Saturday, October 27, 2012

I woke up to rain. I was not happy. Jihye knocked on my door a little after 9 (I had been awake for an hour or so) and came under the covers to talk with me a little. She too, is like a big sister to me. <3

She helped me get my bus ticket while her husband made breakfast. He made jajangmyeon which is noodles with a sauce made of salty black soybean paste--though I think this was instant noodles and a packet of sauce--not original which is good, because typically I do not like jajangmyeon (too salty and thick). He also cooked an egg for each of us.

Then, it was time for us to get moving! Oh, and Jihye gave me a sweater/thick cardigan to wear because she thought it would be very cool at night AND an umbrella. And boy did I need it.... Jihye had to go to her office to print my bus ticket and also finish organizing a list for her field trip Templestay at 11. We stopped over at ET and I met my friend Bumsik. Jihye left for her trip and Bumsik helped me figure out how to get from Inje to Nampodong (an neighborhood in Pusan) where I was meeting my friend for lunch. I was supposed to meet another friend and travel together, but she was still at her hometown and met up with me later. Anyway, I was a little nervous, but I was able to get off the bus at the right stop and get on the subway AND arrive at my location, exactly on time!!

I met my friend Chulwoo. A younger sister calls her older brother "Oppa" but a lot of times friends will use the same terms even if they are not siblings. So, while most of my guy friends at Inje are older than me, I really only called Chulwoo "Oppa". He called Emily and me 1+1 (at grocery stores and 'convenience stores' they run specials that advertise 1 + 1 --as in buy one get one), because she and I were always together and so similar. Oppa is now dating Emily's roommate (while she was at Inje)!! Anyway, I met Oppa in Nampodong and we went to one of my favorite restaurants--Jungyoon (my roommate) called it "cloud mandu soup". It is so delicious! Oppa was so nice and bought lunch. Then he asked, "do you want coffee or ice cream?" Wow, what a tough question! Normally it would be quite easy (ice cream!), but it was cold and rainy, so a warm drink sounded good too; I told him he could choose. He chose ice cream. :) So off to Baskin Robins for ice cream. It was good to catch up with him and talk to him about his work and what Songhee (his girlfriend) has been doing.

We finished up our ice cream and went in search of a place to buy a poncho for me. While we were looking, Sumi, my friend let me know she was on her way to meet me. So, I parted ways with my Oppa and was off to Gwangali (another neighborhood in Pusan) to meet Sumi. Sumi texted me to tell me they had postponed the fireworks from 8pm to 9pm. We met up at the subway and it was pouring, pouring, pouring!! I had my umbrella, but I was still getting soaked! We ran into a coffee shop near Gwangali Beach and the worker standing at the door told us that the fireworks were cancelled for the evening and postponed til Sunday evening. I was so bummed to hear. All the way to Pusan and no fireworks. :( So sad. However, Sumi and I still had a fun evening. We decided to find a restaurant for dinner and chose one on the 4th or 5th floor. As luck would have it, since the fireworks were cancelled, there were no reservations and we were free to have a table there. We split a steak and a pasta dish. While eating dinner, we were able to watch Mother Nature's Firework Festival over Gwangali Bridge--there was quite a bit of lightening. Around 8:15 it stopped raining and was clear for the rest of the night. They definitely could have done the fireworks!!! :( Anyway, there were people selling small firecrackers and sparklers along the beach, so Sumi and I were able to see small fireworks pop up into the sky every once in awhile.

After dinner, we walked down to the beach and the looked for a coffee shop. We picked one that was on the second floor and noticed that the table by the window was getting up, so we ran up the stairs to grab the table and get a good view. We had hot chocolate and split a cake. Then Sumi walked me to the jjimjilbang (sauna/spa) where I was planning on spending the night. She felt a little bad leaving me there, but I assured her I would be fine on my own. She headed back to Inje and I went to go soak in the hot tubs. It was wonderful. I also went into some of the saunas.

Bumsik and the beautiful trees at Inje

Inje DaeHakgyo (University) I love you!!

Yummy soup!

Oppa and me at Baskin Robins!

Dinner and Gwangali Bridge lit up

Sumi and me after dinner

Hot chocolate, cake, a lit up bridge, a friend and a small firework--can it get any better?

Another small firework in the sky