Walking to Work

I had an interesting walk to work the other day. First of all, I was standing at the crosswalk, listening to my ipod, and waiting for what seemed like forever to cross the 8 lanes of traffic, when I noticed out of the corner of my eye that this guy seemed to be standing really close to me. The crosswalk wasn't really busy, and although Koreans do have different sense of personal space, it seemed weird. I didn't turn and look at him outright, but just sensed that he was inching closer to me, like he wanted to hear the music I was listening to. Then I heard it. He was saying, "Excuse me," the whole time! So I took out my headphones and gave him my attention, but it was a pretty strained interaction. He just kept saying sorry over and over, then what sounded like, "you chop, you chop." This was lost on me and I felt so bad because he seemed to be in urgent need of something. However, if he was, he would have asked the Korean lady next to him. This went on for a few blocks until he apologized one last time and then turned away. 

So I put my earbuds back in and continued on my walk to work, past the fruits, vegetables, and various fish and fish parts on display. The next thing I know, a Korean man on his bicycle is asking me in English, "How are you?" I saw his mouth move before I heard him, and it was a surreal moment. I thought I was imagining it but he he said good morning with a smile on his face. This was quite an occasion, because not many Koreans would approach you, speaking English and smiling. We had a nice chat and Mr. Bok invited me to come to his shop, which was right on that street, anytime and we could drink coffee. I haven't stopped in yet but I'm looking forward to it. What a great way to start the day!