September 1997

Greetings from the Land of the Morning Calm!

We received our household goods last week, but still don’t have our computer hooked up or connected to the internet yet. We’re working on it though and as soon as we’re online, we’ll broadcast a message to those of you who are too. I did get my new computer at work, however, so I can finally type up a note to everyone! We’ve had an interesting three months here so far and to boot, we found out we’re expecting in late March! Expecting a baby (for those of you who were wondering what exactly we’re expecting….)!

Our adventure started in mid-July, arriving at Dulles Airport at 6 am with 12 pieces of luggage, two kids, a cat, and Grammy (Sandy) and Pop Pop (Wayne) in tow only to find out that our flight was cancelled! This is not the first time this has happened to us on a United flight, so needless to say we were a little pissed! After lots of discussion on whether to bag the whole thing and start again the next day or change flights, we opted to change flights going through Los Angeles and Osaka, Japan. Grandmother (Winnie) was meeting us at the airport as well and we were panicked that she wouldn’t know where to find us - she found us at the gate right before we boarded the plane! This new flight plan extended our flying time by 6 hours so we ended up traveling for about 20 hours. YUCK! We did get to travel business class though and boy is that nice! Nothing like being herded in and out of coach. Nette (Jeanette) had told us that if we didn’t wear our slippers we’d fall through the floor of the plane, so naturally Chelsea and I obliged her. We were quite comfy wrapped in our blankets with our slippers on, feeding our faces, drinking champagne (just Jim and I), and watching lots of flicks. The kids did well on the trip and slept more than half the time - which in itself made for a nice trip! The other half of the trip they kept entertained with the backpack of goodies John and Lori had sent with us. Katie (the cat) seemed to fair well too. We had brought tranquilizers just in case, but we didn’t have to use them – Thank God! Can you imagine trying to shove those pills down the cat from hell’s throat? Katie stayed under Chelsea’s seat or by Chelsea most of the trip. There was one instance that she escaped her container, but she didn’t get far up the aisle before we caught her. We did notice however that she was very hoarse when we finally arrived in Seoul!

We were met at the airport gate, gathered all our luggage, and were taken right through customs (cat and all) in a matter of minutes. Lucky for Katie – most animals have to be quarantined for 10 days in a hell hole somewhere by the airport. There was a driver waiting for us outside in none other than a Suburban - sorta made us feel at home.

We arrived at our house on Yongsan Army base shortly after 11 pm and found it toxic, but furnished and stocked with a few days food. It seems that they had just painted the week before. They don’t use just any paint – it’s military industrial strength paint - the kind that makes your eyes water and your nose hair curl! The paint smell is still lingering…. We kept the windows open and the air conditioning running all weekend and were still getting high off the fumes. It has dissipated quite a bit, but I can still smell it when we enter the house each day after work. The house is a lot bigger than I thought it would be. It has a living room and dining room combo, a family room, a large eat-in kitchen, laundry room, maid’s room and bath, entry way/foyer, 3 bedrooms, and our bath. Yes – you saw right – a maid’s room and bath! We have a Nanny/Maid who is wonderful! Her name is Merlita and she is Phillipino. She’s great with the kids, cleans the house, does the laundry, cooks, does the dishes, irons, etc. etc. She has more energy than anyone I’ve ever met! I guess there are limits to what she’ll do though – that’s why I’m the pregnant one! Ha ha ha…Just kidding! The outside of the house needs some landscaping work, but is pretty good sized as well with lots of trees and ivy. It’s almost like living in a small town in the U.S.

On base we have a large commissary that reminds me of Giant and the PX reminds me of a smaller WalMart. There’s a Burger King, Popeye’s, Baskin Robbins, and Anthony’s Pizza all within walking distance. Needless to say, we’ve visited them all and are using the walking thing to walk off what we eat! There’s even an Outback Steakhouse by the Airport in Seoul! We tried it out last weekend – it wasn’t quite the same, but real close. There are many fast food restaurants in Seoul itself (like Wendy’s, MickeyDs, KFC, etc.), but I’m not sure what they use for beef so I’ve been reluctant to try them! Everyone says they’re fine, so I guess we’ll try them soon - I can only take so much BK and Popeye’s. There’s also a Price Club which we’re visiting this weekend. Not that we need any supplies – we must have shopped at Sam’s before we left ‘cause we have enough toilet paper and paper towels for the next year! The Korean food is good, but right now I can’t stand the smell of it so it’s off limits for a while. It’s nothing like the Chinese/American food at home though – I do miss that.

The weather here is pretty much like home except more humid in the summer (yes, it’s possible) and it lasts all day and night. It’s cooled off some now and is staying around 70 during the day and 60 at night – NICE! When we arrived it was plenty humid and every morning I could smell oriental spices and sulfur. Let me tell you – for a pregnant woman that combo and humidity are lethal! The cooler weather is blowing those smells away so I’m doing much better.

We’ve gone shopping a few times in the outdoor markets – there are no malls! Each market specializes in different wares. Some specialize in leather, purses, luggage (things like Channel and Louis Vuitton for almost nothing compared to the prices in the States); some in fabric; some in kids clothes and flowers; some in mink blankets; etc etc. We either go with a tour group or Jim drives. I haven’t driven off base yet – it looks scary! The Koreans say that the white lines on the road are for the foreigners, not them. The roads go from 4 lanes to 2 lanes with no warning and Koreans don’t believe in turn signals or looking in their mirrors before switching lanes. They also don’t believe in left turns, but they do make Uturns a lot. Makes for quite an adventure! Jim has become quite adept at driving like the locals! I’ll get up the nerve to try it soon I’m sure. Getting to work is nice though, there’s a bus to take us to and from and it takes only 15 minutes.

We’ve been pretty busy since we arrived with lots of activities as well as shopping. Jim’s been playing ball since almost the day we arrived, usually twice a week. He’s also been busy around the house trying to childproof everything! Chelsea made friends right away with a girl next door. She seems to be doing well in school - her teacher is a grandpa type that gives lots of homework, but I’m sure she’ll survive it. Sam loves the Nanny and goes to a playgroup every Friday with a billion other kids on base. He’s talking more – or at least imitating what we say - saying things like ‘mere’ for come here. He’s still being rocked to sleep (spoiled!), but we’ve started trying to break that habit before the next one gets here. Not an easy task since he’s almost two! My job is a job, but the people are real nice. I’ve started taking a class twice a week with University of Maryland – Asian division. I’m working towards finally finishing my degree. If all goes well, I’ll complete it right before we leave here! We’ve also just joined the bowling league and will bowl every Monday night. Occasionally we go to dinner at the Embassy Club with a few other adults. So as you can see, we’re not lacking for things to do – just missing family and friends!

We’re hoping to come home in late winter/early spring to have the baby and visit for a couple months. Poor Mom! We’re still working out the details of Jim’s job and Chelsea’s schooling. Will update you more in the next letter, which you shouldn’t expect until close to Christmas! Speaking of Christmas – I need gift ideas soon. We have to start shopping now – supplies are limited here. Believe it or not, I have already done some shopping!

We hope everyone is happy and well! We appreciate the cards and letters – for those of you who’ve written already! Hint hint hint…….. Our address is at the top of the letter with our phone number. Please write! And of course your welcome to call, but remember there’s a 13 hour time difference - when it’s AM for you it’s PM for us. We miss you all and will hopefully see you soon!