Wow, I found tea. But it's damn expensive.

I recently went on a trip to Seoul to have a wander around a few of the markets and I had a joyous time in one. Namdaemun market is a lot like other Asian markets; loud, full of odd smells, and ridiculously crowded. I enjoy almost all of it, except for one section that appears to exist only to sell roasted pigs trotters and cows feet (hooves, whatever you call them). Walking past them is rather gross and I expect in summer the accompanying smell will be really quite bad.

Namdaemun has an underground market where, in the past, my friend and I discovered alcohol stores that sell western liquors at reasonable prices. This time we explored a little deeper and I found English tea! It is highly expensive, at 5 squid for 25 bags, but it's good to know it's there as a safety net. My dear sweet mother is helping me out by sending me some every now and then in the post (which works out much cheaper), but I'm so happy to know I can go and grab some if that supply runs out.

I also found chocolate in that market - Cadburys! Granted, it was made in Australia, not Birmingham, but it tastes authentic.

So another good day, although all I bought was a bar of chocolate. I didn't indulge in many of my consumeristic impulses. Wow, I must be growing.

We went to see the new Leonardo DiCaprio film, Blood Diamond, which I would recommend to those not too squimish. It's not as good as Hotel Rwanda in terms of dealing with African nation atrocities, but it's worth a look. Just don't expect Leo's accent to be consistent, because it's not.
Another week of school has just begun, and so far it's going well. Let's just hope the young kids I have this afternoon don't spoil it.