Today was really pleasant

I started my day by listening to Ariel Pink's song The Doldrums. I listened to it maybe 3 or 4 times.
After that, I went to Incheon by subway and then bus. I always love riding the bus, because the world goes by like a motion pictures. I can sit and watch. I left my apartment around 9:something AM.

And here is what I did today:

I first met Aram then climbed the mountain named Gyesan 桂山! Even if it's just a tiny mountain in Korea, it was still really challenging for me. She brought a nice backpack and I wore some new shoes I reluctantly bought last night. My feet hurt after all the walking, so, I can only imagine how bad they would hurt if it were not for my better fitting shoes... I was covered in sweat by the time we came back down the mountain. At the top of Gyesan the view was nice and clear. I could see the Incheon harbor from the top, so I got to see the ocean. These days I am so pleased to not have a camera. Without a camera, I am forced to just sit and enjoy the moment now, filling myself with it. I can remember more clearly without one, sometimes. Soon I think I will want a camera, though. 
After Gyesan, we had a surprise lunch with my girlfriend's dad! It was our first meeting. We ate memil (buckwheat) noodles and some memil makgeolli (kind of effervescent rice wine) at a very nice restaurant off the main path. He was really kind and bought our lunch and talked with me. ^^
Next, I wanted to find some comma-shaped earrings (also known as 曲玉 to some people, or half of a yin-yang...) at the Bupyeong underground market, but we had no success at all. I saw some last week at a stall in Bupyeong and but, for some random reason, probably their price, I didn't buy them. I regret it now, but, I will find them again someday! (I've started wearing earrings again on the weekend and after work...) 
I am such a fussy shopper that I refuse to buy anything that isn't extremely simple, but subtly unique and precious. Aram is really understanding about my peculiar standards, so she can help me really well, especially in the hectic, confusing, and labyrinthine stretches of department stores and shopping centers. Instead of earrings, however, I did find some Korean puzzle magazines for children. I love word searches and silly little things to make me use Hangeul. I think 4-5 years is my Korean age at the moment. It allows me the opportunity to learn semi-useless words (at least for daily conversation)

such as "Baekche Cultural Section" or "Clinical Physiology" or "Ethnicity Erasure Doctrine" or "Apollo Eye Syndrome"  ...  you get the point.

After the underground market, we went to Caffe Bene, a Korean coffee shop chain. There I had some kind of expensive (7,000 won, which is actually pretty normal here) "hand drip coffee." I didn't know what it was, but it was just like regular drip coffee. Which was heavenly! Compared with all the Cafe Americano and espresso drinks I've been imbibing lately, it was deliciously full-bodied. Pure black, strong, bitter, but also sweet underneath it all. I think the beans were Ethiopian, but that doesn't mean much to me. It was the first good cup of coffee I've had in a while.
Then I bought some expensive ginseng at a department store, then I ate some super spicy chicken feet (鳳爪!) with the bones still inside, and went to another coffee shop, then I came home and listened to Animal Collective.
Oh, and I started reading Crime and Punishment today, too. Then I went to bed at 11:16 PM. It was a good day. I will sleep in tomorrow.