A story to tell...didn't want to...but will.....

I was off Monday June 15, 2009 because my security clearance isn't in...that's okay. I had a bad cold, and could use another full day of rest.

So, I think there aren't too many people around, I'll go for a peaceful sauna and swim. I get my bathingsuit, and head to the sauna.

I'm change into my bathingsuit, and go towards these big gorgeous wooden crafted doors to the sauna. Holy crap.......I died.....

......of embarrassment.

I'm standing there, like a freaking idiot!! There are about 25 skinny- NAKED Korean women.....all ages just staring at me. ummmm no, not too uncomfortable!!! I stand there for what feels like forever, but to my amazement, it's only about 10 seconds.

An OLD little lady comes up to me, with an almost angry attitude, saying "no, no no!" and almost yelling at me in Korean, and comes over to me with her trying-to-be-so perky saggy boobs and goes behind me and tries to undo the halter strings of my bathing suit. No...No...she said so sternly to me!

I turned around and said politely gestured....'leave me alone lady'! I bowed with respect, and turned around and walked out. Screw that!! Withh my luck, I'll get naked and they will kneel and start praying thinking I'm Budha's sister!! No thank you. SO I went downtown stairs and did some laps of the pool!!! OMG....What an experience that was. I will NOT be taking a sauna while in Korea...that's for sure.

If I liked myself more...and if I was 100 lbs lighter...I may have been into it...but not this overweight pastey coloured old broad!! Sorry...not that adventurous!

There Donna....I told my story.

Go ahead and laugh people...but for me...it was very embarrassing....I may need Dr Phil on this one later!!!!

Sunset, Sunday June 21st - Bomun Lake, South Korea

I can't believe I took this! LOL What a nice night it was. I have taken pics of the fountain and lake in other shots...but my timing was perfect on this one!! Looks like a post card. Kudos to me!

What happened over the past few days...

Hey there....hope everyone is well.

Let me go back a couple of days.

Friday...I took the work bus to the apartment complex that long term people and their families stay in, to stay with my new friend Bonnie and her husband Jeff (ex Bruce Power). They are from Sauble Beach. She was on my flight over coming to stay with Jeff for 6 mths..anyways.

So, I get there and Bonnie mets me at the bus. Wow..what an awesome community!! Lots of buildings..lots of kids and people. So we go up to their apt. They are only on the 2nd floor, so we walk through the automatic sliding doors and up the stairs to the sensored lit hallways. Cool!

The door has a electronic touch pad code lock....very high tech...again...Cool!

We walk in, and holy crap!!! I've died and gone to heaven! This two bedroom apt is drop dead gorgeous! The colours, the hardwood, the modernized fixtures. The setup..the spacious rooms.. I love it!!! Here's some pics...doesn't do justice, but gives you an idea. The kitchen sink faucet is controlled by pushing a silver plate on the floor...works like a gas/brake pedal in a car..except there are no peddles. Just a flat silver piece.

They have a garbage disposal, and they have a little sink with a lid on the side of the sink..it washes vegetables and dishes. It's just a little deep compartment that washes in the counter. Their cupboards when they are pulled out, have shelves that you pull down, so you can reach the top shelf. Now that's what I need at home...no more climbing on the counter!! LOL

There are 2 bathrooms, with heated toilet seats. I should have taken a pic. There are alot of buttons on the side of the toilet in Korean...so I'm too sure what it actually did...for all I know it could be like a Kirby and pop popcorn....it wouldn't surprise me!!! The master bedroom has an ensuite bathroom..with a gorgeous shower. Very very nice tile job!! Their dining area / sunroom over look the park at the complex.

These apartments are awesome!!! Very very nice!

More pics on facebook.

So, after we had a few beers and freshened up, Bonnie and I go over to the "Maple Leaf Lounge" to meet Jeff. Now that's a cool bar. Just a little bar..one pooltable. But the music and atmosphere was cool! I met alot of people from work that I didn't know. Some I knew them from putting them through training, but some I didn't know at all. Most of the workers come from our Sheridan Park and LePreaux offices. Only Dave and Darrin are local boys. Bonnie did take a pic of Darrin and I, but she hasn't emailed it to me yet.

After a few wobbly pops and some good laughs, we staggered back to the apt. This time MY Supervisor is with us. She is awesome. We had a few more beers, laughs and Bonnie whipped up some h'or dovers. They were good...from what I remember!

Saturday, we take off to go on a road trip. We pick up my Supervisor (Gisele) at work at noon...yep..she went in after a night of brew...she's a trooper!! LOL

Bonnie, Gisele and I go out for a typical Korean lunch and have Bulgogi soup. It was delicious!! Here's a few pics of our lunch.

We sat at the normal tables, because I wouldn't be able to sit on the floor, because of my knee. But this is what the other part of the restaurant looked like.

After lunch, we drove up the coast of the Sea of Japan to the cith of Pohang. Along the way, we stopped at some fishing villages. Yes, I handled it. Plugged my nose alot, but I did it :)

Squid!!

Escargots!!! As big as my hand!!

Saturday was a great outing...alot of driving, and alot of sight seeing. Check out facebook for more pics.

Sunday was supposed to go on a bus trip with a girl from our Sheridan Park office, but we were told that it was supposed to rain. It is now the rainy season (monsoon season), so we decided not to go. We would have had to book on Saturday. Needless to say, it was gorgeous on Sunday!! So, hopefully next weekend we will venture out on a tour to see some temples and some tombs.

Instead of the outting I went shopping at the local grocery store. I couldn't really take pics, because it was really busy, and they are as aggresive with their carts as they are with their cars!! Move or be moved....so, maybe another day, when it's not so busy, I'll snap some shots of their store.

We hit McDonald's, just to say we did it. I had a big mac..and yes, it was a big mac. I heard to stay away from the Bulgogi burger, as apparently it is not bulgogi.

After shopping I decided to lay around the pool for the rest of the afternoon. A day of rest....just what the dr ordered.

1st Weekend in Korea!!!

Had a GREAT weekend...but will write and post pics tonight. Just finished some shopping at our aka Walmart...but here it's HomePlus, and now I'm going to sit by the outdoor pool for a few hours. So, if you are reading this.....check back later!!!

Happy Father's day!!!!

Hi Ho Hi Ho..It's off to work I go!

Hey there!

I think the jet lag is done and gone. I slept through the whole night last night! Felt good...still fighting my cold, but it's getting better.

I've been at work a couple of days now, and it's just what the dr ordered! I think I'm gonna like it :) So far, the people are great. Very nice coworkers and the Koreans are very friendly people. I have my work cut out for me .. that's for sure. Gotta love a challenge!

Last night for dinner I had a Cheeseburger and fries, and...it was delicious!! I was impressed!

I'm posting some pics of our drive in. The pictures don't do justice, but they are okay.

This post is short but sweet. I'm a little lost for words! Imagine that. Well, I worked all day, so what do you want me to talk about??? Work...nah....you don't want to hear about that.

Enjoy the pics...and have a great day all. These pics are taken on the way to work.

Night all..

Nick, Jonas, Les AND TUFFER.....miss you much....thinking of you.....

Tuesday, June 16

Happy 15th Birthday Nick! I love you!!

Today was my first day at work. What an amazing drive to the site!!! It's about 40 minutes through mountains and along the Sea of Japan. The Koreans call it the "East Sea". I didn't realize the plant was located on the sea! It's absolutely gorgeous!!! I did take a few pictures, but won't post them just yet, as they don't do justice to the actual view. I will have my car poolers stop for me at a few spots that we saw over the next couple of days, so I can post some good ones.

The road is a loooooooong winding road. Almost feels like you are on an amusement park ride. There are some spots that the road has a guardrail probably up to my knees and then a straight drop down!! Wicked!! Scary if your driving, I bet!! LOL Won't be me that's for sure! The road has so many bends,and the mounds of deep green trees that envelopes the mountains look like broccoli heads! It's so lush and green..a wonderful sight. It's a trip that sure wakes you up in the morning !! It's incredible.

I am working in the Training Mock Up building (TMB). That's the building were we put out the tools, simulate the tools and train the people before they actually go on the face of the reactor. I know, boring to you!! LOL But, it's a great set up. My office over looks the simulations. They have the A/C on, so like a geek, I am bringing a sweater in!! LOL It was freezing in there today...but gorgeous outside.

Saw some familiar faces, which was cool. Darrin and Dave...some local boys! Makes life a little easier when you know someone!! I also met a girl on my floor tonight that works with us. She is here for a few more weeks, so it gives me someone to hang with. COOL!! We can do day trips together, and/or just hang by the pool.

Well, it's been a long day. So, I'm gonna go relax now for a bit and put the old knee up.

Stay tuned for some pics...again, I do have some, but they don't do justice. I'll get better ones.

Miss my guys...

Monday, June 15, 2009

Today I was to start work. BUT, I got a phone call while I was down at breakfast. My security clearance is not in, so I can't go to work today. I was looking forward to going, but then again, I'm looking at it as a blessing in disguise. I feel like crap! This cold is really bogging me down.

So, I finish eating, come up and change, and head to the lobby for a taxi to take me to the "Home Plus". Apparently it's like a Walmart. Great! Shopping!! LOL I get in the cab, and we get to the store, and it's closed. Doesn't open til 10am...current time was 730Am!!! What do I do?? I see a McDonald's in the adjoining parking lot, but didn't really want to sit there for that long period of time. I try to communicate with the cabbie and he is desperately trying to understand. He calls over a young girl and she calls a friend on her cell phone, and passes it to me. It's someone she knows that speaks English! So, I tell the guy that I need a pharmacy more than a shopping mall. I pass the phone back, and the cabbie listens, and bows to me. I think he understands.

We drive around Gyeongju for a few more minutes. I'm taking in all the sites. The city is fairly modern, but all signs are in Korean. Nice architecture, and farming fields in the middle of the city. Very cool. I see the kids dressed in their school uniforms all getting on the buses. I see older people in the fields, and setting up their street markets.

We pull around a corner, and there in big letters "PHARMACY". Whew...we made it :) I run in and get 2 boxes of what I believe is equivalent to Sinutab, and she gives me this little shot bottle of straight up Vitamin C. She says "drink now". SO I did. I took two of the pills and am hoping that by mid day I fell better. Sitting here now, my sweats are gone, and my cough seems to be in control. I am also drinking Green Tea, so that could be helping too.

The taxi driver took a couple of pics for me. These are downtown Gyeongjui.

Just finished chatting with Jonas on MSN............I love you buddy!! Miss you!

Well, after a restful morning...only because the tablets I bought made me drowsy...I decided to go for a little stroll to see if I could find some half decent stuff for my lunches.

I found a little quaint convenient store that had the basics. I bought a pair of apples (that's how they were sold), a box of crackers and a chunk of cheese, and 2 ready to eat Mr Noodle type noodles. That's good for me.

I took some pics along the way. Hope you enjoy them.

This, I believe, is an amphitheatre.

The variety store which I found my food!! It's the green painted store.

Just a random shot. I just love the architectural designs of the buildings around here!!

... and this is where I lay my weary head to rest.....Not to sure what's up with all the chairs lined up out front. There are some conventions going on, so maybe it's got to do with one of them.

Til later.....

Miss my 3 men