Loren:
As promised in the Things I wont miss about Korea blog here is the long awaited "Things we will miss about Korea". These are listed in no particular order.
Friends. I will miss all the Korean and foreign friends I have made in Korea. They have basically been my family for the last 12 months and all of them are going to be greatly missed.
Cheap Food. I will miss being able to walk into my local takeout restaurant and the most expensive thing on the menu being 5,000 WON ($4.12). Even in a fancy restaurant you can get a meal for less than 15,000 WON ($12.40).
How quickly I can clean my apartment. I wont miss how tiny my apartment is, but I will miss how quick it is to clean.
Public transport. I will miss a subway that only costs 1,100 ($0.90) and comes every 5 minutes. I will miss being able to catch a bus anywhere in the country for a reasonable price and never having to wait more than a hour for it.
Service. If a person in a shop or restaurant in Korea says "service" it means what they are giving you is free. I will miss getting service cookies at the coffee shop, service coke at the pizza place and service salads and desserts are restaurants.
Cheap taxis. I can get most places in Daegu for 10,000 WON ($8.25) in a taxi. It's going to suck going back to Melbourne where $8.25 will hardly get you around the corner!
Not carrying keys. I have no car and most of the apartments in Korea have an electronic key pad that you put your code in to instead of a key. It's great not having to carry keys around and then have to find them in your bag!
Cheap Beer. The beer might not be great in Korea, but it sure is cheap.
Cute students. Korean kids are so cute and I am going to miss the sweet things they do, like write me letters.
Brenton:
School shoes: Koreans have in door shoes and out door shoes. My black leather work shoes are considered out door shoes so I couldn't wear them to school as I had planned. Instead, I can wear any shoes I like to school no matter how un-professional they may be. My choice was some Ug-boots.
Coffee shops: Ever really felt like a coffee but can't find a coffee shop to fill your cravings? Come to Korea where there are several coffee shops on every street.
Celebrity status: It's very nice to feel like a celebrity everywhere you go. Sure the staring gets old but having random people ask you in the street to take a picture with them will always put a smile on your face.
Tuning people out: When I am out and about I find it so very relaxing to just tune all of the strangers, around me, out. This process is greatly simplified when those strangers are speaking in a language you can't understand. I am aware that these strangers will often be discussing me but I can remain care free because I can't understand them so I don't care what is being said.
