Tonight I went to Dongdaemun market, which is, if not the, then one of Seoul's greatest fashion hubs. This place is insane. It's not just a place. That is, it's not just one market. It's street vendors lining the sidewalks to buildings with rows upon rows of stalls next to enormous sky scraper buildings with neon lights and flashing signs full of even more places to shop.
Even if you hate shopping, you have to go. Because it's an experience. I walked around gawking half the time I was there. The rest of the time, I followed Helena, Jen, and Esther (two new teachers. I'm not the newbie anymore!) flitting from stall to stall looking at shoes and dresses and shirts; anything and everything. One thing stood out, a navy blazer with silver buttons, but sadly, I'm too afraid to shop in Korea (and still too poor). If the teeniest foreigners here have problems shopping, I dread what they'll tell me.
Oh, but I did find a gorgeous necklace and asked how much it was in Korean! I don't remember how to say it now. But Esther taught me a few words on the subway trip to the market.
Il means one, but only when counting money. Ee - two. Sam- three. Sa - four. O - five.
Chon - thousand. Bek - hundred. So, il chon obek won is 1,500 won. Which is about $1.50. It's taken me almost 2 months and I learned all of that in one night. I really need to start taking Korean lessons. Or just get Esther to teach me everything. But numbers are easy. Words are much harder. I still only know hello, yes, no, and thank you. Oh, and foreigner.
But learning some numbers tonight has made me a lot more excited to get out there and try!
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