Let me sing the praises of TAs

Here's the first set of pictures my friend took of us running around Korea: Mahmoud's photos.

The young Korean woman who has a big profile picture in the set is my TA, Hana. She wanted to go out to eat last night, but it turned into a big thing with all of the professors and most of the TAs. We had amazing food and a really good time. Afterwards, she took a much smaller group of TAs and professors to a cocktail bar. All the cocktail names are English, but good luck with your order. Hana recommended something called a Scarlett O'Hara, which was very fruity. I tried ordering an amaretto sour, but the bartender and Hana got into a discussion, and apparently he was explaining that there are three different ways to make an amaretto sour. I don't remember the third, but I chose something with citron, and the TA next to me chose the melon one. I have no idea what was in our drinks. It was not an amaretto sour, but it was tasty anyway.

That's me with my "amaretto sour" and Rebekah with her Scarlett O'Hara

Tonight we went out again, with some of the professors and TAs, to get sushi. We all ordered the same thing, to make it easier, meaning I got some good sushi, and some things I didn't like, but it was a good time. The TAs are all amazing people. We keep paying for them when we go out. Some of them are happy to accept it, but Sara's TA, Hosanna, was saying she felt bad about it. We explained that in America, TAs make very poor money, and professors make more, so they treat their students.

Hana is next to me, and the other TAs are scattered around.

The TAs are the best thing about this trip, I think. They've been giving us tours of stores and the area near campus, explaining Korean language, culture, and food, and generally being the nicest people we know in Korea. Hosanna said it's fun, and I'm glad she thinks so, because this trip might have sucked a lot if they hadn't been around to shepherd us and be our friends.

At the cocktail bar, the TAs were telling us how to write our names in Korean, and how the Korean alphabet works, drinking games in Korean, music, and so on. And we taught them about Never Have I Ever, and we all enjoyed American music, hate writing Greek letters, and like eating the crunchy stuff they give you in bowls at bars. It was everything I wanted out of my Korean trip.