Merry Christmas! I hope you had a great day. I figured I would drop you a line and let how know how things went over here.

Even though I really missed being home for the holiday, I tried to make the most of it and Christmas here was really great. As I probably mentioned before, a few months ago, Vivi was planning on spending Xmas in NJ with her brother, but then decided to spend it with me instead. Plus, Christmas is a big deal for couples here so she was really excited about it and had pretty high expectations.

Thus, I had two rules:
1. Don't screw it up.
2. Do as I'm told.

I managed to succeed on both counts and it was a very, very nice holiday.

Sunday we went to see "The Nutcracker". We wanted to see it on Xmas Eve or Xmas Day, but I waited too long to get tickets so it was sold out. Vivi's final exams ended Monday but Sunday was the only time I could go, so I bought tickets for that day. Even though she had tons of work to do, she managed to budget her time and I think she really needed a short break. Ballet is a good option for us because there's no words, so I don't have to worry about not understanding the language. And "The Nutcracker" is a pretty big production here, too. It was a very good performance and we both enjoyed it immensely.

Tuesday was Xmas Eve and we met in the neighborhood called Apgujeong ("Apgu" to those of us in the know), which is called "the Beverly Hills of Seoul". This is where the beautiful people spend far too much money on imported goods. Anyway, Vivi wanted to do some shopping for her dad there so we met at the big department store, which was mobbed. I wanted to avoid crowds but on Xmas Eve in Seoul, big crowds are inevitable.

I also needed to go to that store because that is where I bought "the couple ring" for Vivi, and I was sort of freaking out that I had bought one that was too small. She didn't know what I had bought her but she knew that it was "something she could wear" and I warned her that we might need to exchange it. So when we were sitting outside I gave her the ring. She was really surprised and she really loved it, though it turned out that the ring was too big, not too small. Go figure. In fact, mine is ALSO too big which is strange since it seemed to fit fine when I bought it!

We decided to go back to my apartment to finish exchanging gifts. Traffic was unreal. I have seen bad traffic here before but never like this. Even though it's less direct, we took the subway because we knew at least that we would get home within a reasonable amount of time. My roommate said that at one subway stop, people were literally lined up OUTSIDE the station trying to just get in, let alone to get onto a train. Crazy. Anyway, I gave Vivi a few other small gifts and she gave me a really nice cashmere scarf (which happens to match the suit that she really likes).

We had a bit of a "talk" about the rings and their significance. It didn't go completely smoothly because I think Vivi was a little surprised to get the ring (I guess it's something you get on your 100 day anniversary, which is also a big deal here and is Jan 26 for us). Also, she doesn't usually WEAR rings so she said it felt kind of weird. I was afraid that she didn't want to wear the ring because it was too soon in our relationship, or that she didn't want people (read: her parents) to know we are "a couple". But she assured me that it was simply a matter of "having something on her hand". By the end of the night, she said she had gotten used to it so it's no longer a problem.

Later that night we went to a French restaurant that Vivi found on the Internet. It was very small and tucked away in a quiet little neighborhood. The restaurant was very quiet and very romantic and the food was fantastic. There were actually some French people there, too, which I guess lends a bit of credit to the place.

On Christmas morning it was actually snowing a bit, but just a flurry. No accumulation. I hung out with my roommate and then had lunch with Vivi. Stores are open on Christmas and are usually pretty crowded with people doing more shopping. So we stayed away from the mall and the big department stores. After lunch we watched "Charlie Brown Christmas" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", neither of which Vivi had ever seen. A friend from work was having a party at his apartment and we planned on going to that but Vivi was tired and took a nap. The nap lasted a lot longer than planned and so we skipped the party and ended up just staying at home and watching TV.

I can't really say that it "felt like Christmas" but even though I couldn't be with my family and friends, I had a good holiday. I guess I wish I could have been there even just for a short while, but I called my dad's that night and that was pretty nice.

Anyway, today was back to school and back to work, just like any ordinary day. Things will get a lot quieter for me starting this weekend, though. My roommate is heading back to the US for a while starting on Saturday, and then on Monday Vivi is going away for three weeks to teach at an "English language camp" outside of Seoul. Plus I have no language class next week, and I only have to teach three days. So it will be a little bit of a break for me, and I suspect I'll end up watching a lot of TV and sleeping a lot.

I miss you a lot and I hope that you had a great Christmas. Take care!!

Chris