Different Cultures and Mistaken Identity!

Well, it's happened once again. A young Korean student has berated me for being "unmarried." Little Paul (his English nickname), found out my age (31) and asked me how long I have been married. I told him I wasn't. His immediate reply, "Yes, you are!"Eventually I convinced him that I wasn't lying...I really am not married. He was so confused...I mean profoundly confused. He couldn't understand the cponcept of a man in his early 30's being unmarried. Korea is a country where unmarried women in their late 20's are considered spinsters and men my age, still unmarried are suspect. Usually I can diffuse the situation by telling my students that in Canada, it's very normal to be unmarried at my age. Whether or not they believe me though, I'm not really sure.

I also recieved a nice compliment this morning at the gym. Unfortunatley, there was no basis for the remark, just a case of mistaken identity. One of the trainers came up to me and told me that my son is beautiful. He saw us together outside of the gym the other day. Considering the fact that I have no children, I thought this was a rather interesting comment. I assured him that I indeed am son-less. He seemed confused. The trainer told me that he was sure it was my son he saw, but I told him...nope...not me...I'm a kid-less kinda guy!

Apparently, the kind citizens of Korea are sending me a resounding message. I need to get married or at least knock someone up ASAP!!

Strange Days vs. Holidays

Well, I did work yesterday and it did indeed suck. The techers were miserable and so were the students. The concept of happy employees is one that KOrean employers have no concept of. They just look at the short-term, bottom-line and work everyone ragged to fill the coffers. That being said, it was the first and definately last Christmas I will ever work.

Christmas Eve was a good time on the other hand. There was an all afternoon Christmas party at the penthouse apartment of some of my coworkers. it was a good time. Then we were off the the Westin Chosun hotel for the Christmas buffet. The turkey was dry and overcooked, but being such a rare commodity in Korea, I still enjoyed stuffing my face with it. Salmon and steak were also high on my list of foods to consume in great quantities. Dinner finished, it was time for a walk on the beach and then the Paradise Casino. Good times, next year, Christmas will be in Canada if all goes according to plan.

Me, Mai, Amity and Tom at the Westin Chosun Hotel's buffet on Xmas Eve.

It's a Korean Santa and Kevin.

It's Boxing Day and 16c outside. It in no way feels like the Holiday season. First, I had no holiday of any kind and second, it's as warm as a summer day on the East Coast of Canada!

Looks like the Hermit Kings will be playin at U2 in Haeundae on Saturday night. Whether or not we're playin on New Year's Eve is still not written in stone yet...I'll keep everyone updated.

BA HUMBUG!!!

It's Xmas morning. I had a great Xmas Eve at the Westin Hotel last night. They only had one turkey though so it went fast. Luckily the Korean patrons had no interest in the big bird so I only had to fight the other foreigners for it. Koreans will eat chicken til the cos come home (strange analogy), but seem to hate turkey....well, at least the few who've had the opportunity to try it.

BAAAAAA HUMBUG!!!!!

Why is it a ba humbug sort of day??? well.....I'll tell you...because in a few hours I have to go to work. That's right! I have to teach on Xmas day. It is a statutory holiday, but things like that mean very little in Korea. The worst part is that there will be cruel parents out there evil enough to send their kids to school!

I'll post pics from last night's festivities when I get home from WOrk!!!!

Signs of Seoul...Camera Phone Goodness

I found a cd last night containing pics I took with my old camera phone. These pics span more than 2 years in Korea. I took many of them when I lived in Ilsan, northwest of Seoul and when I lived in Shinchon, downtown Seoul. This batch includes various eateries and clubs that are unfortunately named. Enjoy the juvenile mind of a Canadian with a camera phone in Asia.

Nob Bar...this one was in Hongdae, the big clubbing area close to my old apartment. Made me giggle every time I saw it.

This one was in Hongdae as well. There was also a Ho Bar 2!!

I suppose if you're "hardup" for a game of pool, you can shoot some stick at "Cocks Blue" in Shinchon, Seoul.

The "Red Neck" Restaurant was a few minutes on foot from my apartment in Shinchon.

I suppose that if I was sick in Seoul or had some sort of injury, I'd request the ambulance driver to take me here....the "Hospital of Love."

Six Pack and a Can of Tuna???

That's right....I'll have the six-pack and the can of tuna please. I was in Emart the other day and I realized that it's the Xmas season and the gift packs abound. I particularly likes this one though....relax, crack open a cold one and enjoy some yummy tuna.

Max Beer and Tuna!

Starbucks Caucasian Theatre!!!!!

Jangsan...my neighborhood in Busan and one rife with English teachers. There are so many English schools in this area that everywhere you go, you can see teachers walking the streets, sitting in restaurants and basically being "visible." The Jangsan Starbucks is the place for Koreans to go if they want to see foreigners interacting in their natural environment. Everyday there are reams of us sitting in Starbucks, enjoying a piece of "our reality"...avoiding the chaos and confusion that is Korea. Korean regulars of Starbucks are used to this. There are so many foreigners in Starbucks on a daily basis, that at times we outnumber the Korean patrons. Sometimes though, some Korean bumpkins from outlying cabbage farms (or somewhere other than Jangsan) pull on up to the Jangsan Starbucks and sit there with their jaws on the floor, camera phones at the ready to record the bizarre happenings of caucasians consuming coffee!

The other day this happened. The usual suspects can be found hunkered down in Starbucks on a daily basis, me being one of them and usually, we can count on this one coffee shop as a sanctuary from staring, awe-struck Koreans. Well, the other day, a friend of mine nudged me and pointed out a young couple who were staring at us like we had lobsters crawling out of our ears....it pissed me off! What are they thinking when they stare at foreigners drinking coffee???

Jangsan Starbucks Theatre!!!

Setting: Starbucks...Jangsan...Busan...Korea...Planet Earth...

Time: Present

Look...it's Kevin sitting with a coffee of the day with a newspaper talking to Chris. Oh My God!!! Paul is sitting in the corner looking at his notebook computer....how intruiging!!! What could Kevin and Chris be talking about?? OH MY GOD!!!! Tim just walked in and sat down to say hello to Chris and Kevin while on his way to lunch! (Soooo gripping). Wow...Liz and Mel have just walked in and given Kevin a wave of acknowledgement....he waved back! This is soooooooo goood!

EEEEEkkkk.....stop staring ....leave the foreigners alone....worry bout your own world of designer bags, overpriced apartments, kimchi refrigerators and going to Starbucks to share one cup of coffee with 3 of your friends!!!

As Billy Shakespear said, "The world is a stage.".....even more the case if you're a visible minority in Asia!

I Have Yonsama SOcks!!!!

I've seen them for a few years, in Namdaemun Market and Dongdaemun Market in Seoul. I knew that they are created for the throngs of Japanese tourists who flock to the shores of Korea to take pictures of and visit all film location sites of "Yonsama." "Yonsama" means, Japanese Royalty and the title is used to name Korean actor Bae Young-jun. He is famous for starring in cheesy soap operas that are riddled with formulaic story lines and bad acting. He is worshipped by middle-aged women all across Japan. He isn't very popular in his native country of Korea though. I was in Nampo-dong market last weekend last weekend and there they were. Yonsama socks and for only $1. I had to have a pair....now I can walk on a cheesy soap-opera star!!!!

"Yonsama" promoting some sort of cheese-riddled soap-opera...lots of bad acting and women crying...the staple of all Korean soaps!

Kevin's "Yonsama" socks....for only $1, you can make this guy all smelly and sweaty!!!

It's beginning to look like Xmas, but certainly not feel like it. If anyone has spent a Christmas in Korea or any other Asian country, you'll soon realize that the commercial aspect is catching on. Christmas music is playing everywhere, you can see trees and decorations as well as people dressed as Santa. Whether they are Christian or not doesn't matter, it's time to look like Xmas!

More than half of Koreans are Christians so they do legitimately celebrate Xmas for the right reasons. That's cool of course. Another fact is that until the 1970's and 1980's very few were Christian. Missionaries flocked to the Korean penninsula by the thousands during that time and very effectively went to work converting the masses. So what do we have today, a lot of Christians who celebrate Christmas, but no real traditions of their own. There seems to be no "Korean" way of celebrating Xmas, so most feel compelled to copy the western style. You can see it everywhere, television, movies, department stores. People want to copy the "American" style Xamas, but they just can't seem to get it right. Example; you can't buy a turkey here. If you want some, you have to resort to going to one of the swanky hotel chains such as the Hilton or Westin...that's what I'll be doing. Everyone just buys flashy yet bland (cakes in Korea and Japan look great, but they don't love the tons of sugar that North American cakes do) cakes and eats them with their families.

I also learned two years ago that Christmas night isn't a time to spend with your family, but quite possibly, the biggest night of the year in Korea to go out to the bars and get pissed. All of the bars and clubs make special Xmas menus, which means they stop selling draft beer and jack up the prices on all bottled beer. I suppose that is something they borrowed correctly from "western" style Xmases in our modern era...try to make a buck.

hey hey hey

I'm not sure if has been a busy week or if I've just been avoiding sitting down infront of my notebook...probably more of the latter. It's a new term at school, new classes to prepare for and new names and faces to learn. The seasons are changing and another Korean winter is here...blah blah blah...so on and so forth. All of my applications for teacher's college in Ontario are off and today was the final deadline for all "aspiring teachers" to get their crap together. Now I just have to sit on my thumbs in Korea for the next 3-4 months waiting for a response. This part really sucks...the wait!

Well, I went to Nampo-dong last Sunday to do a bit of shopping. It's more than an hour away on the subway so lately it might as well be on the moon...too far away. I've become accustomed to nesting in the Jangsan/Haeundae area. Everything I could ever possibly need is within a 10 minute walk...3 movie theatres, 3 supermarkets, 2 department stores, a mountain, a beach, parks, a Starbucks...difficult to leave! It almost feels like Canada....but not quite.

Nampo-dong goodies....every possible vegtable under the sun, pickled in some sort of red-pepper paste...a gastro-intestinal feast...stomach/intestinal stress in a silver bowl!

When I choose an ATM...I like "Nice Cashing"

Ah well...I started a 6 day a week schedule this term. I work Saturdays for the next 3 months. The money will be nice, but I'll miss having a 2-day weekend. I'll be playing tomorrow night at U2..the Hermit Kings will hopefully impress the crowds in Haeundae.

Sunday has now become my new favorite day of the week, especially since it's the only one I have off!! It's one of the joys of working at CDI. What will I do? What will I do? Not much of anything I think.