One night, I woke up in the middle of the night and felt something tickling my chest. I put my hand on my chest and then jumped up with a bit of an 'eek'. In the process I killed what had tickled me. After that, I couldn't get back to sleep as I kept imagining more as soon as I closed my eyes. Needless to say, the next day I bought a gift of a bunch of raid baits for them. THIS is the (not so little) little bugger that fell out of my shirt when I jumped.
It's been quite wet out the past couple of days. I think we caught the edge of the Typhoon that hit Taiwan. It's not surprising, though, as it is monsoon season. Today after work it had stopped raining so I walked from my work in Apgujeong to the Kim's Club (a very large grocery store) near the Goseok Terminal (Seoul bus terminal) It was just under an hour of walking. I should have taken more pictures, I suppose. When I walk I always try to take different random routes to where ever it is I am walking to in order to see what ever there is to see. The buildings, signs, shop names, kinds of shops, etc are all interesting to see. There are a couple of buildings I really want to take pictures of but I'll have to wait until it is not so over cast (and rainy). One thing I have really noticed here and in China are the cicadas. Where I grew up, we don't have them. I had heard of them, of course, but had never heard or seen any until I came to Korea. They are SO LOUD!!!!!!! In the six years I have been here, I haven't really seen many but have certainly heard them! I love the sound they make (as long as it isn't right outside my window when I'm trying to sleep!). The first one I actually encountered wasn't until my 4th year or so when one was stuck in a classroom and the students and Korean teacher were freaking out. I had to rescue them, AND it. It wasn't until this year that I started seeing the casings/skins. They are absolutely EVERYWHERE!! [my finger is there for sizing]I first noticed them when I went to one of the palaces downtown during my first week of summer vacation (I had 2 wks).Now I am seeing them everywhere here; both the casings AND the adult cicadas.On a tree at Deoksugung (a palace). Can you see them? The one higher up is a bit hard to see. The lower one I noticed immediately.Here is a video to show how loud they are.
A cicada on a tree in Qingdao, China (taken the second week of my summer vacation). Along where I was walking today, in one of the apartment complexes, the casings were all over the trees as if they were nuts or something (except they are on the trunks as well as all over the leaves).If you haven't seen them, they are hard to miss. They really are big. On my walk today, I turned a corner and a little thing nearly ran over my foot. It ran into a little indent in the wall to hide, but there was no way out of it other than the way it came, sort of trapping it for my inspection. A young rat, about the size of my hamster, but not as cute. It's tail is obviously broken. Poor thing. With all the rain it was probably looking for a dry place to hide out.
snacks and such in Cambodia. yum yum!Morning Glory (used in cooking)crabssugar cane (peeled, cut up into small pieces and sold out by the scoop from street vendors)misc. fruits, vegetables and suchmisc. kabobssnakesfruitpomelo (SO good!!!) they are HUGE!!!!!! They grow up to 30 cm in diameter and up to 10 kg!!! The peel is very thick. The inside part itself was bigger than a standard large grapefruit! They cut off the peel like that before selling. You just finish peeling, then peel each section. The juicy pockets can be picked off the sections in bunches or one at a time.bamboo rice (not as good as the ones along the roads near Siem Reap)tasty treats?giant cricketsHUGE cockroachesfrogsbaby birds and cricketsgiant water beetles
Did I try any of these things? Well, the vegetables, fruit, and rice, yes. The other stuff? Sorry to disappoint, but no. I think if I was there with friends I probably would have, but I wasn't brave enough to try them alone. :S
I was on my way out. I shut the door and then decided to change my shoes so came back in. I looked up and above my bed, saw a dark thing on the wall. ACK!!!!! Scary. It is the same as a thing that jumped at me about a month ago in my bathroom - I went into the bathroom and it jumped at me - only THIS one, is about 3 times the size of the other one. I though the one in the bathroom was bad. Remember that the trim around my room is about 2 inches wide. Ugh. I grabbed my camera first, as I wanted to find out what it was, and was trying to think of what I should do. After taking pics, I grabbed the fly swatter. It took me a while to get up the courage to get close enough, as the smaller one jumped all the way across my bathroom. I can't imagine how far this thing could jump. I smacked it as hard as I could and then jumped back with a bit of a yelp/screech/strange unhuman sound. It fell behind the headboard of my bed. I went slowly to look and it wasn't moving (there is about a 1 foot space between the headboard and the wall where it fell). I tested it with the fly swatter. It moved a little and so I had to squish it more with a bag of things that was sitting there. Then I noticed the eggs. It was full of eggs, I guess, as it left them all along the wall where it fell and in a blob on the floor. I had to make sure I squished all of them. I dont' want more of them. I've no clue where it came from, though. How it got in. I suppose it would be easy for it to get in where the air conditioner hose goes through the wall, as there is about a 1 inch space around it. I think I will have to seal that. Needless to say, I was late meeting my friend. And I didn't sleep well that night when I got home. I kept having to look around to make sure that there wasn't another one of these things.
Ugh. This one was in my home, on my wall. I was in the bathroom brushing my teeth and happened to look up to see this thing moving across the wall near my bed. I ran over, with my toothbrush hanging out of my mouth, and quickly grabbed my camera to take a pic before trying to smack it with a notebook. I thought I hit it, but it fell behind my book shelf, which is too full of books to just move, so I left it. And tried not to think about it. Then, as I was getting into bed, I looked across the room and right infront of the bathroom door, a big black thing was moving. I turned on the light and there it was. yikes. I find insects very interesting, but NOT when they are on me or in my home. I caught it, but then had nightmares about things like it crawling in my bed. for reference, the white trim around my room is about 2 inches wide.
The other day when I was finishing up one of the 5 year old classes, all of a sudden, there was a giant bug flying around the room. It was a cicada. The kids were all freaking out and the Korean teacher wasn't sure what to do. I asked for a cup and piece of paper and easily caught it once it landed on the wall. I put it outside on the paper and removed the cup. It stayed for a while, so I was able to show it to my class, and take a few pics. They are such interesting insects!For reference as to the size, that is a standard piece of computer paper.
Nice cockroach, eh?
[my finger is there for sizing]
I first noticed them when I went to one of the palaces downtown during my first week of summer vacation (I had 2 wks).
Now I am seeing them everywhere here; both the casings AND the adult cicadas.
On a tree at Deoksugung (a palace). Can you see them? The one higher up is a bit hard to see. The lower one I noticed immediately.
Here is a video to show how loud they are.
If you haven't seen them, they are hard to miss. They really are big.
It ran into a little indent in the wall to hide, but there was no way out of it other than the way it came, sort of trapping it for my inspection. 
A young rat, about the size of my hamster, but not as cute. It's tail is obviously broken. Poor thing. With all the rain it was probably looking for a dry place to hide out.
Morning Glory (used in cooking)
crabs
sugar cane (peeled, cut up into small pieces and sold out by the scoop from street vendors)
misc. fruits, vegetables and such
misc. kabobs
snakes
fruit
pomelo (SO good!!!) they are HUGE!!!!!! They grow up to 30 cm in diameter and up to 10 kg!!! The peel is very thick. The inside part itself was bigger than a standard large grapefruit! They cut off the peel like that before selling. You just finish peeling, then peel each section. The juicy pockets can be picked off the sections in bunches or one at a time.
bamboo rice (not as good as the ones along the roads near Siem Reap)
tasty treats?
giant crickets
HUGE cockroaches
frogs
baby birds and crickets
giant water beetles
Remember that the trim around my room is about 2 inches wide. Ugh. I grabbed my camera first, as I wanted to find out what it was, and was trying to think of what I should do. After taking pics, I grabbed the fly swatter. It took me a while to get up the courage to get close enough, as the smaller one jumped all the way across my bathroom. I can't imagine how far this thing could jump. I smacked it as hard as I could and then jumped back with a bit of a yelp/screech/strange unhuman sound. It fell behind the headboard of my bed. I went slowly to look and it wasn't moving (there is about a 1 foot space between the headboard and the wall where it fell). I tested it with the fly swatter. It moved a little and so I had to squish it more with a bag of things that was sitting there. Then I noticed the eggs. It was full of eggs, I guess, as it left them all along the wall where it fell and in a blob on the floor. I had to make sure I squished all of them. I dont' want more of them. I've no clue where it came from, though. How it got in. I suppose it would be easy for it to get in where the air conditioner hose goes through the wall, as there is about a 1 inch space around it. I think I will have to seal that. Needless to say, I was late meeting my friend. And I didn't sleep well that night when I got home. I kept having to look around to make sure that there wasn't another one of these things.
for reference, the white trim around my room is about 2 inches wide.
The other day when I was finishing up one of the 5 year old classes, all of a sudden, there was a giant bug flying around the room. It was a cicada. The kids were all freaking out and the Korean teacher wasn't sure what to do. I asked for a cup and piece of paper and easily caught it once it landed on the wall. I put it outside on the paper and removed the cup. It stayed for a while, so I was able to show it to my class, and take a few pics. They are such interesting insects!
For reference as to the size, that is a standard piece of computer paper.
