Lost in Translation [Sofia Coppola, Eat Your Heart Out]

The flight from Seoul to Tokyo is usually two hours or so. I was informed it was going to be three hours from Tokyo to Seoul because of the time of year we were flying. Apparently, during the fall/winter months, the wind off the sea becomes much more of a force to contend [as well as the direction it blows] with and adds on an additional hour.

Again, i was blessed with an aisle seat and only one other person sharing the third seat. We were served breakfast, and i even received my vegetarian request. This day was definitely starting out better than the last. After finishing my meal of sesame and mushroom rice, i took a good glance around and surveyed the area. Two Koreans who were rather close in proximity to me were reading books with rather graphic [we're talking a la crown of thorns] pictures of Jesus on the cover. Hmmm....

The few hours passed quickly and we began our decent to the Seoul airport. Surprisingly, i became a bit emotional, tears slipped over my irises and down my cheeks. i quickly wiped them and hoped nobody took notice. It was all a bit overwhelming coming back to the place where i was born for the first time in over twenty-three years. A light dusting of snow greeted the tires of the plane, as we touched down on Korean land.

After going through customs, i made my way down to baggage claim. i grabbed a cart and waited anxiously for my luggage, silently praying all of it made it through the long journey with me. i immediately saw one my huge suitcases, and an American guy was nice enough to help me drag it off the luggage belt. A few minutes later, i spotted the other suitcase. After playing a quick game of Tetris with my luggage, i fit it onto my cart. i waited a good ten minutes for my guitar, but did not see it make its way onto the already-rotating line up of suitcases. My heart began to sink at the prospect of losing my prized possession.

i spotted a woman helping some other Americans find their missing luggage and asked if she would mind helping me as well. She got an a walkie-talkie and motioned me to follow her. She was gaining speed, weaving in and out of the crowds of people. i tried my best to keep up with her but i already had about 160 lbs of crap weighing me down! Damn my American girl tendencies! Finally, another airport employee came rushing towards us with my beloved guitar in tow. i thanked him [one of the only phrases in Korean i know] profusely and made my way out of the baggage area to begin to look for my Korean contact.

Now, usually i would be able to spot the one or two Asian guys in the immediate area. No such luck here. Black hair and almond shaped eyes are no longer a distinguishing features. i had no idea what this guy looked like or how old he was. After about ten minutes of walking around in circles, i decided to go to the information desk to see if i could place a phone call to him. Just as i was dialing, a man approached me and said, "Molly?"

Steven, as he calls himself, has been my main contact in Korea ever since i started zeroing in on a job. He was helped me find employment and answer questions. His English is good but he speaks with such a heavy Korean accent, i have to strain to understand each word he is saying. Most Koreans working with Americans like to give themselves an English-sounding name. It's kind of humorous, since within the first five seconds of conversing with him, the jig is totally up.

He brought his car around and we loaded my suitcases in. We drove for a good hour or so. Seoul's new airport is actually on a small island. We crossed a bridge and we went over the Yellow Sea. The scenery was beautiful, some of the trees are still turning colour here. There were elevated hills and valleys with apartment buildings sprouting up from spaces in between. We talked about many things, i probably bombarded him with questions. The most interesting thing he told me was that his generation was not very interested in the re-unification between North and South Korea. He told me that they had grown up with the countries being separated and that now they really operated as two different and distinct Koreas. i wonder if this is the wide-held belief or if it changes more amongst individuals?

Our trip was punctuated with some start and stop traffic. Steven says there is usually horrible traffic which makes since since we were right outside of Seoul [population: 10 million]. We finally made it into the city of Suwon. After driving around for a good fifteen minutes, Steven decided to give into the idea that we were a bit lost. The streets were more narrow than i expected and hardly have any side walks. People and cars seem to dart out nowhere. My dreams of biking may have been crushed within the first minutes of being there.

Eric, an employee of the school i am teaching at, met us on the street and directed us to my apartment. Both of the men helped me unload my luggage and brought it up the two flights of stairs. My apartment is quite cozy. Cozy as in small-ish. i have a separate little room for doing laundry and even have a washing machine! The bathroom leaves something to be desired. Being somewhat of self- professed hygiene freak, it is going to take some major getting used to. You see, the toilet is not separated from the shower area. Moreover, the entire bathroom is the shower, with a large drain in the floor. There is a shower head attached to a hose-like apparatus. i am looking into getting a curtain so i can pretend the space is divided and not have to look at my toilet while washing my hair.

Steven said "goodbye" and Eric took me to lunch. Eric is Korean (another with an English name) and does not speak much English. He took me to a small restaurant and i tried to explain that i only ate fish. We ate in almost silence, except for the slurping [it's not rude here] of the udon noodles. It was like being on blind date plus being mute. How awkward! The chattering of Korean that surrounded us began to sound like white noise to me. The best part was that he handed me a fork in the beginning of the meal. Dude, i might not speak Korean but i am still Korean!

After lunch we went to the school and met some teachers and other faculty. i must have looked worn because they advised me to go home and get some rest! i slept from 2-11 until the head English teacher [American] came to drop of some groceries to me! What a kind gesture! Some people can't get any more sweet and darling.

i awoke at about one in the morning and couldn't go back to sleep. It's going to take some time to shake this wicked jet lag.