Oops, I Did It Again...

Woah, woah, woah. I know what you all are thinking. That crazy girl! She went out again tonight. Enjoyed more SoJu and beer! Crazy girl! Well, before you think that, don't. By Oops, I Did It Again I mean I had about the same day as yesterday. We spent the day going through some helpful lectures, but mostly sitting on our tushes all day long. Long day, for sure. 

At lunch, we ate some pretty good pork stir-fry and rice. Today was a good day. After last night, we needed some laid back stuff. After getting some lack yesterday from all my SoCal friends, we all decided to show the Okie in us all today. Most of my friends wore Thunder shirts and Laura and I both wear our OK necklaces religiously. Here we are:

After lunch, we went back to the daily grind for about six more hours. Only thing that made this bearable? One simple word... PIZZA. "What?" You might be thinking right now. Or, at least that's what I was thinking. Pizza? In Korea? 

Don't get me wrong, while I have tried a few things I wasn't particularly fond of here, for the most part I am really enjoying the food. Only problem? It's so healthy. Sad, isn't it? I almost feel like I am eating air here, no matter how much I really eat. It fills you, but it's also so healthy it gets right to work on the nutrient side and quickly, you find yourself hungry again. It's no wonder people say they eat so much here. Haha. They have to in order to be able to make it through a day. We have all begun losing a little bit of weight, and it's definitely not because we aren't eating. I don't think I have ever eaten so much in a very long time. It is simply good food and good for you. 

That's where happiness comes in. STARVING, we all begin the hunt for something with bread, cheese, and meat. WE WANT PIZZA. Hearing that there was a Domino's close, we began to freak out. Do we walk? Call a cab? Do they deliver? What if they don't have pepperoni? 

Never fear, friends. Where there is food, I will always find a way. We went down to the front desk and asked the security guard if he could call us a cab. The great thing about Korean people? If you ask them to call you a cab, they will. They don't want you to be lost. Especially if you can say words like "Thank You", and "Please" in Korean.  Our sweet new friend called us a cab. Granted, it's -1° F here. So, we ran out to the cab, hoods up and all. 

Of course, we get into the cab and the cabbie just looks at us. We look back and say, "Uh, Pizza-su?" (In, Korean, so many words are just the English word plus a sound. It's pretty convenient.... Well, not in this situation but sometimes.) He looks back at us and says, "Pizza?" So Emilee says, "Maybe... Domino's?" He pondered this idea for a minute and finally we put the two together, with the action of eating pizza. He looks at us and says, so excitedly, "OH DOMINO'S! DOMINO'S PIZZA!!!" It was pure gold. 

Then, we were off. The sweet cabbie. He kept looking at us, and saying nice things. How do I know they were nice? I don't. But hey, what's wrong with pretending? At one point, we are in the cab and he spoke for about 45 seconds and then looks around at us and begins to smile and laugh. So what do we do? You guessed it, smile and laugh! If all else fails, in any foreign country, you can just smile. People like that. 

And finally, we reached the Holy Land...

Pizza brings me happiness. However, I didn't know how much happiness until that point. Domino's in Korea is the best. Stuff Crust Pizza? Try it with Crab. I mean, I didn't but it's totally an option here. Look! They wrap pizzas just how they should be.. like a present from the Pizza Heaven. 

And yes, you are seeing correctly. More Korean culture? They serve sweet pickles with everything. It's insane. Emilee and Laura were pretty excited about this. However, they decided to eat their pickles separately. (Good choices, ladies!)

So, we have our happiness, but how do we get home? We have no one to call a cab for us... and it's cold... so what do we do? We suck it up, go outside and try to hail a cab ourselves. Korean Culture Lesson. When hailing a cab, you face your hand palm down, and bring your fingers in. Any other way is considered rude and the cabbie will not come for you. We had to do this well. Our time to eat depended on it. We walk outside and miss our first few cabs, and then, like a miracle, I make eye contact with a driver with his window down. and I do the wave. He lifts his hand and waves back. HE'S COMING FOR US!!! Granted, he's crossing three lanes of busy traffic and pulling a U-Turn, but he's coming for us! I have never 

felt so successful in my entire life. 

Our communication with this driver was about the same as the first.

Emilee: "We are going to Korea University." 

Driver: "Uh, uh..."

Emilee and Laura: "Insert Korean word for University"

Driver: "AH! University!" 

Pure.Gold. 

This driver, however was different from our last. If you have never been to Korea, one thing that is very surprising is the driving. It's insane. Sometimes, people will just park their cars in the middle of the road, and expect others drive around their parked car, and they do. I think if you were in the U.S. and did that, you would get arrested as well as your car would be searched for anything and everything. Here? It's just the way of life. Today, our driver wasn't parking anywhere crazy. He was just watching the Food Network while driving. 

I know, the photo is blurry but you can see the little bitty screen in 

the middle, as well as the blurry driver's face. Totally watching

squid being prepared to eat. So cool. 

We safely made it back to campus. (Seriously. I haven't been scared once here and that is including my time in cabs with interesting drivers who like to watch TV, haha) You just have to let it be. It's their culture, not yours. We ate our pizza, and now I am here, telling you the wonderful story. 

It's about bedtime in Korea. Good Morning America, Enjoy Thursday. It's a beautiful day! 

Kiyana In Korea