Snowfall and Falling in the Snow (30 December)

Snowfall

I wake this morning to the sight of big, beautiful snowflakes outside.  The scene that greets me outside of my apartment building is one reminiscent of a winter wonderland and I can’t resist taking several photos as I head to the main road to attempt to find a taxi.  The first order of business for today is another acupuncture appointment and my friend has chosen to accompany me to the appointment this morning.

My acupuncture appointment passes quickly and we’re soon heading towards Lotte mart to try and find Jeonbuk Bank which is where NZ2 has said I’ll be able to pay my accounts – and his.  There is an incredible amount of snow on the ground which means that we’re sliding more than walking.  It also means that there are fewer taxis available since no one wants to walk in this weather.  When we finally get to Lotte mart, we head in the direction that NZ2 has told me. 

Something about these directions isn’t quite making sense and we walk for a few blocks before I realise there are no more commercial buildings around us; conveniently, NZ2 isn’t answering his phone but Freddy is having a blast making a snow angel in the thick and lush snow while I try to figure out where to go.  We head back towards the main intersection where I saw a branch of my bank and I decide to play the foreigner card: I just want to pay my bills and be done with this errand!  There’s a convenient little machine just inside the bank that accepts all accounts; unfortunately, it’s all in Korean so I don’t know how to use it and rely on a bank employee to assist me.  She then tells me that NZ2’s main bill has to be paid at Jeonbuk Bank specifically which is across the road

Falling in the Snow

Crossing the road proves more adventurous than usual now that there are enormous piles of snow on the sides of the roads making it more difficult to determine where the pavement is.  While trying to cross the road as quickly as possible, I suppose it was inevitable that I would end up falling onto a huge pile of snow instead of just walking around it.  Fortunately, the oncoming driver was paying attention and stopped!

With accounts finally paid, we browse around Lotte mart before heading back to my apartment and then meeting Catfish for dinner at the Galbi restaurant.  Catfish and I love the Galbi restaurant that we frequent because the staff usually circle our table on a loop. It’s entertaining to watch how they almost seem to fight over who will get to help us cook our food – we only have to touch the tongs and someone is at our table, taking over the cooking process.  Tonight, with the addition of a male, it’s slightly different and it’s interesting to note the change in dynamics – the servers aren’t quite as attentive as usual….

Dinner is followed by coffee at Ediya Coffee, another tradition it would seem, where we discuss our plans for the next day and New Year’s Eve’s party.  We’ve already booked a room at Hong Guesthouse in Hongdae for 1 January so we just need to work out the logistics of what to do with our bags the next night since we have every intention of staying up all night at Countdown Seoul!