As I begin this entry it is 9 pm in Korea. I am in the departure gate of Incheon International Airport waiting for my 8 am flight. I could have slept at my apartment tonight and spent 100,000 Won on a taxi early tomorrow morning but I decided to catch the last shuttle out for 12,000 Won and stay awake until it is time to take to the skies. I'm hoping that if I can stay awake until I get to Tokyo then I'll be able to sleep straight over the Pacific. 11 hours on a bench in an airport may sound tedious but I have an electric outlet, lightning fast wi-fi, Season 3 of Mad Men, and a bunch of writing/reading I want get out of the way.
For the past week I've been attempting to formulate a cohesive narrative for my deep, introspective, finale of a blog entry...but I'm getting nothing. There is just too much to say and no obvious pattern to string it all together with, plus I really hesitate to needlessly inject a bunch of poetic sentiments to make this year seem like more than it really was. That said, this was the fastest, most exciting year of my life. I can remember arriving here a naive, greenhorn, waygookin like it was yesterday and I'm amazed at just how fast the time has slipped past me. I'll definitely miss the people I've grown attached to here but I'm just as anxious to reconnect with those I left behind. Signing on here for several years is certainly an attractive prospect and I can totally understand why many of my friends have chosen to do so, but I'm ready to move onto the next adventure in life. I have some more profound thoughts that I could add to this but I think I'll keep it simple for a change and let pictures from my last week do the talking.
One Last Hike On Chilbo San
"Eric teacher funny, so handsome"
Spring in the park
MONSTER FACE!
Street Dancing
Suds with Buds
Solve: (3,750,000 Won severance - 3,000X Won = 0 ) where X = number of beers.
That's about it for Deadly Quests in Korea I suppose. I plan to post one more time in about a week to address the issues of reverse culture shock and re-acclimation to Americana so please check back, but after that I'll probably retire from the blogosphere. This was a really fun experiment for a year and I'm actually kind of proud of myself for seeing it all the way through but I'm ready to move onto new projects and embrace anonymity. I'll definitely re-register the domain name every year for my ego if nothing else and perhaps I'll even throw in a sporadic update every few months if I end up doing something dangerous/stupid/quest-like. To those of you who have read, left-feedback, or whom I have even become friends with through this humble publication...Thankyou. It's been really fun. May you make life altering decisions before first considering the outcomes, behave questionably, and always remember a camera.
Yours in the collective experience,
Eric Popielarski
Cool Thing About Korea #53: Engrish FAIL! (This one is from a recently remodeled class in my school)
Great getting to know you this year, Eric. Again, so surreal to think that I'd read this blog before meeting you...sounds like you made the most of your year (and were def more consistent than I in blog updates). So, kudos for that.
ReplyDeleteMay your 'deadly quests' continue in PA and wherever you end up. And remember-- you always have a friend in NYC-- just remember to not bring your car. ;)
Cheers.
You owe me at least one of those 1,250 beers. That's a classic picture, you, the beer, and the money. Don't panic. Hang onto your towel. Always remember the meaning is life is a two-digit number. Cheers :)
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to say thank you for the blog, as I've read probably every post of yours since you started. Your posts were always interesting, funny, and well-written. As someone interested in teaching English abroad, I can say you've definitely kept my interest in the subject alive. I'm not sure if I can get through the hoops and over the hurdles, but from reading your blog, you've made me motivated to try. Thanks again for the year+ of awesome writing.
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