Happy Thanksgiving!!; Japan

Well, the holiday came and went here in Busan, not much to talk about. I did go out to eat with some friends at a place called Seamen's club. Its basically a diner type place, with Koreans working there who generally speak good English. It looks like a stuffy '50s restaurant, and the food was mediocre, but it was nice to eat turkey, and see some familiar faces.

Also I included some pics from a trip to Japan. Compared to Korea, Japan is much cleaner, and more expensive. People dress nicer and are actually smaller than Koreans. I wasn't in a big city (Fukuoka, approx. 1.5 million ppl) but it was a nice city. I actually had to go 3 times, 2 more than expected. Why so many times, and why go there? I had to go for my work visa, so I don't get deported or get caught working illegally. Anyway, I basically didn't realize all of what I had to do to make things work efficiently. First time there I missed my boat back by like 10 minutes, because a taxt dropped me off at the wrong ferry terminal (I take the boat there: 3 hrs, $90) Second time I didn't make it to the Korean consulate on time, so I had to stay the night anyway, and they make you wait a day for the visa. Couple years ago it used to be you could get it done in one day. All it is is fill out a form, have a small picture. Boring stuff. So, my second trip I couldn't find a hotel room, because there was some kind of conference in town. So I went to over 20 hotels trying to find a room, walked the streets all night and tried to take a nap on a cold concrete bench. Not the best night, but it could've been worse.

Third time was the trick! Got the paperwork done, went out to a few bars, stayed in a nice hotel (in the pics) and did everything on time. And I dont plan on going back anytime soon! But I think I'll try to plan a trip next spring to another country around here, since I'm close. And my friend John pushes me to do these things because its a good experience. So we'll see how that pans out. Enjoy the holiday shopping!!

My apartment, weather

Hello, all! I finally got my apartment situated with all the furniture I need; didn't have a dresser for over 2 months, just a huge hockey bag in the corner full of clothes. So now that I got the dresser I decided to take some pictures. It's really an improvement over my first apartment here. Location is way better, lots of daylight, better insulation (no more freezing showers in the winter!) and 8th floor view. Its hard to get good pictures withe my camera because norman mode is zoomed in already, so I did the best I could. Hope you get an idea.

Also wanted to talk about the weather here. Since about September, its rained maybe 5 times total, so its been really nice for the most part. Occasionally windy, but generally sunny and always comfortable temps. Just in the last week its started to get a bit cold as winter approaches. I've enjoyed riding my bike in this weather. One weekend a friend and I took our bikes to the northern part of the city, just to go for a ride and have lunch, enjoy the weather. I can't wait until spring comes around! As for now, I'll have to get some winter gear on my bike. There are big mitt type things you can put on your handlebars to cover your hands in the cold, apparently about $20. And I was told to start wearing long-johns under my jeans. Anyway, I should be prepared by that time.

The bike is running well; a good investment. Classes are going well, too. I've learned a lot about dealing with kids during my time here, like how important it is to have a reward system in place to motivate them to do their work. Otherwise they just run around and hit each other! Its not always easy, but I no longer get as stressed about things. I think there's another blog coming soon...