So, Korea has a monsoon season and what I've heard is that this summer has had record rainfall. Great. The rain fell the hardest in mid-to-late July, so I was home for one of those weeks and preparing for my summer vacation the other week. Then I headed out of the country for two weeks. But the flooding happened not too far from where I'm living.
Chuncheon is the second biggest city in my province. They got hit the worst by the rainfall and landslides. 32 people died. It's weird to think that all this could be happening and I'm only 50km away. Not good.
Here is a clip from MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43909618/ns/weather/t/dozens-dead-landslides-flash-floods-hit-south-korea/
There was also flooding in Seoul and one of the subway lines had to close. That wasn't good because Koreans are work-a-holics and heavily rely on the subway system. I wouldn't want to be stranded underground in the subway.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCSAUQ5whFY
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Monday, August 29, 2011
A Small Hiatus
Hello! I must apologize for not blogging for quit some time now. The month of July was very busy for me, working many late hours and Saturdays AND Sundays!!! Saturdays AND Sundays!!! It was a long month. With working all those extra hours, I didn't have much time to go out and have fun. But, with a quick trip home and 16 days in Southeast Asia, I am back and ready with some stories.
First, I should tell you about this experience I had in Seoul. My friend was leaving Korea and she had an early flight Saturday morning. So she has this great idea that we would go out in Seoul, stay up all night and she could go straight to the airport. I ALSO thought it was a great idea. But remember, I was working late hours and weekends. I thought I could sneak away for the night anyway.
So Friday night, the last bus from Inje leaves at 7pm. I finished work at nine. Crap. So one of my adult students was going to Chuncheon to go to the big department store there. She gladly offered me a ride. The last bus from Chuncheon left at 11:30pm. So when I finished work, I left with my adult student at 9pm, arrived in Chuncheon in an hour and a half or so, and caught the bus to Seoul at 11:30pm. Perfect.
Well, I don't know if you know this, but Seoul is a big city (understatement of the year). So the bus station I arrive at and the place where I'm meeting my friends takes about an hour on the subway. So, I figure since the subway stops running at 2am, I should be fine. So, I board the subway at 12:30am thinking I will make my 2am deadline. To my surprise, the subway stops after about four stops and someone approaches me and says 'finishy,' which means finish in English. So I said, 'Oh, crap' and got off the train.
So now, I am in this part of Seoul, standing in the rain with my umbrella, half drunk (I had been drinking since I left Chuncheon) and looking for a cab. The cab ride would be about 45 minutes to the final destination, so I was prepared to pay a hefty fee. A cab finally drove by and we were off.
I can't remember how long it took us to get there, but the fee was only about $17. I can't complain about that. Plus, I finished me whiskey in the cab, so I was alright. So I finally met my friends at 2am.
Think this story is finished? Heck no. So you know how I said I was working Saturdays AND Sundays! Well, I had to work the next morning. So, after dancing in the club for about four hours, it's now 6am Saturday morning and I work at 11am. So, I have to make the trek back to the other side of Seoul to catch the bus back to Inje. I arrived at the bus station at 8am or so. The bus I was catching was at 8:45. I thought 'perfect, two hour bus ride brings me to 10:45am, 15 minutes to shower and be off to school.' Well, that didn't happen. I was on the slow bus, which means that it stops in every small village between Seoul and Inje. Lame.
So, I finally got home at 11:30am, had to remove my beer-soaked clothes, rinse off in the shower and head to work. Luckily I slept for an hour on the subway from where I met my friends to the bus station and for an hour or two on the bus from Seoul to Inje. Needless to say, that was a long day of teaching.
I have never regretted that decision and I was really glad I was able to see my friend and spend one last night with her. This was the second weekend in July and I haven't been to Seoul since. Maybe that's a good thing?
Thanks..more stories to come!
First, I should tell you about this experience I had in Seoul. My friend was leaving Korea and she had an early flight Saturday morning. So she has this great idea that we would go out in Seoul, stay up all night and she could go straight to the airport. I ALSO thought it was a great idea. But remember, I was working late hours and weekends. I thought I could sneak away for the night anyway.
So Friday night, the last bus from Inje leaves at 7pm. I finished work at nine. Crap. So one of my adult students was going to Chuncheon to go to the big department store there. She gladly offered me a ride. The last bus from Chuncheon left at 11:30pm. So when I finished work, I left with my adult student at 9pm, arrived in Chuncheon in an hour and a half or so, and caught the bus to Seoul at 11:30pm. Perfect.
Well, I don't know if you know this, but Seoul is a big city (understatement of the year). So the bus station I arrive at and the place where I'm meeting my friends takes about an hour on the subway. So, I figure since the subway stops running at 2am, I should be fine. So, I board the subway at 12:30am thinking I will make my 2am deadline. To my surprise, the subway stops after about four stops and someone approaches me and says 'finishy,' which means finish in English. So I said, 'Oh, crap' and got off the train.
So now, I am in this part of Seoul, standing in the rain with my umbrella, half drunk (I had been drinking since I left Chuncheon) and looking for a cab. The cab ride would be about 45 minutes to the final destination, so I was prepared to pay a hefty fee. A cab finally drove by and we were off.
I can't remember how long it took us to get there, but the fee was only about $17. I can't complain about that. Plus, I finished me whiskey in the cab, so I was alright. So I finally met my friends at 2am.
Think this story is finished? Heck no. So you know how I said I was working Saturdays AND Sundays! Well, I had to work the next morning. So, after dancing in the club for about four hours, it's now 6am Saturday morning and I work at 11am. So, I have to make the trek back to the other side of Seoul to catch the bus back to Inje. I arrived at the bus station at 8am or so. The bus I was catching was at 8:45. I thought 'perfect, two hour bus ride brings me to 10:45am, 15 minutes to shower and be off to school.' Well, that didn't happen. I was on the slow bus, which means that it stops in every small village between Seoul and Inje. Lame.
So, I finally got home at 11:30am, had to remove my beer-soaked clothes, rinse off in the shower and head to work. Luckily I slept for an hour on the subway from where I met my friends to the bus station and for an hour or two on the bus from Seoul to Inje. Needless to say, that was a long day of teaching.
I have never regretted that decision and I was really glad I was able to see my friend and spend one last night with her. This was the second weekend in July and I haven't been to Seoul since. Maybe that's a good thing?
Thanks..more stories to come!
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