shopping....

Shopping in Korea is a bit of an adventure on any given day.  The country is just a bit smaller than the island of Newfoundland or just a bit larger than the state of Maine.

 Now, picture this area with a population of 49,000,000 (that's right, forty-nine million!).

 NOW, reduce the habitable area to approximately one third - that is roughly one half of the land area of Nova Scotia or the entire land mass of Hawaii.  This new area holds ALL the people, agriculture and industry! (Statistically, Korea is at 98% of it's habitable capacity; the US is at 5% and the UK is at 20%)  Have you got a good picture of how crowded Korea is yet?

Well, you can imagine that shopping can be a bit of an adventure on any given day.  To give you a better picture - shopping in Korea on an average day makes me think of the start of the December Christmas shopping season.  Now imagine this same time period at a Price Club / Costco.

Today was a trip to the Costco in the next city over.  This was complicated by the fact that next week is Lunar New Year.  A HUGELY important holiday here.  So, shopping at Costco was CRAZY.  Think Black Friday sales + last minute Christmas shoppers + parents at the christmas release of the latest 'must have' toy craze and now you have a picture of what it was like!

Last night, after I took my friend to the dentist, we tried to stop at THE shop to pick up a few things.  seemed reasonable as the shop closed at 9.  BUT, as of 830 the shop stops people from entering!

Living in another country (even for the second time) is never dull...

at the dentist....

I am lucky I have a good dentist here in Korea, and his English is really good so I feel very comfortable having work done.  I also feel comfortable because he did all his training in North America so the treatments are familiar to me.  I FINALLY, after 5+ years, had a dental implant installed - and it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, nor painful in anyway!

But that is a completely different discussion.  I like this dentist so much I introduced a friend to him and my friend is having a significant amount of work done (at a reasonable price).  My friend isn't comfortable driving to these appointments - not knowing exactly what will be happening at each and how they might make her feel, so I accompany her and drive her car.  While she is in having her procedure I sit in the VERY public waiting room and read.  I am quite content as it forces me to take a bit of 'down time'.

Today was a particularly busy day for the dentist and I used the time to surreptitiously people watch.  A young woman was waiting for her friend to complete her treatment and it was the most interesting bit of people watching I have done in awhile.

After the treatment was complete they sat in the waiting room for more than 30 minutes.  The young woman who had undergone the treatment spent roughly 20 minutes reapplying her make up - from foundation up - right there in the waiting room - not the public restrooms 20 feet from the dentist office. The next 10 minutes were spent with this young lady applying makeup to her friend - again in the waiting room.  AFTER the make up they both needed to apply spray perfume and then they left.

I was stunned.  Lipstick maybe, an entirely new 'face'... isn't that more appropriate for a slightly less public venue?   I wished I had my camera with me.... oh well, maybe next time.

Footwear frustrations

I have this super comfortable pair of shoes that I wear everyday I can't wear my sandals to work (I also need to replace my sandals, but that is another problem that can wait until the weather warms up).  These amazing shoes are Birkenstock Footprints Annapolis ladies "business" shoes.  Super comfortable and nice looking.  They are also 2+ years old.  The footbeds have finally worn down to the point that they need to be replaced. Sounds like a simple thing - right, RIGHT?  WRONG!

I know the 'part number' and I can find the item online! (yeah!)   Can I ship it to my current address? - NO, my current location is not Birkenstock friendly (nor is it MAC friendly but that is a whole other ball of wax).  I will be travelling in the near future so I have spend 2+ hours looking for locations in the country and area I will be travelling to or through where I can pre order, pre pay and pick up my new footbeds - so far no joy.  The shoe itself is in fabulous shape... all I need are new footbeds.. I don't want to be contributing to landfills or spending $$ for no reason, but it seems that the universe (or some malevolent force) is thwarting me. AH, the circuitous route of my life continues...

2012

Well, the New Year is here and I have decided to try blogging.  I know many people say that blogging is now 'over' but, those who know me know I am not a slave to the fashion of the moment.

I actually decided to try this out because several people have been awed by my experiences (these experiences seem rather mundane to me) and have suggested I write a book (!!!).  Other individuals are in awe of the circuitous routes my life seems to naturally take and have suggested I blog about my experiences....so I thought heck, why not!