New Year's Eve 2012

Nate, Kou & Jinho (AKA 'Hula Bear) at the restaurant

This was, hands down, the most sedate, chill NYE I've had since being in Korea.  Anne, Jinho and I headed to Nampo dong to have dinner with Kou, our friend from St Paul (which is in Minneapolis, which is in the USA for those who don't know) and Shryl and Nate, a couple who are from Canada and the USA, respectively. We tried out a new Indian restaurant called 'Little India', down a little side alley near PIFF square (The main entrance to the area). The company was great... the food was average.
After dinner, we headed to the Nampo Thursday Party store to have a few drinks, play some darts and ring in the new year with Kay (the TP manager) and the gang. 

Shryl, Anne & Moi!

Nampo Dong still had all the Christmas lights up (it looks soooo purdy during winter there) and there were a lot of people out, despite the cold.

I'd say by about 10 the ladies were playing cards, the men folk were playing darts, and I was definitely ready for bed! We stayed out till around 1am? It was a nice night, and it felt great to wake up without a hangover, especially because I wanted, no- needed, to see the sunrise. This had been something I'd wanted to do since first coming to Korea. It's a big deal to watch the first sunrise of the new year over here, and this was my last chance to do it! So, after we fought off the crowds all vying for the same taxis, Anne, Jinho and I headed home to catch a couple hours of sleep and got up at some ungodly hour of the morning. Anne is usually already up by 5, ready to hit the gym, clean her apartment and cure cancer before heading to work- but I am definitely not.... it was a struggle to get outta that warm bed to go stand in the freezing weather at the beach, and wait for the sun. But- we did it! And, boy was it worth it!! The sun rising is something that happens every day, but something I never make the time to enjoy. It was truly beautiful!

Me, Hula Bear & Anne, rugged up against the cold and waiting for the sun

People let off a heap of balloons and you can kinda see some swimmers in the water. There was a group in wetsuits who swam out and did some kind of synchronised thing to greet the sun^^