It's All Starting to Make Sense

I drove to the base today to drop Ian off at hourly care. His body crumpled and he let out a weak cry of anguish as he realized what was about to happen. He was shreiking and kicking and screaming,"Mama!". I cried a little in the car, but I kept going. I drove to the yoga studio and valet parked my car. For 2,000 Won I can valet park right at the building. That is cheaper than taking the metro. I arrived about 30 minutes early so I just took my time to relax and prepare for the class.

The class was not hot yoga, but the room was still pretty hot, I sweated a lot again, which is good because I don't usually sweat. The class was 90 minutes but I left 15 minutes early to make sure I had enough time to get back to pick Ian up. I made one little mistake on the way back, but I recovered and picked him up on time. They had bulgogi and rice for lunch. Ian had two helpings and was playing in the Gross Motor Room when I went to get him. He didn't want to leave. That made me feel much better about the earlier crying.

I called Curt to check in on his Georgia unpacking progress and Ian fell right asleep. Then I went to return the items we borrowed from the Lending Closet, but they were on lunch until 1:30pm so I got lunch for myself and then checked the price on Kitchenaid Mixers at the PX. We thought we had one, but so far, Curt has only found the attachments. If it isn't there, it is gone so we need to get one.

Afterwards, I went to check on the price of GPS. It is $545, but it is entirely in English and has Korean in it. I thought it was going to be about half that cost, but they were out of stock so I have some time to think about it and look around. I will definitely feel more confident driving around with one in the car, so I do think I want to get it.

Finally, I returned the items to the lending closet. It is good to get them out of the house before anything gets lost or broken. Another big one off the list!

When we got home, with one small navigational mistake, we took Roxxy to the playground and she and Ian played for awhile. She is doing better being out of her kennel when we are gone for very short amounts of time, like taking the trash out, but she isn't ready to be put when we are gone for a few hours. She has a very large kennel, but she would still enjoy herself more on the outside. As soon as she stops freaking out and peeing in the house when we are gone, she will regain her freedom. She did this when we got to Egypt as well. It is part of her process.

I had such anxiety about driving today that I almost backed out of it and didn't go, but I forced myself to go. I always feel better after I do something I dread, but I was really dreading this, especially because I didn't allow enough time for getting lost when I booked the babysitting and they couldn't extend my time. I solved that by leaving 15 minutes early and it all worked out. The yoga is really kicking my butt. I need to take some before pictures, because a month of this is bound to have some visable results.

Bitty European Appliances

Our kitchen has two European refrigerator freezers and we'll get by, but we couldn't make it with one. Too bitty. Now that all of my pot and pans have arrived, it is fun to see how many of them do not fit in the oven. No turkey roaster. No cookie sheets. I have doubts about the muffin tin. There is no place for an American oven, though we do have an American refrigerator. It is not plugged in and just serving to hold up our dry erase board and magnets. I think we will send it back, but Curt is reluctant. We don't need a big refrigerator if you can cook big. Even the range top is small. Small burners that are too close together for out big pans.

In Makeup

Ian Getting His Make-up Done for the Shoot:

Why Do Cheesy Pop Songs Sound Even Cheesier in Another Language?

Here is Ian at the Lotus Lantern Parade Concert:

Lotus Lantern Parade

Today kicks off a week long celebration for Buddha's birthday. There are colored lanterns hanging everywhere and tonight was the Lotus Lantern Parade. I love doing new things and knowing new things. I hate the process of learning new things and going somewhere when I do not know what to expect or where to go. I asked Ian if he wanted to go and wwent about getting myself ready. I was still undecided when I realized Ian was missing. After searching the house, I found him by the front door in his stroller, ready to go. He wasn't scared. He had complete confidence in me. So, I decided to suck it up and go. Just go slowly and not worry about the fact that where we were going had no elevator at the metro and lots of stairs. The Koreans are usually very helpful when they see someone struggling with a stroller. I planned to go slowly and get there when I get there.

As is almost always the case. I am glad I went. I feel empowered. We saw some of the parade as well as stage performances and ate some street food. We had Kimchi Pancakes and Fish on a Stick in a Sweet and Spicy Sauce. Ian would take bite and then rub his tongue with his hand and say,"Pice". And then take another bite.

Got My Mommy Cards Today

Mommy Cards are calling cards for moms. They are glossy on the front and matte on the back for writing notes. I got Swirls for Sarah and can't wait to start handing them out.

Everyone in Korea carries business cards so it is actually quite appropriate. Plus, it is easier to exchange info with all the new people I am meeting.

Bikram Yoga (Hot Yoga) in Seoul

I finally made it to class at Pure Yoga in Apgujeong. I had to e-mail the Seoul Global Center for directions and the schedule because the website is written mostly in Korean and you need to log-in to view the most relevant information like schedule and price. The schedule varies each month and there are currently four teachers: Christina (her name is written in Korean on the schedule), Helen, Jason and Katie. Christina is the owner and taught my class today. She speaks perfect English. Helen, Jason and Katie do not speak English. I need to ask when and why people choose Western names. It makes sense when you are catering to an foreign clientele, but the clientele was all Korean except me and maybe one other woman might have been Japanese because Christina was speaking English to her. It is probably a style thing. She taught the class in both English and Korean. The receptionists do not speak English at all (well, maybe a few words). They were embarrassed because they couldn't communicate with me. I told Christina to tell them that they should not be embarrassed that they can't speak English in Korea, I am embarrassed that I can't speak Korean. Yoga this month. Korean next month. Must learn Korean.

The studio is located on the 4th floor of a white building across from the Galleria East. There is valet parking available. You have to tip 2,000 Won (about $2). I took a cab today to get the driving directions because there was no time to metro. I made it in the nick of time. After class, I took a cab to the main gate to get the reverse driving directions and then I had to walk to get Ian. It was an all-day affair to go to a 1 hour class because it took an hour to get to the daycare using public transportation, then 20 minutes by cab to the class, 20 minutes by cab from the class and an hour to get home. If I take public transport instead of the cabs from the base to the studio that would add in a lot more time, so I need to get brave quickly and drive to the base and studio. I have a couple days to get up my courage because tomorrow Ian has a modeling gig and Curt leaves for Georgia so I won't be able to go this weekend, but I have a daycare reservation for Monday so I will have to do it then. I may practice this weekend. There are beautiful locker rooms with showers. The lockers are big and you get a locker key after you swipe your class card. There is also a small lounge-y area that might be a juice bar, mats and yoga clothes for sale and a "consultation room", maybe for spa treatments or alignment, I am not sure.

Though the program changes each month, there are classes on the following schedule:

M-F 6:45-7:45 10:00-11:30 12:00-1:00 3:30-5:00 5:30-7:00 7:15-8:45 9:00-10:00
Sat-Sun 10:00-11:30 12:00-1:00 2:30-4:00 4:30-6:00

Note that some classes are 1 hour and some are 90 minutes. I took a 1 hour Hot Yoga class today at 12:00pm. They did the Bikram sequence but eliminated the some of the repititions. The room was hot enough to make me sweat like crazy, but was not nearly as hot as it was at the studios in DC. Christina was a very attentive/hands-on teacher and made corrections and helped the students deepen stretches. Even though this studio is not convenient for me to get to, I am looking forward to trying the different classes.

They teach the following classes:
Healing
Vinyasa
Hot Yoga/Bikram
Forrest Yoga
Astanga

There are several current price structures:

To take class 7 days a week for 1 month, the cost is 297,000 Won
For 3 days a week for 3 months, the cost is 656,000 Won (I think they might have changed this price, but this is the quote I got from Seoul Global Center)
For 2 days in the weekend for 3 months, the costs is 438,000 Won

For a 10 class card: 300,000 Won
For a 20 class card: 550,000 Won
For a 30 class card: 660,000 Won

They do take credit cards, but I paid in cash because I wasn't sure and also to avoid the credit card transaction charge. It is definitely more expensive than DC, especially since I have to pay for babysitting, but I am going to do it as much as possible this month after Curt gets back and then maybe go down to three times a week or the weekend passes.

My ideal situation would be if Pure Yoga teachers would be willing to come to the base to teach. Of course, I have to look into how that would work, but I think it should be allowed. People would have to register for the class and pay probably to make it worth the teacher's while to come, but it would be so much more convenient to me. There are free yoga classes on the base but they are not that frequent so I hope people would sign up for it.