To Market, to Market!

I got a free tour of Seosan today, lucky me... OK, actually boss boss, Harrison, took me on a short ride around town today, after the 12:00 staff meeting. Although I'm still staying with my host family for a few more days, I've been anxious to start getting my bearings, learn a few essentials -- namely, where to get money and food.We started with a drive past my apartment (which is literally a 3-minute walk from the school, very convenient, and just opposite a small corner market selling a few groceries). A quick right turn took us to a hill, and after a quick up, over and down, we crossed a busy road and turned right again to reach the one of Seosan's main drags.Just near the corner is Seosan-mart where I will, I suppose, do most of my grocery shopping. Lined along both sides of this road, which leads to a 6-spoke traffic circle (and the point through which all traffic entering Seosan must
navigate) are myriad shops and stores, including an organic foods market, a stationery shop, the post office, and the bank. We quickly walked through several of the shops, and managed to grab a quick bite to eat at the Paris Bakery (one of two French-named bakery chains in town) -- a yeast bread sprinkled with chunks of sweet potato and a bottle of chilled soya milk.As we walked back towards the car, Harrison and I stopped at Seosan's local market, which was, for me, the most exciting. Gigantic, colorful umbrellas formed a canopy of shade above the dozens of vendors ready to make a sale.
Women sat or squatted alongside bulging baskets of leafy greens and exotic-looking fruits. This is the place to buy fruits and vegetables, Harrison informed me, as the prices are best, and everything is locally grown and very fresh. I felt dozens of eyes boring into me, a foreign woman who no doubt looked very out of place in this microcosm of traditional Korea. The next section of the market was lively -- tank after tank of live fish, octopus, crab -- you name it, still swimming, crawling, and moving about. We made a U-turn at that point, as it was time to head back to school for classes. I'm looking forward soon to taking another trip to the local market... but perhaps first, I should learn at least a few words of Korean... haggling for a good price is the name of the game in a market like this!