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Published: April 4th 2010
Busan
Mirajet FerryI woke bright and early and looked around my apartment, which had things strewn about and was pretty dirty from the previous tennant. All I could think of was how much I'd like to sleep in a lot later, then wake up and start to work towards making my apartment feel like home. But, I knew Laney and the taxi driver would be there soon to whisk me away to Busan to catch a ferry to Fukuoka, Japan for a visa run. I've forgotten to mention that my friend Bryan gave me a ton of Starbucks Via packets (instant coffee) and it was one of the things I was most grateful for in my first weeks...I'm not sure I would've made it through the observation period and this trip to Japan without them!! So thank you Bryan! So, I showered and drank some coffee and gathered my documents for my trip to Japan. The taxi ride was long and I just wanted to sleep, but the taxi driver kept asking Laney to ask me random things the whole 2 hour ride to Busan. I think he just wanted to hear me speak, because he would be quiet for a second and
Laney and I would close our eyes, then he would ask things such as whether or not I like sales...as we were driving past a strip mall with lots of % off signs. And so Laney would ask me and I would tell her and she would translate. It was weird.
We eventually made it to Busan and Laney went into the ferry terminal with me to get my ticket and pay the departure tax, then left me there to wait, 2 hours before my ferry was supposed to depart. It is well known that it takes 2 hours to get from Geoje Island to Busan, but because I needed to be 1 hour early for my ferry, it meant we needed to leave 4 hours early for Busan...and I thought this country was really good at math. This had annoyed me when I woke up, but by the time I was sitting in the ferry terminal I wasn't so bothered, because I had my laptop with me and luckily Fahimeh was on skype, so I had company while I waited. It was my first skype conversation since leaving home and it felt good to talk to her. The
Fukuoka
The tiny hotel room time passed quickly and I was on my way to Japan. The ferry was very nice..we had assigned seats that were bigger, cushier versions of airplane seating and I luckily had a window seat, so I took advantage of a 3-hour nap.
I arrived in Japan slightly refreshed and went straight to the currency exchange to change my Korean Won into Japanese Yen. I then made my way to the information desk, because all my school had given me was the name of my hotel in English and then a map, completely in Korean, which was needless to say completely useless to me. I got a bus number from the information desk and made my way to Hakata Station in Fukuoka. From Hakata Station, my hotel was luckily very easy to find. I checked in and dropped my bags in my tiny room. It had a bathroom, a single bed and a desk. I was very tempted to just pass out immidiately, but forced myself to go out and get some lunch. It seems crazy to think that I could be so tired just from getting up early and taking a 3 hour ferry ride, but then again, I
had only been in Korea for 4 days at this point and was already in Japan. It felt like as soon as I was beginning to get over my jetlag, I was sent off again and it hit me all that much harder. So, I went out and ate a big sushi lunch with a Kirin beer. It was perfect. Then, I went back and passed out.
This trip to Japan was pretty lame, but having spent 2 1/2 weeks in Japan the previous year, I felt okay about not getting out and seeing as much as possible. I tried to look at the trip as more of a restful time. I woke up around 10pm, which was good timing for skype. I finally got to skype with Cameron, Mom and Dad, and then Fahimeh and Lindsay, which totally made my day! Then, around 2am, I went right back to sleep. I could've slept the whole next day through as well I believe if it weren't for the set time for breakfast in the morning. The continental breakfast was plentiful and delicious and they had an espresso machine, so I was completely content! This was my day to see
a bit of Fukuoka.
I headed out to the Canal that divides the city in half and walked up one side and down the other just doing some people watching. I saw beautiful flowers and interesting architecture, but after 3 hours of walking around, I was once again exhausted, so I caught the subway back to Hakata Station and headed back to the hotel. I used my downtime to write a blog...yes I'm aware that I am blogging about writing a blog...and tried to force myself to stay awake until my dinner date with Yuki. My exhaustion will be my excuse for having to go back and add things to those already published blogs. While I was online, I received an email from my school director, Laney. It said that I no longer needed to go to the Korean Consulate in Fukuoka, I could book my ferry back to Korea for the next day and just come back on a Tourist Visa. I'd thought it was weird that they were sending me to Japan without a new Work Visa Issuance Number, but they assured me that they would give me the number while in Japan so that I could
Fukuoka
Bathroom, with those sweet Japanese toilets that I missed so much! get everything taken care of. So now I knew something was not right, but tried to think the best of it and figured that they may know some way in which I could fix my work visa while back in Korea. So, I headed downstairs to the pay phone to book my ferry back for the next morning, then headed back upstairs and ended up sleeping for about an hour. I reluctantly got up and revived myself with some hotel green tea and a shower, then headed downstairs to the lobby where Yuki and I planned to meet.
At 8pm I met Yuki downstairs and it was so good to see her! It was about 2 weeks shy of a year since I'd last seen her in Japan. Her boyfriend was going to come along, but hadn't been feeling well all day. He did however send a nice text saying that he hopes to meet me one day...which is very possible if they come visit me in Korea. Yuki and I had a great dinner...we took the subway to the Tenjin Station, then walked to an upstairs restaurant that was right next to an Apple Store..this is funny, because
Fukuoka
Toilet Control Panel...click, enlarge, read! I bought a Macbook right before moving to Korea and they had searched the Mac website for me and said that there is no Apple Store in Korea, which is hard to believe. They found that the closest one to Geoje Island would be in Fukuoka, because even if their was one in Seoul, the Fukuoka location would still be closer. And now I know where it is! So, Yuki ordered for us and we had a delicious meal. It was nice to be with a local, so I knew I'd be getting good food. We sat and ate and talked and drank for about 4 hours, before heading back to Hakata Station.
Despite the fact that it seems like I'd been getting excessive amounts of sleep, I was still exhausted. I was ready for some more sleep and my trip back to Korea in the morning. Yuki talked to the hotel reception to make sure I had accurate information for getting the bus back to the Hakata International Ferry Terminal in the morning, which was very reassuring! So we said our goodbyes and I went back to my little room and passed out immediately.
The next morning
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The Canal in Fukuoka I gave into the Starbucks on the way through the Hakata Station and it was good! I then stood at the circle just outside the subway station and watched tons of people get on bus after bus after bus, with no bus #88 to be seen. Finally I jumped on #66 and asked the driver, "International Ferry Terminal?" He spoke rapidly to me in Japanese, I believe telling me he was not headed to the ferry and to get the hell of his bus so he could keep going, but at some point he impatiently pointed to the other side of the street, so I thanked him sweetly, then jumped off the bus and headed for the crosswalk. I was starting to get nervous about time, so I was grateful to see that the second bus that pulled up on the opposite side of the street said #88. I took a relaxing, deep breath, boarded the bus and arrived at the ferry with time to spare. I checked in and was boarding the ferry before I knew it. As soon as I sat down and got myself comfortable, I felt the rocking of the boat and realized that in my
Fukuoka
Fukuoka City Akarenga Culture Center...I didn't go in, just admired the architecture. haste to get to the ferry on time, I had neglected to take a Bonine (motion sickness pill)...not good! You're meant to take a pill at least 1/2 hour before motion commences. I quickly popped one and hoped for the best, but it turned out to be a loooooong, rocky ferry ride. I didn't get sick, but felt pretty uneasy the whole way. I did my best to sleep through it, but I was so grateful to see Busan out of the ferry window after those 3 hours.
I walked out of the ferry terminal and was approached by a man who just said to me, "Beyond-ah Advanced-ah," to which I replied, "Yes." It's a good thing this country is safe, because the school hires a taxi driver they know, which I found out later, but did not know at the time; this guy could've been anyone! But with the amount of private English language schools in Korea, it's not like a random person could've guessed which one I work at. So, he took my bag and I grabbed some much needed gimbap for the 2 hour ride back to Geoje Island. My drivers name was Shi Gwan and
Fukuoka
A good looking menu...too bad they were closed. he was the same driver who had taken Laney and I to Busan just 3 days earlier...which I realized once I saw he cab and heard the Konglish Christian Rock music that we'd listened to for two straight hours up to Busan. He played the same 6 songs over and over and over for the whole ride!! So needless to say, I knew all the words to the English parts..and some of the Korean parts for that matter...within the first hour. So, Koreans loving karaoke the way they do, we 'karaoke-d' all the way back to Tongyeong. Shi Gwan sang into a bottle of lotion he had in his car and I sang into a sugar packet I'd picked up on a coffee stop. Shi Gwan made me agree that he was lead and I was back-up, which was more than fine with me.
We arrived in Tongyeong 1 1/2 hours later and Shi Gwan said to me, "We change." He dropped me at the Beyond Advanced school in Tongyeong and was off..so naturally I assumed he meant changing drivers. I sat in Tongyeong for 2 hours with no clue of who was taking me or when I was
being taken to Geoje. By this time, I was practically falling asleep in my chair. Let's recap on the fact that I'd been in Asia for exactly 7 days, with a trip to Japan and back, so jet lag was still taking it's toll. Finally, Leon showed up and said he was ready to take me to Geoje. He said he'd talked to Laney and that I had to go straight to school when we got back to the island, so I could prepare for my first classes the next morning. This was the worst news possible. Luckily, Leon didn't make me sing back-up for him, so I was able to sleep for the 1/2 hour ride to the island. He dropped me at school and I was welcomed with those reactions you get when people are surprised to see you looking like shit, but then try to pretend they don't notice, yet somehow cannot refrain from saying, "Ohh, you look really tired!"
So, I sat down and half listened to everything Laney explained to me...I don't think I was capable of comprehension at this time, so I smiled and nodded for about half an hour before she said
that was it and I could take off. It was around 7:30pm and I'd been traveling since about 8:30am. Tim said he had been sitting in the office for about 4 hours...preparing...and when he'd tried to take off, they said he needed to wait for me, so we could both take in the information they had to give at the same time. When I told him I'd been sitting in Tongyeong for 2 hours, while he'd been sitting at school waiting for me, he was less than pleased. We were both just grateful to be out of work and on our way to get food.
It was a long, unnecessary, tiring trip to Japan, but seeing Yuki and having some random and hilarious experiences along the way are what make it all worth it. Now it's time to start the adventure that is teaching!
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fahimeh
non-member comment
hehe
I like the parts about me! Kevin and Jay say, 'fuck you ok" (fukuoka)