Birthday

Saturday, April 28th,
I attended a social event organized by G.O.A.L, an adoptee organization. At the event, I met adoptees from Switzerland, Denmark, France, and Italy. It was interesting to see how they had European and Korean characteristics. We met in Hongdae, which is near Hongik University, so it is a popular eating and drinking area. We ate Korean BBQ, which consists of Samgyopsal (like bacon) and another cut of pork with side dishes. After, we went to a bar for some more socializing.

Sunday, April 29th
For breakfast, Mr. Han's wife made a big breakfast since it is the only day that I eat at home. She served a variety of Korean dishes, so I was full afterwards.

For lunch, I met Ah Rong 아룽(Ellie). I took the subway to Bupyeong station in Incheon. I ate lunch with her and her friend, a high school classmate. Near the subway station, there are many restaurants, coffee shops, and bar. They took me to a Chinese restaurant for a very nice meal, but once again it was a feast with multiple dishes. We walked around the area and stopped for coffee before I had to leave to meet my father.

For dinner, my K-father invited Mr. Han, his wife, his son, son's girlfriend, and I for dinner. We went to Bennigan's. I guess that he should treat me to an American meal. I ordered filet mignon since steak is probably the only thing that I miss from American food. In Korea, they like to order multiple dishes and share. They also ordered ribs, pasta, chicken salad, and another steak. I was given the opportunity to try all of the other dishes. They all tasted great, but I definitely ate more in one day than maybe two normal days of Korean eating. Mr. Han said that I needed to gain 2 Kg when celebrating a birthday and I think that I managed to do that with my all day eating.

Bennigans is a very good restaurant her, but customers pay a premium price on most menu items since it is an American restaurant. Mr. Han mentioned it was my birthday to the waitress, so at the end of the meal, four of the staff sang "Happy Birthday", Korean version. Two cakes were purchased one by my father and one by Chan Nyoung/girlfriend, so I still had birthday cake and candles to blow-out.

Monday, April 30th
My actual birthday was quite lackluster until after 10pm. I had to teach, which was ok, but I also had to sit through five hours of training. It was quite boring, but should help improve my teaching skills. Classes weren't too fun, but I managed to finish out the month. After my last class, a couple students were talking to front desk and they knew it was my birthday, so we decided to go for a beer. We went to a bar that served German beer and had a relaxed conversation, which was very different from class discussion. They definitely made my 'actual' birthday more enjoyable.