Farewell, Korea

Well, my three weeks in South Korea has come to an end. I tried (seriously) to make it up to North Korea, but it was going to cost me too much money and there was a 50/50 shot that the paperwork wouldn’t come through anyway. Too bad. I did get to go to the DMZ and eat Pyongyang-style noodles, so that’ll have to be good enough.

I can’t thank everyone enough, who’s made my time here such a success. In particular:

Karla: for letting me stay with her in Daejeon on no less than three occasions, and most of all, for letting me borrow her extra cell phone! I don’t know what I would have done without you.

Loren, Rachel & Nathan, and Jen: My four new CouchSurfing buddies, who were kind and generally awesome about letting me in their homes and share their space. You guys have an open invitation (and you too, Karla!) at my home in Oakland.

Aaron & Soo Jin: Although I knew you a little bit from before, it was great to learn more about you and to see you in your “native” environment. Thanks for taking me to eat live octopus. It’s an experience I will never forget.

DeVika, Min, Curtis & Lea, and Katrina: These friends I met through the aforementioned five and added a new dimension to my time here. I hope to host you guys as well — your perspective and friendship made my time here that much richer.

Chon Kilnam, Jin Ho Hur, Heewon Kim, HJ Park, Chris Chung, MK Kang, Stuart Brooks and all the other people I interviewed: Thanks for taking time to help me make my research worthwhile. You’ll be hearing from me again soon!

I’ve had a wonderful time here and can easily see why being here is so attractive. It’s easy to make money as an English teacher here, and to save money for a trip/house, or to pay off college loans. I may be back to follow in your footsteps.

I hope to see all of you guys in California soon!