Let Me Tell You About My Home

So I have officially hit the two-month mark on my little Korean adventure. I've gotten into a daily routine and have started to feel at home, at least as much as I can. So I figure I'd give a little visual tour for my reader(s) back home who may or may not be interested in my new 'hood.

The specifics: I live in Suseo-dong (dong essentially meaning town) which is located within Gangnam-gu (gu meaning district). Suseo is a relatively poor town located within the most wealthy district in Seoul...go figure? Within my short period of time here, I've grown to love my strange little piece of the city. Foreigner sitings are extremely rare here, so I like to consider myself the official US ambassador to Suseo, and I treat my neighbors as such. As I have said before, I live in an Officetel which is a building consisting of small offices and studio apartments.

Here is a shot of my building:

The strange part about living here is that I could live in this building and never step foot outside if I felt like it. The subway station is located directly below. So in the mornings, I don't even walk outside until I get to my destination. I lived here for literally two weeks before I even explored the neighborhood outside. Even now when I walk outside it feels sort of strange and surreal to be walking down these streets that gazed upon from my tower. Speaking of windows (not really), the best part about my apartment is the view. Here is a night shot I took a few weeks ago.

So, yeah...I like the view. So, let me tell you a little about my building. I come home every day, get off of the subway, walk up the stairs, through the gate, and into this madness:

Though it looks relatively harmless in this photo, this elevator is over-crammed from the hours of about 9:00am to 10:00pm. The elevator goes up to the E-Mart, a tightly packed insanity-driven grocery store that I visit almost every day with great anticipation and enthusiasm. First, the same guy is there day in and day out, standing at the entrance, waiting to thank you and bow deeply as you enter, as if he is absolutely humbled by your presence in his E-Mart. This made me extremely uncomfortable for like 2 weeks, but now I enjoy the pleasure I get from his appreciation. One time last week he bowed to the lady before me and then DIDN'T bow to me. I almost turned around and slapped him with my basket. Instead, I just took an extra sample of delicious bread to calm myself down. The samples are maybe the best part about the E-Mart, and I have a daily route. First I hit the delicious bread, then I make my way past the tray of mixed nuts, which is usually unstocked. Whoever is in charge of that nut tray should get canned...totally unacceptable. Anyway, I then cruise by the fish lady, say hello, and snag a toothpick full of delicious fish. Next stop is the "side dish" lady, who has a whole tray full of my favorite Korean side dishes. I take my pick, sometimes make a purchase, but usually just give a little smile and make my way towards the next free bee. The next is the Bulgogi (Korean-style beef). Every day I sample the beef and every day I almost buy some...but I don't. So I move on to the final sample, which is this absolutely orgasmic Korean soy drink. I have no idea what it's called but it tastes like a little piece of heaven every time I lift that half-shot sized plastic cup to my lips. The best part is that there are always at least three women standing around trying to sell me the soy drink, but it's insanely expensive. At this point, they have to recognize me as "that white kid who always mooches our soy drink samples" seeing as how I've never seen another non-Asian in the E-mart. Either way, I'm going to keep sampling until someone stops me. 

Here is a shot of the E-Mart in all it's glory.

As you can see, it's pretty tightly packed in here. Walking in there between the hours of 6:00 and 8:00pm is not advisable unless you enjoy being constantly shoved by old Korean women...which I do.

Okay, so the tour is almost over. There is just one more bit of information that I need to share with you. So, if you refer back to the photo of the E-mart elevator, look to the left. The glass structure to the left is actually the entrance to a vast network of small shops and restaurants. This is also the way that I must walk in order to get to my elevator. I have only ventured to four or five out of the twenty or so restaurants in this maze, but I've had great experiences at all of them. Every morning I get a $.50 piece of toasted bread wrapped around sliced bananas on my way to the subway. I have a serious crush on the woman who works at the Toast stand where this daily transaction takes place. No matter how tired or grumpy I may be, I always throw on a big smile for Toast Lady. Its insane too, because she is ALWAYS there. The woman literally works at least 12 hour shifts, unless she goes home and takes a siesta during the afternoon. We smile at each other as I pass in the afternoons or evenings as I walk out. She sort of breaks my heart - this beautiful woman, trapped inside of a Toast Stand day after day, sitting on her stool, reading a book and flipping breakfast sandwiches. Maybe someday she and I can sit down over a delicious Kimbap and talk about our hopes and dreams.

Anyway, enough about unrequited love. One of the coolest things that has happened to me is how I have become a regular at this little Korean joint on this floor. I waltz in there one or two times a week and the woman who works the floor always shows me to the same seat facing the TV, cause she knows I'm alone. She'll sit with me as I eat and we'll watch her Korean dramas. She'll make comments and I'll nod or laugh as if I understand. It's really a great thing we have going. Plus I can literally get a feast for $5, eat as many side dishes as I can stuff, and walk out of there without being expected to pay a tip. 

So here is a few pictures of the hall of restaurants.

So that’s my home. Yes, it’s strange. No, it’s not really a home, but I like it. Unfortunately, due to problems beyond me control I am going to have to move to a different location. That will hopefully happen within the month of November. So I will be sure to give another detailed tour of my new place. I’ll probably still come back to Suseo though, to smile at Toast Lady, or watch Korean dramas with my waitress friend, or just to get shoved around a little bit buy an old Korean woman buying her potatoes and bricks of tofu.