sometimes a great notion

I feel like writing about food. I just went to a Korean place and ordered food by myself for the first time without the help of a veteran teacher. I only know how to say a couple things in Korean, but I managed! I'm so proud of myself.

Korean food is cheap. I think it's probably cheaper to eat at a Korean restaurant here than to buy groceries. Emphasis on Korean restaurant, though. Any other kind is pretty much what you'd pay for it in the states.

"Mandoo" is Korean for dumplings. "Kimbop" is Korean for sushi--athough they'd never call it that themselves, of course, because they hate the Japanese. But I have to admit kimbop and sushi do have their differences. Koreans put strange things in their rolls. Tonight, for example, my kimbop had American cheese in it! You pay more if you go to traditional Korean sit-down places where the meat is cooked fresh in front of you, but there are also really cheap ones where a huge sushi/kimbop roll is only about two bucks (2,000 won), and dumplings are only around two fifty.

Aside from Korean restaurants, the only "Western" food I've seen in my neighborhood is an Italian place. There's a Dunkin Donuts on my block, but I haven't been yet. When I was in Seoul I ate at an Indian restaurant and saw tons of American chains, like KFC and McDonalds. But in Korea you mostly find Korean restaurants. Duh.

Oh, and the pizza here. It's so cheap if you get it Korean-style. I have a Dominoes a block from me, but it costs like $30 for a whole pie, or so I've heard. I've also heard there are Papa Johns here, which is my favorite back home, so I can go on a quest for one if I get super homesick. Anyway, if you get pizza at a Korean pizza chain you can get all sorts of unique, delicious toppings (or just regular pepperoni) and it's only five bucks! Let's see, examples of Korean toppings are sweet potatoes, hot dog or sausage slices, spicy chicken, canned corn, potato wedges, and sweet creamy sauces. There's another pizza joint close to my place called Mr. Pizza, and their motto is "Love for Women," which they display on a big sign that makes me smile every day.

I've been eating food I've made for myself mostly, so any time I get a chance to go out to eat here it always makes my day. The food here is pretty damn awesome for the most part. It's one of my favorite things about Korea so far. It's funny how easily life can feel like an adventure just by trying new foods!

I should mention how strange I still find it that English is everywhere here. On signs, advertisements, products, clothing and even through loudspeakers. Butchered English, but understandable English nonetheless. I guess it still seems odd to me because in the states we don't have little Korean subtitles for everything, that would just be absurd. Yet it's not absurd here to have little English translations on most everything. I'll let you know if/when I ever get over that.

Before I go I just have to tell you how excited I am about tomorrow night after work. I'll hopefully be watching our new president being sworn in live, if I can find a way. I have a feeling it will be a very homesick moment, wishing I could be in DC and knowing I would be if I were still home. Just remember I'll be across the Earth trying my best to feel and share in the excitement with the rest of you. As cheesy as it sounds, I love America and I'm so proud of my country right now. I wish I could be there, but I have no regrets, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and a bunch of other clichés...