Meeting with the Major

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to get invited to dinner with a GW Alumnus stationed here in Seoul. He is a Major in the US army, so I was particularly excited when applying. Out of all the applicants (I think there were six), four were selected. This was kinda awkward because all of the GW crew at KU applied, and two people didn't get it. Woof. But at least I got to go!

The Major's apartment was about 2 blocks from Seoul Station, so we got off there around 6:30 and began walking towards his apartment complex. It was beautiful. Enormous glass towers in the shadow of Namsan Tower. If you don't know what that is, stay tuned.

The apartment building was brand new. By that Imean we stepped into the lobby, walked to the desk, which still had some painters' tape on it, and were pointed to the elevator by a guy whose nametag didn't yet have a name on it. The elevator had the plastic on the walls and there was a ton of hangul written on it in big industrial sharpie. So yeah, it was THAT new. But boy was it nice. The mailboxes were all stylish stainless steel and there were even lockers for large packages. Call me crazy, but I thought that was cool. The foyer was also marble with nice couches. They kept the lobby nice for people looking at apartments I guess.

The Major lived on the 21st floor, and when we got off all the hall lights were out. The only illumination was the exit sign, which is green over here. This place is backwards (kidding, I really like it here). We rang the LG doorbell, which played "No Place Like Home" and the Major invited us in.

The apartment was beautiful, huge closets in the hallway (turns out they were just for shoes. His wife LOVED that part), hardwood floors, a great big window overlooking Seoul, and a really new kitchen. His living room had a monstrous entertainment center and some couches that looked strangely out of place. When we commented on how nice the apartment looked, his wife immediately said "They're army issue couches, this place isn't as nice as it could be." We all laughed, and talked to the Major and his wife about ourselves, them, and life in Seoul.

They were great. Jeff (He said he gets called Major all day at work), was really funny. He told us about his time at GW and all the things he did as an undergrad. His RA was an art therapy major so he got to paint his part of the hallway like a jungle with birds and monkeys. He played in the varsity band and got to travel with the basketball team, which was apparently good when he was at GW, because he went to a whole lot of cities with the team. He hinted at some fun times on Bourbon Street when GW played Tulane, but left a lot to the imagination. His wife swam in college and made fun of him for being a band geek. They were really funny together and the six of us had a great time talking while dinner was being made.

Marci, the Major's wife, made us a fantastic home-cooked meal. She figured we'd miss American food and so she made us baked ziti, steak, broccoli, and garlic bread. More importantly, we got forks and regular sized napkins! The dinner was amazing. It had been about two months since I ate any home-cooked meals here, Korean, American or otherwise. It was also nice to have cheese that wasn't a melted Kraft single on top of noodles. But hey, I love Korean food. It's just nice to get a taste of home.

Jeff then told us about the benefits of being a part of the GW Alumni association, saying that they never ask for money and that they're technically separate from the university. He said they do good things for the students, and he said it's a really good way to make a difference in students' lives. Hell, he was doing that for us right now. I'd love to do the same some day.

He answered some of my questions about engineering (he's not an engineer, but he knows a lot of them here in Seoul), and one question I had a bout a piece he had in his house; the two blue star service flag. It was his grandmother's flag when his two uncles were fighting in WWII. His father was at West Point during the war and graduated right about when it ended, but his father insisted that his star did not deserve to be put next to his two brothers who were in combat. Each star was hand stitched onto the flag. Lots of emotions in that one flag.

The time flew by, and before we knew it it was 10. Before we left Marci took some pictures of us all together. The one below is the serious one we took, but we also took one where we did Korean stuff like peace signs and that thing when girls frame their faces. The Major said his men would die laughing if they saw him doing something so Korean.

America style

It was a Friday night, and we weren't really in any mood to go to bed, so we looked around for something to do. Within minutes, we found somewhere to go.

Namsung Tower 

 It was a short cab ride, but a monstrous hike up the mountain to the tower. Apparently there was a cable car, but I didn't want to spend $5 to do something that could get done for free.

Here are some pictures from the hike up, and then at the tower.

Actual Size: Me and Koreans

 We didn't go all the way to the top of the tower because we're cheap bastards. It was also closed. But for $25, I can afford not to look at stuff. It was a really fun night, and even nicer to meet GW alumni that care about the students. Jeff was a really cool guy and I hope to see him again in Seoul. I'm always down for another baseball game.