Welcome to Hongdae.

The dizzying amount of people coming on and off the Hongik University subway stop seems to have no end. There are rows of stores, restaurants, bars, clubs, karaoke clubs, street food and more. There is no closing time, if people are in a bar/club they won't shut down till everyone leaves on there will. It's a huge hang out for foreigners and some bars you go in the only Koreans you'll see is those who work there. In this area you can walk down the street and forget you are in Korea. You won't here much Koran music, but a lot of Justin Timberlake, hip-hop and other American music. There are millions of lights flashing and blinking as cars try to drive through masses of people. It is similar to Itaewon, but cleaner and less sketchy.

Random Korean guy freestylin' in the park.

Crazy Korean guy trying to sell us disgusting rice liquor. He gave us free shots. Imagine a thick alcohol flavored milk.

My first Korean barbecue and soju experience. A grease fire ignited on our grill and everyone who worked there had to rush to our table to put it out. Everyone in the place was looking at us. Then a Korean girl walked by and slip on some grease and fell. It was kinda of ridiculous. They give you trash bags to stuff your jackets in so they don't get dirty. Also, I learned the proper way to drink soju. You hold the glass with two hands and you allow someone else to pour it for you. NEVER POUR YOUR OWN SOJU! It is super cheap like $2 a bottle at 20% abv. Don't ask me to pour your soju though cause I basically poured out the whole bottle trying to pour it in the tiny little shot glasses you drink it from. It goes down so easy. It doesn't really taste like anything. It's dangerous.

My new friend Aaron. A fellow Philadelphian.

What's the night without fat girls dancing around like they are amazing. And when you see an obese person in Korea, they look even larger cause Koreans are so skinny! Just from being in Korea for a few days you realize that the place is full of foreign English teachers. You also, start to realize the type of people who make a commitment like that. Basically, there are 3 different types of people who pick up and move to Korea to teach. First, the world traveler (where I like to think I fit in) This person wants to see the world and get paid to do it. Secondly, you have the outsider/misfit. These people could be more homely looking and probably weren't that popular back at home and came here to fit in with the other teachers. It is pretty easy to make friends here with either other teachers or Koreans. A lot of Koreans want American friends to help work on there English. Others want them just to talk to in general because we are different. The last reason is sex. I feel like a lot of men move here to find there own little Asian women. There are a lot of beautiful ones to choose from and most of them love American man. Also, for the American gay man who hasn't come out of the closet back at home. Now he is off doing Asian man that are sexually suppressed here. There really is no gay culture in Korea. It's not nearly as accepted here like back in the states.

The first graffiti I saw in Korea.

What would a late night be without street food at 4 in the morning. Can we say mondu! 

If you need something to drink, while eating your street food, they'll give you a cup of this boiling broth. 

Cooking in it is fish on a stick. It taste like a fish tea. 

Mondu are Korean dumplings.

And then what would a late night after a bottle of soju, a bottle of tequila (they have super cheap bottle service here: 1 bottle of cuervo is $50), some beers and street food be without more food. My late night cooking of green tea and a cup of romain. The little water boiling thing they got me is amazing. It boils water in 2 minutes. I didn't even think that was possible. I thought scientifically it takes 15 minutes for water to boil.  

*Travelers tips: Keep a subway map in your purse. Not a lot of Koreans speak or understand English. So when you are out later then the subway is open and you need to take a cab home, you can just point to the subway stop closes to your place. Now you can relax and pass out in the back of the cab till you get home.

Lotte World.

Lotte World is an amusement park/mall. There is and ice-skating rink, bowling alley, shooting range,billiards, restaurants, food court, up-scale mall, lower-end mall and underground market all in this massive building.

The amusement park is above the ice rink.

Future Olympian speed skaters.

These little kids were amazing.

Random masks for sale.

Public speaking.

My school had this orientation for new student's parents. I have to go in front of this audience and introduce myself. The whole thing is in Korean. My boss just waves to me to come up to the microphone, when she's ready for me. I say all the normal bullshit like,"I like your country, I love working with the students, bla bla bla", and then everyone starts laughing at me. I have no idea why, but it is just perpetuating my fear of public speaking.

Food.

Steamed pork bun. It's ridiculously delicious.

The best sweet potato ever. Some guys sells them out of a grill by my house. A whole bag for about $3. He calls me beautiful in broken Korean. I think that's why I keep going back there.

My typical breakfast. Scrambled eggs on bread. All there bread is made fresh at the grocery stores, it's unbelievably good. Notice my children's fork. I couldn't find any regular adult forks.

The bedroom .

This is the biggest and softest pillow I could find. All Korean pillows tend to be small and extremely firm.

My bed.

My kitchen continued/ TV room/office. My refrigerator smells like a tiny asian person lives in it and every time I open it the smell of kimchi lingers. I actually get a decent amount of English TV, probably because of the US military base.

Connor, thanks for the meat magnets!

Koreans do not have dryers. Everyone hangs there clothes and the floors are all heated. There are no vents or radiators.

Inside my korean jail cell.

Door that separates my apartment from the bedroom.

Shower/bathroom. Oh and in Korea towels larger then hand towel size don't exsist.

Stove.

Kitchen/laundry room/entrance way.

Where the shoes come off. Even if you are carry something like a 50lb suit case or a tv, you slide off your shoes. My boss corrected me for walking around in my own apartment with shoes. Now I where socks all the time... its probably going to be the one thing I do always in the rest of my life... enforce a strict no shoe policy in my future apartments and home.

I am here.

My asian cellphone that they provided me with. It has tons of options and buttons, that I have no idea what they do. Everyone in Korea has a cellphone. Most of them have movie/tv capabilites and everyone on the subway will be watching there phone.

My keys.

The trash pile with chairs, drawers, beds, etc. next to my apartment.

After spending 18 hours in the sky, I finally landed in Seoul around 7:00 pm Monday night. I went through customs, got my package and then went to go find the man that was sent to meet me at the airport. I saw him with a "Welcome Tori McNally" sign and then started having the first of many anxiety attacks. I am about to get in the car with a complete stranger 10,000 miles away from home and he is probably going to sell me into sex slavery. My fears increase when I get to this gold van, with fuzzy leopard print seat covers, light and dark green stripe carpeted floor and leather button-tuffed ceiling. Not to mention the air is moist and there is a thick fog. It is the perfect weather to be murdered in. We start the drive to the school. He puts on the radio and the first song comes on with the hook, "Baby hit me one more time, let me blow your mind", then it quickly changes to Korean lyrics (all Korean pop music tends to be set up that way). I thought he might of put this on for me thinking I am young and I would like it, but  he starts humming along to it, this tiny late 40ish Korean man. We don't talk he just gives me a piece of Korean Juicy Fruit and we drive. All the highway signs in Korea, are flickering and flashing lights and the highway is full of horrible asian drivers causing many near death experiences. I finally get to the school and the directors welcome me and take me on a quick tour before driving me to my apartment. As soon as we get there I meet my co-worker and then we are rushing to the grocery store to buy me anything I may need. It's nearing 9:00pm and I am exhausted and emotionally drained.  By the time I get everyone out of my apartment, it's late and I try to sleep, but my tooth is bothering me from biting in to a piece of disgusting pasta on the plane.