So, I'm back in Korea...as you can see now that I am writing about my life again. There for a while when I was back home, things were a little boring. Not boring in the way that I would see the same people all of the time, because believe me, after being away from my family for 2 whole years, it was great to have them around all of the time!! Boring in the way that I had no friends close by, and travel in America is a BITCH!! I love that Korea has such an amazing transportation system and oh how I have missed it. The buses and subways takes you almost anywhere you want to go, and they even have a rapid train to travel longer distances. The taxis are also SO CHEAP!
I actually just had a rather funny experience in a taxi a couple of days ago. I was headed to Costco (yes, there is Costco here, who would have thought!?) and was running a little late after a very rude bus driver wouldn't let me on the bus, granted I was trying to get on at an intersection rather than an actual bus stop; they tend to frown upon that, but sometimes I can get away with it because I am a 'dumb' foreigner. So instead of waiting for the next bus (about 10-15 min), I hailed a cab. Actually, it is quite a good thing that the bus driver didn't let me on because the one I was trying to get on, was going the opposite direction, so yes, we can remove the 'quotes' from dumb foreigner just this once! Haha! Anyway, I was leaning in the front window, asking the guy if he would take me to this particular location to meet up with a friend first (it is good to ask about a location before you get in the taxi because sometimes if they are feeling grumpy, they won't take you there...happens a lot actually). He said ok and opened the front door to let me in the seat. Now, I'm not sure what the actual protocol is, but when I have been by myself in a taxi, I have always sat in the backseat. If there are 3 or 4 of us, umm yeah, somebody has to sit in the front obviously but I generally try to jump in the back so that it isn't me. So, 'front seat' should have been my first indication of a weird ride.
The man was maybe in his 70s and was completely shaven bald, which is very rare in Korea unless you are a monk. Koreans take so much pride in their hair...especially men! I got in the front seat and for the first 5 minutes of the ride, I swear he stared at me the whole time! I am not sure how we didn't crash. Me feeling slightly uncomfortable, decided to just smile the whole time and try to pretend I was playing with my phone. Finally, he says, "Sooooooooo beautiful girl!" I told him thank you and tried to act like my phone was super interesting. He then proceeded to take out his wallet and show me a million pictures of his grandchild, which I must say, they kid was super cute, but I was scared for my life at this point because he is not really paying attention to the road and other drivers were honking at us as we swerved back and forth. Next, he tries to talk to me in Korean, which I can speak a small amount (very small!), but I do know the "Where are you from?" "What is your occupation?" and "How old are you?" questions and answers in Korean (these are very important get-to-know-you questions here because that is all that you need to know about a person; age, income, heritage...sigh, Koreans). So after I have now exhausted all of my Korean language skills, he thinks that I am fluent. He begins to go into turbo mode and I have no idea what he is saying. Something about his CD that is in the CD player, something about going jogging every day, something about learning English. I can pick things up but can't put them together to form complete thoughts. I politely explain to him that I can only speak a little Korean, but this doesn't deter him. He then turns off the radio and serenades me with a song that I think is from a Korean drama (soap opera). The words that he sings are, "I love you." Talk about an uncomfortable situation indeed! It was a very long song, and he was not the best singer, but I guess it is the thought that counts...right!? Ugh!
When he is finished singing, I can tell that he seems a little embarrassed, but not enough to stop chatting. He pulls out his wallet again and tells me that he enjoys going hiking in the mountains and that he is scuba certified!! Now how many 70-year-olds do you know who go jogging every day, climb mountains on the weekend, and are scuba certified? I know of only one now. The scuba certification actually peaked my interest a little, because I have been trying to find a place to become certified ever since I first moved here a little over 3 years ago. At this point, we were to the destination and I didn't get a chance to ask more about it, but I am not so sure that I would have wanted the conversation that would have followed.
WELCOME BACK TO KOREA!
