My Hovercraft is Full of Eels: 내 호버크라프트는 장어로 가득 차 있어요

The above is apparently what counts for a useful phrase on certain websites!

After a very long couple of days I no longer know which end is up or have any sense of what time or day it is. My body seems to believe that it is 4pm, and that it has been in a constant state of 4pmness for the past 3 days, possibly because I decided that sleep is overrated. My body is also begging me for any kind of food that is not chocolate based.

The adventure started at 330am on the 20th, when my dad and I drove down to Logan Airport in Boston to deposit me on the plane. Driving in Boston is always a fiasco, and this time was no exception. Fortunately we did not get too epically lost. For all the traveling I've done, this was my first time ever flying alone, and given how much I hate flying, it was not fun. I spent over half of the 6 hour flight to LA absolutely convinced I was seconds away from death. As you have figured out, I did not die.

I had a 14 hour layover in LA, and so for that I went and crashed at a Hampton Inn. Had a king size bed all to myself! So there I napped, showered, and caught up with some people on the East Coast before repacking my carry on and heading back to LAX.

Now this is unrelated to the overall Korea story, but it's a pet peeve, and so I'm going to take a moment to educate all y'all. Cultural Anthropology, Biological/Evolutionary Anthropology, and Archaeology are entirely separate specifications under a broader umbrella. It's like being a pediatrician, a brain surgeon, and an anesthesiologist. They all fall under one common field, but have completely different and noninterchangeable descriptions. So when you asked what I majored in, and I tell you Anthropology, don't go asking me where I want to go dig up skulls, cuz that is NOT my field.

Got checked in at LAX, changed some money, and found the sketchiest airport gate in the country... seriously. It was like... a closet compared to all the other ones, and every time they tried to announce something, the Mexico gate also decided to announce something and so I basically sat for an hour without having a single clue what was going on, but I made my flight and that's what counts.

Asiana (the airline I flew) had surprisingly decent food. The meal choices were steak or bi bim bap (which is a traditional Korean dish), I opted to be adventurous, and I'm glad I did, because it was delicious, possibly the best airline food I've ever had (although I did spend the day subsisting on Luna Bars and chocolate covered almonds, so my stomach may have just been overly excited). I thankfully was exhausted enough that I managed to sleep for most of the flight.

Arriving in Incheon was interesting, I had no problems going through customs, but finding the bus I needed to take to Gwangju was a little tricky. I was bewildered and tired, and the fact that I can't speak a single word of Korean did not help. I was a little freaked out because I could not find an open ticket booth, but a very patient crossing guard explained to me that it was ok that none of them were open, they would open soon, and then I could buy my ticket and wait for my bus. The flight landed at 5am, and none of the ticket counters opened until 545am, but once I understood that I was able to relax and wait before buying a ticket for the 650am bust to Gwangju. The bus ride was really nice, very comfortable, and once again I managed to get some sleep. We stopped at a very nice rest stop, and I thought about getting food, but was a little taken aback because everything seems to come on sticks, and I had no clue what anything was made of. I settled for an iced tea that tasted kinda like noodles. It sounds weird, but I was very OK with it.

The bus ride was about 4 hours through Korean countryside, which all starts to look the same after a while. Lots of shrines (/tombs?) and gardens... I believe most of what I saw was rice paddies, based on how heavily irrigated it all looked, but I could be wrong.

Petra and Lori picked me up at the bus station, it was so great to see some freindly faces and know that I could communicate with them! They were also easy to spot, being the only blondes around! We swung by a Dunkin Donuts (yes, they have them here!) so that I could get some coffee and food (a chocolate muffin... I don't know why I chose that!). Despite being an American based chain, they had lots of neat donut options, including a banana flavored one that was shaped like a banana! I will probably have to experiment with these, just for the halibut. We took a taxi to "my" apartment (I'm currently living in Britton's, for the time being) and I was able to shower and organize my stuff a little. After I finish this I'm going to take a cat nap, because they are taking me into work so that I can start my training! I'm very nervous about that, but hey, it's what I'm here for!

So if you don't feel like reading all of that, the cliff notes are: Safe, alive, and kinda tired! Expect more updates in the next couple of days!

~Hannah