Wish You Were Here

It is currently 12:44 a.m. and I can't sleep at all. It has been nonstop since the last time I wrote. As you know I had my retrieval. I have made a few friends at the hospital, if you want to call them that, from the Philippines and Scandinavia. The ladies are on the same schedule I am on for IVF. When I went to the hospital on Thursday morning, I saw the lady from the Philippines leaving and she looked miserable. I asked her if it hurt, and she said the shots did but she got the anesthesia. I also opted for that route. However, I completely freaked myself out and tried begging the nurses to sedate me before the shots. They said they couldn't and I had the shots anyway. It felt like a life sized bee stung on my behind. While I waited in the waiting room, I could hear a woman screaming. I was then rethinking my options. Do I stay or do I leave? I stayed. They put a mask over my face. I thought I was talking, but then all of a sudden I was awake in one of the hospital beds. I didn't feel anything during the procedure. However, afterwards was a different case. Before I was discharged they gave me another shot. I had to go to the pharmacy and get four different prescriptions. I have to take them three times a day and some of the pills are in packets. I feel like I took at least 20 pills. When I left. Dr. Lee said I had twelve eggs and eleven survived. Now I hope they survived in the lab, because I am going back to the hospital today to get the eggs implanted. That is why I cannot sleep. I know I should, but I am wide awake.

Soo and the girls and I met up with one of Soo's college friends, Sun. We went to Ilsan and went shopping at a mall that had golf, bowling, and a giant water park. Afterwards we met one of Junggi's colleagues, MiYoung, at the college. She was a professor at Oregon State and now is a professor here in Seoul. The Hong's, MiYoung, and I went to another traditional Korean restaurant. I took pictures but I can't load them on here tonight. We had the best soup. I am not the wildest about kimchi, but this soup was amazing and it was made with kimchi. It's called kimchi jigae. There was a burner in the middle of the table and a huge pot of soup that goes on top. They turned on the flame and your soup was boiling hot. The soup had mandoo, beef, all sorts of vegetables, noodles, and a tasty broth. I wasn't hungry, but I couldn't stop eating. It was almost ten and they asked me if I wanted to go to a cafe. I said, "right now?" It just seemed so late to be hanging out, but that is truly the culture here. The Hong's are leaving for New York tomorrow. MiYoung and I are supposed to go out to lunch or dinner next week. I guess I am going to steal all of my brother and sister in laws friends, since they are not here. :)

This part is really crazy. Today I found out that there is a huge Korean Adoptees Convention here this week. Over 500 adoptees are attending seminars and gatherings here in Seoul. I met up with a few of them and they were so nice. Some of the people were from Sweden, Germany, and America. One of the girls, Cristina, is a kindergarten teacher in Hawaii. We hit it off instantly. She even wants to meet up when I have a layover in Hawaii. I have never been around so many people like me. Everyone was hanging out, but I didn't want to get home late, since I am a guest. I got here at around 11:00 p.m. and no one was here. The family is shopping right now at one of the markets. It sounds wild, but it is totally normal. I saw a sign that said, bar open until 8:00a.m. Crazy right? 

I know I am jumping around, but there is so much to tell. I started tutoring today at the college. The students were very polite, kind, and fun to be around. We are going out to lunch on Monday. I can't believe how many people I have met and have really enjoyed their company. I wish you could meet all of the interesting people I have had the opportunity to meet. I think about how blessed I am to have my wonderful family, amazing friends, and so many people that I love and they love me back. Although I love being here, I couldn't imagine growing up here without any of you. Thank you for loving me. :)