COFFEEANDKIMCHI

well, after plenty of plane defrosting done by strange looking robot things, i’m back in seoul. the flight was easy. i slept a ton and had an empty seat next to me. bonus! i had no lines at customs, got my bags quickly, and got a ticket for the next bus heading home. it seemed like everything was going so smoothly…

that’s when things got ugly. i had the men put my luggage under the bus, got on, and was greeted by a yelling match between an airport employee and a crazy lady and her son who had decided they should be allowed to ride the bus home without buying tickets. my problem: they were sitting in my seat. everyone around me was telling me that there were no seats left, so i just stood there dumbfounded, listening to this situation unfold. i realized what was happening, and started to get a little angry. i literally stood there for more than 5 minutes, waiting for this crazy lady to come to her senses and stop screaming nonsense. finally, i lost it. i yelled a few obscene things (which i would never normally do…i blame 20 hours of travel and jetlag), and stormed off the bus, telling them to just give her my seat and that i would wait for the next bus. another airport employee outside the bus saw me get off, and asked what was wrong. the korean in me was flowing out, and i told him there was a crazy lady on the bus. haha. he got on and asked what was happening, but was shooed away by the other employee. finally, after 5 more minutes and a lot more yelling (not on my part), the lady decided to get off. the airport employees told me to get back on and that i had a seat now. i did so, still shaking in anger and unbelief at this lady’s sense of entitlement. everyone on the bus gave me looks of sympathy as i sat down. it was such an ordeal.

after that, the bus ride was fine. the driver was incredibly nice when i got off, and i headed back to my place. as i was walking past one of the buildings near mine, the man who works there came out and grabbed my bigger suitcase and started walking with me. i tried to stop him, telling him that i didn’t live in his building. he just said, “i know” and kept walking towards my building. i was a little confused, so i asked him how he knew where i lived. in the most matter of fact tone, he replied “of course i know. i see you walk by here every day.” haha. i guess when you’re a security guy and you see the same foreign girl walking by your window every day, you notice? anyhow, he walked my bag all the way to my building, up the steps, put it in the elevator for me and held the doors for me to get on. so nice. it definitely made up for the sour feeling the bus situation had given me.

once i was finally home, i checked the place for bugs. (none so far!) then, i headed out to meet some friends for dinner. by 9:30 i was falling asleep at the table and decided to head home again. passed out by 10.

now it’s 10:30am on sunday. the sun is shining in my window. i’ve had my morning paris baguette, and a day of unpacking and cleaning are ahead of me. home was great, but it’s good to be back in seoul.