Feeling Seoulful

So...how do you pack for a year when venturing to a country that doesn't have a lot of what you might need...? I'm slowly catching on, thank goodness, while I'm on this side of the world.

Aside from the research I've done on the 'net, I've also got human resources dipping their hand into the Help-Catie Basket. The most recent being D. (I don't know how "private" I should be on this public blog, so just in case, I won't disclose his full name. Paranoid? Possibly...)

A guy from Burlington, who was a couple-to-few years ahead of me in school, D. (I graduated with his brother), has been in South Korea for about two years, teaching English. I don't know him all that well - what I remember most about him was how ridiculously intelligent he was (is), and just as nice. Not a bad contact to have, 'eh? :)

At any rate, I have been able to get a hold of him via Cyberland. I'll give a quick run-down on what he has told me, thus far.

First, he hates Seoul. Grrreat. ;) I haven't pried the reasons out of him yet, but I'm sure that will come, with time. I, myself, hate - oops, Mrs. Price doesn't like that word - abhor big cities, so I am fully aware that Seoul may leave a bad taste in my mouth, in that respect. I can live with that.

He did suggest that I purchase a scooter ("You can get a decent one for about 500 bucks.") to save money in my transportation envelope, but one of the things I ha- ...er, despise, most about large cities is the drivers. Why would I do that to myself, especially on two wheels instead of four? We'll see how public transportation treats me, first. :)

He also told me to stock up on deodorant, cold meds, allergy meds, and...(thank you for this information, D.) tampons! It did cross my mind to take a year's worth of my choice of such. (...As a flashback of my trip to Ireland surged through my head, when I did not prepare for such an occurrence. When I got one out of the vending machine in the bathroom of a local pub, I felt like I was playing with a Rubiks Cube in the bathroom stall.) But then I nixed that thought with a big, fat, red X, telling myself, "You're ridiculous." Now, thanks to D., I will have to take an extra suitcase full of those cotton stick thingies. ;) lol. (T.M.I. for some of you, I know, but this is my blog, so deal...)

I'd heard about soju, thinking, "Oh, I bet that's a pleasant-tasting rice wine of some sort. That might be nice to try..." Here's what D. had to say: "The beer is terrible and rather expensive unless you drink it by the pitcher in bars. Soju is the Devil's work and should be consumed only if you're broke. It's a cheap alcohol and even more cheaply distilled which means it will cripple your brain." Kudos to D.; the last thing I need to have in a country of which I barely speak the language and, at this point, have no working knowlege of the area in which I'll be living, is a crippled brain.

I know I can be a sissy sometimes, but I will admit that as the days flutter away from me, and my departure date creeps up on me, my gut gets a little tighter and tighter. You have no idea how much tension it eased to receive that email from D., especially when he gave his phone number and offered to meet me when I get there, to have a "tete a tete." What a standup guy, 'eh? I want to tell my former principal that he was right: Chivalry is not dead. :) (D. will be in Chuncheon, South Korea, through the beginning of Oct., so that gives me about a month to have a contact so I can easily settle.) Phew.

Until the next time...