i was heading into seoul, eventually meeting up with an old college friend who has been living in seoul this whole time without me realizing it. that rendezvous was at 2pm. i was, however, up before 7 to start my day of determined fun.
outside of our house there is a bus stop that (supposedly) regularly drives by en route to town. i had only ever had bad experiences waiting for the bus (ie: the bus never came) but, i took a chance and decided to try to catch it.
perfect thing #1 (uncharacteristically dependable public bus):
when i got out to the bus stop at around 7:30 am, there was an elderly woman waiting. that's always a good sign. elderly woman don't waste their time waiting for buses that never come. and, about 45 seconds after i joined her, a crowd of various neighbors also arrived to wait.
and, about 2 minutes after i arrived at the bus stop, the bus came. so, for about a dollar, i was on my way to town. this is, keep in mind, the same bus that i've once waited an hour for.
perfect thing #2 (perfect timing and a seat just for me) :
the bus drove me into town, dropping me off at the main station where i would catch a bus to seoul. i walked in, bought a ticket and walked out to where the bus would pick me up. there was a bus waiting (there's never been a bus waiting before, i've always been the one waiting) yet no one else was around (it was as if it was waiting for me). i got on the bus, there was ONE seat left. just for me. (hallelujah! i've had to stand on this bus to seoul enough times to be thankful this seat). and, as soon as i got on the bus, it pulled out. it literally had waited for me.
perfect thing #3 (freakishly fast bus) :
the efficiency/inefficiency of this bus ride to seoul is entirely dependent on the notoriously bad traffic. on a good day, it is 45 minutes from downtown YP to seoul (on my previously experience, a very not good day, 2 hours). on this trip...it took 32 minutes. i do not lie. i was astounded. but oh so happy.
perfect thing #4 (9am movies at half price and a seat just for me) :
the bus pulled in near TechnoMart and i had decided to experience a new korean phenomenon i had discovered: early movies are half price at cinemas in korea. i took the elevator up to the 10th floor along with about 25 korean teenagers and the doors open to a scene that seemed inappropriate for 8:50 am. loud music, dark and cool, and hundreds of people. i was happy to see that Sex and the City had a 9am showing but nervous as i stood in line for a ticket. i had been in this line once before a few weeks earlier and no tickets were left.
by the time it was my turn in line, it was almost time for the movie to start. the boy at the counter showed me the screen of seats remaining (in korean you have assigned seats at the theater). there were TWO seats left. TWO. one of them was perfectly centered.
perfect thing #5 (Sex and the City) :
now, i've always felt a bit scandalous talking about Sex and the City but, for the sake a justifiable excuse you must understand that, if nothing else, watching a movie that takes place in one of my favorite cities (NYC) is absolutely therapeutic for my current life. seeing yellow taxis and streets signs in english and all that wonderful familiarity is a thrill you never quite understand until you've been gone from america for 9 months. so, the movie was fun, refreshing and amusing. especially amusing was the fact that there were many jokes that only i caught, in a theater of people reading subtitles.
perfect thing #6 (espresso and newspapers) :
after the movie, i had a few hours to waste before meeting an old college friend at 2 pm.
so, i did a little shopping, and killed sometime in a cafe. sipping espresso. and, reading an english newspaper. this perfect thing needs no further explanation.
perfect thing #7 (So Young):
i've been living in korea for 9 months now. one of my old friend from college is korean and it took me an embarrassingly long amount of time living here for it to dawn on me that she would be here. i tracked her down last month and we finally got together at 2 today. we lived on the same floor our freshman year which, we were appalled to realize, was 8 years ago. i was a little nervous that we'd be strangers now but it was good. and it was again therapeutic. her english is a impeccable so, i had a rare luxury of having someone in korea who understands me and knows where i come from and has something in common with me. and, she's korean which means she knows all the cool places in seoul.
perfect thing #8 (cafes, cafes, cafes):
to think i've been living in korea 9 months without discovering this neighborhood is annoying. So Young met me in this adorable area of seoul with alley after alley stuffed with cute cafe after cute cafe after cute cafe. The samchendong area (ankuk stop, line 3) had a european flare and an inexhaustible supply of cafes. each cafe we passed was equally beautiful and equally inviting. i really didn't feel like i was in korea at all.
and, you mustn't know me well to know that cafes make me happy.
perfect thing #9 (flour-less chocolate cake):
the worst part about the day was that forgot to eat. which is fine because i made up for it by drinking my body weight in coffee. but, we stumbled upon "the coffee factory" which resembled a cafe i once worked at in chicago. (a cafe that was way too cool for me). this coffee factory roasts their coffee in house, plays refreshingly familiar music and sells flour-less chocolate cake.
i must explain. for a few weeks, for reasons not known, i have been plagued with an unbelievable cravings for flour-less chocolate cake. in korea, there are endless supplies of pretty, cute, fancy cakes but, they seem prone to puffy fluffiness. i like my cake dense and heavy. so, when i saw a piece of cafe for sale at this cafe, i caved. and it was all heaven. and absolutely worth it's $7.
perfect thing #10 (the train and not taking seats for granted):
so young and i parted ways after 6pm. i headed for the train station to catch a 7pm train. i got there with rushing by 6:52, stood in line and found out that they only had standing tickets available (which are at least a little cheaper). i was okay with that, i was willing to stand. when i got to the train (with about 1 minute to spare), the conductor looked at my ticket and said, "standing, okay?" and then, a few seconds later said, "excuse me, follow" and led me to a reserved spacious handicap seat and said, "its okay, sit".
and i sat the whole way home.
and, riding home, i caught myself smiling in the reflection on the train window a few times. i just couldn't help it. my day was that good.
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