Life is Hard (As a giant Soccer Ball)

Due to a recent shortage of Giants, the gigantic metallic soccer-ball industry has had a few setbacks. I saw this today while I was out, taking a walk. It's been a pretty uneventful weekend so far, and there's really nothing to be done today, since Public Transportation is on a majorly reduced schedule due to Chuseok.

I went to Seoul on Friday night for some light drinking, and back again yesterday to take a teacher to a place called I-Park Mall. It's a gigantic, 9 storey mall that's centered around Electronics - there are literally seas and seas of Cameras, Laptops, Computer Parts, and yes, Video Games. Geek Heaven, really. But no, I didn't indulge in the electronic-goodies (even if I was tempted.)

Instead, I picked myself up a cheap learner's Guitar. I've always wanted to learn, and since i've got the free time, I might as well put it to good use. So far, I play a mean G-Major Chord (no autographs, no autographs). Obviously, it'll take awhile for me to actually get any good at it, but hey. I've got the time - it just remains to be seen if I have the patience. We'll see.

Tomorrow will mark 4 weeks since i've left Canada. Time really does fly. I'm still happy with my decision to leave the country for a while. Adjusting to life as a foreigner is strange, fun, and challenging at the same time. I get to experience new things almost daily, and I kind of feel like i've been brought back to childhood.

At first, I couldn't get around without having someone else with me. Then, finally, the 'big day' came where I took the Bus by myself. The same thing happened with the Subway system. I have to learn how to talk again, how to read, what maneurisms are acceptable and which ones aren't. I also get to taste new things - some which I hate, some which I love, and some in between.

For example, take Canned Coffee. It's cold coffee, served in a can. You can buy it like Pop. And as strange as the concept of drinking cold-coffee seems from someone living in Tim Horton's nation, it tastes really, really great. I never drank coffee at home, but this stuff is awesome. Another example of something great you'll probably never see in Canada? Carbonated Milk. Again, you drink it like pop - It's milk, with fizz (and sugar) added to it. As disgusting as the concept sounds, it's really one of those things that you have to taste to appreciate.

One thing I will say, though, is that I miss the taste of real cheese. Cheese is hard to find, and when you find it, it's expensive as all hell. I've resorted to buying myself some Cream Cheese and spreading it on bread to get my fix. Overall though, I can't complain. It's much easier to eat healthy here - not only is the food more nutritious, but the portions they come in are smaller. You won't find a 2L bottle of coke here; the biggest size is 1.5L.

Although strangely, you can buy a 2L bottle of beer. Beer and Soju are very, very cheap sources of alcohol - so that's one thing you definitely have to be careful with in regards to preserving your liver. I'm not drinking excessively myself, though.. What's the point of a once-in-a-lifetime adventure if you can't remember large chunks of it? Heh.

Stay safe.