Partying in Itaewon

Last night was Rob's last night in Korea. I guess being the beginning of the western academic year, there's a lot of teacher turn-over at this time of year. Anyway, we went to Itaewon for a final drink and a dance.

In my whole time here I don't think I've ever really talked about Itaewon. Maybe there's a reason for that. When I first arrived in Korea I didn't go there much; the one time I went in the daytime I got really freaked out that a) I could understand people's conversations on the streets, and b) with that in mind, they could probably understand mine too.

Living out in the suburbs of Seoul it's rare that I meet another foreigner on the street in day-to-day life. If I do, we'll probably acknowledge one another, keeping up the united minority front. In Itaewon, the foreign district of Korea, I'm more likely to shy away from all other foreigners. I know I AM one, but en masse I guess we can be intimidating.

Actually it's not probably not that different to being at home. Hoards of drunk people in the evenings are intimidating wherever you go, especially when you're not drunk and by yourself. But getting back to England and understanding EVERYTHING is going to be weird.

Anyway other than this, Itaewon just doesn't seem to have the same standards of cleanliness than the rest of central Seoul. It just seems dirty (possibly with coke bottles and KFC wrappers floating on the streets). I kind of feel I might get a rat across my feet down the side alleys.

Still, these days I come here at least once a week to dance salsa (there's a seedy little salsa bar called Caliente, predominantly full of expats doing their thing on a Saturday night) and to hang out with my Korean and western friends alike without any pressure to speak Korean.

I guess people like coming here because everyone speaks English and you know what you're getting. I guess that's why I (and a lot of other foreigners) don't.