Life of Luxury

It just took one post to get me out of my writer's block. I have at least three posts waiting for pictures (I'll get to it later).

Today was a lovely, interesting day spent in the sunny (but chilly) Pohang. I had to pick up my scooter as it was in the shop. Now that it's fixed and I know what happened, I'm willing to open up. I had a minor, but chilling accident. Last Sunday I started it, there hadn't been any problems that I was aware of. Right away the accelerator locked and it just started flying. Within a matter of seconds the Beaver and I were horizontal on the pavement, in front of a car that was luckily stopped. I was so shaken up but quickly picked it up and got to the sidewalk. My leg was bleeding from multiple places but luckily I had my helmet on (I always wear it!) and it protected me when my head hit the road. Obviously I wasn't going to drive it home so I locked it back up and tried to spot clean my wounds as best I could before I got in a taxi. A nice couple stopped to make sure I was ok and got my phone number to check on me I guess. They didn't speak English but an old man on a bicycle asked in broken English if I needed to go to the hospital: "You. Go health cen-tuhhh?"

Fifty thousand won later (about $50), The Beav had a new carburetor. The mechanic told me (in broken English of course) that it did the same thing to him. She runs like new now! I'm so thankful to have her back. I thought I'd be terrified to ride again but actually missed it. I now depend on my scooter as my main mode of transportation. As my friend Emily says, and it's so true, with driving a scooter it's not a matter of if you're going to get into an accident, it's just when and how severe the accident is. I'm fortunate I wasn't hurt besides a few flesh wounds.

After that, Emily and I went to the "fancy" department store in town. Our main reason for going was to eat a Turkish kebab. It was more Korean than Turkish but served it's purpose of nourishment. Then we decided to browse. It was like a taste of home inside a real mall. It was wonderful. We tested couches and massage chairs, cameras, sampled juices and tried on the make-ups and perfumes. Our visit ended with a break on the top floor to check out the view of the beach and a complimentary cup of disappointingly disgusting sweet rice drink.

Since the wine selection there was too pricey for my budget, I stopped at the more affordable department store, E-Mart, on the way home. I had a moment of panic when I looked at my normal shelf for my regular purchase of G7 Merlot. It wasn't there. I almost panicked but luckily it was right around the corner, with quadruple the stock. Fantastic. And the lovely wine lady told me, "Cheeee-leh win-uh. Big Sale!" I'm a sucker for a sale and the wine she pointed out was over half off and conveniently the same price as my G7. I threw a couple bottles in my cart and was then offered to sample some sweet wine. Perhaps it was because I jokingly asked in broken Korean if I could test the new wine I was going to try, but I'm a sucker for wine samples too so I gladly obliged. I felt at home in E-Mart winery, swirling and sniffing the not-so-delicious liquid in the classy paper Dixie cup. Had the fruit samples been nearby I would have never left the place.

Now, wine and groceries in hand, I'm off to Emily's. We're going to try our hand at home made hummus (spoken with a Middle Easter guttural accent). In the distance I can hear, "[Korean Korean] or-in-gee," from the old man selling oranges in the street. Even though I frequently get frustrated with Korea, today I'm a fan.

And before I forget, here's a shout out to my wonderful mother and all the other mothers out there. Happy Mother's Day!