KOREA IS NOT CHEAP!!!!
ok, so one of the reasons i chose to come to korea is because it "isn't expensive." that is what everyone told me, all the blogs i read, anyone who has been to korea has said. it is the reason i chose korea over japan which my very good friend eriko swears is amazing (although she might be slightly biased being japanese). so i come here, expecting to be amazed at how ridiculously cheap everything is...LIARS! all of them are LIARS! either that or they are undercover millionaires out to make life hard for the poor expats. ok, in all seriousness, korean food is very cheap. you can get a meal for 3,000-5,000 won which is about $3.50-$5.50. YIPPEEE. i hate korean food. ok, hate is a strong word. i tolerate it. it's not a good time for me, but it's better than going hungry, i'll admit. however, cafes are more expensive. a regular cup of coffee is way more expensive here than in the states. lotion, body wash, basic necessities are absolutely ridiculous. i was astonished that the off brand of lotion that you can get in the states for about $2.50 was $10,000 won here which is $10.56 (so says my currency converter). YIKES! So anyone who wants to send me stuff, body wash, lotion, TOOTHPASTE (theirs taste WEIRD), you would totally be my best friends!
Anyway, due to the outrageous prices, I'm currently wonless. Also, my stupidity because when I went out friday night i ordered two guiness without checking the price ($9.50 each). When I changed currency at the airport, I wasn't sure how good the conversion rate was, so I only changed $100. I have another $100 but because Monday is a holiday, I have to wait until Tuesday until I can get more money. I spent my last 20,000 won today getting Burger King, (fish sandwich and a coke, didn't eat the fries) and 4 things at the local E Mart: Dove bar soap, 2 liter bottle of water, milk, and special K cereal. Those 4 things cost me $15.000 won. And somehow I didn't read the signs correctly because the water had said it was 750 won but when I got to the register it was 1.500. Needless to say I was about 4,000 won short and had to put back an extra bottle of water and the bottle of bleach. KOREA IS NOT CHEAP!!!
I currently have in my possession 2,380 won. I know the exact amount because I went to the family mart next door to buy a small bottle of bleach for the sink because it stinks horribly only to discover i am 120 short. ggggrrrr. today i'm unpacking and i'm hoping that i will find some spare won in my pants pockets. (i don't actually know if you can say "spare won" but it sounded catchy)
friday night i went out with alot of the SLP teachers because it was 4 girls last night and they were celebrating. i have to say, SLP is an amazing school to their foreign teachers. miranda's birthday is on monday, and she left yesterday to go back to the states. Sarah, our director, and a few of the Korean teachers showed up and brought with them a cake to celebrate with her. i have heard terrible things about different hagwons, but i feel really blessed to be a part of this one.
anyway, we were in a pub in Itaewon, the area of Seoul that has the most foreigners and met at an irish pub. true to it's claim, the pub was crawling with expats, mostly men. now i'm about to reveal how shallow i really am. i do wonder about the male expats that come to Korea. are they hoping that korean girls will be fascinated by the fact that they're foreign and finally get a date? because honestly, that is all they seem to have going for them. it seems to me that all the male rejects in canada and america decided to come to korea. at least, that was the case friday night at the pub. maybe it is just that particular restaurant. but most of the guys there were unattractive, weird geeks. and i don't mean the sexy geeks, because anyone that knows me knows i love really smart guys. the more intelligent the guy is, the more in love i am. but these guys are just weird and awkward. i do want to make one disclaimer to this statement. there is one male teacher at our school (yes, only one male, poor guy) and he is not bad at all. from what i can tell he's got a great personality and he's not bad looking at all (for a white guy). but other than him, i will say that the foreign guys are seriously lacking in sex appeal. yea yea, i'm a shallow jerk. i shouldn't judge the book by it's cover, blah blah blah. i'm not. it really is the whole package. honestly, most of the guys i fall for are not really beautiful people. my attraction to them is always intellectual, emotional, and then physical. sure, there has to be chemistry, but a person doesn't have to be beautiful for you to have chemistry. i say all this to say, we need better looking male foreign teachers in Seoul. the end.
with meghan, one of the girls that is leaving. she's so much fun!
View from my apartment...i'm on the 13th floor!!!
SPAM!? is a delicacy here in korea. buy someone spam and you are their best friend!
with rachael...she is terrified of cameras but i convinced her to do the half face...the korean teacher is gloria. she is very shy but sweet.
Anyway, due to the outrageous prices, I'm currently wonless. Also, my stupidity because when I went out friday night i ordered two guiness without checking the price ($9.50 each). When I changed currency at the airport, I wasn't sure how good the conversion rate was, so I only changed $100. I have another $100 but because Monday is a holiday, I have to wait until Tuesday until I can get more money. I spent my last 20,000 won today getting Burger King, (fish sandwich and a coke, didn't eat the fries) and 4 things at the local E Mart: Dove bar soap, 2 liter bottle of water, milk, and special K cereal. Those 4 things cost me $15.000 won. And somehow I didn't read the signs correctly because the water had said it was 750 won but when I got to the register it was 1.500. Needless to say I was about 4,000 won short and had to put back an extra bottle of water and the bottle of bleach. KOREA IS NOT CHEAP!!!
I currently have in my possession 2,380 won. I know the exact amount because I went to the family mart next door to buy a small bottle of bleach for the sink because it stinks horribly only to discover i am 120 short. ggggrrrr. today i'm unpacking and i'm hoping that i will find some spare won in my pants pockets. (i don't actually know if you can say "spare won" but it sounded catchy)
friday night i went out with alot of the SLP teachers because it was 4 girls last night and they were celebrating. i have to say, SLP is an amazing school to their foreign teachers. miranda's birthday is on monday, and she left yesterday to go back to the states. Sarah, our director, and a few of the Korean teachers showed up and brought with them a cake to celebrate with her. i have heard terrible things about different hagwons, but i feel really blessed to be a part of this one.
anyway, we were in a pub in Itaewon, the area of Seoul that has the most foreigners and met at an irish pub. true to it's claim, the pub was crawling with expats, mostly men. now i'm about to reveal how shallow i really am. i do wonder about the male expats that come to Korea. are they hoping that korean girls will be fascinated by the fact that they're foreign and finally get a date? because honestly, that is all they seem to have going for them. it seems to me that all the male rejects in canada and america decided to come to korea. at least, that was the case friday night at the pub. maybe it is just that particular restaurant. but most of the guys there were unattractive, weird geeks. and i don't mean the sexy geeks, because anyone that knows me knows i love really smart guys. the more intelligent the guy is, the more in love i am. but these guys are just weird and awkward. i do want to make one disclaimer to this statement. there is one male teacher at our school (yes, only one male, poor guy) and he is not bad at all. from what i can tell he's got a great personality and he's not bad looking at all (for a white guy). but other than him, i will say that the foreign guys are seriously lacking in sex appeal. yea yea, i'm a shallow jerk. i shouldn't judge the book by it's cover, blah blah blah. i'm not. it really is the whole package. honestly, most of the guys i fall for are not really beautiful people. my attraction to them is always intellectual, emotional, and then physical. sure, there has to be chemistry, but a person doesn't have to be beautiful for you to have chemistry. i say all this to say, we need better looking male foreign teachers in Seoul. the end.
with meghan, one of the girls that is leaving. she's so much fun!
View from my apartment...i'm on the 13th floor!!!
SPAM!? is a delicacy here in korea. buy someone spam and you are their best friend!
with rachael...she is terrified of cameras but i convinced her to do the half face...the korean teacher is gloria. she is very shy but sweet.
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