March 10-2017 Injured my ankle quite severely in Danang, Vietnam. Was walking and twisted it and had to stop and then put ice and two hours later did a major twist while standing and could not put weight on it for one week.
I did get help from the wonderful ladies at the hostel, Linh T. who made sure to call a doctor who did a hostel visit, took me on her scooter to get cash and go get an x-ray and food. She was so awesome and I had a lot of fun with her talking.
I hitched a plane to meet up with friends in Hanoi and walked a bit on my ankle which made it worse. So I stopped walking much and then got a cold and I was stuck in our airbnb. Although, this Linh C., was also quite kind, I did not enjoy being stuck in one place. I was demotivated to do anything. My friend took care of me, making herbal steam baths for me to cry my misery into.
April 11, 2017
Despite my ankle not being fully recovered, my brain needed new things to interest it. I flew to South Korea. I went to look for a community I might live and then to find an English teaching job. I got to hang out with my friend, Anna, who I had met in Vietnam in January. She gave me the tour of Seoul. It was a very clean organized city after coming from the organized chaos of Hanoi.
I enjoyed seeing the tourist renting traditional Korean outfits, Hanbok,and taking pictures. We saw the river that is now running down the middle of the city and the changing of the guards at the Deoksugung PalaceWe did touristy things of walking in the Hongdae section of town where students hang out.
Then I took a bus to the coast Busan. I met some nice people at a local international church and the hostel where I stayed. My new friend, Jaime, UK, and a Chinese girl and I went to try some food. She wanted to go halfway across town to eat beef intestines. Jaime tried to do his best and eat some, and I tried a few. They were very chewy without much flavor and we decided that we were not fans. Jaime, Johnny and Hanik, Czech Republic, and I decided to travel to Jeju Island together. We ended up taking the night ferry which was great fun. We met another interesting UK guy Ashok. He had been living in Russia and teaching. So we had bunk beds on the boat for the 12-hour journey and then all followed Ashok to Skuwalker Guesthouse. My ankle was still a problem. I was unable to walk more than an hour a day on flat surface. My friends did a hike up the Hallasan mountain, 9 ours! I did some cool adventures to the lava tubes with Nuri, Dutch, and Karol, Poland. They were super fun guys and it was fun. I went up to see the volcano with Jaime too. We took loads of pics as he had a Ted, teddy bear on his backpack and it drew a lot of attention.
Another day on the bus, Jaime and I met a Korean guy. He got off the bus to socialize and wait for the next bus while he bought us a coffee. I asked him what were the key ingredients in Kimchee. He somehow misunderstood and thought I wanted his personal secret recipe which he refused to give me. I started guessing-cabbage? Paprika? Salt? He would only shrug and say, "Could be?" It was quite funny.
Then we ran into Johnny and Hanik and walked around the beach, took silly pictures and built rock towers. We ate at a restaurant local seafood and kimchee.
In the hostel, they requested I play my guitar. It became a nightly ritual. One night, a cool Korean guy, who could not speak much English was asking me to play. Finally, I relented. I came and played a song. At the end of the song, people were commenting but then all eyes focused on him. He raised his hands in the air, as if grasping for an idea, he pursed his lips looking for the words and then he said, "Angel voice!" We all laughed at his hilarious expressiveness and it was sweet how much he enjoyed it.
Another night * , Austrian guy and *, Korean staff sang along with me. It was great fun for me to have a different kind of participation. We sang and really enjoyed our time together.
Jaime and I flew back to Seoul and went with Alma to Sowan city. A fortified city that you can walk around the walls. This day, my ankle was quite improved, although I did try to stop and take breaks to not exacerbate my condition. We went to a fried chicken restaurant where Alma ordered for us beer, chicken and a side of chicken ass-holes. Apparently a chewy, specialty. Jaime said it was better than the beef intestines we had previously tried. ; )
I felt a bit nervous of the tensions with North Korea and decided to head back to Vietnam to recover my ankle. On the way back, I stopped by Taipei. I really liked it. I stayed in the Bear Capsule Hostel. You are in a cocoon and have a tv, blue lights and mirror and outlets. If I ever have a house, I'll build some cocoons for guests to sleep in. I visited Life House Church Taippei, and the people were so amazing. I planned to return.
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