The Best and the Worst?

I've been home for a week now... I think.  Apparently Jack hasn't forgiven me completely yet - I'm still finding all of the bathroom tissue on the floor.  I've been back at work for a couple of days, and other than the usual "How was your trip?" greeting, everyone is asking what the best thing was about the trip to Korea.

Unfortunately, I have no answer for them!  There were so many things that were awesome.  I think the top 3 on a personal level were the people, the food, and the history.  Eun Hee, Esther, and Sul Hee were so nice, and so tolerant of this fat ol' lady who walked so slow.  They were also a lot of fun!  It's strange for me to have people I consider fairly close friends who live so far away, whom I know I won't see in person for what could be years.  Their friendship is something I will never take for granted.

The food, as I may have mentioned once or twice, was incredible.  I've spent every night since I got back searching for recipes that I can make myself that might taste a little bit like what I ate there.  I've been to the local Asian market & deli, but so much of it either isn't in English, or isn't a brand/packaging that I recognize.  It's going to take a lot of research to find the correct ingredients.  The most convenient thing of course is to simply buy the prepared and canned side dishes, sauces, and pickles - but to find the right items I'll probably have to buy and taste one of everything in the store!  Maybe I can figure out how to get a Korean care package sent to me?  LOL!

The history - I saw items in the National Museum that were literally over a thousand years old.  That's something that is very hard to grasp for an American.  My country is only a couple hundred years old.  The Korean culture, like the items in the museum, is thousands of years old.  Traditions are still very much a part of the modern, Western-like Republic of Korea.  While having dinner with my friend and her family, I noticed her husband turned away from when taking a drink.  I remembered that this is a sign of respect shown to an elder or honored guest or boss.  My first thought was "how nice", quickly followed by "crap - I'm an elder!".  Understanding the culture requires understanding the history, even if it is only a passing acquaintance, as it is for me.

Inevitably someone asks what I liked the least about the trip.  The obvious of course it the actual travel to and from.  I refuse to consider myself old, but staying up for 28 hours straight is not an easy thing!  What did I dislike about Korea?  They drink out of fricking Dixie cups!  I don't know how they do it, it's like being in a country of (beautiful) camels!  I was constantly thirsty.  I stocked up at the mini-market around the corner every night, and still ended up with a bit of gout on the way home.  Gout?  I thought that died out in the 1950's.  It's almost gone, but it made for a very painful flight home.  Next time, no shyness for me - I'm carrying a bottle of water everywhere I go!

Honestly, I thought my biggest dislike would be the walking, but as my friend also mentioned, I liked it.  Now that I'm home I resent having to drive all over town to do my shopping.  I want a corner market where I can grab a few things on the way home.  I really didn't mind the walking, most of the time.  The uneven ground and steep hills were a problem because I'm still recuperating from my injury, and even though my arm got very sore from the cane, I felt good.  Now that I'm home, eating my usual food and driving to the store, I feel fat and "bleh" again.

My current mission is to find a local butcher where I can buy decent meat in smaller quantities.  My kingdom for Korean bacon!!!