Surprise

A couple months ago, Lauren's family (mom Donna and sister Heather) let me know they were planning a surprise trip to visit Lauren. It was tough keeping the trip secret, but we all managed to do it, and Lauren was definitely shocked when we met them at the airport. I managed to get Lauren there by telling her I wanted company to go pick up my friend who was visiting; this plan nearly backfired at the airport, as I'd made a mistake of telling her it was a girl who was coming. Stupid me--I can't blame her for being weirded out that a girl was coming to visit; I'd think it was sketchy too, had the situation been reversed. But after a bit of arguing, and my dozens of "it'll be alright. I promise... you'll see!"'s, I managed to drag her into the terminal, where Donna and Heather were waiting. Phew. Mission accomplished... barely. P.S.: Heather I hope it's okay that I robbed some of your pictures!


Me and Lauren (and Fuzzy Felicia) on the bus on the way back from the airport. Lauren and her family, shortly after arriving in Busan. And me and my Lauren in a moment too sloppy and cheesily romantic for words haha.

They came bearing tons of gifts from the states: chocolate, cheese, sandals (thankfully, since I can't find any footwear here big enough for me), Yahtzee!, and lots of other stuff. These were all things they'd told Lauren they were sending over in a package--little did she know it would be hand delivered!

So, after letting them alleviate some jet lag, Lauren and I jumped right in to showing them our life here. The foods, the sights, the people, the ridiculousness: all things we've grown so used to in our six months here, but to do it with newcomers was a blast. It reminded me of my first while here, how bewildered and out of place I felt. They commented a lot of how difficult it is with the language barrier (which created a lot of funny and awkward situations as we were out and about). But it made me realize that I've learned a lot more than I'd considered. Where once I was completely lost in the land of miscommunication, I'm now able to get by just fine, having learned the number systems, the important vocabulary, and how to read Han Gul. Lauren and I felt like tour guides--pretty crappy tour guides, but better than nothing, I like to think.

A couple of the highlights of the week they were here were hiking Jangsan mountain, and the Cha Gal Chi fish market. Sunday was probably the nicest day we've had this year, which was a perfect day for hiking Jangsan. It was about my fifth time doing it, but like I said, experiencing it with first-timers is always exciting. While I think Donna and Heather were less than thrilled when they realized how tough and long of a hike it was turning out to be, they both admitted that the view from the top is well worth it. It is absolutely beautiful, now that the trees have leaves, the flowers are blooming, and some wildlife--well, okay, birds--has returned to the forest.

On the way up Jangsan. Lauren and me on the top of Jangsan (apparently I was not informed that picture-taking was taking place.)

After we cleaned up, we hopped in a taxi and headed for Busan port, where Cha Gal Chi is. The fish market is something you have to experience to really believe. In the outside area, there are literally hundreds of vendors, selling an incredible variety of sea food. Most of it is pretty scary looking (kind of like the people selling it), and watching the vendors hack up fish, eels, octopi, stingrays, sea cucumber, etc. is less than appetizing, but very intriguing to watch. After we explored the outside area we ventured into the building part, which is absolutely enormous. On the first floor--big enough to fit a football field--there are hundreds more stands, thankfully cleaner and more fresh-looking, which is nice because this is where you do your shopping for dinner. The upper floors are where you take your food selection up to have them cook it for you. We ended up with about 10 pounds of crusteacans: three massive crabs, a few dozen shrimp, four giant prawn, and some enormous scallops. So they cooked it up for us, and we enjoyed a delicious seafood meal (the crab was definitely the best part, we all agreed.)


Some shots of the fish market and the goodies to be had. The last picture is the mother of all meals.

Well, there's lots more to say, but all in all it was a really good week, and I'm glad we got to show Lauren's family a little of Korea. A week definitely wasn't enough to get much in--especially since Lauren and I have to teach every day--but still fun nonetheless. It was good to meet her family, and I'm hoping they can say likewise about meeting me?!?! haha. Anyways, I'll let some more pictures do the talking, as my fingers are getting tired and it's about time for me to go prep for class. Annyong!


This is one of the ads they've plastered all over the place for my "Fun Fun English" class I do. I like how they photoshopped an artist's pallete into my hand.

Shots at the beach. The dude in the white thong was sure wearing it proudly (not to mention the cowboy hat he put on for when he rode his jet ski.) I tried to intimidate him by putting on a cape and growling at him, but he was not phased. Then, the dude in the green, WET wetsuit made himself right at home on my sheet, not saying a word. I didn't mind, because when I hit him up for a ride, he was happy to take me out. It was a blast catching tons of air on the waves, even though the water is still very cold. It sure is a nice color, though. And boy, do I look good wet. ;)

Some other random photos. The first is me and Lauren belting away at a Noraebang (private Karaoke room). The second is my work crew (no I don't stand out at all!) out to dinner. My boss--though she won't let me call her that--Jay, is in the front left, trying to avoid the picture. I love these people; really fun to work with. And the last picture is Lauren and I on my sweet ride, returning from a McDonald's run.