Day 400: You Know What They Say About Guys With Big Feet...

Today was a busy, busy day! But also a really fun, action-packed one too!

Addie and I rolled into the city today to go and have some brunch, but not before making a pit stop at the foreign foods store here in Ilsan. I had never been but had heard about it from coworkers, and man was it ever awesome! I went their with a specific mission of buying some dill pickles for my buddy Luke who I would be meeting up with later (he has a penchant for dills, and can't find any in Chungju where he lives) but it was hard not to get distracted by all the goodies there. I made a serious mental note to return here soon to stock up my own cupboard with foreign treats, but didn't leave without picking up a Toblerone chocolate bar for myself and some Mrs.Butterworth syrup for Michael. Mmmm....Mrs.Butterworth....

Addie and I had brunch at the Rocky Mountain Tavern in Itaewon and it was great. They only have one thing on their breakfast menu but it kicks major ass. Eggs, bacon (of course I didn't eat any!), hashbrowns, toast, and coffee. It's like morning sex on a plate covered in ketchup! YUM! After brunch we went to Starbucks to grab a coffee and meet up with Luke. We also ran into Cora, who I haven't seen in forever and a day, so the four of us spent some time chatting away before hitting Itaewon to do some shopping. We went to the Thai/Turkish/Indian foreign food store there, made a pit stop at What The Book, and then went on to go and try and find some shoes for me.

I'm in the market for a shoe that's a hybrid between a hiker and a running shoe for my trip. Something that's light and comfortable and breathable so I can walk around Bangkok and Jakarta and Shanghai all day and not get weighed down, yet also traipse through the jungles of Vietnam or scamper up the slopes of Indonesian volcanoes and have the support needed so I don't break my ankle. Sounds like a tall order, but these shoes *are* out there. Luke did some research and there's plenty of companies out there that make these really cool shoes.

Now comes the problem, which has unfortunately become all-too familiar for me here in Korea. I can find shoes I like, just none that fit me. Now at a size 12 I've got fairly large feet (*wink wink*) but I mean, come on, it's not like they're monster ginormous feet or anything like that! There are other foreigners out there with bigger feet than mine. So how the hell are we supposed to buy shoes? Well "not anywhere in Korea" is perhaps the answer. We went to tons of stores, including Nike, Adidas, New Balance, NorthFace, and Columbia, and didn't have any luck at any of the stores. Argh!

I really do need these shoes!!! How the hell am I gonna find some? We found the style that we needed at several of the stores, but none in the size I wear. Apparently no one in Korea wears shoes bigger than size 10.5? *sigh* I really don't know what to do, cause I've got weird feet and don't often find shoes that fit comfortably right off the bat, otherwise I'd just order some online. I don't have a whole lot of options though...if the shoe stores in foreigner-oriented Itaewon don't carry my size, no one in Korea will!

After our failed attempt at shoe acquisition, we made a stop at Yongsan and then went off to meet up with Katie and Jessica for dinner. The two girls were nearly an hour late for dinner, but we still had an amazing meal at this Indian restaurant in Dondaemun that none of us had ever been to. It was incredible! Great menu, fair prices, and very delicious food! God, I love Indian food!! We're definitely gonna come back here sometime.

After dinner we went to a nearby bar for a drink, and then split up. The girls went home to Ilsan, Luke went back to Chungju, and then Michael and I made our way to Sincheon. We went to my favourite place to bathe myself in gin 'n tonic - The Bar - to meet up with Pauline, Y-S, and Paul. The five of us had a great night as always (I've never had a bad night there!) and stayed out pretty late. They even played four of the five songs that I requested!! (Love Shack, Beat It, She Bop, and Hey Ya!) I mean it just doesn't get any better than that! Beaucoup de beverages later Michael and Y-S headed off for another bar and I went and crashed at Pauline's. Now that she lives just around the corner I really don't have to travel far to find a place to spend the night after a night out on the town! Right on!