“Wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round!” I’m on my way from Osan to Kunsan, a two or three hour trip. We stopped at a little rest area, where I felt totally uneducated when I couldn’t even order or pay for a coffee without complete guesswork! It’s good for me, though. I’ve spent my whole life feeling educated and intelligent, but only as it pertains to my own culture. Now I know what it feels like to be on the other side of the language barrier! All I could really do was smile and bob and shrug apologetically, and hope they didn’t decide to rip me off. At least in Japanese, I can say “sorry” and “thank you”! I’ll be plunging into Japanese all the harder after this trip; I don’t think I could stand feeling so intellectually impotent for very long.
I have three currency types in my wallet, now: dollars, yen, and, um… Whatever they use in Korea. [Edit: Won.] I hope they can change my yen at a bank, because I won’t be able to use them for months.
One of my ears cleared up this morning, which was a relief, but the other one is still plugged, and I keep getting dizzy. I hope there is an opening at the base clinic quickly so I can get fixed up.
The scenery on the bus ride isn’t terribly interesting. It reminds me of parts of rural California, only with a lot of rice patties instead of artichokes or grapes or other more Californian crops. There are also some kind of long, cylindrical greenhouses with large leafy plants inside. It would be a lot prettier if the lighting were better.
Yay for post processing ;)
It’s hard to believe I’ve actually made it to another country, and my husband is at the other end of this long, crazy journey. I can’t wait to go exploring with him!