I finally got a new phone at the end of February...just in time for my trip to Daegu. Daegu is towards the south eastern part of South Korea, right above Busan. It took about four hours by train to get there. I had planned to wake up early and get there in time to do some sight seeing but once I woke up I realized that I should use my time off to relax a little more. I woke up just to book a later train and go back to sleep. By the time I arrived in Daegu it was late at night. The city had an overall unpleasant odor that I couldn't shake the whole time I was there...and no, it wasn't me. I think that their sewer system has some sort of flaw because every time I passed by a grate I was double smacked by this city odor. This was only my first impression but in no way made me think that it would be a bad city. The city uses their own transit card, which caught me off guard. I had to find cash to get this card to ride the train but I could not find an ATM that would take my bank card. I did start to panic a little bit because it was late and I didn't know what else to do with no cash. I walked and walked and finally stumbled across an ATM tucked away in a corner in an underground shopping center. I could finally make my way to my hostel.
I was so thankful that the hostel was easy enough to walk to from the station. Right when I turned the corner I could hear smooth jazz billowing out from the building. It felt very welcoming to walk in to such a chill environment with people enjoying their wine while listening to good music. Of course I was hungry by the time I arrived. After getting settled in my room, I went back to the jazz cafe to try to order food. Unfortunately, they had a very limited selection and the dish I chose was not good (unless you like eating mushrooms soaked in egg and bread). It was still nice because a lady saw me sitting alone and invited me to sit with her. We had a long chat while listening to the music. We even planned to meet up the next day at the Black History Month Festival but since my phone was so new I could not receive or make calls yet using my phone. I could only use the free WiFi when I could find it. When the music stopped it was about time for me to also call it a night.
I shared a room with two other Korean girls. When I got ready to go the
next day I came out to find that they had made breakfast for me! It was
so sweet of them. I chatted with them while we ate breakfast and found
out they were nurses from an area near Busan. They also came to tour
Daegu.
Cool Golden Pot Ashtrays
WIGS!!!
I left early enough that I would be able to visit the Daegu Art museum and make it to the festival by the time it starts...or so I thought. The museum was great and convenient to get to because they had a free shuttle van to and from it. It was two floors of diverse work from sculpture installations, abstract painting, traditional paintings and popular prints and covers. After I left and made my way back to the main area I started walking aimlessly believing the festival would be obvious. I walked following a Google navigation app. When I got to the place marked on the map nothing was there. I even stopped in Starbucks along the way believing they would point me in the right direction but they didn't understand what I was saying. I made my way back towards my hostel but decided to give asking for directions another try. This time the people in the coffee shop got out of their seats and went out of their way to point me in the right direction. I continued asking people along the way to make sure I was going in the right direction and everyone was so nice to show me the way. I finally made it...and just as I arrived it began to drizzle. Even in the cold and rain I was happy I made it and I only missed half the show.
The festival was great because it showcased a wide range of art forms common in African American culture. The one thing I was surprised about is how much of it was in Korean. Even though the host was a popular African TV star in Korea, he spoke mostly in Korean along with a co-host who was Korean. The show was catered to Koreans. I guess that's understandable since the black community in Korea is small and they want a lot of people to come. I am not sure it made a difference to the Koreans one way or the other because a lot of them just happened to be walking by and didn't know what they were watching. They didn't learn anything from it in regards to Black history but why would they? How could they in that type of setting? It was purely for entertainment.
Host Sam Okyere
I tried to mingle with the people sitting around me but with my small attempts I did not meet any new friends. I was talking to one girl who seemed nice but she was just in Daegu for the festival and was leaving right afterwards to her home in Ulsan about an hour away. It was too bad because it would have been nice to eat dinner with someone there. I was still excited to see if they had anything new in this downtown area. I quickly found a cool looking restaurant near the festival area. It had a diverse western food menu including jambalaya, which I have not seen anywhere in Korea. I just HAD to try it. I was so excited and then they brought me my order and I was so disappointed. I went from high to low in one instant. It was not jambalaya but more like cheesy spicy rice with little bits of chicken. I didn't eat it, paid and left. I figured a good plan b would be to go to the big department store where they might have a food court level and go see a movie. After looking at pictures of the movies they had playing, I realized there was nothing I wanted to see and I should just go back to my hostel early. Along the way I found a Korean restaurant and got my usual favorite meal, don katsu aka pork cutlet. It was soooo delicious and so much cheaper than that jambalaya I didn't even eat. The owner did not speak any English but she was really friendly and kept trying to communicate with me. It was an interesting exchange between two people who don't speak each others language. I was really glad I found that place!
The restaurant was only a couple of blocks from the hostel so I got back really early. I thought maybe I would just warm up and then go back out since downtown was not that far way. I didn't want to go to bed at 8:00. Not to long after relaxing in the room, a girl came but I could not tell if she was one of the girls from earlier so I just figured she was. It was not long until I realized she was a different girl and my previous roommates had already left. Then, a couple of older women came barging in all loud, surveying the room. My nice, peaceful rest for the weekend was short lived because they stayed up late talking the night away. On top of that, the bed was harder than the floor so it was hard to fall asleep. I thought maybe the ladies would get up later since they stayed up so late but they were up early. Since the hostel was set up in a suite style with only one bathroom, I didn't think it would be comfortable to stay and eat breakfast before getting ready to go. I jumped out of bed, threw on my coat (since I slept in my clothes) and left! Those women were too much for me. I got to the super cold train station way too early because of my impatience to leave the hostel but I guess that's what I deserved. Daegu was nice but I was happy to be on my way back home.
I finally got a new phone at the end of February...just in time for my trip to Daegu. Daegu is towards the south eastern part of South Korea, right above Busan. It took about four hours by train to get there. I had planned to wake up early and get there in time to do some sight seeing but once I woke up I realized that I should use my time off to relax a little more. I woke up just to book a later train and go back to sleep. By the time I arrived in Daegu it was late at night. The city had an overall unpleasant odor that I couldn't shake the whole time I was there...and no, it wasn't me. I think that their sewer system has some sort of flaw because every time I passed by a grate I was double smacked by this city odor. This was only my first impression but in no way made me think that it would be a bad city. The city uses their own transit card, which caught me off guard. I had to find cash to get this card to ride the train but I could not find an ATM that would take my bank card. I did start to panic a little bit because it was late and I didn't know what else to do with no cash. I walked and walked and finally stumbled across an ATM tucked away in a corner in an underground shopping center. I could finally make my way to my hostel.
I was so thankful that the hostel was easy enough to walk to from the station. Right when I turned the corner I could hear smooth jazz billowing out from the building. It felt very welcoming to walk in to such a chill environment with people enjoying their wine while listening to good music. Of course I was hungry by the time I arrived. After getting settled in my room, I went back to the jazz cafe to try to order food. Unfortunately, they had a very limited selection and the dish I chose was not good (unless you like eating mushrooms soaked in egg and bread). It was still nice because a lady saw me sitting alone and invited me to sit with her. We had a long chat while listening to the music. We even planned to meet up the next day at the Black History Month Festival but since my phone was so new I could not receive or make calls yet using my phone. I could only use the free WiFi when I could find it. When the music stopped it was about time for me to also call it a night.
I shared a room with two other Korean girls. When I got ready to go the
next day I came out to find that they had made breakfast for me! It was
so sweet of them. I chatted with them while we ate breakfast and found
out they were nurses from an area near Busan. They also came to tour
Daegu. 
I left early enough that I would be able to visit the Daegu Art museum and make it to the festival by the time it starts...or so I thought. The museum was great and convenient to get to because they had a free shuttle van to and from it. It was two floors of diverse work from sculpture installations, abstract painting, traditional paintings and popular prints and covers. After I left and made my way back to the main area I started walking aimlessly believing the festival would be obvious. I walked following a Google navigation app. When I got to the place marked on the map nothing was there. I even stopped in Starbucks along the way believing they would point me in the right direction but they didn't understand what I was saying. I made my way back towards my hostel but decided to give asking for directions another try. This time the people in the coffee shop got out of their seats and went out of their way to point me in the right direction. I continued asking people along the way to make sure I was going in the right direction and everyone was so nice to show me the way. I finally made it...and just as I arrived it began to drizzle. Even in the cold and rain I was happy I made it and I only missed half the show. 
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The festival was great because it showcased a wide range of art forms common in African American culture. The one thing I was surprised about is how much of it was in Korean. Even though the host was a popular African TV star in Korea, he spoke mostly in Korean along with a co-host who was Korean. The show was catered to Koreans. I guess that's understandable since the black community in Korea is small and they want a lot of people to come. I am not sure it made a difference to the Koreans one way or the other because a lot of them just happened to be walking by and didn't know what they were watching. They didn't learn anything from it in regards to Black history but why would they? How could they in that type of setting? It was purely for entertainment.
I tried to mingle with the people sitting around me but with my small attempts I did not meet any new friends. I was talking to one girl who seemed nice but she was just in Daegu for the festival and was leaving right afterwards to her home in Ulsan about an hour away. It was too bad because it would have been nice to eat dinner with someone there. I was still excited to see if they had anything new in this downtown area. I quickly found a cool looking restaurant near the festival area. It had a diverse western food menu including jambalaya, which I have not seen anywhere in Korea. I just HAD to try it. I was so excited and then they brought me my order and I was so disappointed. I went from high to low in one instant. It was not jambalaya but more like cheesy spicy rice with little bits of chicken. I didn't eat it, paid and left. I figured a good plan b would be to go to the big department store where they might have a food court level and go see a movie. After looking at pictures of the movies they had playing, I realized there was nothing I wanted to see and I should just go back to my hostel early. Along the way I found a Korean restaurant and got my usual favorite meal, don katsu aka pork cutlet. It was soooo delicious and so much cheaper than that jambalaya I didn't even eat. The owner did not speak any English but she was really friendly and kept trying to communicate with me. It was an interesting exchange between two people who don't speak each others language. I was really glad I found that place! 