Kamsahamnida to arigato

After I'd finally said my goodbyes in Daegu, I dragged my bursting-at-the-seams luggage on a KTX and headed to Seoul. Fortunately, I was able to leave my bags at Annie's house while I spent the afternoon wandering around Itaewon. The market area is near an American military base and is full of multiculturalism. I found this shop with gorgeous dresses--many of them representing various ethnic styles. It felt like a dream until the salesclerk asked me when the party was, and I had to confess there was no party. I went to a small Turkish restaurant and tried a sweet Turkish drink called sekal with cinnamon topping. Mashisoyo!

I bought a new bag for my trip. It seemed to be the right move. I didn't want to get charged an arm and a leg for an overweight bag. And I knew that when I went to Japan I would want to do at least a little shopping.

In the evening, I met my friends at a buffet restaurant Jong selected in Sadang. It was a delicious way to transition from thinking about Korean cuisine to thinking about Japanese and American cuisine--a little bit of everything. Mostly I enjoyed being with my Korean friends with a new understanding of the foreigner lifestyle. Jackson, Jong, Raeann and Annie joined us for dinner. Then Bill and Juyoung came out for drinks afterward. We played Gong, gong, chil and reminisced. Bill shared about his recent experiences in Australia. I talked about my time in Korea and my plans in Japan. International travel is so much fun!

When I arrived in Narita airport, the crowds of foreigners with different mother tongues stimulated me as I waited in the immigration line. I kept wanting to ask, "Where are you from?"

The immigration officer questioned me briefly and let me pass. I bowed in habit and muttered, "Kamsahamnida!" then quickly realized I was no longer in Korea. I caught myself several times all day, and I'm gradually switching my kamsahamnidas to arigatos.

After I passed all the immigration and customs tests, Eriko's smiling face and waving arms greeted me immediately. We embraced--my mind full of surrealism. It took me ten minutes to realize that she was just the same. She always laughs when I laugh, oos when I "oooo," and ahs when I "ahhh..." It's pretty funny! My old Japanese friend is just the same.

We didn't do much yesterday because I was pretty tired from all of the busy packing and planning, but we did go out to a sushi-go-round restaurant last night. "Ouishi!" "Mashisoyo!" "Delicious!"