Must-Do Things in Korea

I've been going through all the notebooks I've collected over the past year, and I've found several lists of things that I really enjoyed doing in Korea. I present them here to you now, in no particular order, that future travelers to this glorious country might be inspired by my adventures:

- walk down a street lined with cherry blossom trees in full bloom

- party all night in Seoul, then fall asleep on the train ride home the next morning

- get utterly wasted off of soju, just because you can

- gape at the unexpected grandeur of the Korean War Memorial

- kiss a Korean of your preferred gender

- eat kimbop and secretly think that sushi tastes better... and then change your mind after eating it so many times

- become suspicious that the "Lotte" company secretly rules Korea

- learn that no matter how you pronounce Korean words, you will never be correct

- discover that Everland is a magical place, where employees wave so vigorously that you become seriously concerned their hands will fall off

- get giggled at by small children

- be complimented in English by a Korean at least five times in one day

- become utterly obsessed with K-POP - download at least 150 songs

- get frustrated that the Korean word for ramen is "ram-yon", and that your students will refuse to pronounce it the English way even in English class

- eat bibimbap and wonder what all the fuss is about

- use scissors to cut meat, and realize how much more effective this is than a knife

- purchase tacky K-POP paraphernalia

- download and watch a Korean drama, chosen solely on the basis of how many attractive actors are in the show

- get discounts and amazing service just because you're a foreigner

- eat barbecue shrimp, and pretend not to be affected by their death screams and twitches

- witness a drunk man peeing in the street

- wake up to the melodious sound of the vegetable/electronics truck loudspeaker

- hike up Namsan tower because you can't find the cable car station

If you were wondering, yes, these are all based on personal experience. I'll post more when I think of them.

And to all my loyal readers out there -- how many am I at now, 3? -- you'll be pleased/saddened to know that my time in Korea is finally coming to a close. I leave in just over a week, and after a lovely Mediterranean vacation, I shall return to Canada on November 11th, just in time for Remembrance Day. Where oh where did the year go?