I Got Seoul but I'm not a Soldier

It is painfully obvious at all times that I'm very much a civilian. Off post, I suppose, it is not as noticeable even though I still don't exactly blend in. But upon walking through any gate and onto post, which I do just about daily, I am immediately faced with the realization that I'm very different. My wardrobe is generally a dead giveaway that I'm not exactly there to do any sort of work. Because of the heat, I'm limited to free-flowing dresses or tanks and capris on a rotating basis until the rest of my clothes arrive. As an American, it's rather ironic that instead of my things being on a slow boat from China, as they usually are when I order something online, they are on a slow boat from the United States. At any rate, I stick out like a sore thumb pretty much everywhere I go.

I've made a little bit of a routine of trying to get out of the apartment at least once every day. Considering the fact that we live on a pretty steep hill and I am nearly a puddle on the doorstep

by the time I reach our front door at the end of the day, leaving out again is kept to a minimum; love my place, hate the hill. I don't ever feel obligated to go onto post, but I often find myself there during peak travel times for some of the soldiers who are heading to work in the morning. Yesterday morning, I amused myself with thoughts of what each soldier on the post shuttle must think I'm doing that early without children or a husband around to give me a purpose for being up and at 'em. In my ripped jean capris, bright blue t-shirt, and gym shoes, I definitely clashed with the sea of green fatigues that filled the bus.

Nonetheless, I was alert--which was more than I could say for the poor, exhausted soldier next to me who tilted his head back, dropped his mouth open, and began to snore next to me--and off to a meeting with regarding employment. My original plans to start working in a Korean school teaching English had been delayed, so I took that as an opportunity to look into other things to keep myself busy. To my sleeping seatmate's dismay, my stop came quickly. I tapped him and excused myself, then waded through the sea of soldiers and off the cool bus into the hot sun.

The meeting went well, as did my off-post excursion following that to the Cat Cafe (a must for any cat lover in Seoul), and my subsequent interview later that day--an exception to my rule about climbing the hill twice in one day, as it was necessary to change out of my casual attire into something more suitable for an interview.

I'm pleased to report that the company I interviewed for did make an offer and I'm hoping to start working very soon. If there's one thing I can say for certain about myself, it's that when I really want something, I go after it full force and I'm not likely to let a few awkward glances in my direction deter me from getting it. In this case, I love being a teacher; I'm learning more and more that it's not just something that I do, it's really who I am and I enjoy every minute of it.

I may not be a soldier, but I've got heart and determination...and now I've got a job in Seoul!

Seoul Mates

I'm falling more in love with this place by the moment...and I say moment because I feel like each part of my days here is broken up into memorable moments in time. From one to the next, things change drastically sometimes to the point where I feel like there's almost too much to report. Therefore, I won't claim to cover all the exciting details, but I'll do my best to highlight the best moments.

Shortly after finishing my last post, my husband came home unexpectedly for an extremely brief break from the exercise. Anything I planned to do for the rest of the day was of course put on the back-burner so that I could spend time with him. It was great to just hang out and do nothing with him; and by nothing I mean it's still too hot to do much of anything other than look longingly at one another from opposite ends of the couch while we watched television. With a good night's sleep, some clean clothes, and a few goodies from me in his backpack, he left early the next morning. That was enough to hold me until he gets home at the end of the week and I considered myself fortunate to get just that little bit of time with him since not all of the guys were able to make it home even for a night.

Of course though, after spending time with him, it was slightly bittersweet to start having fun and exploring again without him. Yesterday was full of all sorts of excitement that I really wished I could have shared with the hubby. I went to the outdoor pool on post again with my new buddy (and fellow JAG wife) and her kids. It was the last weekend before school started, so we assumed it would be busy. We were pleasantly surprised that it wasn't, which was great; but, without the visual overload of having tons of people to look at and avoid tripping over, it left some time for me to think about how much fun my husband would have flipping off the diving board or racing me from one end of the pool to the other. Luckily, the pool doesn't officially close for the season until after this coming weekend, so we may get to enjoy it together at least once.

After a few hours at the pool, we went our separate ways to shower, change, and rest for our evening excursion. This was my first time on the subway in Seoul and I have to say I'm very impressed. It reminds me more of the shuttles in those large, fancy airports than it does the grimy filth of the CTA in Chicago; yet another reason to like and appreciate my new surroundings. Our fancy train ride took us to the Banpo bridge where we enjoyed an amazing light and water show (see pics, but Google it because my pics don't really do it justice) complete with end-of-the-season fireworks. Talk about visual overload! There were tons of people, illuminated boats on the river, fire twirlers, and food delivery people taking orders and delivering food right to where you sat! I was amazed and overwhelmed, and again wished I could have shared all of that with my husband. Clearly I wasn't the only one thinking that because even the kids said something about their daddy missing out on it too.

My new dates/mates are pretty darn awesome, but I'm sure even they would agree that there's nothing better than sharing those moments with the men that were missing from last night.

Heart and Seoul

I have to keep reminding myself how fortunate I am to be able to make this trip with my husband, which isn't hard after hearing the stories of separation from the other wives I've met. According to one wife, this is one of those posts that many husbands in JAG choose to take for a year without their wives; consequently, there are few of us around. However, that doesn't make me miss my husband any less.

It's no big secret around here that many of the soldiers are on a military exercise, which keeps them away and pretty busy. I can't complain much because I do still get to chat with him whenever he's free, but after being separated for two months while he was here and I was back in the states, I'm really yearning for some cuddle time and a chance to get into a normal, married couple routine of some sort.  

I keep myself busy most days with learning my way around, meeting people, and taking care of necessary tasks to settle in. Today was the first day I got the nudge from the hubby to venture to places off post. I have to say that it was on my agenda but the extra push was nice. Itaewon has a lot to offer and I'm planning to offer it something back very soon--I'll keep you posted on that. 

For now, I'm going to soak up all this culture and take the advice of a Korean gentleman I met today on post while waiting for the bus. As fate would have it, he used to be a professor at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He spoke slowly and very articulately about how he could tell that I was very new here and how he regret that I arrived at a time of year when the weather was so uncomfortable that I couldn't fully enjoy everything Seoul had to offer. 

Then, he assured me that if I waited just a little while, the Fall would come and I would have the opportunity to experience this country to the fullest capacity allowed by a "human existence". Finally, he told me that in order to fully and completely absorb the culture, I must learn to speak the language in order to interact with native Koreans the way he had learned English to absorb the culture in America while he was teaching at Calvin. I told him that I hoped to do so; to which he replied, "it is not a matter of hope, but a matter of determination." 

And so I'm off with a heart full of determination to explore more today and maybe get lost and maybe find my way in Seoul. 

Body in Seoul

At this point, I've been in Seoul, South Korea for almost two weeks and I can honestly say that I have no idea what Korea is like. Being an army wife has its benefits, but one of those benefits is having a close network of people and a huge army post that almost prevent you from experiencing what the culture in this bustling metropolis is really like. Now, I must admit that much of my time over the last two weeks was spent overcoming a sinus infection that I developed pretty much immediately after I arrived. For the sake of creating a story, I'll start with the creation of the sinus infection and move forward.

Seoul is HOT this time of year. Not hot like back in Chicago where they tell you to check on old people and make sure your dog gets lots of water for about a week and then everyone forgets about it, but hot like that on steroids...for the whole summer. I have not taken less than two, cold showers per day the entire time I've been here. As my friends and family know well, I rarely turn the air conditioner on and absolutely never sleep with it on. Here, that's not an option. The AC was on full-blast the first couple of nights I was here, and it wasn't long before I started feeling the effects of it that prevented me from using it in the past. I coughed and hocked up the most disgusting blobs of goop I'd ever seen come out of my body, and that's putting it nicely.

However, in an attempt to enjoy those few first days, I tried to ignore what my body was doing. I spent one day pretending like I wasn't sick, followed by a day of some rest, then a day of acting normal, and a subsequent day of trying to feel well. Finally, this past Monday night, I gave up and took some over-the-counter meds to speed things along. Well, the good news is that the meds worked; the bad news is that I lost an entire day popping pills and sleeping, which brings us to today.

After over a week of discomfort, I finally felt actual relief, went out, and had fun (without hacking up a lung). I can officially say I know how to take the post shuttle, I've been to probably the best pool on post, and I've been to the mall thanks to a new buddy and fellow army wife that I had the honor of introducing myself to after a series of text messages between our very busy
husbands and us. Together, I'm hoping to discover more of what this great city and its wonderful culture have to offer, and maybe make a few more friends in the process, so I'm not just a lonely body in Seoul.