Happy Birthday to me!!!

Two weeks ago I celebrated my 28th birthday (a little late on the post, I know).  Anyone who knows me well, knows that I am kind of obsessed with my birthday, and I usually throw myself some sort of party, no matter my age.  I didn't really have any plans this year, so needless to say, I was homesick for the very first time, really missing my family and friends.  Adam did step it up, and a last minute invite from friends turned into one of the best birthdays to date.  It is up there with the animal masks.

Friday Night: Dinner with Adam

Adam and I went to dinner at Tao.  It's focus is on western food, and we wanted to give it a try after hearing good things.  I ordered roasted duck with mango chutney, and Adam got a margarita pizza.  Presentation A+++.  Food itself, B.  My duck was slightly over cooked, but  still was tasty.  They also gave us complimentary bowls of potato soup to start; who doesn't like free food?!

They say it's your birthday!

potato soup

Mmmm pizza!

How pretty?

Ran into another birthday boy!

Birthday flowers

Heart Balloons

Saturday: Part 1
I woke up early to skype with my mom, and to my surprise Alexandra and Billy were also there.  They had a piece of cake and sang Happy Birthday to me.  Being a true McNellis cryer, I cried.  It was so sweet, made my day, and made me miss home even more.  Later that day, a friend from work invited us to a Kia Tigers game.  They are Gwangju's baseball team, and one of the best in the country.  I have heard many great things about the games, but nothing prepared me for the actual experience.  Let's start with the fans, they have more spunk then back home.  It sounded like thunder as we approached the stadium, as almost everyone there was banging their inflatable clappers together.  Next, the stadium itself, a true piece of crap, BUT it's a BYOB and BYOF.  Could you image bringing in coolers and sarcones hoagies to a Phillies game?  Talk about amazing.  They don't have hoagies here, but they love fried chicken; almost everyone was eating it.  And don't worry, if you run out of beer, they have concession stands where you can buy 6 packs.  Giddy up.

I love them

Kia fans

The girls

The boys

Cute girl

Saturday: Part 2
The party continued after the baseball game.  Next stop karaoke.  In Korea, the karaoke bars are called Norebongs, and they are filled with private rooms.  The rooms are about 3 times larger than Yakitori boy, but basically the same deal.    There was about 8 of us there, and not a shy singer in the room.  The reverb on these machines made my voice a little bearable.  My confidence juice really kicked in when I decided to rap "Baby Got Back," which I have to say wasn't that bad.  Jacob also surprised me with a delicious white chocolate birthday cake from Paris Baguette (which deserves its own blog post one of these days)!!!

Maneater

Bohemian Rhapsody

Birthday serenade 

Delicious

The End

It was around 1am that my body needed some rest, but no downtown night is complete without a Kebob (picture a gyro).  Adam and I stopped at the cart on our way home.  All in all it was an amazing birthday!  Thanks to my friends in Korea for making it sooo special and my friends and family back home for all the birthday wishes!!!

One content birthday girl :)

Sizzling Seoul

I always feel at home when I am in a big city.  Spending almost all of my life in Philadelphia, I have learned to truly appreciate and embrace the hustle and bustle of city life.  Two weekends ago Margaret and I visited Seoul.  Seoul truly takes the meaning of city to a whole other level.  This weekend was full of shopping and eating, a little resting, and some drinking.  

Location: Hongdae

We stayed in a hostel in Hongdae, which is a college neighborhood centrally located in Seoul.  Hongdae is quaint by day: tree lined streets, small boutiques, filled with cafes and restaurants.  This was also my first hostile experience.  Not going to lie, I was a little scared at first, but it was not bad at all. We shared a room with 4 other people.  Party of 6, yes please!  We actually met some nice people, two of which actually live in Gwangju.

Bringing back the bunk beds. 

View from my bunk.  Margaret was kind enough to give me the bottom :)

Shopping: Myeongdong
Another reason we went to Seoul was for the shopping.  Here in Gwangju there are many Korean boutiques, but not too many international clothing stores (we have a zara's).  The clothing in the boutiques are beautiful, except one thing:  it's "one size fits most Koreans."  The women here are beautiful and very thin.  I would say the average size is a 2.  I need the big and tall section.  So needless to say, I was extremely excited to hear that Seoul had a H&M and Forever 21. 
So back to Seoul....Myeongdong is a busy neighborhood in Seoul; roughly 2 million people pass through on a given day.  There you will find mid to high end international clothing stores, numerous street vendors, and restaurants.  We spent most of our Saturday afternoon in Forever 21.  It was three floors of heaven.  The best F21 merchandise I have ever seen and it's comparatively priced.  We also popped in Zara and H&M.  I was extremely disappointed with H&M though.  The prices were so much more than back in the States.  There were no $9.99 knit tops :(  I didn't have it in me to pay almost three times the price;  I left empty handed.   
After shopping we stopped for some ice cream.  It was hands down the largest ice cream cones I have even seen, and all for less than $1.50 usd.  

Busy Streets!

Shoes for sale

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!!!!

Snack time- dried octopus jerky...

dried fish jerky...  no thank you!

Nightlife: Party like it's spring break...

Seriously, the crowd here is WILD!  At night, Hongdae turns into an electric night life haven.  Bars and clubs on every block; you can even by shots on the street.  Drinks out of buckets, bartenders blowing whistles, bars that don't close till the sun rises, flaming dr. pepper shots, live dancers, and people literally passed out on the streets...  Kinda Mexico-crazy.

Bartenders gone wild

Live entertainment- they were dancing to pussy cat dolls- buttons; classic.

rough night- my guess, he's  a meaty american.

such ladies

Food: Non-Korean, yes please!

I eat a lot of Korean food in Gwangju so it was nice to get some Western eats in my belly.  I had my first cup of Dunkin Donuts, which tasted the same as back home, and one of the best burritos.  We also had Sunday brunch, which is hard to come by in Gwangju.

Dunkin Donuts- my favorite!!  Not a bad way to start a day of shopping!!

Roasted Garlic Burrito- move over Las Margarita's this blows the  burrito superior out of the water!  

Dos Tacos Menu

Brunching on Sunday morning.  

My first mushroom and cheese omelet since I've been here.  I miss morning glory.  tear.

Sipping on some club soda while we "people watched".  

In conclusion, the real reason I went to Seoul was to eat and shop.  Next time, I'll have to make some room for the tourist sites.  The end.

Just another Saturday...

Last Saturday, while Adam was at a BBQ with the boys, Margaret showed me more around town.  (For those of my readers who do not Margaret, she is Adam's friend's girlfriend.  She has been kindly showing me the korean ropes).  We were originally going to see Kung fu panda in 3-D, but it was sold out.  
Backup plan:  Yang-dong "traditional korean" market.  Decades ago the city was full of these traditional markets, but as the years passed, the majority of these markets have closed and been replaced with supermarkets and department stores.  There are only a handful left in Gwangju.  Yang-dong market is located inside a huge warehouse; it's the largest in our providence.  There you will find the freshest of the fresh foods: meats (dead and alive!), seafood, rice cakes, fruits and vegetables.  They even sell furniture, electronics, and bedding.  We mainly strolled through the food.  Below are some pictures of our crazy findings (courtesy of Margaret- thanks!).

Enough garlic for a lifetime. 

Babe!  At least the meat is fresh...

Frogs: might have been the most interesting find.  They don't eat frogs in Korea (dogs yes, frogs no).  Maybe they were lunch for the live chickens and ducks.

Fresh fish everywhere!  Each vendor's display was a work of art.