A Tale of Two Trips

These past two weekends I found myself going to Daegu (3rd largest city of 3.5 mil) on back to back weekends where there is a big US Army base, and hence a BIG Costco Wholesale Club. The first trip was on a Saturday with Sarah, Lisa, and Jo (3 women) and myself. This started out innocently enough at first, until we got off at the wrong exit and proceeded to get lost for about 1 hour. Up to this point their was already enough drama, whining, bitching, complaining about everything under the sun. I just sat in the back of the car, quietly, not saying a word because I felt that my optimistic, rosy, positive outlook on life in Korea would really be a damper on their "pity party" and I didn't want to spoil all the "evidently" fun time they were having complaining about everything. At one point, while we were hopelessly lost & confused driving around Daegu, trying to find our way to Costco, I put my iPod headphones and listened to my music. After 2 hours in the car we finally got there. It was a HUGE relief to be able to get out the car and do some shopping. I bought a HUGE container of Salsa, 2 fresh tubs of guacamole, a big bag of almonds, pasta, fresh tomato sauce, ravioli, frozen veggies, etc. I was able to satisfy my Italian food craving at Costco. I really like Korean food, but after having it everyday, you want a little variety, some cuisine from another culture. What I really miss about Hoboken is the VAST array of food selection available. Everything from Indian, Italian, Mexican, Thai, Japanese, Chinese, etc. And who can forget the BIGGEST & BEST pizza slices in all of NJ at Benny Tudino's!!!! There have been times here when I've dreamt of having a nice, warm, juicy, slice of Benny's pies. Unfortunately I will have to wait a long time before I can enjoy one of those slices again.
So needless to say, I was very glad to get home from Costco after spending nearly 5 hours in the car & shopping with 3 women. Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE women, I adore, respect, and admire women, and it's a fact that men can have an entirely different conversations when they are around other men then when they are in mixed company. There are certain ways we (men) have to be when we are amongst women, that we don't have to worry about when we are with only men. I guess what I'm realizing is how much I'm really missing being away from my Men's Team, and having an outlet where I can go be with other men for 3 hours once a week, and deal with all the "stuff" we need to get rid of & handle as men. Not having a group a powerful, masculine, men to reach out to, be in contact with on a regular basis, and to share my "stuff" (fears, anxieties, emotions, concerns, etc) with is a REAL MISSING for me in my life right now. I'm trying to be more involved, and in communication with my Men's Team (Team BITE) from back home. I even had the pleasure of listening into the team meeting for a full 2 1/2 hours last week. I was so great to listen in via speaker phone, to contribute, and to get a bit of the juice, energy & excitement I get from being around so many masculine men that are all committed to becoming better men (husbands, fathers, sons, teacher, professionals, etc) in their lives. It's truly an inspiring honor & privilege to be around these men.
So my second trip to Costco the following weekend was 100% times smoother. I went with Mick, Patrick, his wife, and myself. We got there NO PROBLEM in less than 1 hour!!! What a HUGE difference. I bought winter socks, gloves, dried cherries, fresh salmon, pasta Alfredo, canned tuna & salmon, etc. We ate lunch there and drove home smoothly. I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation in the car on the way up & on the way back. At the rest stop on the way there, I tried a hot herbal drink which is made from tree bark. It was Gosh awfully terrible tasting. I could hardly finish a lil dixie cup sized sample. I don't know how the Koreans could drink this stuff in bulk, especially 2 liters jugs of it that they were selling.
After we returned from Daegu that Sunday, I went to the Bath House/Sauna here in Miryang to soak my tired & achy body in the hot tubs, sauna & steam room. I was so sore & tired b/c the day before, on Saturday we (16 English teachers) played a fun game of touch Rugby for about 1 1/2 hours before going hiking at Pychungsa Temple later that day. We started the hike at 2:15pm and didn't return until 6pm. Nearly 4 hours of an intense, grueling hike up mountainous rocks and steep hills. It was great fun being out there with a group of 10 Westerners. I just continue to thoroughly enjoy myself every time I go to Bath House because of the fun and different experiences I have there. Since it was a weekend, it was rather crowded there with Korean men and lots a young Korean boys running around naked jumping in & out of pools. They have so many great facilities to shower, shave, sleep, swim, soak in tub, etc. I especially enjoyed watching one man taking a shower, while brushing his teeth & at the same time taking a piss in the lone urinal that is located within the the shower stalls. Talk about multi-tasking!!!! It was definitely a sight to see!!