Our First Long Ride: Sinpo International Market
The Desk Test
When we entered our apartment for the first time a month ago, we had a bed, and a couple basic kitchen appliances. That was it. Since then, we have slowly managed to turn what was a barren room into a semi-comfortable living space. I'm holding off on posting pictures of our apartment until we have it 100% completed (and cleaned up) so I can show it off. But it's coming together nicely and I'm feeling more content. We have a very small love seat (one you would see in a minimalist's home), a TV and TV stand, a dining table with two chairs, a wardrobe, a desk and two nightstands. We're not completely living out of suitcases anymore!!! In addition, we also now have a microwave and toaster oven. Thankfully, our boss was kind enough to purchase many of the big items for us, but we've still had to put in a pretty penny dime ourselves. Even the items he did buy for us, we had to passively ask for a couple times. But they immediately placed an order and we got one or two new pieces each week.
Last week, we received the desk that we purchased. After a long day of work, we lugged it upstairs, opened it up and saw about 20 pieces of wood and a pound of different types of screws in a plastic bag. Nothing was separated in bags or labeled. We immediately changed into comfortable clothes and cracked open two beers. The sheet of instructions was more of a half-ass, torn up picture guide with half the pictures and no words - not even in Korean. This was it - the furniture test. Could Luke and I put this together without wanting to tear each other apart?
Yes. Yes we could. And we did. And all in a matter of a couple hours. *High five!* Props to Luke for figuring out the drawer shizz though at the end.
Zumba
Friday morning, I received a reply back to a Zumba inquiry I had sent the night before. The instructor invited me last minute to a class that morning at 11 AM. Feeling both a little hesitant and a little excited, I knew I would love it and that I should go. I got dressed, had some coffee and toast and rode my bike for about five minutes before getting a little lost. I wasn't sure of the exact location and once it was past 11, I have to admit that a very small piece of me was contemplating just going back to the apartment. I was a little nervous to go meet a group of strangers who may or may not have already known each other. But I was still excited for the class as I loved doing Zumba in years past and have been wanting another opportunity for it, so I kept on.
Five minutes later, I found the right place, introduced myself to the instructor and about 12 other women, and we quickly got started. The room was in the "gym" of an apartment complex (about 3 floors with each floor only having one room). The room we were in was on the first floor and it seemed like a multi-purpose room. One wall was covered in mirrors and there were free weights placed around the perimeter. The instructor brought along a colored disco light and set it in the back for some extra spunk - I appreciated that. :) Anyway, I kept up pretty well and the class was a great way to get a fun workout in twice a week. She has classes Wednesday and Friday in the mornings which are perfect for my schedule! I'm excited to go back and maybe become a regular! Also to maybe steal those songs because I wanted to Shazam every single one of them.
Sinpo International Market
On Sunday, Luke and I decided to bike to a popular street market a bit North of us called the Sinpo International Market. We knew it was going to be a bit of a long ride as our maps app told us it was approximately 36 minutes. It started off pretty good but we eventually got to some points with bumpy unfinished sidewalks and heavy traffic next to us. About an hour after we left, we finally arrived to the market. It wasn't an awful ride...but we both agreed we wouldn't be doing it again.
The market itself was two streets long, mostly filled with Korean snacks and fried chicken (Koreans loooooove their fried chicken - the lines were crazy long). Other vendors sold things like plants, clothes or miscellaneous household items. Naturally, after our long ride and inhaling all the smelly goodness around us, we needed some reinforcements so we opted for many small snacks instead of a bigger meal. We split one of our favorites, a pajeon (green onion pancake) for less than a dollar and later we each got a "King Meat Bun". This was a huge steamed dumpling with various shredded meat and vegetables inside. Since it was much larger than your typical mandu (dumplings), the outside was a more bread-y consistency...aka delicious! Before leaving, I snatched up a small bag of a dessert snack from a poop themed vendor. Although their name, "Dong Bang" literally translates to "the East Wing", their logo is a pile of poop. So obviously I had to try it out. It tasted exactly like a vanilla wafer, but with a soft bread on the outside and a creamy center. Soft and creamy from the poop place. HA!
It was dark and around 6 PM by the time we left so rather than attempt the bike ride back in the dark, we opted to take the subway. Thankfully, we can bring our bikes on with us so it was a much quicker and easier ride home. Once home, we settled in with some pizza and beer to end the weekend!
Next up...
This weekend, Luke's uncle and cousin are flying in and we'll be showing them around Busan and Seoul for about a week! I hope they know they will be featured on one of my next posts! :)
