Spontaneous Trip to Jinju

So basically after last week, we spent the week like we do every week, drink and eat. I swear to god all we do is eat and drink. We spent the week doing that going to class, and next thing you know Bryant, Brian, Kyle, Yujin, Francis, and I are on our way to Jinju (a small town with the biggest lantern festival). Yujin and I were kind of a last minute decision to go! And what a great last minute decision. We took the bus down to Jinju, and we got to the bus terminal! Headed out to a hof (a casual eating and drinking bar like places in Korea) and had couple beers and some cheap food! From there, we went to a JimJilBong (Korean bathhouse), where we stayed the night and enjoyed a nice bath! We played some games and hung out before bed, which was excellent!

The next morning (October 11, 2013), we woke up and went around Jinju! We went to get some famous food from the area. They are known for their raw beef bibimbap (mixture of rice and vegetables). It was so good! We went to a pretty famous place where it’s their only food they serve.  The presidents go there! After a lovely meal and couple drinks later (yes to day drinking), we headed to the fortress in the city on top of the hill. There were lots of lanterns in people form, so as us being kids and all, we reenacted some of them for fun! Too much fun!

That night we enjoyed a chicken, dumplings, and steamed bread for dinner. We saw the full effect of the lantern festival that night! It was crowded and lit up, and it was so pretty. But we could only stay there for so long. (We got bored.)

We walk over to the train station and got the bus tickets to Busan! When we arrived I broke away from the group as they proceeded to head to the clubs; I went to a jimjilbong to get some rest. After a nice bath with an night ocean view, I fell asleep and woke up, and I was headed to the world’s largest fish market. There was a festival! I had a delicious sashimi and sauced eel all to myself, and I was on a bus to Seoul! That was my week. A fun trip and a restful Sunday.

Just a Not-So-Casual Week In Seoul

So this week is a good one! We had a holiday! It was the national founding day for Korea and my sister’s birthday! Shout out to you sis! I miss you!

Now back to business, the week was short. We did our usual eating, hanging out, and chillin. Next thing I know, it’s the holidays (October 3, 2013) and we took a trip to the famous Korean pancake (pajun) place, which is about 40 minutes from where we live! Korean pancakes are not your typical breakfast delights. They are more line pizza with out the tomato sauce. It is the crust with all sorts of seafood and vegetable inside. It’s really good. We ate like kings that morning with Korean rice wine, spicy rice cakes, and chicken soup, and be hold, we were drunk before 12pm that Thursday. After the delicious meal, we proceeded to a festival in city hall. There we saw the guard exchange ceremony (uneventful), spinning plates (Badly), and drumming (Awesome)! We were pretty much done with that day and wanted to cap it off with something delicious for desert, so we went and got macaroons (Delicious). As a group, we always have a hard time making decisions about our night out. Do we want to dance? Do we want to chill? Are we drinking heavily? Who is all going? Questions we really don’t need to know the answers to, but we know the answers too already. That night we went to Hongdae. We went to the unlimited Korean rice wine place and got plastered… We were in search of a club with no cover to go to and dance around in, but unfortunately there was no such luck. So we took our drunken asses home.

Friday (October 4, 2013), Eljay, Brian, Yujin and I went out to shop in Meung-Dong, which is like a famous place in Seoul! I loved it! We shopped early in the morning for some clothes here and there. Everyone bought something that morning. Wow I don’t know what we did after shopping… Most likely a nap to recharge for Sheimay’s birthday! Yay! We got all dressed up for Octagon that night. Everyone looked so nice. Well of course, we are about to head over to Gangnam for a party. After a cab ride and the free entry bracelet was on our wrist, we bolted back upstairs to the Mini Stop to get our cheap alcohol, Soju, to get us to a more dance appropriate mood. Loving life and having so much fun dancing around while the Korean national people were looking at us like “Look at those foreigners”. After couple minutes of bitchy looks, they started getting a little loose and dancing with us. By this time, I sobered up a little so Yujin and I headed upstairs for couple more drinks at the Mini Stop, and slowly but surely, our people started coming out… Let’s change locations… Oh lord… We did. I swear we are the only people who party this hard on our program. We went from Octagon to Ellui at 3am; it was the same thing, but more packed and different people. It was nuts. We danced some more got more drinks and next thing I know the club is closing, and we managed to stay at a Korean club till it closes. Death… I cannot believe we went to two clubs that night… What is my life?

I woke up the next day, and I died again. I hoped for an unproductive day, but one friend, whom shall not be named, asked me to come to Angok, which is the traditional/renovated part of seoul. We walk around the area and climbed to see a view and the traditional houses on the sides of the roads! It was gorgeous. What a shame that it became so touristy that people started moving out of the area, and it is becoming more commericalized with cafes and restaurants, not that korea has enough. We walked to the Gyeongbokgung, but we didnt go in. No palaces are worth seeing after Beijing;s Forbidden City. My friend and I parted ways after a cup of coffee. It was dinnertime. We went out for dinner at our favorite all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ place like we do for everyone’s birthday. We, once again, ate like kings and had cake. From there people wanted to different things that night, some wanted to go to Hongdae again, and Mason and I wanted to go to Itaewon. What it seemed like for the first time, the group separated! I was on my way to Itaewon with Kenny, Oskar, and Brandon. Mason would kind of join us later. We started our drinking at the 7/11 as usual as we waited for the Homo Hill to start getting crowded. It was around 1am, and now, it is packed! We went in to Queen and Why Not to go in to dance our a$$e$ off! Oskar and Kenny were telling me that they were felt up, and they were too fucked up too care! Brandon and I danced and when I felt too drunk. We decided to leave Kenny and Oskar to go home at around 4am. In Itaewon, it can be very difficult to catch a cab, especially if you don’t speak the language. I managed to get a cab and these foreigners were going to the same place and they offered to pay for the cab if they ride with us! I gladly took up the offer! We both won! Haha

I woke up the next morning (October 6, 2013) with a raging headache, but I had to swim. I have to be strong and go to swim practice. I got there an hour late, but it’s not bad because majority of the team was an hour late… haha

After a hard practice later, we got something to eat at a local restaurant around the pool, and the same guy (who showed me around Seoul last week) and a new guy from the swim team decided to show me around town yet again! This time we went to Bugaksan Skyway, where we got to see the amazing view from the top and enjoy a cup of coffee! We came down the mountain and enjoyed a couple beers and fries around the mountain. We separated after hanging out and discussing the difference in LGBT communities of Atlanta and Seoul. I got to learn a lot from both of them!

Then I came home and had some street food and went to bed… I was exhausted…

Oh don't have pho before swim practice....

Yon-Ko-Jeon

The week after the holidays was uneventful and quiet till the weekend. This weekend is the weekend of Yon-Ko-Jeon, which is the sporting event between Yonsei and Korea University. So during the weekdays, we just went to class and complained about it, and we learn new phrases like ETA (Eat Together Always). Like always, my friends and I stick together doing absolutely nothing! Came Thursday, there was a party thrown by the Yonsei University and Korea University at this club called Eden. It was a nut case. First, Isa, Oskar, Kenny, and I got lost on our attempt at finding the club so we struggled for about 2 hours. After a stop at Paris Baguette, a direction, and a little luck later, we finally got to the club! We got our wristbands and went back outside to a 7/11 to get hammered! We destroyed that 7/11 and got into Club Eden. As always, we were on stage and poles just dancing my life away! That night I remember having a lot of heart to heart with people; I remember having one with Kyle and one with Francis, it was nice, and it brought us closer together! Next part of the memory is kind of blurry; the mix of alcohol and time passed makes the picture a fuzzy one. I got home in a cab and went back to the dorms. It was not early, and next thing I see is Kenny and Oskar dying on the Ihouse bathroom floor! I was not in the right state of mind to take care of these folks. I had class Friday Morning (September 27, 2013), so I let them struggle it on the floor and make their way to the bed. I woke up that morning and went to finance, which is pointless because I don’t pay any attention in that class. I was looking at my phone looking at pictures of the baseball game that people were posting.

I was a little disappointed that I didn’t go, but there are 4 more sporting events left for me to go! After that class, I got ready to go to the basketball game, and an outfit change and a subway ride later, we were at the Olympic stadium and there a long ass line to get into the game… So we were only allowed in after half time. It wasn’t that exciting because we lost the basketball game. Later that night, we just got something to eat and I went to bed because we had to get up early for good seats for rugby and soccer.

Saturday (September 28, 2013), we got to the stadium and got ourselves some beer, and we were ready to chant and cheer for Yonsei! The rugby game was close, but we lost. After a lunch break where we had KFC (Southern fried chicken does not taste like that! I’d know! I’m from Georgia!), we went in to cheer and chant for our soccer game! WE WON!!!! Now the sporting part of Yon-Ko-Jeon is over! We got on the podiums and on the track and we kept on keeping on! We got down to the tracks of the Olympic tracks and we danced and cheered on till our hearts content! We went back home and took a catnap; we went out to Sinchon where now the party really starts. Jinelle, Emily, and I went to get chicken and beer, and after we were headed to Barfly where we drank and drowned. I danced my A$$ off on stage! I look over, and I see Gray struggling a bit… The kid was black out, so Ken and I took him home! After a couple embarrassing pictures later, I went to bed! Woke up Sunday morning, and I went to a swim practice! The team is the Seoul’s LGBT friendly swim team just like Shanghai. I feel all LGBT swim groups are pretty similar,; they talk about mostly the same thing, and they all eat together. We had soup after practice, but two of the guys wanted something different and they offered to take me around Seoul, so I naturally followed!

We went from Itaewon (The foodie section) and grabbed a meal. Pizza to be exact! I loved it; it was delicious and the beer really hit the spot. We walked around Itaewon and they explained me the history and development of Itaewon, which was too nice of them. We kept on walking and next thing I know we were in the NoksapYeong, walking through the rich part of Korea that Samsung owned (obviously). They kept explaining me the history and who bought what and where. So this is a lot of walking… We changed scenery from the rich houses to the famous mountain of Korea called Namsan. we made wishes on rocks, and we walked through some of the sites in and around Namsan and the boyfriend of one of my “tour guides” picked us up after work, and we were transported to the Hong River! To be honest, I was done walking, so a quick ramen dinner later, I got in the bus and I went home! What a weekend!!