I've Relapsed on Afrin

I spent my second Saturday in Seoul in bed sleeping...after one week of teaching and a night of hard partying, the result was my first head cold in over a year.  I've had to bust out the Afrin.

I'd just like to point out that if you're a person who hates "last call," the United States is not the place for you.  As someone who's long since been over the clubbing scene (been there, done that), I don't really care that you can only buy a drink back home until 2am...but if you're the type who likes to party until the sun comes up, you might prefer the colorful oasis of Seoul, Korea.

My Friday started just like any other kindergarten teacher's day--with the Hokey Pokey and Itsy Bitsy Spider.  By the end of the night, however, we were singing and jumping along to remixes of such distinguished artists as Justin Bieber and Ludacris.  The evening started with a long subway trip to a hopping part of town, where people bar hop, club hop, and often pass out (a lot of Koreans lack an enzyme necessary to metabolize alcohol, yet drink it anyway).  After passing several "Ho Bars" (that is literally the name), we went inside Gold Bar, a two-story facility with long, twisted, color-changing lights going right up the center of the building through a hole in the ceiling, all the way from the ground to the second floor.  A Korean girl from a table across from us arose, amongst giggling friends, and approached us with her hand out exclaiming, "High Five!"  We were happy to oblige.  Far be it from us North American girls to deny the completion of a Korean girl's dare!  A few drinks later and we were on our way to a small hole-in-the-wall club down the street called Papa Gorillaz, where you can put your coats and bags in a locker before hitting the raised dance platform in the center, complete with lighted stripper pole.  My friends got some sort of hurricane/mai tai-looking drink in a small bucket with 4 straws (I'm a heavy water-drinker, myself) to share and we took our spot on some bar stools in the back.  We were there early, about 11pm or midnight, and it was pretty dead at first.  Then the party started and the place got PACKED.

Korean boys in skintight jeans more reminiscent of leggings and leopard print jackets danced with robotic flair on the raised platforms with girls in heels and miniskirts.  It was a sight to behold!  The music was bangin'.  So much so that even I was encouraged to get up and dance to the beat.  It didn't take long, however, for the cigarette smoke to really get to me, and I just sat down to enjoy the view as my tipsy peers celebrated their well-earned weekend.  As five smokin'-hot white girls, we definitely got some attention from our Korean counterparts.  One boy was so drunk and eager to dance he pulled Rebecca's hair clear to the floor!  We were not impressed, until he sat down with me and proceeded to take the funniest picture of the evening...maybe even the year.  See for yourself!