Hamsters, taekwondo and dog meat

It has been a very interesting week.  Last Saturday, Gwen took me to E-mart to buy some hamsters.  I ended up getting 2 dwarf hamsters and named them Hammy and Samster.  I'm pretty sure they are sisters because they look exactly the same.  I don't even know who is who.  They are really cute to watch and usually get along pretty well.  It's nice to have some company in my apartment even if they are rodents.

Introducing Hammy and Samster

On Tuesday after work, I went out for dinner to try dog for the first time.  Even though it is a Korean delicacy, it's tough to eat it when you know how poorly the dogs are treated.  I've heard most of the dogs are beaten before they are killed because the adrenaline makes the meat tastier.  Gwen told me when she walks her tiny dog, Songi, people sometimes look at her dog and say "one bowl".  Dog is usually served in spicy soups but luckily we were able to get it in slabs of meat.  Dog is pretty fatty and surprisingly tastes a lot like lamb.  I actually liked it and I'm glad I tried it, but I'm not sure if I'll eat it again.

Dog meat

In Taekwondo this week, I got my purple belt.  Next is my blue belt, then brown, red and finally black.  I'm hoping to get my black belt before I leave.  Diana and I had our first spar this week.  We both ended up a little bruised afterwards even though we were both wearing pads and helmets.  It's a lot harder and scarier than I thought it would be, especially since Diana's a belt higher than me and taller than me too.

I got a bit of a cold this week too.  It's not too bad, but it's just annoying.  I've been fighting it off for awhile now, but my night out on Wednesday didn't help much.  I'm not doing much this weekend, just a book club dinner and a movie night with the girls.  Hopefully I can make a full recovery by next weekend for the trip to Seoul.