It was the best of nights, it was the worst of nights

Had an interesting night at Bricx yesterday. Indeed the best of nights and the worst of nights. Now the "worst" part is a little hazy, so hopefully Barb will fill in the details from her side of the story. But I shall do my best.

Bricx was having a "Beach Party" last night. Now Bricx, as I may have previously mentioned, is a tiny little bar in Itaewon (the foreigner district of Seoul). While Barb and I don't fancy hanging out with mainly foreigners (well, they're not foreign to us...), the lure of two-dollar-ish beer (2000 Won draft) has allowed us to fall in love with Bricx. Add to that the friendly Latino-Edmontonian bartender and it's a great deal. Although Bricx is by all other means a pub, Julio (the bartender) likes the electronica (or whatever the kids call it these days) so it usually has some funky beats flowing. This is what allowed them to have a party, or cabaret as us U of C folk call it. A cabaret is where you pay money to go to the same bar you usually go for free. Smart university kids... But I digress, Bricx decided to have a beach party. So they trucked in some sand, got a DJ (a Canadian with a computer) and charged 10 000 Won a head. Girls with bikinis got in free, and yes, Barb sold herself to save 10 000 Won.

After missing the subway (boo) Barb and I headed to Bricx around midnight-ish. The setup at the bar was great, they had some sand and patio furniture outside, as well as inside. They had a barbecue going outside, and a Korean go-go dancer inside. There were lots of people there, most of whom we had not met yet. I started off my night with a Crown Royal and Coke. Julio, being the great guy he is, let me have it as my free drink, even though it was supposed to be beer. After the CR&C I stuck to beer, with its 2000 Won cheapness (I did have two vodka drinks at home).

Barb and I met some really fun people. We met Greg, from (various locales in) the U.S. Greg had arrived in Korea a manner of hours earlier, and his apartment is to be above Bricx. Trouble. Greg just finished his PhD and is in Seoul to teach History to American soldiers in Korea who are taking university degrees. While that's a job that's not to appealing to academics with families, it's great for a wandering grad student. Greg was a lot of fun and it's nice to talk to someone who speaks English and has a PhD.

We also met Ken, from Nigeria, who is also here as an English teacher (he's an Ibo for those of you who know what that means - Duncan and Nic). Ken was working in Geojedo (Guh-jey-doh). Geojedo is an island off Korea's south coast. Barb and I visited there in June with our bikes. It is an absolutely beautiful place. Geojedo is fairly small population-wise, and a little isolated (by Korean standards). It's pretty comical to imagine Ken, a huge black Nigerian guy, walking down the streets of Geojedo. I thought I got stared at in Gumi...

So I met a lot of great people and had a lot of fun. And if anyone asks I didn't look at any of the girls in bikinis except Barb. I was drinking fairly consistently, but as I mentioned I was drinking beer. Those who know me well know that I don't drink beer very quickly. I was drunk but certainly not what I considered really drunk. I was having good conversation, but none of it with furniture or beach umbrellas.

Now, at around what I can only assume to be 5:30-ish the night took a dreadful turn. Anything I write after this is only pieced together, and as I said, Barb will have to fill in the rest. I was having a good chat with Raelin, on of Julio's friends. Barb came downstairs to join us. Barb had the hiccups and Raelin started some bizarre ritual to try and cure them. I think it involved Barb drinking water through a shirt or something. I took the opportunity to visit the little boy's room. While I was there I felt a little queasy and had a small "incident." I left the bathroom and walked back towards Barb and Raelin. Then all of a sudden I felt more than a little queasy.

Have you ever been drinking and you're getting to the fairly drunk stage? And then, despite the fact that your reasoning abilities are still somewhat present, you do like 8 shots of Tequila or something, and it sends you into complete and utter drunkenness in a matter of seconds? Well, that's how I felt, except that I didn't have any shots. I was just pacing myself well, when all of a sudden, I was incredibly sick. I don't usually get sick when I drink. It hasn't happened in Korea yet (not even the dreaded soju night), and quite frankly I can't remember the last time it did happen. And even when I do get sick, it's usually puke in the toilet, go to bed, wake up semi-ok. No puking all over myself or any of that frat-boy nonsense. But I knew when the feeling hit me that I was sick.

I think I made my feeling known to Barb and I dashed back towards the bathroom. Someone was now in it though, and I could not wait. Barb somehow navigated me into the women's bathroom, and I made friendly with the facilities. I'm not sure how long I was in there, or what exactly occurred. I just know that my body felt the need to continually empty my stomach (which was already quite empty). I also came to the realization that I was not only sicker than I have ever been in my life. I was also more drunk than I have ever been in my life. I mean, I was gone. I couldn't stand or open my eyes. To do either was pure pain and hell. Somehow, and I can't figure out how, Barb eventually got me out of the bathroom and up the stairs (the bar was closing you see). As soon as I was outside, I immediately collapsed onto the ground (which was thankfully covered in sand, this being a beach party). I never pass out when drunk, but sown I went. I'm not sure how long I was there, but it felt so good to lie in that sand. It felt so bad, however to open my eyes or move. Once again Barb somehow managed to get me to do this. After walking about 5 meters I collapsed again, this time onto pavement (and according to Barb under a van). Once again, I did not want to move. Sweet gentle asphalt caressing my face. Barb , once again, somehow managed to get me to move. This time I was seated on a ledge. I could still not move or open my eyes. Despite Barb's attempts, I stayed like this until around 7:30am. I then managed to get myself up, and wobble to the subway in the painful morning light.

I'm still not sure what happened to me. How do you all of a sudden become super-drunk? I drank no more than Barb, and she's usually (ie always) drunk before me. But I went from 0 to super-drunk in a matter of minutes. Maybe someone drugged me, who knows, but it is literally the most drunk and the most sick I have ever been. I don't know if I can ever drink again. Yuck.

I haven't let the experience sour me, though. I had a great night up until the "turning point," so I don't regret going out, but wow, I went down frat-boy style.