established

I'm in Yeosu, having taken a cab to a yeogwan not far from the university. The KTX ride was nice, even if my ass started to hurt about halfway through the trip. The yeogwan I'm staying at, humorously called the "Roboo Hotel," can be classified as a love hotel (doesn't "roboo" sound like a Konglishy way to say "love"?): the parking-lot entrance is halfway covered so that people in elevated positions can't see into the lot and identify which cars are there. The hotel's lobby was dark, and the concierge's window was tiny, to minimize the possibility of eye contact. The charge for one night: W40,000, or about $37. Motel 6 prices.

I asked for a room with an internet connection, but perhaps because I didn't specify that I had brought my own device, I was given a room with a huge, clunky computer. I promptly unplugged the CAT-5 cord from the boxy CPU and plugged it into my Mac's adapter, and plugged the adapter into my laptop. That's how I'm typing right now. Unfortunately, the room's CAT-5 cable has lost its little "snap-lock," which means the cable could slide out of my adapter at any moment and break the connection. So I'm trying very hard not to move my laptop around too much.

The room itself is quiet and clean; I'm delighted that the bathroom is fully furnished—and yes, Lee, there are towels: my luck continues to hold. I'm in Room 305, at the end of the hall, which is always a pleasing location for an introvert.

So now I have to review my plan of attack. The concierge told me that checkout time was at noon; that ought to give me plenty of time to interview from 10AM to 10:30AM, get back to the hotel by 11AM, and skedaddle back to Yeosu Expo Station for the trip up to Seoul. Tonight, meanwhile, I've got a full plate:

1. Iron clothes for tomorrow's interview.

2. Apply to Hanseong University.

3. Apply to Hanyang University.

4. Apply to HUFS.

5. Finish up my latest YB material.

There aren't enough hours in the day to do all this stuff. Is this what it's like to live a jet-setting life?

I've taken a photo of the train station and a few pics of my one-night digs; I'll upload those once I figure out how to get them from iPhoto to Photobucket (or, as I like to call it, Photofuckit).

More soon.

ADDENDUM: Before I forget: I had a very positive experience with the cabbie who drove me from the train station to this yeogwan. No asking about my weight, no asking whether I was married, no asking which sort of woman I preferred—Korean or Western. Conversation focused on my upcoming interview, and on Yeosu in general: as a city, Yeosu has grown by leaps and bounds only in the past few years. The Yeosu Expo, last year, was a major coup, lending the city some international cachet. The cabbie lamented the acceleration of the pace of life, but seemed resigned to the idea that that's the price one pays when one's city grows in size and gains in prestige.

Pics coming soon.


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