Live from Seoul it's Saturday Night!

So this post is a little late, but should prove to be a pretty interesting one, if I do say so myself. Last weekend, my adventures in Seoul took me to the ultra-modern Blue Square Theatre to see Mama Mia! for the first time. As a theatre nerd, I am ashamed to say that I've never seen the show before; however, that didn't keep me from jamming along to all the ABBA songs and dancing with the gal-pals during the curtain call.

It was a fantastic show (in English with Korean subtitles) with everything that I've come to expect from living in Seoul. There were bright lights, loud music, flashy costumes, and of course a completely foreign cast (and by foreign I mean British -- I told you this place was totally international), which never seems to matter much here as long as the subtitle screens are working properly. The predominantly Korean audience packed the intimate theatre interior dressed to the 9's in their evening wear and my two companions and I fit right in...you know, except for being American and all.

We laughed, we sang, and after the show we went out into the crisp night air in search of a late dinner. No problem, we thought, in a city that seems to be quite lively after dark. To our dismay, many restaurants close their kitchens around 9:30 pm and only the bars are open after that. I'll begin by saying that explains a lot considering how many extremely drunk people I've seen wandering, staggering, falling, and puking about the streets, and finish by saying THAT'S INSANE!!! While I'm sure that clearing the tables of everything but glasses drives liquor and beer sales, clearly these people need food to soak up the alcohol.

As my tummy grumbled and curfew for the mommies with me grew close, we finally found a cute Spanish tapas restaurant that was still serving food and sat down in a cozy corner of the restaurant. We raved about the show, started to make plans to see another, laughed and talked about life, thoroughly enjoyed our food, then departed.

We had a wonderful Saturday night in Seoul. Maybe next time we'll even bring the hubbies along...maybe.

Kimbap and Kimchi

Say what you want to about my new life here, but make sure you mention all the food! I feel as though many of my friends and most of my family members who have never been to Korea think that I live in a third-world country where I don't have access to basic necessities. I have to put that myth to rest and assure you all that Seoul is far from being a place that has little; it fact, it is a place that has everything!

It is true that many expats complain about the prices of most of the food in the grocery stores here because just about everything is imported. However, having base privileges allows me to purchase everything I need to cook my usual fabulous meals from this magical place called the commissary. The prices there are extremely reasonable and they carry imported and domestic items. So, if I want homemade lasagna like I did last week, I simply pick up the ingredients and fire up our easy-bake oven (appropriately named because it is the smallest oven I've ever had the pleasure of cooking in).

Recently, my interests have turned to chamchi (tuna) kimbap. This local delicacy is ideal at any time of the day. I often depend on it in the morning when I'm running from one class to the next. Many food vendors sell it right on the street...and yes, it's safe. Kimbap is also cheap and can be very tasty depending on what's in it. The roll is very similar to a Japanese maki roll and can contain a variety of ingredients including spinach, egg, tuna, ham, crab stick, pickled radish, and carrot. It's basically the Korean version of a breakfast burrito and for about a dollar, I can get one roll which will stave off hunger pains until just about lunch time. For an added treat, sometimes I bring a banana or drink a cup of coffee or red ginseng tea (another delicacy here which claims to cure cancer among other health benefits).

The only thing I have yet to get used to is kimchi. With the exception of a yummy kimchi pancake that the hubby introduced me to one night, I have not been able to get used to eating kimchi with every meal. According to the locals, it aids in digestion. Yeah, that's great! but I still know I'm eating spicy, fermented cabbage and nothing can stop me from tasting that. Perhaps one day it will grow on me.

Until then, kimbap yes! kimchi no!

Neo Seoul

Thing are changing rapidly here in Seoul...and I don't just mean the things in our area; although, that is a big part of what's changing. As with any big city, the vibe is anything but mellow and, if you're not careful, it's easy to get swept up in the hustle and bustle. In just the past few weeks, I've started working, the weather has changed dramatically, and new places have popped up all around us.

I love working, probably more than the average person and I'm not ashamed to admit it. While some would complain about the schedule I'm currently on, which includes split shifts and alternating weekends, I'm thrilled to be teaching again and thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to work with like-minded adults who seem to genuinely enjoy being here as much as I do. My students are eager to learn as was made very evident last Thursday when I ended class a mere five minutes early to ask if they had any questions regarding the lesson. Instead of saying "no" and running from the room in utter exultation, they sat and asked me what I was doing over the weekend. Of course there's no way I would admit that my teaching homies and I were going out for beer and beef, but it was nice that they cared enough to ask considering they know that I'm relatively new here; and, of course they were speaking English!! which is the point of the class. I told them that I was going to try some Korean food and maybe visit a local art gallery, then asked them for other suggestions or recommendations. It was great!

Dinner and beer with the teaching homies was actually a scheduled welcome party for some of the other new hires and me. There was definitely lots of beer and more beef than I'll probably ever admit to eating or watching someone else eat. I think we all justified it by saying that it was the end of the week and the beef was wrapped in a leaf (the traditional way to eat Korean barbecue) so it made the whole thing acceptable. I managed to maintain my composure in spite of my exhaustion after having just left work a mere thirty minutes or so before we started eating and I excused myself at a relatively reasonable hour so that I could get in at least five hours of rest before working again on Saturday.

Needless to say, Saturday night and Sunday were a complete wash because I spent them totally comatose on the couch...like so knocked out that my husband had to carry me to bed (beef and beer will do that to a body). So, we were unable to enjoy the new fall temperatures. Fall in Seoul is apparently rather pleasant; not too cold, not too hot and most importantly, the humidity is gone (yay!). The evil mosquitoes have almost all died, but those that remain are straight kamikaze. Those evil, bloodsucking little devils must know that they're on their way out so they're going for it with gusto. Somehow, I managed to get six new bites on my face and neck about a week ago after I thought I could outsmart them by pulling my covers up as close to my eyeballs as I could without suffocating myself in my sleep. I lost. They won.

The cooler temperatures have also caused a few new businesses in the area to pop up and rush to be ready to open before it gets really cold. At the bottom of our hill alone, there is one new restaurant and another shop that barely has two functioning doors right now. The rest of the place is empty, but the workers are in there every day doing something else to get it ready. The hubby and I are taking bets as to what it will be. I think it's going to be some sort of gamer cafe, and while he's excited by the idea of that being true, he's not convinced. Considering how many coffee shops and convenience stores
there are concentrated on that one corner, I really hope it's not another one of those.

So far, my impression of Seoul is that it is constantly growing and creating it's own unique identity. It is definitely far different than any other place that I've ever lived. I don't think we could have picked a better country to live in for our first time living abroad. It's pretty easy to see why the army calls this "The Assignment of Choice;" there's always something new to see and do in Seoul.  

Seoul Sista

I couldn't let last night's excursion go un-blogged about. It was the first time I ventured out with a new friend sans children. Now before you start feeling sorry for me, let me just say that the hubby and I have been out with an entire group of people, none of whom have kids and had a great time. We've been out for tacos, drinks, dancing at night clubs, and recently for Bulgarian food (which I highly recommend). Let me also say that I love kids, have only ever met one in my life that I didn't like at all, and hope to have my own soon, but there's something about being out without them and being in a place where there are none around that is truly special; in an odd way, it makes you feel like even more of a grown-up to know that they can't be there.

Anyway, my new buddy and I ventured out last night without the husbands for a little grown-woman time in the city. Initially, we were in search of inexpensive wine and maybe a little dinner. What we found was ridiculously overpriced wine by the bottle at restaurants we admittedly would only go to with our husbands for a really special night out. As we were walking rather quickly away from the expensive spots and over where we knew we could find what we were looking for, we both heard an undeniably familiar noise that neither of us had heard since we arrived A Wolf Whistle! 

Now, historically speaking, those things have gotten certain people into some extremely sticky situations but for whatever reason they are still relatively popular in the states. But after a month of being here and having never heard one from a single, solitary, Korean man, I assumed that I simply did not represent the version of beauty that is appreciated in that way, in this country. Honestly, I was content to go the entire two years here without ever hearing one considering how much it made me cringe when I heard it back home. 

We immediately commented to each other that this was a truly unusual occurrence that neither of us had experienced here and laughed rather heartily about it being from an unassuming, older Korean man. I definitely think it boosted our confidence as much as it caught us off guard. 

We continued on to our destination and found the perfect place for Korean food, wine, and my first taste of soju. I'm glad I found a new friend in my fellow Seoul Sista and glad we could share that experience together if for no other reason than we have a witness to say that it actually happened. 

The Kitchens of Seoul: Part 1

It occurred to me that in a blog with the word "kitchen" in the title, it's probably a good idea to focus on some of the food here. I definitely eat and on a day like today when it's raining so hard that all I want to do is stay inside and make warm, appetizing things that I may or may not actually eat (cooking is really more cathartic for me than anything) I've decided to share a little about what's available to eat when we're out and what I cook at home. I assume that this will be one of many posts about food, so I've dubbed it "Part 1" (fancy huh!).

Let me start by assuring those who are hesitant about travelling to a country like Korea that they truly have all the comforts of home...and then some. If I stepped out my front door right now (which I won't because, again, it's still raining *sigh*) I could walk just a short distance to a McDonald's, a KFC, a Burger King, a couple of Starbucks, and other familiar restaurants with very English names. Many places, like my beloved Holly's Coffee, which serves an excellent mushroom soup and warm scone combo meal, are chains that can be found just about anywhere in the city.

For something a little more interesting than that, there's a Chinese place, a couple of small Turkish restaurants, a Korean BBQ, Italian spots, and one of my new faves, Buddha's Belly which serves very yummy Thai food and has an amazing view of a city that doesn't really have a bad view unless you're in an alley or an underpass where the homeless sleep (like any big city, they have those too). We've gone out for tacos (pork belly, beef, chicken, and fish), pizza and beer, had corn dogs at a ballpark, etc.You don't really have to be too adventurous to eat at any of these places as the menus generally have pictures and English translations of everything in any dish you choose. Best of all, the service is usually fast and courteous.

Bulgolgi is one traditional Korean dish that comes highly recommended pretty much anywhere that serves it. It appears to be very popular with Americans who are just trying Korean food for the first time and is a good introduction to this type of food. It's kind of like trying a California roll first before you tackle more traditional sushi rolls and get totally freaked out that you're eating raw fish. Bugolgi is simply beef that is marinated in a sweet sauce and usually served with onions, green peppers, bean sprouts, and clear noodles, and is usually eaten over rice. With a jar of marinade and the right meat from the grocery store here, I was able to pretty much duplicate it at home and had no complaints from the hubby when I told him we were eating leftovers the following night.

Although I wanted to take formal Korean cooking classes while I was here, I was quickly told that they no longer offered the classes on post and my best bet was to Google Korean dishes and figure it out myself at home. I did just that and found a great YouTube video blog by an adorable Korean woman by the name of Seonkyoung Longest. I recently tried out her recipe for smoked salmon rolls and absolutely loved them. I'll try to make sure to post pictures and descriptions of future attempts.

Last night we had homemade chicken fried rice.

Tonight, I'm cooking at home (duh) and we're having chicken quesadillas!