out to drink from time to time, I'm happy I have family that's trying to make my transition living here easier, most of all I'm happy that I'm feeling like I'm finally settling into a comfortable place in my mind.  I've accepted that I'm here for the next 2+ years and I'm going to enjoy it while I'm here.

Anyways, FOOD PICS and other randoms:

Typical Korean meal at home, fish, rice, soup, then assorted side dishes.  My grandma also makes a lot of this one dish called Gae Jang, it's pretty much raw crab that's left to marinade using lots of seasonings and spices, it's the red stuff in front of the rice.

Live octopus. Get on my level hater, it's sooooo good.  Haven't had it since I was a little boy.

Ventured into the city a little bit and it wasn't even the city part of the city.  I'll be going to the advertised part of Seoul that all the tourist see this weekend.

The subways were super nice.

Lots of stores and buildings with neon lights at night.

Seafood Jjajang Myun (noodles with seafood,veggies, and meat in a soy bean sauce), fried dumplings, and Tang Soo Yook (basically it's tenderized beef that's been deep fried and you dump this sweet and sourish kind of sauce on top with veggies).  This was delivery food, ballin'.

    

Ze tour and what I'm up to

So my photo booth keeps shutting down randomly but I managed to do a little tour of the inside of my grandparents' place. 

The garden on the porch after you come out of the front door. Lots of fruit trees and flowers.

The stairs lead up to the roof.  That little shack is where they keep the plum wine they make and has fruit that they store after they harvest or buy from the shop.

The old greenhouse turned to a storage space now on the roof.

View from the roof.  We're on the outskirts of the city so it's a little country and not as modern.

More roof, pots and other stuff.  

Ridiculous how much stuff they planted on the porch.

Stairs to come up to the main house.  When you exit at the bottom you come to the street and from there you can walk your way into the city, take a cab, or get on the subway.  Lots of storefronts along the way as well.  Also the bottom part of the house is being rented out.

Front door to house.

    Like I said in the video, I have one of my first translation officer interviews next week and I'm also probably going to have to start working within a couple weeks at a language/test prep school.  I'll be teaching English to kids ranging from middle school to college.  Also, not being around the language in the states, I've lost a considerable amount of vocabulary.  It's like I know they're speaking Korean but the words just fly over my head.  I can read it but what the hell does it mean?  That's why I have to study and read news articles to bolster my repertoire.  The biggest thing I'm worried about in my officer interviews/test is translating Korean to English purely due to the fact that I don't know much vocabulary but hopefully they'll be blown away by my "purpect engrish." ^_^
    My heart aches for the states and the people but I'm trying to keep as busy as I can.  My uncle and grandma are going to take me out to the city this weekend.  I'll take pictures then and post.  I know some of you want FOOD pictures so those will come as well.  I freakin' miss you guys, holla!

JK

Finally here

    14 hours on a plane, only being able to sleep for 1 of those 14 hours, and 7 movies later I'm finally at my grandparents' house in Korea.  The same house they've lived in for over 30 years.  It's smaller than I remember but that could be because I was a wee lad back then.  I'm feeling kind of numb on the inside, almost as if I don't care about anything.  It was nostalgic on the ride in seeing signs and store fronts and restaurants I vaguely remember.  But yeah, I just really don't know what to think of it so far.  I'm kind of homesick but I'm trucking on.  Living here is going to be a polar opposite of what it was like in Fayetteville, let's hope I can adjust quick, otherwise I'm going to go crazy.  I feel so helpless, HELP!!!

Leaving on a jet plane

Just finished the last of my packing.  4 hours of sleep then I've got to get clean shaven, showered, and off to the motherland.  I'm a little sad all my craigs won't be present to see this Craig off but at least I have Andrew and Tom craig with me at the airport and of course my mom.  I'm going to miss her too much, I already have a feeling.  I might cry if I keep writing.  First post in Korea will be a video tour of the house and maybe my grandparents and my dad will say hi too :) See ya guys, I love you all.

JK