The Ultimate Top Ten List

So ladies and gents, this is the top ten greatest and not so great things about my life in Korea.... Please enjoy!

Greatest:
1. Public Transportation: I can get anywhere I want to go with the simple swipe of my T-Money card, and I love it. For less than $1 I can get anywhere I need in and around Suwon.
2. People here are so nice, especially the teachers at my school. They've been SOOOO helpful! I know that if I ever needed anything I would have Koreans who would be willing to help!
3. Karaoke: going to Karaoke here doesn't make you uncool, and you don't have to go to a bar to find it. You get your own little room with enough English songs to spend days in there singing. It's awesome and everyone should try it.
4. I definitely don't mind looking over the Korean guys! haha. Korean guys are definitely the best looking of all the Asian races. Too bad none of them want to date Americans.... maybe this should be on my not so great list?
5. Korean BBQ. This is definitely my favorite thing to eat here, and it's sooo yummy. I will definitely miss this.
6. Everything here has to be cute. Every paper or product has some little character or sparkle on it. It's amazing how they can take socks, pencil cases, coffee shops, coffee, waffles.... virtually anything and make it cute. I love that.
7. You can basically wear whatever you want and no one would ever say anything. When I see adults wearing cute little socks with characters on them and girls wearing converse with their skirts.... I am so happy. I also love that I can basically put together anything in my closet with any pair of shoes, and I know I'm good to go. No one would ever say anything.
8. My kids are so cute. I wish I could record them constantly because the things they do are awesome. Also if you could hear their little voices struggle to put together English sentences... it's just beyond cute. LOVE them.
9. I love being here with my best friends. Anthony and Cameron, you are the greatest.
10. Most of Asia is just a $300ish plane ticket away. I definitely need to do more traveling and see more of this part of the world!

And the not so great....
1. Most of Korean food is not my favorite. A lot of Korean food is soup, veggies, and kimchi. None of which I like. Also, it's A LOT of seafood. My very least favorite thing.
2. For some reason, I've found that a lot of things done here don't make a lot of sense. My logical mind can't grasp it. Things are never as logical or efficient as I like them to be.
3. My kids are crazy. I know I said they were cute, but that doesn't mean they're disciplined! Oh man these kids need a good spankin. Running around the classroom, grabbing my stuff and running with it, and hitting each other are some how acceptable in the classroom here. Why???
4. I love having Anthony and Cameron here, but they're so busy we haven't really gotten to see Korea. I don't want to have to explore without them, but they're rarely free for longer than like 4 hour increments... and sometimes that's a stretch....
5. Anytime I'm out with Caroline, we get shhhhed by an Ajushi (older man) on the bus. I don't know if it's because Caroline talks loud or it's because we speak in English, but it happens to us without fail every time we get on a bus. I would understand if everyone sat in silence on buses... but they aren't quiet places most of the time!
6. I miss Chili's, Chick fil a, and Sonic.
7. The attitude here is EXTREMELY superficial. Girls and guys alike are pressured to look a certain way, and if you don't you should just get plastic surgery. Expectations are SOOO high, and I think that's why the suicide rate is very high here, especially for high school/college aged girls.
8. I hate not being able to shop!!!! I can't tell you how awful it feels to go into a store and them say "we don't have big sizes" or "big sizes this way...." Also, you can't look at something without 8 people running towards you and talking to you in Korean. They keep talking even though I don't acknowledge them. Oh my goodness this drives me crazy. It's not worth it to go shopping and not be able to do it in peace.
9. I miss cooking and baking. Food is expensive here, especially meat and baking supplies. I really love to cook for people and make tasty things, but I rarely do here because it's so difficult. That makes me very sad. Also, I don't have an oven, so that makes it a little difficult. Luckily, Anthony and Cameron do, and they're gracious enough to let me use it.... if I am willing to share what I'm cooking :)
10. I'm wayyyyyy to far from home. I miss the lake. I miss my family. I miss my girls. I miss DBU friends... etc.
11. Sorry I needed an 11, I forgot about this. I HATE food bags. Basically any food you don't eat or goes bad has to go in these yellow food bags. You can't put food down the sink or in the trash. So we keep a food back in the freezer full of old food until it gets full and then we throw it out. It's disgusting. They then are placed on the street to be picked up and it does not smell pleasant. No way. Also, it gets soooooo unbelievably dusty in my apt. I have to sweep like 2-3 times a week and it's still out of control. I'm amazed at how fast it accumulates.

Ok. So I hope that was some insight into my life here. Have an amazing week. Much love.