The Mall. No, Scratch that. The MEGA Mall.

There are some great quotes about shopping, none of which really speak to me.  Ah, but then there's this one:

I love to go shopping. I love to freak out salespeople.

They ask me if they can help me, and I say, "Have you got anything I'd like?"

Then they ask me what size I need, and I say, "Extra medium."
-- Stephen Wright

After teaching a full Criminal Law course in nine nights spread over ten nights, I was spent. 

Fortunately (for me and the students), there are a few days before the students take their final exam.  Fortunately for me as I was still writing the exam.  Fortunate for them as, even as bright as they demonstrate they are to me every evening, a few days of studying would be a good thing.

(Indeed, they are bright.  Given their schedules, I am repeatedly impressed with their drive.  I gave a practice essay question and had individual conferences over their answers (yes, I did that in the midst of the ten-day frenzy), and easily more than half took advantage of the opportunity for individualized feed-back.)

Ah, but Thursday, finally, that change of pace was here.  Alas, a day off from teaching, with this summer schedule, does not mean a day off from working.  And so Thursday morning I continued with the task of grading exams from the course I taught earlier this summer and working on building the exam my students here will take on Sunday afternoon.  (I continued with exam writing Friday while also completing the syllabus for the next course, which begins Tuesday.  It’s quite a blur to me!) Sunday and Monday will bring the completion of that other exam’s grading—in time to get a fresh batch.  Have mercy. (You:  Um, excuse me, but Jana, you did this to yourself.  No one made you take on extra classes.  Me:  Okay, you’re right.  Eyes were wide open, and I walked right in.  I’ll sleep some time in December.)

(Ah, but even with Thursday’s work I did take a bit of time for myself with the treadmill downstairs.  I must say, I’m not benefitting from a gym in the “gym conditions” sense; it was 27 degrees (that’s 80.6 F) and 80% humidity there.  Yes, there’s AC here, but not everywhere.  I tried to tell myself I was just working harder, yes?  (Oooh—then there was the injury.  Jammed my poor little pinky finger.  At first I thought, “Seriously?  Why are the handles of the treadmill jutting out at the exact spot where I swing my arms when I’m going along at a quick pace?  I mean, come on, we’re just asking for someone like me to ram her hand into the end of the handle.”  Then I realized, “Well, I am not exactly an average height.  So I suppose most people wouldn’t hit their hand on the handle.” Then, as I looked down at the controls all in Korean I thought, “But in this country, this should be different!”)  (it is true:  I appreciate not being so short here (relatively speaking).  It’s nice not to be hanging around in the area of many armpits for a change.))

I digress.  (You:  ya think?  Did you catch that rabbit?)    So after a still-full day of work (and treadmill action), I finally decided that given this was my first time at the apartment in the late afternoon/evening, I should definitely venture out.  And so I did.

I walked around the immediate area and made my way toward that giant mall.  Now, I’m not exactly a mall person.  I prefer to have a destination in mind, go there, get what I need, and get on my way.  A day of shopping is not, I repeat, not, recreational for me.  But sometimes, just sometimes, you’ve got to expand beyond your norm in order to see the big picture.  Well, this picture, folks, was huge. (The picture reveals really only the tip of this iceberg.)

 

The iPark Mall is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.  You want it?  I bet they have it.  And I am talking beyond your typical clothes and such.  (Although when I first walked in and walked past the fur department, I knew I was probably in the wrong section.) Musical instruments?  An entire section with several retailers.  Furniture?  Of course.  An entire digital area?  Well, in the home of Samsung and LG, what would you think?  But it’s more than that:  I swear there was a section of the floor about the size of any Walmart that was devoted to nothing but computer sorts of electronics.  There’s also a major subway and rail station just outside of one entrance.  There’s an iMax theatre.  And get this:  For your convenience, there’s also a wedding area.  No, really.

I wandered around, a bit aimlessly, just trying to see what all there was.  (I don’t “shop” for things I would normally buy at home when I travel.  I know some people do, but as I said, shopping is more of a necessity for me than an adventure.)  And indeed, I knew I was getting lost; although I was equally confidant that once I set my mind to it, I’d have no problem figuring out where I was.  (Warning:  that’s only because I trust my direction sense.  If that’s a weakness of yours, you should probably bring along some bread crumbs should you ever venture inside of the iPark Mall.)

I wandered (I now always think of my friend DA when I say that (sorry:  inside joke)) around in one area then headed up an escalator to the next floor.  I wandered around there, going this way and that, following a familiar mall-type path.  The lights were bright, the clothes were new, and the people were shopping.  And I came across another up escalator, so up I went.  I repeated that pattern again.  And again.  And again.  Good heavens, how many floors did this place have?  By this point, I was determined to find out.  And so I continued. 

Seven.  That’s right:  seven floors of mall.  Spread out on what I would imagine several city blocks.  There is no Galleria I’ve been in that holds a candle to this.  But what’s especially amazing to me is that this is not Seoul’s largest mall.  Nope.  This is the junior one.  My word!

Ah, so I finally topped out at 7F in the west wing (or somewhere such as that), and wound up where JW and I had lunch my first day in the city area. And finally, I found a map.  In English!  This provided a perfect time to sit a bit and study this map of the megopolis shopping center. And I knew just the place.  (See Bar Seat for One?, to be posted in the coming days, for more of that story.)

Having my bearings and a rest, it was time to head to the basement.  Oh, did I forget to mention that this seven-floor shopping mall also had two basement floors that were occupied by E-Mart---essentially a super-duper Walmart?  Okay, so we’re at nine floors of shopping, yes?  Yes.

I wandered down and strolled through the top floor (basic Walmart type of household goods) then hit the grocery section.  This time, I was on my own.

Having rested and adjusted to the time change, though, this visit was a much more laid-back experience.  I leisurely went up and down aisles, and it really was much like being at Whole Foods on any give Saturday afternoon.  (Of course, it was Thursday around 8pm.)  Still, on nearly every aisle, someone was set up offering a sample of something.  (I might just have to have dinner there one week---just to sample more Korean fare.)  There was a great deal of food ready-made, and there were other areas ready to make what you wanted.  The fresh (and still live) seafood section was, as you might imagine, quite large.  What I do know is that I WILL go back for sushi:  incredibly fresh-looking salmon nigiri (about ten pieces) for less than $5.  No, really!  Ah, but as much as the sushi is a bargain, the cabernet is not.  A basic not-so-good grocery store brand from the states that sells for $5 there costs about $18 here.  Ah, but it appears Korea has not yet discovered Argentina or the Malbec, for that, my friends, was much better deal. 

I had to giggle though, as it appears I just look like I know what I’m doing wherever I am.  This goes back to a month ago in NYC for a conference.  The morning the conference started, my sister and I were walking down 5^th Avenue.  We’d just strolled through Washington Park and were headed north when two girls stopped me and asked me for directions.  This was my—get this---second trip to NYC.  And they asked me for directions.  Me!  The grand thing is that I was able to give them!  They walked away, happily on their way to their destination, and I laughed with my sister, “They’re going to go home and think that New Yorkers are just as friendly as any Texans they’ve met.”  ;-) 

Okay – back to E-Mart.  So there I am, perusing the organic section (looking for salad greens other than iceberg lettuce (wink and nod to my friend Rebekah)) and a woman taps me, “Mum, Mum, can you help me please.  I need Coriander.”  I did one of those turns, looking over my shoulder (finding nothing by some sort of organic wheat flour behind me), then said, “Me?”  “Yes, Mum, please.  Do you know?”  And she showed me a list, printed in English, that included Coriander and Peppermint.  That was all.  Poor dear had been sent to a Korean market to buy not-so-Korean items.  I could have said, “If they don’t have oatmeal, I don’t think they’ll have that,” but instead I helped her look.  This time, though, my assistance was not nearly as productive.  Still, she seemed very appreciative that I tried.  And that’s always a nice feeling.

And so I picked up a few things (broccoli and zucchini (alas, I found no Brussels sprouts) and spring-mix type salad (my plain iceberg needed some jazzing up) (I’ve ample fruit in the apartment (sliced and prepared daily and left I my fridge; this, I think, is what I like most of all with the peeps who take care of me), but not nearly enough veggies).  Then I decided it was time to try something new—even if I didn’t know what it was. 

I purchased, well, I don’t know what I purchased.  I’ll call it a Korean taco.  But it was more ala Jack in the Box style.  No, of course it wasn’t made with a corn tortilla, but it had some sort of soft wonton-esque wrapping, folded over, with a filling inside, and pressed together at the side.  It was sorta fried—not  deep-fried (It is South Korea, but it is not the south (or so I thought))—but grilled in oil, if that makes any sense.  Anyway, I purchased the kimchee taco and the vegetable taco.  They were good, but the extra grease (ergo, Jack in the Box style taco) was not exactly desirable.  (It is true:  pretty much all cultures have some sort of bread-sort-of-filled pocket thing to eat, yes?)

Goodies gotten and sights seen, I paid and loaded my backpack with my veggies (you must pay extra for a bag; most people bring their own or use boxes.   I like this place, don’t you know.) and hand-carried the tacos back to the apartment.  I took a different route home, passing by street vendor after vendor selling many varieties of food.  Ah, here’s where the deep-fried things were.  Well, mostly tempura, but still.  There were so many, though, and enough grilled items that it took me back a bit to Saturday night in Stonetown.  At least here I could find my way back to my abode without having to pay a giggling youngster to lead the way.

Ahhh -- and I made it back to finally enjoy watching dusk settle over the city and the river.  Gorgeous.  Simply gorgeous.