This past weekend was full of potential but sometimes the full potential of things are not reached! I am happy with the way it turned out. Friday night I went out for dinner with some coworkers and tried lamb for the very first time - I figure now is the time to be adventurous! Upon reaching the restaurant I did not feel good about eating there at all as these were the images all over the building:
Just looking at this picture again makes my heart break a little bit! But I did enjoy it for the most part. We were given skewers and each one had a prominent fat chunk on it that I could have done without. To me, it tasted similar to beef. I don't think its something I would go out of my way to eat again but I would eat it again if it were served (maybe, if my heart can take it).
I like that you generally always cook your own food at your table in Korean restaurants. We were also given an array of side dishes (kimchi, peanuts, onions, sauces) along with a cucumber & mushroom salad with vinegar dressing - I tried the mushrooms and still don't like them, although these ones had long stems with small mushroom heads (honestly, I only tried them because I thought they were noodles at first!)
I had many ideas for Saturday but nothing solid, as I wanted to wait until I woke up Saturday morning to decide what I wanted to do. I really like to just play off my current mood. But Friday night it was possible that I was going fabric and clothes shopping with Chris, or to Muui Island for the night with Jin (the organizer of the last hike I did and others through MeetUp) or to Insadong with Jess. Saturday morning quickly came and I woke up to this -
It lasted all morning through early afternoon - you can't see the rain very well in the video (aside from it flooding down the street) but it was crazy and the thunder was so close! Regardless, this made me want to have an inside day and I figured I would spend the day relaxing, watching movies. But as all things do, the weather changed and it became nice and sunny so I took a long 5 hour walk getting to know my neighbourhood a little bit better. In the picture below, you can see my normal path across the river. It's covered because it rained so much earlier that day!!
That night I spent eating my dinner, drinking wine and watching a movie. They seem to have a lot of Chardonnay but no Pinot Gris (or at least that I saw), so I opted for a White Zinfandel. Also a lot of bottles of white wine that just said "California" or "Sweet Wine", so I wasn't sure what to make of that. Either way, I enjoyed myself and my wine.
Sunday I had big hopes of finding Costco! The night before a girl on Facebook posted some things she was selling and I noticed she had a lot of Kirkland stuff so I messaged her about where the Costco was and it's not too far! I am and was beyond excited. I ended up buying this off of her so that I can cart my groceries from Costco (it's a little trek) although I do feel a bit dorky for having it.
I wanted to go today, but Korea has this thing called DIDA (The Distribution Industry Development Act) where all big box type stores must close a certain amount of days/times a month in order to give a fair chance to Mom and Pop stores. It's a good concept but a bit annoying when you try to go buy groceries. There has been a lot of resistance against this act but some have complied to differing degrees. It seems the big box stores in my area close every second Sunday. I realized today was a DIDA day (as I call them) and that Costco would be closed - so sad! But that will be my adventure after work tomorrow and I'm so so excited! When I first search for Costco when I got here I only found locations quite a bit south from me, so I gave up only to be pleasantly surprised. I hope that it's all that it should be :P
I also had plans today to check out a Korean academy today which I did do. I was supposed to be there before 3pm to talk with them, then do a trial lesson but it took me longer than expected to get there and then I couldn't find it. I knew it was close to the exit of the subway station and went into the building that I thought it was but all of the doors on the 6th floor looked like apartment building doors so I figured I as in the wrong spot. I went across the street to another building and walked around a bit. After feeling a bit lost, I asked the guy in the Mini Stop convenience store for help. He assured me (in the English he had) I was in the right building and that I needed to go to the 6th floor. So I did. Again, apartment looking doors, but they each had signs on them so I figured "Hey maybe these are companies". So I knocked on door 619 and sure enough it was an old Asian man's home. I felt pretty bad but I can only try!! After going back downstairs, I called the school and the director helped me find the school - it was in the first building I went into - apparently I should have had the courage to knock on that door instead of the other one! Even though I was super late, they still let me sit in on the class for a trial lesson. It seems alright and I think I'm going to give it a go for the next month. It will be Sundays from 3-550. Even if I go to a different school later on, I'm happy to be on my way to learning Korean as it is one of the goals I have while being here.
Lastly, in other exciting news, I bought a guitar! I figured I needed something to fill my time with and it's something I enjoy so I'm doing it. I found someone in my area that was selling his so I went and bought it off of him tonight and am in love with it. It's a gorgeous guitar and feels great. I can't wait to start playing more and learning again. It also came with some guitar accessories and homemade picks made from visa cards!
I love learning - anything. Now the only other thing I need to find is a dance school - something else that I love and haven't done in years, but that might not happen for a bit as I should probably take on one thing at a time!
Thinking of all of you in Osoyoos this weekend - miss and love you all.
<3
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