…thus far.

Still not acclimated to the time reversal if waking up at 0500 this morning is any indication.  No worries, I’ll get adjusted.  It’s not like I have to get up and go to work or anything.

Our luggage finally made it in from Detroit late last night.  It’s good to have my darts back.

On Friday night I played with borrowed darts and managed a second place finish.  The amazing thing about that is I was quite a bit drunker than I tend to get.  I’m not really clear on why, maybe the alcohol content of Cass is higher than the light-ass beer I normally drink.  I know it has lots more calories.  Of course, in the USA I am always cognizant of the impending drive home so I tend to monitor my consumption pretty closely.  I honestly don’t know how much I drank Friday, but it was enough to leave me hungover.  Which is really not my style.

I stayed close to home on Saturday.  Wasn’t feeling up for the St. Paddy’s day crowds in Itaewon.  Did spend over W200,000 on groceries at the D.C market.  So, doing the low-carb thing is a tad more difficult but I’m making the effort to stick as close to the plan as I am able.  For example, I didn’t buy cereal, bread or sweet goodies like I used to do.  I’m also resolved to take the stairs in the subway stations to incorporate a little extra exercise into my daily routine.  Man oh man, the stairs coming out of Itaewon station are a bitch!

What else?  I was disappointed that my smart phone could not be unlocked.  For now I am stuck with my ancient phone that has no bells and/or whistles.  It also does not appear to be holding a charge, so I’m going to have to see about a battery I suppose.  If they even still make one that fits my brand of dinosaur.

Meeting an old work friend for lunch this afternoon and then I’ll mosey over to Dillinger’s Bar for some darts practice.  I’ll be playing with a Dillinger’s team for the remainder of the dart league season, so I hope to bring a respectable game with me.  I’ll be back in the thick of the action tomorrow night.

I was frankly amazed at how much different Itaewon seems after my 13 month absence.  Some old familiar buildings have been torn down (Nashville!), some of my old bar hangouts have closed or changed owners, and the number of familiar faces I saw at Dolce Vita was a lot less than I remember.  Well, I reckon after a few months the new faces will look familiar enough.  For now I guess I’ll be the new old guy.

To the pictures!

I have the good fortune to live right on top of the subway station. It’s a 40 minute ride into Itaewon though. Or a W20,000 cab ride home late at night (as we did Friday, er, Saturday morning).

Jee Yeun always gets a vending machine coffee to enjoy on our way into Itaewon. Bless her heart.

Changing our dollars into Won. 1068 was the going rate on Friday, not particularly good but I’ve seen it a lot lower.

The mean main street of Itaewon…

My first frosty mug of OB lager in over a year. Nice-ah! (I just need to remember to enjoy them in moderation!)

A larger than usual turnout for the Friday blind draw at Dolce Vita.

The highlight of the night was connecting with my old Canadian friend Craig “the Goat”. He left Korea a year or so before I retired, and moved back here last spring. It was his birthday Friday and as fate would have it we drew up as partners in the tourney. Now maybe if I’d had my own darts or maybe had I stayed slightly more sober, we’d have done better than second place. Still, it was a great time!

Like it or not, there will be lots more to come in the continuing saga of my life in Korea!