The lessons you learn in another country can sometimes be cruel and harsh, then there are those moments, that there are either simply no words for or you just "had to be there".
I officially went on my second grocery trip since arriving here two months ago. Secretly, I've been quite nervous about shopping for food. The aisles are a giant maze of weird textures, strange packages and fishy smells. Not to say that you can't find some of the comforts of home, but you will pay dearly for them. It's not uncommon to pay $6 or more (Canadian currency) for about 5-6 apples, and oranges...well that's just crazy talk! Funky tasting grapes, pineapples, and bananas are in abundance, and therefore cheap, but let's face it, if I have to eat another banana I'm going to go bananas! Anne and I were fortunate enough to find the "reject fruit" bin, where apples are as cheap as $2, but you have to eat them within 12 hours, otherwise, it's apple sauce.
At last, the food shopping was over and it was on to housewares and toiletries where I could relax and shop freely. Little did I know what was about to become my demise.
Two hours later, I was back at home, unloading my groceries and actually cooking for a change. I pulled out my new economy box of 500 Q-tips that I also managed to snag from a bargain bin. I proceeded to clean my ears fulfilling that inner ear scratchy feeling to my hearts content and pulled out the Q-tip in horror. The cotton from the end of the stick was completely stuck in my ear! I pulled out a new Q-tip only to discover that bargain Q-tips are sold as a "bargain" for a reason, the cotton has mearly been spun on the end of the stick with a quick twist and comes off the stick like a piece of cotton candy. I used the stick from another Q-tip to try to dig out the ball of cotton, but I was only successful in shoving it in farther. I'm sure I reached brain!
An emergency phone call home to access the situation ended in roars of laughter. What was I to do? The clock was ticking and it was already midnight! I thought of taking a shower to moisten it and hopefully free it from the holds of my inner ear, but thought against that idea when I thought it may worsen this already dire situation. There was no way I could sleep with this ball of cotton in my ear. I had wedged it so far in that it was now starting to hurt and I was deaf.
Thankfully, I remembered a guy who lived on the 6th floor of my building whom I met just a couple of times prior. Without hesitation, I ran down to his apartment and rang his doorbell. He sleepily opened the door wearing his flannel pajamas and replied with a "hey, what's up". I proceeded to tell my story and then ask for some tweezers. I only wished I had a camera to take a picture of the perplexed look on his face, before he too, broke out into hysterical laughter. Me laying down on the floor sideways and he holding a flashlight and a pair of tweezers and 15 minutes later it was out!
Moral of the story: Quality is better than quantity.
On the bright side: I have 498 Q-tips left to make an awesome Halloween costume.
I can only imagine how scary the North American media has made the situation appear over here in Korea. For those of you who weren't sure of my location, I am not in North Korea, I am in South Korea, almost 10 miles south of Seoul, but I am still considered as part of Seoul, just a district outside of it. I appreciate all of the concerned emails about my well-being. I can assure you as of today that I and the rest of the foreigners over here still remain safe. In fact, up until Saturday, I was not even the least bit concerned that I would be in danger in this country. I am sure most of you have felt somewhat the same in that this is just another lame North Korean tactic to gain attention and prosperity.
When news of the nuclear test conducted on October 9th broke out, South Koreans felt threatened little, but there was some cause for concern, as in most other countries. Considering their close proximity, I was a little surprised; however, for the most part, life here has been business as usual. At least, that was until I left for work today.
Since I cannot read or understand the news here, I've been tuning into the CNN website for details about this dispute. Before work today, I read that North Korea outwardly refused to resolve the issue and the DRNK representative defiantly said that North Korea was prepared for talks or for confrontation and should the U.S. continue to "bully" them, that they were prepared for war, before simply walking out of the UN six-party talk. You can imagine my now uneasiness about living here in South Korea.
Early this afternoon, I got a real sense of just how sensitive and precarious this situation is and that each next new political move must be thought out carefully and be carried out with precision. Upon walking my usual one hour walk to school this morning, I was happily listening to my MP3 player, thinking in my own little bubble, when I felt a sense of oddness. I looked up before crossing the street only to notice that traffic in all four directions had abruptly stopped and the pedestrians were standing on all corners of the street not walking. Two men were standing in the middle of the street. At first, I thought that perhaps I walked into a demonstration or some sort of rally, but after almost a minute of standing on the corner and not seeing anything come down the street, I ruled that idea out. For almost four minutes no one had moved and there was this eerie silence for a time that is usually jam packed with traffic and people on the streets. The silence was followed by distant sirens, which now began to panic me. These were not ambulance sirens, they were something else. My mind began to race at the possibilities and I began assuming the worst. Then, within a minute life just seem to continue on again.
I was told that it was somewhat of a South Korean tradition not long ago, where on the 15th of every month sirens would ring through the streets of cities while they stood in silence to keep them in the mindset of possible war. I didn't understand if this was also meant as a practice evacuation warning. As recent events would have it, there is potential for this to be a reality and I am still coming to terms with my new found reality.
