Living in Korea Part 2: Getting Settled In
We've been here for about 7 weeks now and now that household goods and our car have arrived, we are somewhat settled in. We are living in an apartment on base, which we love. I might post pictures once we hang pictures on the walls. We live on the first floor, so it's not too hard to take our dog out (something we were concerned about, moving to a city), we live in a neighborhood of other American families, and there are little play parks around the neighborhood for Jensen to play on.
What is it like living in South Korea? Well, our experience is a little different because we live on base. It's kind of like living in a little American bubble in the middle of a huge city. It's relatively quiet, the commissary (which takes American dollars) is just like any commissary on base, we have a few Starbucks and all the typical AAFES stuff (post exchange, Taco Bell, Burger King, KFC, etc).
But then we get to leave our little bubble and step out the gate into another country. We've gotten pretty good at the subway system, which is the best way to travel around the city. We've been exploring around, but it's starting to get a little harder with the weather getting colder. We've heard there is fantastic hiking outside the city, so I can't wait to do that. Also, we can't wait to use the bike highways that go in and around Seoul.
There is plenty of weird Korean food but also plenty of completely Western/American places to eat in our little international neighborhood as well. We could live here for two years and easily not eat any kimchi the whole time. But what fun is that? The nice thing about it though, is that we can dip our feet in slowly and experience a different culture at our own pace. There was no culture shock and I really don't think there will be.
Personally, I think adjusting to not working anymore has been as big of a change for me as it has to move to another country. I'm still trying to figure out how to structure mine and Jensen's day. Do we need structure, I hear you say? Yes, I think so. Otherwise we're both sitting in pajamas at 2pm, eating ice cream, having accomplished nothing with the day.
I am running more. After everything, I think the pain I was experiencing (still kind of experiencing but it's mostly gone away now) is down to core stability weakness. I am doing exercises to strengthen those muscles and working up the mileage slowly. I'm running about 3 times a week, and the farthest I have run recently is a 5k, but I'm thinking I'll start adding to that soon. I really can't wait to get back into longer runs again.
Meanwhile, Jensen is learning how to walk. Doing crazy things like moving to another country does not slow down other things, like my baby growing up into a toddler. We'll be spending out first Christmas together without mine or James's parents. Kind of crazy, right? There is a part of me that is really sad that we can't have a big 1st birthday party with family for Jensen. But there's still Skype and there will still be cake and singing. Life is kind of bittersweet sometimes.
Love,
A.
What is it like living in South Korea? Well, our experience is a little different because we live on base. It's kind of like living in a little American bubble in the middle of a huge city. It's relatively quiet, the commissary (which takes American dollars) is just like any commissary on base, we have a few Starbucks and all the typical AAFES stuff (post exchange, Taco Bell, Burger King, KFC, etc).
But then we get to leave our little bubble and step out the gate into another country. We've gotten pretty good at the subway system, which is the best way to travel around the city. We've been exploring around, but it's starting to get a little harder with the weather getting colder. We've heard there is fantastic hiking outside the city, so I can't wait to do that. Also, we can't wait to use the bike highways that go in and around Seoul.
There is plenty of weird Korean food but also plenty of completely Western/American places to eat in our little international neighborhood as well. We could live here for two years and easily not eat any kimchi the whole time. But what fun is that? The nice thing about it though, is that we can dip our feet in slowly and experience a different culture at our own pace. There was no culture shock and I really don't think there will be.
Personally, I think adjusting to not working anymore has been as big of a change for me as it has to move to another country. I'm still trying to figure out how to structure mine and Jensen's day. Do we need structure, I hear you say? Yes, I think so. Otherwise we're both sitting in pajamas at 2pm, eating ice cream, having accomplished nothing with the day.
I am running more. After everything, I think the pain I was experiencing (still kind of experiencing but it's mostly gone away now) is down to core stability weakness. I am doing exercises to strengthen those muscles and working up the mileage slowly. I'm running about 3 times a week, and the farthest I have run recently is a 5k, but I'm thinking I'll start adding to that soon. I really can't wait to get back into longer runs again.
Meanwhile, Jensen is learning how to walk. Doing crazy things like moving to another country does not slow down other things, like my baby growing up into a toddler. We'll be spending out first Christmas together without mine or James's parents. Kind of crazy, right? There is a part of me that is really sad that we can't have a big 1st birthday party with family for Jensen. But there's still Skype and there will still be cake and singing. Life is kind of bittersweet sometimes.
Love,
A.
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