Driving through the city, looking out from my hotel room, Seoul doesn't seem all that foreign.  It feels like a city - any number of cities.  It doesn't even seem like that large of a city, though it ranks in the top ten in the world with over 10 million people.  The flight was weird; no time seemed to elapse.  The sun was in more or less the same place in the sky the whole time, in spite of the enforced nighttime ("Please close the window, sir").  I dozed, and read the whole way, and went to sleep at 9pm local time (take that jet lag!).  Woke up at 6:30 - I don't think my sleep schedule will need too much adjusting.  A fun cultural moment - it took me about ten minutes to figure out how to turn the lights on in my hotel room.  I found what looked like the switches, and flipped them, but they weren't doing anything.  Rather than looking like a complete noob, I closed my door, and wandered about using my laptop screen as a flashlight.  I was almost to the point of deciding to just go to sleep and never mind the lights when I found it - just inside the door is a slot in which the room key fits.  The lights will only work if your room key is sitting in that slot.  Score one for BP, the stranger in a strange land.

Did I mention that I arrived a day earlier than I was supposed to?  I apparently got the dates mixed up, so today I can basically do whatever I want.  Ben Hale will be by to pick me up at 9, but when I talked to him yesterday, he was like, "Umm...I guess we'll do...something."  I figure I should probably check out of the hotel before others so as not to cost the school an extra night.  My roomie says he'll be at the apartment, so I'm hoping to move in as soon as possible.  I'm also wondering if I'll have time to meet up with Jimmy, Sooyoung, or anyone else. 

Apparently yesterday, and seemingly today, have been vastly more clear than usual - there has been a lack of the haze that typically dominates the skyline.  A good time to take advantage of camera use.  Of course then I'll look like a gawking tourist, but, let's face it, I still am.  There are a lot of cool bridges in Seoul (it's centered on a river), so I hope I can get pictures of those too.

That's all I've got for now.  Looking forward to seeing those I met at PFO again and meeting everyone else!

By the way, there are three other Bens here...I'm going to have to train myself not to perk up anytime someone says "Ben".

peace,
Bennett