Ok, back to the reason behind this post. Teppy and I LOVE K-drama. Duh! That's the entire reason we even went to S. Korea in the first place. I am watching one right now, called Greatest Love. I don't know what it is about dramas, but the whole romantic love feeling you get from watching them is kind of like a drug. Well, I can't speak firsthand, actually, about that since I've never tried any drugs other than prescriptions, but you know what I mean. LISTEN TO ME! I AM THAT GIRL YOU SEE IN EVERY K DRAMA! I am! I am! Ok, once again, not really, but I WANT to be her! I mean, I'm poor, kind of. I have a boring, yet stable job. I wear ugly clothing. My hair has no style. My face is shiny when I don't wash it. C'mon people!Can't you see I am the PERFECT 40 year old candidate to be the star of my own k-drama??? Wait. I'm married. Ugh. Once again, a dish of reality and I was just SERVED.
Let's be honest here. Have you seen Eat, Pray, Love? If not, you should. I went to S. Korea with this little comparison in my mind. I wanted to eat, and so I did. I didn't really want to pray, but I did visit a buddhist temple in Busan because Teppy is a well-informed tourist. I didn't want to fall in love and start a new life because I am married, but I DID kind of want to fall in love in a clean, non scandalous kind of way, as confusing as it sounds. You see, in my mind, S. Korea is full of romance. The unexpected love story waiting to happen. Did I REALLY think that it would happen to me? No. But, I did hope. I wanted to meet the beautiful 40 year old (hell, I'd take 35) flower man who got swept off his feet by the 6 foot American girl who leaves him after 3 weeks with a photo and handshake after he buys her dinner and soju. You know, keeping it innocent and all. I wanted my own drama. I wanted to call someone oppa and freeze when he hugged me. THAT'S IT. I WAS GOING NO FURTHER THAN A HUG. Well, shit. Not only did I not find anyone to call oppa, I pretty much didn't speak to anyone other than Teppy during the whole 3 weeks we were there because people avoided us like the plague. Well, that's not true exactly. I did speak to several men while there, but none were were my idealized oppa. One was at the Namdaemun Market...he had a bra on his head and was selling women's clothing. Another was on a subway and was about 50 years old and told me that the state of Georgia has a lot of peanuts (after I told him I was from Georgia). The 3rd I didn't actually talk to....I waved at him. I was standing in a subway waiting on Teppy to use the facilities and this little old man came up to me and stopped and looked up at me (keep in mind I am 6 feet tall) and waved. I think he thought I was a Russian hooker. No lie. Unfortunately for him, I was most definitely not. Fortunately for me, Teppy walked out at the right time. So you see, we did interact with men. Just not men our age or height. Oh yeah, there was a group of military guys in Hongdae that took photos with us. They were cute. Short though. I WANT my 6 foot tall Lee Min Ho oppa!!! ARGH! WHERE THE HELL WERE THEY????
So, what about the picture above? Well, this cute little flower boy was on a subway train to Lotte World when Teppy and I were on our way to Coex Mall. It was our 1st day out and about in Seoul. He is the closest thing to being my Oppa in Korea. The whole 15 minutes I spent with him. He was young, but he was a cutey patootey.
So to sum it all up, every time I watch a drama, I am left feeling like my life is empty because I don't have an awesome tension filled romance like the dramas. Going to Korea hoping to find that drama and tension filled love is not real life and probablay will not happen to you either. I should also mention that even if it did happen, real life does not serve drama perfection men...you may end up with a woman beater like Ji Hoo Oppa (aka Kim Hyun Joong). It doesn't stop you from dreaming though, does it? wink wink
P.S. You know how in every drama you see the drunk chick and the poor guy is helping her walk or holding her up? THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENS IN KOREA! Teppy and I witnessed it more than once. Hongdae to be exact. In fact, I will need to delve into my video footage because I videotaped one crazy drunk chick getting off the subway and stumbling up the stairs with the aid of her oppa.