Golf, sashimi, and traditional fish market

So, here is the slideshow -the important part!

Had you asked me anytime before now what my thoughts on playing golf were, I would have told you that it sucked and I hated it because I was terrible at it.

Well, it doesn't suck so much anymore - but I'm still terrible at it. Why does it not suck?? Because Mr. Choi took us to the driving range today and it was REALLLLY FUN!! While he's no Tiger, he helped me learn so much about how to hit a golf ball that I think I may have found a cool new hobby. Golf requires so much mental concentration and physical skill - - and while there is no direct physical competition between players, I'd have to say that it might now be my #2 favorite sport to play!

Of course, new-found fondness may also be partly influenced by the fact that this driving range was AMAZING... you didn't even have to bend over to set the ball on a tee!! A little rubber tube would sink down into the ground, grab a ball, and pop back up with the ball on top ready for you to hit at your will. And when you whacked the ball away, it would sink back down and get you another ball. GENIUS SYSTEM!!

It was surprisingly taxing, so I was excited to sit down and rest for lunch at a restaurant that specialized in sashimi (uncooked, completely raw pieces of fish). Honestly, it wasn't that bad... and there were moments where I actually found myself LIKING the taste and texture! But most of the moments were spent telling myself that the food was REALLY expensive (as in, there was nothing under $30 on the menu, and I'd wager that the total bill was well in excess of $100 for 5 people....) and it would be REALLY rude to not eat it. "Don't think, just eat... don't think, just eat!" is what I kept telling myself, and it worked.

The restaurant had a great view overlooking a bay, and after we finished eating we walked around to experience the traditional Korean fish market that had been set up. It was a really cool experience, and quite humbling.... up until today, we had only seen the developed parts of urban Korea - nice restaurants, successful cities, business men in suits, etc.. But the people in the fish market led a completely different life. You can see from some of the pictures some old ladies who worked there, and they had probably worked there for their entire life. There were also kids running around, too - and I couldn't help but think that if I came back in 50 years I'd see the youngsters that were running around today sitting right where the old ladies were. As Britani said, not that there's anything wrong with working in a fish market - but we are so lucky to be where we are in our lives, and especially with our job here in Korea.

Speaking of our job, tomorrow is the first day of school. Mr. Choi had requested that we create a test for all of the first year students so that we can place them into 3 levels of classes: basic, intermediate, and advanced. But, in true Mr. Choi fashion, we aren't quite sure what we're supposed to be doing tomorrow - so Britani and I made up tests for their writing and speaking abilities, as well as an alternate plan to have a "syllabus day" of sorts if we aren't supposed to start actual work on the first day... we'll see how it goes.

With that, it's time for bed - I can't be sleeping through my alarm on the very first day of work!!