I'M HERE!!

So I'm already into my third day in Seoul, but let me start from the beginning:

AUGUST 18: My last night in Canada and going-away party. I got a haircut at noon and spent most of the rest of the day packing. I was so stressed and nervous that I couldn't eat a thing, even though I was pretty hungry. Luckily, I finished packing just in time (at 4 am--that's right, no sleep for me) and headed off to the airport to catch my 8 am flight. In the car it suddenly hit me: I'M GOING TO A NEW COUNTRY ENTIRELY DIFFERENT IN PRETTY MUCH EVERY ASPECT FROM MY OWN! For the first time since I received my acceptance letter, and all throughout the grueling application process, I hadn't felt a shred of emotion--none of it seemed real. I had laboured the whole spring and summer to fill out this form, or hand in that paperwork, that I pretty much forgot what all my efforts were for. Thus, on the way to the airport, I snapped: picture me hyperventilating, teeth chattering, crying, shaking, shocked and awed (yep--it was pretty awful). Fear (and excitement) of the unknown is, paradoxically, something that I both dread and yet have longed for my entire young life. Like an infant, I knew I was going to have to start over and re-learn everything from scratch.

Greek-style pasta salad (made by me) and bulgur salad (made by my mom).

Tartufo cake from an Italian bakery.

It was hard to say goodbye to my mom, but somehow I managed to push back my tears and get it over with. I checked in my baggage and cleared customs easily enough, although due to a technical error my flight to Chicago departed 35 minutes late. It was a quick trip (1 1/2 hours), but despite the beautiful day outside, there was a whole lot of turbulence. The view from my window as the plane descended was amazing (note to self: must visit Chicago someday!). Once in Chicago, I found myself late for my next stopover and had to run like a cheetah in order to catch my flight to San Francisco just in time. On this second leg of my journey, the view from my window seat was the most breathtaking I've ever seen in my life--I flew directly above the Grand Canyon!! My jaw literally dropped as I stared, captivated, at this most beautiful work of nature. Five hours and one Star Trek movie later, I arrived in San Francisco. With half an hour to kill before my next flight, I bought some Ghirardelli chocolates from the duty-free shop before boarding the plane to Seoul. It was the longest and most boring 11 1/2 hours of my life, and they fed us practically every hour. I watched bits and pieces of Duplicity, Adventureland, and 17 Again, and even managed to get an hour of sleep, but spent most of the ride reviewing my notes in a frantic attempt to brush up on my Korean. Finally, at 5 pm local time, I arrived in Seoul!

AUGUST 20: The first thing they make you do as soon as you leave the plane is to be inspected by some health officials for the influenza (flu) virus. They scan some little detector thingy next to your neck, and if nothing turns up, they let you pass. I got my visa stamped, cleared customs, and grabbed my luggage, then headed out into the waiting area, where I bought a ticket for the airport bus to Seoul (the main airport in South Korea is Incheon International Airport in Incheon, next to Seoul). 45 minutes later, I was dropped off at Shinchon, where I managed to catch a taxi to the Golden Pond Guesthouse in Hyehwa. During the memorable taxi ride, I gathered my first impressions of Seoul: hot and humid weather, lots of honking cars driving dangerously close together (yet with remarkable skill and speed), shops and buildings lining literally every street (with no shrub or tree in sight), and the most mouthwatering restaurants and bakeries everywhere I cared to look (hello, temptation!). Once checking into my hostel (it was 8 pm by now), I washed my face and rested a little, then headed outside for my first taste of Seoul. Here are some pictures:

My hostel room. It houses four people but I'm the only one occupying it at the moment. There was another person (a Korean girl from Sweden) when I arrived, but she left the next day. She is also here on exchange to Korea University, so we exchanged e-mails and promised to meet up soon.

A typical street in Hyehwa.

My first meal in Korea! This is called ddeokbeokgi and consists of tubes of chewy rice cake stir-fried in spicy sauce. It is the most common street food in Korea that is said to be especially popular among women. I wasn't really hungry but I just had to try this (though I made it myself once back home). The pictured plate cost 2,500 won (about $2.50 Canadian) and was very filling. Street food stands selling ddeokbeokgi are everywhere in Korea--I've seen vendors literally side-by-side!