First Trip to Seoul – Sunday and Monday

SUNDAY

Today, Sticky fought back. Do you remember Sticky? He was the octopus who was chopped to bits and was fighting in our mouths as we barbarically chewed and swallowed him. Ken, Illana, and I were feeling pretty sick today (except with Corey, with whom Sticky was quite agreeable).

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At the subway station, we waved Corey and Illana goodbye and headed back to our hotel. We still had one more night in Seoul, and we weren’t going to waste it. Or so we thought.

Let this be a lesson to everyone out there. Soju, chicken hearts, and squiggling octopus pieces might seem irresistible at first, but trust me, they don’t stay down without a fight.

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Unfortunately, Ken and I couldn’t meet my relatives today, because we couldn’t last on the subway to Incheon. We had only had a bowl of rice to eat that day. (Thanks, Sticky. You’ve done quite enough.) 

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MONDAY

My relatives wanted to meet me so badly yesterday, that today, some of them scheduled a reunion (12 years in the making) at a Starbucks in Seoul. Ken and I woke up to an unexpected call from my uncle, who wanted to meet us earlier to have breakfast. We had fifteen minutes to get ready, and pack up all of our gear. We then sped down the sidewalks to City Hall. I wasn’t going to miss my uncle this time.

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After some ice coffee at Starbucks (which didn’t go down well for Ken…he was still sick :(), my uncles and great aunts drove us to the bus terminal. Worried about Ken, they headed straight for a small pharmacy that was located right in the terminal, and got some magic medicine for him. He drank down an appetizing yeast-like powder, with two white tablets and a peppermint elixir. Amazingly enough, twenty minutes later he was well enough to eat a meal of jook (glutinous, overcooked mixed rice). My relatives wouldn’t let us go without having Ken eat something.

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Our bus back home to Andeok was peaceful (our stomach acids had finally conquered Sticky), but our adventure wouldn’t have been complete without our transfer at Andong, Jinbo, Cheongsong (we caught the last bus), and finally to Andeok, putting a nice cherry on top of our memorable, remarkable Seoul experience.

- Jess