My guardian.

So realizing that I can't make it over two weeks without access to my ATM card, my aunt wires me money through Western Union.  Western Union is associated with two major banks in Korea that you can receive the money from. There are a two issues with this however. First, I don't know where one is and I can't find directions to one. Secondly, even if I found one, the hours don't coincide with my life. The banks close at 4:30 and they are not open weekends. There are however, two Western Unions located with in the greater metropolitan area of Seoul.

It doesn't seem that heard to get to. I found the subway stop and sketched the map on how to get there into my notebook. I get on the green line and transfer two the blue. As I stand waiting for he train one finally pulls up and the entire train empties. I am excited for one reason it won't be packed, which at rush hour, this is a strange situation and I'll be able to get a seat for my fifty minute journey. As an elder Korean lady and me are about to enter the train a Korean guy quickly approaches here and then me with the exact same phrase, but mine is delivered in broken English,"Final stop."

This starts my conversation with him. He asks where I am going. When he realizes how far it is he asks why. Then he asked if he knows where I am going. I show him a map and tell him sort of. Our train pulls up and we go inside and of course there are no seats, so we stand. He then says he has a friend that lives in Ansan. He searches he pocket for his phone and calls his friend. He is trying to find out how to get to the building I need, then a Korean man behind him interrupts. He was listening to our conversation and looking at my map. He talks to my new friend about Ansan. Afterwards, he just says to me he will walk with me even though his stop was two prior to mine. In Korea, it is rude to refuse help. My American natural instinct is to assume I am going to be robbed  or raped, but I know I am not. It might sound naive, but I know I am going to be fine. We continue a new conversation about what I am doing in Korea, where I have traveled, etc. He asked if I was Christian, as well. Religion is a big thing in Korea. I in turn ask him where he is from and what he does. He is a grad student for law and from south west Korea. The fifty minutes or so pass rather fast. As we exit the train it has started to mist and even slightly snow. As we approach the stairs, two women struggle with trying to get a baby carriage up thirty steps. He walks right over and picks the empty stroller and the two women and the baby follow him up the stairs.

He then precedes to lead me outside and are walk through Ansan. He asks an elderly Korean women selling silk worm larva and other things on the stairs. He then continues to direct me through the market. I would have loved to take photographs of all the fruit, steaming buns, buckets of pig skulls, fires in cans etc. but I didn't want to waste his time. We found Western Union and it took ten minutes and were back on our way. It occurred to me just before we arrived back at the subway that we never exchanged names. He told me his Korean name first, which I can't recall. to many foreign syllables and sounds for me to recall. His English name is Gald I thought he first said. As he repeated it a few times, he finally said, "Guard, like Guardian or a basketball guard." Granted I probably could have found my way without him. But there was something symbolic in his name and all the kind actions he did for other people during the hour I spent with him. It is a shame that people in America really aren't like this to other strangers and if a stranger did attempt to help you like this, one would have their keys through their fingers the entire time.