On to Saturday night. We were heading to the Hongdae area which is known for it's nightlife to meet up with some friends, have some dinner and drinks and then go dancing. I had booked a hostel for a couple of us so first we had to head there to check in.
Now I boast about how safe Korea is and how I've never felt threatened here... well Jenna and I encountered a rare event of almost being attacked by a Korean. The story is much better in person when I can show the actions, but I'll try to tell it as best as I can.
We emerge from the underground subway and my arm is almost immediately grabbed and being twisted, being fairly strong I wrestle it away from this man and continue to go on our way. He did not give up. He then started chasing Jenna making punching like motions at her head. Being in a foreign country, not knowing what was going on, Jenna was understandably concerned and started running... again being a good friend I figured that I was out of trouble and just continued walking. I knew Jenna could out run this guy, and I was hoping he would forget I was there. Not so, he turned around and saw me, ran back and grabbed my arm and started to twist it again. I rip it away more forcefully this time and say "AN-EEE!" which basically means no. He then grabs on the my backpack and I keep trying to walk. Jenna told me that two guys who were smoking at a store front threw their cigarettes down and ran out to grab in and continued to hold him until we got away. It was a crazy experience, and I am sure that there was something mentally wrong with the guy.. but really.. welcome to Korea Jenna... shit.
We made out way to the hostel and Jeff and Brit weren't far behind. We got ready, had some drinks and then went off with Jon and Krista for some dakgalbi. It was, of course, delicious. Seating 6 people can sometimes be troublesome in Korea so we had to wait a bit for a table. Thankfully Hongdae is full of people and we were kept entertain. Jeff and I also went to find an ATM and ended up getting distracted by novelty sunglasses and a performance in the park, where we ran in to a few other friends who we happened to meet up with later in the night as well.
waiting to get in for dinner
After dinner we made our way across the alley to Zen bar for some cheap drinks (beer was 2,500 won, shots of tequila were 2,000). We hung out, shared some stories, played some darts. Jon and Krista had a bit of a night on Friday so excused themselves. We were then met shortly later by three other friends who made their way into Seoul.
After Zen bar we were headed to Club FF/Gogo's (you pay 10,000 cover and get in to both places). There was a dispute on how to get there and I chose to follow the wrong person (who had a geography degree) and ended up on the University ground, and then in some alleyway... We lost Jenna and Ian (her friend that was also visiting from Qatar), but they still managed to make it there before s.. needless to say that two geography majors were the last ones to find the bar.. sounds about right.
Ian, Jenna and myself.. being classy like always
We go inside, have some drinks.. and while the music is good, it wasn't music to dance to.. and I could tell some weren't having fun so we made our way upstairs. Again the music wasn't dancey but it was easier to chat and whatnot. A bunch of people bail back to Incheon and the rest of us decide to end our night in true Korean fashion.... at the Noraebang! Immediately after walking in I spotted a Santa hat, put it on and the rest was history.
I stealthily hid the hat in my jacket as we left, and as we emerged up the stairs the sun was bidding us a good morning. We made our way back to the hostel and crashed... but not before waking up most of the other hostelers in the process.
I stealthily hid the hat in my jacket as we left, and as we emerged up the stairs the sun was bidding us a good morning. We made our way back to the hostel and crashed... but not before waking up most of the other hostelers in the process.
No comments:
Post a Comment