For those of you who don't listen to the Violent Femmes that is sort of an out of context coat from Waiting for the Bus. A great song and one that comes to mind after my adventures this Saturday, which since I love to bore you to death with incredibly long emails that have a rambling point, I thought I would share.

So this weekend, after loosing my bank card which I found incredibly aggregating, I decided that the best way to deal with stress was to go find a sheet. My bed here has no sheet and it's been bugging me for days so I wanted to get one as soon as I had gotten paid.

So I embarked on my first bus in Korea adventure by jumping on a random bus that had available seat. That was fun. I had no idea where I was going, which usually sums up my Korea experiences, so I just went with it. We rode for awhile until I found something that looked sort of like a street market and I was sure I saw a shop that might have sheets. So I pushed the button to get off the bus and waited while he drove several more blocks before letting me exit. I think I was on the bus for maybe 40 minutes or so. It is relatively cheap to take a bus, only a meager 60 cents American (roughly) and mostly comfortable if there are seats or the bus isn't packed, and this one wasn't. Of course, there is the driving.

The driving is something that makes me think that all Koreans learned to drive in Boston, or if not drive, drag race...They are recklessly dangerous and several times I feared for my life, safety and gripped the handle on the seat in front of me till my knuckles where white for fear of being thrown out. I decided I was not ever going to stand on a moving Korean bus, there is just no way.

They cut off traffic, force cars out of the way. The bus I was on made an audacious right turn from the left turn lane around three rows of cars in a green light. It was amazing and very very scary. I am glad I managed to find a place that seemed like someplace to go, but  I think it was a hazardous way to get there. The taxi's here drive crazy, but this, my friends, let me tell you, is something else.

So anyway, I debarked the bus and walked the several blocks back, in the mild rain, to the place where I thought I might find a sheet, and to my luck I managed to land a nice sheet for about 10,000 won, which made me happy. I bought a pillow too, to match. The sheet, unlike a western sheet, is not fitted but more like a nicely quilted bed pad, however for the most part it doesn't seem to move around, and I might so in some straps to keep it in one place on the bed. It has made sleeping a more comfortable experience.

Now, having completed my task, I was in the middle of nowhere, and I needed to get back to somewhere so I could get home. I figured I knew which general direction to go in, and I pulled out a book I had not used earlier that lists some of the numbers of busses that go to the Donga where I needed to get. I found a bus stop, found the number of a bus that went to Donga and waited. I boarded said bus, which had empty seats, and was feeling really quite pleased with myself, looking out the window and enjoying the scenery, only mildly concerned when it seemed we were going into the country rather then the city, a little more concerned when we seemed to be leaving Daegu (we came to a toll booth that said east Daegu), relaxing a bit when we turned down a side street thinking the bus must be heading to turn back to downtown, only to be suddenly really really worried, when the bus pulled off the road into a muddy pit with four other buses, turned itself off, and all passengers and drivers exited.

Okay, I was worried. I went to the leaving driver and said my magic words, the ones that mean home in Korean, Soo-sung Donga, and pointed at the bus number in my book, and pointed to the word Donga and pointed to the driver and the bus, and kept repeating frantic, like a person speaking tongues, Soo-sung Donga, Soo-sung Donga. The driver looked at me smiled, shaked his head, and left the bus.

What followed was me, talking with three Korean men, who I can only assume were trying to inform me in Korean that this bus did not go to Soo-sung Donga and that my book was wrong. They laughed and seemed to be having allot of fun with this silly foreigner who had no idea what she was doing. After several attempts to inform the drivers that they were wrong and that my book told me that this bus was supposed to go to Soo-Sung Donga, in desperation, I started to enter the bus that looked like it might be going anywhere soon. I looked at the driver (one of the three who was very amused) and said the magic words, and pointed to my book. I noted that his bus number was not in my book next to my magic words, but I was desperate, and sure that I had been on a bus for at least an hour traveling away from where I needed to be, so I was afraid to try to find a cab to get me back.

The bus driver waved me to him, wrote on my book a number 434 and motioned for me to have a seat. Which I did. After a moment the bus left and I was happy just to be moving again. The bus moved for awhile, and eventually filled with people, I began to worry as I was still no where I recognized. I waited and at one point the bus stopped, which it had done several times. However this time the bus driver started to point to the door, and all the Koreans turned to look at me, and I realized, that he wanted me off his bus now. So, I left, knowing that out the door was not the place I needed to be, and sure that I really really had no idea where I was going, but figuring that this must be the place I was supposed to catch a bus with the number 434 and go to Soo-sung Donga.

There were several bus benches a sign with lots of numbers several of which were listed in my book next to the magic words. There was also a line of cabs. I tried to get in a cab, but known of the cabbies would let me in. Frustrated I started to walk, until I was quite lost again and asked two nice Korean girls to point me in the direction of Soo-sung Donga. They smiled and conferred in Korean, and then one of the girls said in English, "Together we go". This made me happy. I figured we could not be that far. Until we started to walk back to the place the bus had left me. The girls told me I needed to be on a bus (not 434 but 514) to get to the Donga, and waited with me until the bus came, only a few minutes and insisted I get on the bus even though I could see it was standing room only and was thinking of my pledge made only a short while before.

I was on the bus, holding on for dear life, trying to hold my new sheet, and trying to not make a mess of the whole farce at the same time. I was pretty sure I was going to be thrown out a window, and just resigned myself to sudden death when a nice lady in front of me finally got off the bus and I was able to take her seat.

At this point I just sat and waited looking for anything that looked familiar, which nothing did, and eventually came to the decision that I was getting off at the next intersection and getting a cab. The next intersection turned out to have the Donga, and so instead I tried to get off the bus, saying "Yogi, yogi" so excited that I was finally close to the place I call home. The driver smiled and said something in Korean, and continued to drive, but did eventually disgorge me not to far from home. Yay!.

I walked home, and spent the rest of the day being happy not to be on a bus. Which was only about 4 hours as my bus experience had started at 12 and ended sometime around 9.

In the meantime it's been raining allot. And I walked home Friday night in the rain. So much rain that I eventually had to take off my sandals so I could get a firm grip on the street to walk home. My clothes where so wet by the time I got to my apartment I had to put them into the washing machine to spin the water out so I could drive them.

I've seen Star Wars again, and I still don't like it.

Hoping your adventures are as interesting as mine.