well now that good old kurt edwards attached my blog to his uber cool 'mother of diversity' blog, i'm feeling that seoul times is below par in quality and entertainment value compared to his other featured blogs. my blog lacks amazing photos, advanced layouts, and interesting entries. i guess this is the motivation i needed to get in gear and start keeping up with weekly posts. this week, i'll fill you in on my trip to china and my 3 week asian adventure with my father.
china
the first week of december, i met a guy named david. ten days later, he told me he was taking me to china for new years. we arrived in shanghai on dec 30. We took the Maglev (magnetic levitation) train, the world's fastest, most futuristic passenger line from the airport to downtown shanghai. the LED screen shows the speed of the train topping out at 430/kph in something like 2 minutes. it was incredible. you could barely see the run-down housing structures scattered around swamp like land that are located just outside the pristine pudong airport-- a first glimpse into the inequality and absurdity of federal monetary distribution throughout the country. we stayed in a hotel on nanjing road where the receptionist greeted us with demanding 'give me your passports and credit card!'. welcome to china! this less than friendly service was pretty much the norm throughout our trip. shanghai is an awesome city. the architecture is beautiful and it looks like an amusement park at night. we walked along the bund, were suffocated in overcrowded elevators, had 3 hour lunches and extravagant dinners, fought with taxi drivers, got lost, and tried to hold out going to the bathroom until we got back to our hotel. i've been exposed to some pretty horrible toilets in my time, but nothing compares to what i faced in china. i'll spare you the details. it was also amazing to see marble streets studded with elegant new shopping centres and business structures just around the corner from streets lined with filth and shack-like homes. there is no class distinction here when china continues to build and build without concern for those living basically in poverty compared to the rising standard of chinese citizens.
we took a train from shanghai to nanjing, where david's parents live. nanjing was once the capital of china before the chinese civil war, so there were lots of historical sites to see. we went to the prison memorial where victim's bones, still in soil, were displayed without glass coverings and a guard required personal information upon entry. we saw a few other sights, but it was too cold to see everything. there was also no heat in any buildings/restaurants we went to and people had their apartment windows open because it was colder inside than out--nothing like america's central heating!
i was sad to leave after only 5 days. china was incredibly interesting and there is still a lot more i'd like to see there.
randy (dad) comes to asia
I hadn't seen my dad in about a year. I met up at the airport and he walked straight past me after looking at his yelling/waving daughter straight in the eye; that's randy in a nutshell. i took him around seoul for a few days, made him stay out drinking till 4 am, and subjected him to my apartment's 'hose showers', something he complained about during the entire trip. overall, he wasn't too impressed with seoul and was happy to meet me in SE asia a week later.
we met at a hostel i'd booked in ho chi minh city, vietnam at miraculously the same time. we spent two days in HCMC dodging motorcycles, eating weird things (like frogs), fighting over who should carry the map, and trying to figure out how to leave. on our last day, we went on a day tour of the mekong delta, which was nice, but like all day tours, daunting. there's something ridiculous about these 'group tours': you're crowded into a bus/boat/car with 10-50 tourists and one local guide and herded from place to place like blind cattle. besides the main attraction, 90% of your other stops are souvenier traps selling local handi-crafts and other equally useless items. the guide tells you fun facts that you can't hear or understand over tourist chatter and you basically feel ripped off because you just saw and experienced something that hundreds of other tourists see everyday. unfortunately the mekong detla tour wasn't an isolated event; the only way to get to these historical sites that we've heard about our whole life was to subject ourselves to more equally bothersome tours.
from HCMC, we went north to mui ne. i heard it had a beautiful beach and it fit with our plan to continue north into laos, so we decided to make a stop there for a few days. strangely, it was filled with chubby swiss and german tourists, featured an entire 'swiss village', and even had signs and menus translated into german (something i've never seen in asia). we didn't hear english once during our stay--very bizzare. we weren't impressed with the beach or the bods and like everything else there, our hotel was way overpriced. we got on a bus and headed to...
nha trang, another beach town. this was more like an actual city and the buildings ran right along the ocean, so it wasn't so great. we took a day trip to monkey island, which was beautiful and had hundreds of monkeys running around, making up for the fact that we were actually on a day trip. from what i'd heard, nha trang is a big party place, but being with daddio, i couldnt vouge for that myself. so then we went to...
hoi ann, my favorite place in vietnam. it's a river city known for its art and shopping where you can get tailor-made anything for unbelievably cheap prices. it has beautiful aging french architecture and lots of outdoor cafes. i wish we could've stayed longer, but instead we...
spent the next two days on buses en route to vientiane, laos. this, i dont recommend. if you have the money, take a plan from hanoi to laos. the total travel time was like 29 hours with a spontaneous pit stop at 3am, IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, so the driver could take a nap. not the best experience i've had, especially when you're two choices are a 90* mosquito swarming atmosphere outside or inside an unbearably stuffy bus with buddies of the driver's sleeping in the aisles. we were more than happy to arrive in...
vientiane, captial of laos. very small city, easy to get around, super friendly people, doesn't cater much to tourists, and has literally hundreds of buddhist temples inside the city's small perimeters. we spent most of our time there relaxing in air conditioned rooms, drinking wine at french cafes, and walking aimlessly around the city. we went on one private tour which was expensive but worth it. our guide took us to ancient buddhist stone carvings, a small village, a market, a fishing village where we got to explore the lake's islands by boat, and a salt-making factory. i wish we had planned our trip better; i would've prefered to stay in laos much longer than vietnam. hopefully i'll get a chance to go back and see everything i missed someday.
the end, for now.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
update, bitch ass ajuma
Okay, back on track, 5 months later. Since my last post, I've gone to China, Vietnam, Laos, finished my much hated job, started a much better job, saw my father, met my boyfriend, bought sweet new glasses, and maybe even grew up a little bit.
So, I've decided to stay in Korea until this December, in hopes to make it back to the states by Christmas. This decision came as much of a shock to me, as it did anyone who'd talked to me over the past year. All the way up till December, I had been counting down the days till my stint in Seoul was over, and then I went to China for New Year's. When I got there, I realized that anywhere I would go from here (especially places that I had lined up: Mexico or Central America) would never compare to just how different Asia is from anywhere else. These countries are fascinating, strange, exotic, and inspiring and shouldn't be considered something for me to get away from, at least not so quickly.
Seoul has become somewhat of a second Cleveland to me; a place that I can love and hate equally, sometimes on the same day. They are both unattractive cities, have horrible weather, and bring on the same sort of depression that comes from boredom, disillusion, and restlessness, which is sometimes comforting. Australia was just tooo sunny sometimes. The people in Seoul however, can't even come close to how nice people are in Cleveland.
I'm now working in a public school (which doesn't supply students with toilet paper! wtf?!) where I am the only foreigner and I'm living with my boyfriend way out in the outskirts of Seoul. These past few weeks of change have been hard, after spending the entire previous year surrounded by other foreigners. I feel much more isolated and even more stupid for not being better at Korean. My coworkers often forget this when writing out important documents for me, which ends up in my trying to translate it for hours. Also, now that I'm living and working in real 'Korean' suburbs, I'm being stared at and treated like a specimen much more often than before. Take the following example:
I've been looking for apartments for the past three weeks. Finally, on Saturday, I found a great place and agreed to take it. After congratulating me on my new place, the agent told my boyfriend and I to wait and meet the landlord before I signed any contracts. A typical ajuma (old Korean woman), sporting a perm, large visor, and pink and black track suit, walked in and didn't look so happy. She began to tell the agent that she couldn't rent to me because we couldnt communicate with each other. The agent assured her he would act as a translator. Then she said, she's heard bad things about foreigners and doesn't trust them. The agent said I'm a teacher at an elementary school and a nice girl. THEN she said the other tenants wouldn't like a foreigner living amongst them in their apartment building. The agent then began telling her a personal account of how a foreigner had been nice to him while he was lost in Turkey and that foreigners could be good people too. At this point, my boyfriend (who speaks Korean) filled me in on the scenario and suggested we should leave. We told the agent we were finished here, didn't want to live where we're not wanted, and see you next week. The agent tried to mend things when the ajuma bluntly stated that she's in no rush to rent the place and she surely isn't going to give it to a foreigner.
I've felt discriminated against before in Korea, but never this upfront. This old c*nt managed to make me feel so worthless and unwanted, I could've punched her in the face. Koreans are so ridiculously racist, that it doesn't even make sense. They use foreigners to sell products, let them teach their children, but don't want to see them in person, let alone live around them; foreigners are much better on posters. What irritated me most about this is that I am not a threatening looking person; I have a college degree and am teaching THEIR children English. What could someone like me possibly get into that would make my neighbors uncomfortable? There aren't even drugs here! I'll give them credit for being completely honest and upfront with their racism and not trying to sugar coat anything. If you're gonna be a racist, do it right; no bs political correctness here.
Well this was the most current incident in Korea worthy of a blog installment--Hope you found it entertaining!
So, I've decided to stay in Korea until this December, in hopes to make it back to the states by Christmas. This decision came as much of a shock to me, as it did anyone who'd talked to me over the past year. All the way up till December, I had been counting down the days till my stint in Seoul was over, and then I went to China for New Year's. When I got there, I realized that anywhere I would go from here (especially places that I had lined up: Mexico or Central America) would never compare to just how different Asia is from anywhere else. These countries are fascinating, strange, exotic, and inspiring and shouldn't be considered something for me to get away from, at least not so quickly.
Seoul has become somewhat of a second Cleveland to me; a place that I can love and hate equally, sometimes on the same day. They are both unattractive cities, have horrible weather, and bring on the same sort of depression that comes from boredom, disillusion, and restlessness, which is sometimes comforting. Australia was just tooo sunny sometimes. The people in Seoul however, can't even come close to how nice people are in Cleveland.
I'm now working in a public school (which doesn't supply students with toilet paper! wtf?!) where I am the only foreigner and I'm living with my boyfriend way out in the outskirts of Seoul. These past few weeks of change have been hard, after spending the entire previous year surrounded by other foreigners. I feel much more isolated and even more stupid for not being better at Korean. My coworkers often forget this when writing out important documents for me, which ends up in my trying to translate it for hours. Also, now that I'm living and working in real 'Korean' suburbs, I'm being stared at and treated like a specimen much more often than before. Take the following example:
I've been looking for apartments for the past three weeks. Finally, on Saturday, I found a great place and agreed to take it. After congratulating me on my new place, the agent told my boyfriend and I to wait and meet the landlord before I signed any contracts. A typical ajuma (old Korean woman), sporting a perm, large visor, and pink and black track suit, walked in and didn't look so happy. She began to tell the agent that she couldn't rent to me because we couldnt communicate with each other. The agent assured her he would act as a translator. Then she said, she's heard bad things about foreigners and doesn't trust them. The agent said I'm a teacher at an elementary school and a nice girl. THEN she said the other tenants wouldn't like a foreigner living amongst them in their apartment building. The agent then began telling her a personal account of how a foreigner had been nice to him while he was lost in Turkey and that foreigners could be good people too. At this point, my boyfriend (who speaks Korean) filled me in on the scenario and suggested we should leave. We told the agent we were finished here, didn't want to live where we're not wanted, and see you next week. The agent tried to mend things when the ajuma bluntly stated that she's in no rush to rent the place and she surely isn't going to give it to a foreigner.
I've felt discriminated against before in Korea, but never this upfront. This old c*nt managed to make me feel so worthless and unwanted, I could've punched her in the face. Koreans are so ridiculously racist, that it doesn't even make sense. They use foreigners to sell products, let them teach their children, but don't want to see them in person, let alone live around them; foreigners are much better on posters. What irritated me most about this is that I am not a threatening looking person; I have a college degree and am teaching THEIR children English. What could someone like me possibly get into that would make my neighbors uncomfortable? There aren't even drugs here! I'll give them credit for being completely honest and upfront with their racism and not trying to sugar coat anything. If you're gonna be a racist, do it right; no bs political correctness here.
Well this was the most current incident in Korea worthy of a blog installment--Hope you found it entertaining!
Monday, October 20, 2008
'UP', Taiwan, Half-way mark
I’m listening to Right Said Fred’s ‘UP’ album (which features ‘I’m too sexy’) as I write. This is worth mentioning because my obsession with this band began when I was only five and has continued, just as intensely, for seventeen years. I cannot say that of any other artist album in my entire music library. Subconsciously, this band probably has a lot to do with my predisposition to love gay men and question my sexuality.
Moving on, I went to Taiwan to visit Jacqui, a friend of mine from University who’s now teaching in Taipei county (Nehu). I arrived during a typhoon and was luckily on the last flight into Taipei of the day because of it. This was my first experience in a typhoon and I definitely don’t recommend flying into one—my stomach was doing cartwheels because of the turbulence. Anyways, Jacks and I braved the storm, had our cheap umbrellas destroyed, and did normal touristy things despite the nightmare weather.
I took a bus from the airport into downtown Taipei (about an hour away) and saw palm trees scattered in between freeway intersections, run-down buildings, and deteriorating houses and buildings. Taiwan’s interesting in that it’s such a mixture of developing country and modern metropolis. Taipei’s airport surprised me-it could be compared to one in Indonesia. I guess I was ignorantly thinking that Taiwan would parallel closely to Korea, especially being that it’s home to the world’s tallest building (as of 2007, I think Dubai has surpassed this by now).
The major destinations I visited were Taipei 101, Confuscious Temple, Longshan Temple, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, Shilin Night Market, and Snake Alley. The temples were beautiful, but, most people who have travelled a bit in Asia would have to agree that temples start to all look the same after a while. I thought two were sufficient, there were many more to choose from. Taipei 101 was awesome (the tallest building). The elevator that takes you up travels 89 stories in something like 30 seconds—you hardly noticed your ear (drums?) inflating then popping! The view from the tops is amazing. The golden damper of the building is on full display, the first of it’s kind to be completely exposed—they even personified it with a name and life story, very Asian, making even support structures of buildings ‘cute’! The Chaing Kai-Shek Memorial Hall was stunning and I happened to meet an entertaining Kiwi there who had me laughing the whole time.
I met up with Jacks after she got off work and we went to the Shilin night market for our last destination together. I tried stinky tofu which smells like dirty diapers as a result of being aged, similarly to cheese. It was surprisingly good. The oyster omelet (another must-try in Taiwan, according to…wacko travellers? locals? ..who knows) however, was not so enjoyable—some parts were crunchy, others were gooey, bleh. The fried chicken in a paper bag and the pearl tea were highlights of our dinner. The night market goes on for ages after you get out of the food section and slowly turns into shoe, clothes, and jewellry stalls—great bargains.
I spent my last day in Taipei with a girl from Hongkong, Tze Tse, who I’d shared my room with in ‘Taiwanmex’ hostel (which was run by an old Mexican guy who didn’t speak much English or Mandarin…good thing my Spanish is awesome). Anyways, Tze Tse and I went to Taipei’s Museum of Contemporary Art, which was brilliant, and accidently spent three hours there. I had to run back to the hostel to catch my flight!
Loved Taipei, was happy I went, and definitely recommend checking it out if you’re in the area!
So, I’ve hit my halfway mark in Korea. In six more months, I will be a free bird once again and will never have to teach English again—exhale—I can’t wait! It’s not that I haven’t or am not enjoying my life in Seoul, it’s just that the combination of working full time and living in Asia are two things I never want to happen simultaneously again. I feel like my life is somehow imbalanced, maybe a bit hard to explain. I’m sick of wasting entire days teaching and hearing bullshit from my boss about not being ‘nurturing, sensitive, or affectionate’ to my students. Strange how I could’ve confused being hired as a teacher with getting paid to coddle children who have absent parents! Korea has been and will continue to be a learning experience that challenges me daily and I’ll never regret coming here—6 more months!
Moving on, I went to Taiwan to visit Jacqui, a friend of mine from University who’s now teaching in Taipei county (Nehu). I arrived during a typhoon and was luckily on the last flight into Taipei of the day because of it. This was my first experience in a typhoon and I definitely don’t recommend flying into one—my stomach was doing cartwheels because of the turbulence. Anyways, Jacks and I braved the storm, had our cheap umbrellas destroyed, and did normal touristy things despite the nightmare weather.
I took a bus from the airport into downtown Taipei (about an hour away) and saw palm trees scattered in between freeway intersections, run-down buildings, and deteriorating houses and buildings. Taiwan’s interesting in that it’s such a mixture of developing country and modern metropolis. Taipei’s airport surprised me-it could be compared to one in Indonesia. I guess I was ignorantly thinking that Taiwan would parallel closely to Korea, especially being that it’s home to the world’s tallest building (as of 2007, I think Dubai has surpassed this by now).
The major destinations I visited were Taipei 101, Confuscious Temple, Longshan Temple, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, Shilin Night Market, and Snake Alley. The temples were beautiful, but, most people who have travelled a bit in Asia would have to agree that temples start to all look the same after a while. I thought two were sufficient, there were many more to choose from. Taipei 101 was awesome (the tallest building). The elevator that takes you up travels 89 stories in something like 30 seconds—you hardly noticed your ear (drums?) inflating then popping! The view from the tops is amazing. The golden damper of the building is on full display, the first of it’s kind to be completely exposed—they even personified it with a name and life story, very Asian, making even support structures of buildings ‘cute’! The Chaing Kai-Shek Memorial Hall was stunning and I happened to meet an entertaining Kiwi there who had me laughing the whole time.
I met up with Jacks after she got off work and we went to the Shilin night market for our last destination together. I tried stinky tofu which smells like dirty diapers as a result of being aged, similarly to cheese. It was surprisingly good. The oyster omelet (another must-try in Taiwan, according to…wacko travellers? locals? ..who knows) however, was not so enjoyable—some parts were crunchy, others were gooey, bleh. The fried chicken in a paper bag and the pearl tea were highlights of our dinner. The night market goes on for ages after you get out of the food section and slowly turns into shoe, clothes, and jewellry stalls—great bargains.
I spent my last day in Taipei with a girl from Hongkong, Tze Tse, who I’d shared my room with in ‘Taiwanmex’ hostel (which was run by an old Mexican guy who didn’t speak much English or Mandarin…good thing my Spanish is awesome). Anyways, Tze Tse and I went to Taipei’s Museum of Contemporary Art, which was brilliant, and accidently spent three hours there. I had to run back to the hostel to catch my flight!
Loved Taipei, was happy I went, and definitely recommend checking it out if you’re in the area!
So, I’ve hit my halfway mark in Korea. In six more months, I will be a free bird once again and will never have to teach English again—exhale—I can’t wait! It’s not that I haven’t or am not enjoying my life in Seoul, it’s just that the combination of working full time and living in Asia are two things I never want to happen simultaneously again. I feel like my life is somehow imbalanced, maybe a bit hard to explain. I’m sick of wasting entire days teaching and hearing bullshit from my boss about not being ‘nurturing, sensitive, or affectionate’ to my students. Strange how I could’ve confused being hired as a teacher with getting paid to coddle children who have absent parents! Korea has been and will continue to be a learning experience that challenges me daily and I’ll never regret coming here—6 more months!
Thursday, September 11, 2008
an overdue update
My hours at work have improved and I now get out at 5 instead of 7, so I suppose I have little means as to excuse my not posting a blog since July. As much as I wanted this to be a weekly thing, it still hasn’t been a priority and I’m really trying to change that. Anyways, since July, I’ve been to the Boreyong International Mud Festival, Cambodia, downloaded Skype (finally!)and have had, as always, interesting run-ins with Koreans.
The Boreyong Mud Festival was awesome. People from all over the world come to this small beach town (about 3 hours outside of Seoul) called Boreyong every year to celebrate the event. There was mud painting and wrestling, military training in mud, mud slides, and Korean pop bands playing on a huge stage on the beach (always entertaining). They also put on a ridiculous fireworks show that may have beaten any I’ve seen so far, ever. Needless to say, there were lots of drunk wai-gooks (Korean word for ‘foriegners’) and Korean families with little children, making for an interesting crowd combination.
If I had to describe Cambodia in one word, it would have to be intriguing if not unsettling. The genocide by the Khmer Rouge only ended in 1979 and the devastation and horror of it is definitely still lingering throughout the country. I’ve been to third world countries before, but this was the first time where I had an uneasy feeling throughout the entire trip and felt that I was in a haunted country. The Tuol Sleng (former Khmer Rouge S-21 Prison) was the first site we visited in Phnom Penh, followed by the killing fields. Both were equally disturbing as there were skulls and bones of the victims on display and pictures detailing how the prisoners were tortured. My friends and I were horrified to the point of being silenced. We also learned that there were shooting ranges just next to the killing fields where tourists were able to shoot off AK-47s or live grenades…not really something I’d be into after witnessing the aftermath of the atrocities of genocide, but backpackers do it ‘to let off some steam after seeing the killing fields’—pretty f-ed up in my opinion. (youtube ‘shooting guns in Cambodia to see these backpackers’ videos).
We were happy to leave Phnom Penh after a day and went to Sihanoukville, a beach town in south Cambodia. It was less eerie than Phnom Penh initially and we were just happy to be on a beach. We met 15 year old prostitutes at the beach shack bars, saw landmine victims begging on the beach without limbs, and got to know a few children who worked as bracelet slingers. It’s hard to even eat while this is going on around you, let alone try and have a good time. I guess that’s always the conflict when travelling in third world countries; it just had never been so weighted or intense as it was in Cambodia. We left after a few days and headed to our last destination, Siem Reap.
The temples in Siem Reap were amazing and putting them into words is almost impossible. The most famous, Angkor Watt, was where we spent the most time exploring, followed by the temple where ‘Tomb Raider’ was filmed (we met or eavesdropped on far too many tourists talking about Angelina Jolie). Siem Reap as a city is pretty beautiful but very touristy. They have lots of markets, up-scale restaurants, and French influenced architecture (like Phnom Penh). We were happy we only spent one full day there to see the temples.
Overall, I’m glad I went to Cambodia, but probably wouldn’t go back.
So now I’ve been in Korea for four full months. It still feels like little over a month and I’ve yet to wrap my head around Seoul. I’ve also given up on trying to learn Korean; I wish I was more interested, but the time and effort it takes up is far too much when I know I won’t be spending another year here. Teaching is going alright. At the very least, it’s helped me have more patience and not be so awkward around children. It’s still something that I will definitely be happy to wash my hands of after my contract ends; teaching is definitely not my calling and I’d have to be pretty hard up to attempt it again. There are a few things about Korea that are starting to lose their novelty, such as daily stare downs by the same people(!), the superficialiality of Koreans, and taxi drivers refusing service because you're not travelling far enough. I’m also getting a little tired of the lack of manners and allowance for other people’s personal space. Koreans think nothing of pushing and shoving to get into subways or elevators before the people exiting have even gotten a chance to move. Okay, this is turning into me bagging Korea, which is not my intention; I didn't have to come here and the West's way isn't always the 'right' way.
Anyways, I’m off to Taipei in two days to visit friends from university. I’m super excited to see them and be out of Seoul for a few days. I will tell you about my trip when I return!
On a final note, I hadn't even realized it was 9/11 until writing the date on the white board this morning. I can't believe it's been a whole seven years since it happened. I hope everyone involved has found a way to get past the tragedy.
The Boreyong Mud Festival was awesome. People from all over the world come to this small beach town (about 3 hours outside of Seoul) called Boreyong every year to celebrate the event. There was mud painting and wrestling, military training in mud, mud slides, and Korean pop bands playing on a huge stage on the beach (always entertaining). They also put on a ridiculous fireworks show that may have beaten any I’ve seen so far, ever. Needless to say, there were lots of drunk wai-gooks (Korean word for ‘foriegners’) and Korean families with little children, making for an interesting crowd combination.
If I had to describe Cambodia in one word, it would have to be intriguing if not unsettling. The genocide by the Khmer Rouge only ended in 1979 and the devastation and horror of it is definitely still lingering throughout the country. I’ve been to third world countries before, but this was the first time where I had an uneasy feeling throughout the entire trip and felt that I was in a haunted country. The Tuol Sleng (former Khmer Rouge S-21 Prison) was the first site we visited in Phnom Penh, followed by the killing fields. Both were equally disturbing as there were skulls and bones of the victims on display and pictures detailing how the prisoners were tortured. My friends and I were horrified to the point of being silenced. We also learned that there were shooting ranges just next to the killing fields where tourists were able to shoot off AK-47s or live grenades…not really something I’d be into after witnessing the aftermath of the atrocities of genocide, but backpackers do it ‘to let off some steam after seeing the killing fields’—pretty f-ed up in my opinion. (youtube ‘shooting guns in Cambodia to see these backpackers’ videos).
We were happy to leave Phnom Penh after a day and went to Sihanoukville, a beach town in south Cambodia. It was less eerie than Phnom Penh initially and we were just happy to be on a beach. We met 15 year old prostitutes at the beach shack bars, saw landmine victims begging on the beach without limbs, and got to know a few children who worked as bracelet slingers. It’s hard to even eat while this is going on around you, let alone try and have a good time. I guess that’s always the conflict when travelling in third world countries; it just had never been so weighted or intense as it was in Cambodia. We left after a few days and headed to our last destination, Siem Reap.
The temples in Siem Reap were amazing and putting them into words is almost impossible. The most famous, Angkor Watt, was where we spent the most time exploring, followed by the temple where ‘Tomb Raider’ was filmed (we met or eavesdropped on far too many tourists talking about Angelina Jolie). Siem Reap as a city is pretty beautiful but very touristy. They have lots of markets, up-scale restaurants, and French influenced architecture (like Phnom Penh). We were happy we only spent one full day there to see the temples.
Overall, I’m glad I went to Cambodia, but probably wouldn’t go back.
So now I’ve been in Korea for four full months. It still feels like little over a month and I’ve yet to wrap my head around Seoul. I’ve also given up on trying to learn Korean; I wish I was more interested, but the time and effort it takes up is far too much when I know I won’t be spending another year here. Teaching is going alright. At the very least, it’s helped me have more patience and not be so awkward around children. It’s still something that I will definitely be happy to wash my hands of after my contract ends; teaching is definitely not my calling and I’d have to be pretty hard up to attempt it again. There are a few things about Korea that are starting to lose their novelty, such as daily stare downs by the same people(!), the superficialiality of Koreans, and taxi drivers refusing service because you're not travelling far enough. I’m also getting a little tired of the lack of manners and allowance for other people’s personal space. Koreans think nothing of pushing and shoving to get into subways or elevators before the people exiting have even gotten a chance to move. Okay, this is turning into me bagging Korea, which is not my intention; I didn't have to come here and the West's way isn't always the 'right' way.
Anyways, I’m off to Taipei in two days to visit friends from university. I’m super excited to see them and be out of Seoul for a few days. I will tell you about my trip when I return!
On a final note, I hadn't even realized it was 9/11 until writing the date on the white board this morning. I can't believe it's been a whole seven years since it happened. I hope everyone involved has found a way to get past the tragedy.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
a list of loves
It’s been a little over two months since I first arrived in Korea, and I’m happy to say that my initial awe and fascination of the country hasn’t worn off. Every day continues to be an entirely new day and I’ve yet to feel bored. There are so many things I enjoy here, and I think these things deserve and belong in a list—(not in any particular order)
1.the HUGE beverage selection (alcoholic and non) and the potency of fruit juices. Grape fruit juice here tastes like what I dreamed I was allowed to drink as a kid. It’s as if they left out the water and bottled the concentrate. Delicious.
2.POCARI SWEAT: an ionized energy drink and one of the staples in my diet. It’s like Gatorade without the sugar.
3.legally drinking a beer on the street and outside the bar and not seeing many people abuse this privilege.
4.STREET FOOD: fried dough, dumplings, rice noodles, mystery meat on sticks, Korean pancakes, egg sandwiches, etc. Delicious.
5.Ajumas (old Korean women): these women are aggressive. I’ve been punched in the back on the subway, poked in the chest at work, and been the subject of numerous eye rolls by Ajumas. For women below 5 feet, they stand their own and make me smile daily.
6.‘Pishee’ or ‘Pig Sizee’: pishee refers to Korean’s accent getting in the way of saying ‘fish’. Hearing ‘pishee’ come out of an old Korean man’s mouth at his restaurant made my heart melt. My other favourite, ‘Pig Sizee’ refers to shop attendants looking at you, and then suggesting you need a ‘big size’ while also unintentionally (or intentionally) suggesting that you need a size that’s big enough for a pig. Hilarious.
7.Candy and Popsicle selection: Amazing. I could write a whole other blog about the variety of non-chocolate candy here.
8.Waiters at Restaurants: service with a smile is an understatement. A waiter once travelled to his house to get rice after informing us that the restaurant was out.
9.Waiter bells at restaurants: a bell attached to your table that you ring when you need service-possibly one of the most logical and best ideas ever.
10.Free School Lunch: different everyday, always get rice, and have only disliked it once.
11.My neighbourhood: across the bridge from Mokdong lies Yeoungpeoungdo or as I was calling it up until a few weeks ago, ‘Dangsan’-back alley food stalls, family restaurants galore, working class apartments, a mix of a third and first world country, moaning dogs, church bells, cigarette man that yells ‘marlboro’ at me, two 7-11s, lots of ajumas, and rumors of brothels.
12.Unbelievably Cheap Taxis: I can probably count the number of times I’ve taken the subway because of them. I don’t think I’ve spent over $10 for a ride.
13.Lax Rules: ie: people setting off fireworks any and everywhere, bartenders throwing flames surrounded by alcohol bottles. Rules=minor details.
14.Feeling Safe: I could be out of the news loop here, but I think crime here is almost non-existent. I haven’t felt unsafe once.
15.Little Korean students approaching me in the street to practice English or just screaming ‘Hellooooo!’ Adorable.
16.How everything I want, whether in restaurants, or while walking around aimlessly in a new part of the city, magically appears. I don’t know how this happens, it just does.
The list could go on for a few more pages. There are just so many little things that I love about living here that completely outweigh the minor things I dislike.
1.the HUGE beverage selection (alcoholic and non) and the potency of fruit juices. Grape fruit juice here tastes like what I dreamed I was allowed to drink as a kid. It’s as if they left out the water and bottled the concentrate. Delicious.
2.POCARI SWEAT: an ionized energy drink and one of the staples in my diet. It’s like Gatorade without the sugar.
3.legally drinking a beer on the street and outside the bar and not seeing many people abuse this privilege.
4.STREET FOOD: fried dough, dumplings, rice noodles, mystery meat on sticks, Korean pancakes, egg sandwiches, etc. Delicious.
5.Ajumas (old Korean women): these women are aggressive. I’ve been punched in the back on the subway, poked in the chest at work, and been the subject of numerous eye rolls by Ajumas. For women below 5 feet, they stand their own and make me smile daily.
6.‘Pishee’ or ‘Pig Sizee’: pishee refers to Korean’s accent getting in the way of saying ‘fish’. Hearing ‘pishee’ come out of an old Korean man’s mouth at his restaurant made my heart melt. My other favourite, ‘Pig Sizee’ refers to shop attendants looking at you, and then suggesting you need a ‘big size’ while also unintentionally (or intentionally) suggesting that you need a size that’s big enough for a pig. Hilarious.
7.Candy and Popsicle selection: Amazing. I could write a whole other blog about the variety of non-chocolate candy here.
8.Waiters at Restaurants: service with a smile is an understatement. A waiter once travelled to his house to get rice after informing us that the restaurant was out.
9.Waiter bells at restaurants: a bell attached to your table that you ring when you need service-possibly one of the most logical and best ideas ever.
10.Free School Lunch: different everyday, always get rice, and have only disliked it once.
11.My neighbourhood: across the bridge from Mokdong lies Yeoungpeoungdo or as I was calling it up until a few weeks ago, ‘Dangsan’-back alley food stalls, family restaurants galore, working class apartments, a mix of a third and first world country, moaning dogs, church bells, cigarette man that yells ‘marlboro’ at me, two 7-11s, lots of ajumas, and rumors of brothels.
12.Unbelievably Cheap Taxis: I can probably count the number of times I’ve taken the subway because of them. I don’t think I’ve spent over $10 for a ride.
13.Lax Rules: ie: people setting off fireworks any and everywhere, bartenders throwing flames surrounded by alcohol bottles. Rules=minor details.
14.Feeling Safe: I could be out of the news loop here, but I think crime here is almost non-existent. I haven’t felt unsafe once.
15.Little Korean students approaching me in the street to practice English or just screaming ‘Hellooooo!’ Adorable.
16.How everything I want, whether in restaurants, or while walking around aimlessly in a new part of the city, magically appears. I don’t know how this happens, it just does.
The list could go on for a few more pages. There are just so many little things that I love about living here that completely outweigh the minor things I dislike.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
i need to grow up
Not having enough time is a problem. Not having enough time is about the best way to describe the past two months of my life that I’ve spent living in Seoul. For one, it explains why I haven’t posted a blog since May. I’ve started a few (some very interesting), but haven’t gotten around to completing any. Not having enough time also explains a lot of things in my life right now that I’m in constant conflict with. I wanted the first blog I've posted in over a month to be more fascinating and less self-involved, but those seem to take too much time and end up being half-thought out ideas that I edit the shit out of anyways. Please bear with the rant that is likely to follow:
I love to be alone and I think most people do. By ‘alone’ I mean, spending one complete day without speaking to another person is great once a week and if it’s not a whole day then those quiet 24 hours should be evenly distributed between 2-3 nights in an empty apartment. This is the first time in my life where this is a rare occurrence; one that is only possible on weekends, when, I feel like I should be out and social. I feel like I’ve always had conflicting feelings about being stingy with my time, but living here is taking self-time management to a whole new level, and is slowly driving me crazy. I’ve convinced myself that if I’m not at school (my job), I have to be doing something productive. Unfortunately taking naps, cleaning, watching TV, cooking, shopping for necessities, relaxing, and exercising haven’t made my list of productive activities and if I fall into one of their tempting traps, I feel guilty and beat myself up about wasting precious time. Now my time at home has to be spent reading, researching, studying Korean, or writing.
I’ve come up with a few theories on why this is. First, this is the longest period of time I’ve gone without being in school. I never took any sort of break and have been in some sort of class since I was three up until last November. Besides weekly Korean lessons, I feel bad that I’m not really learning anything in a structured, practical way. I’m aware that daily observations in a foreign country challenge me and I end up learning a lot almost everyday, I just hate not being able or forced to use and apply my knowledge to anything solid.
Onto my job. I am positive everything I say or complain about will sound like it’s coming from a spoiled baby who moved to Korea for all the wrong reasons, the most important of which didn’t involve actually ‘teaching’. I admit that I’m an idiot for not acknowledging or just ignoring the long hours mentioned in my contract and waving them off as minor details in a rush to leave Cleveland, Ohio as soon as possible. Working 9-7 never even crossed my mind as a possibility. Neither did getting home at 7:30 and being too tired to go out experience the awesome city I’m now living in, other than on weekends. I was also not prepared to deal with the copious amounts of extra ‘work’/bullshit that teaching at a private school involves. I feel like I’m just in a constant race against time that’s not readily available anymore and it’s kind of a bummer.
The past statements definitely sound like a 21 year old who is not adjusting to a full time work load, and if I look at the big picture that is exactly what it is. Now if I could only figure out a solution.
On a not-so-debbie downer note, I’m still so happy to be living in such an interesting country and eating delicious food everyday. I’m also very happy to be working with great people who take drinking as seriously as it should be taken. The list goes on and on, and I feel my current life would be near perfect if my work hours were cut in half.
I feel pretty lame about this blog, I just felt that I needed to satisfy those requesting updates from me, and this is how I’ve been feeling the past week. I won’t make a habit of complaining on here and will try to write more regularly about more interesting and pleasant experiences that I’ve had so far; there have been many.
I love to be alone and I think most people do. By ‘alone’ I mean, spending one complete day without speaking to another person is great once a week and if it’s not a whole day then those quiet 24 hours should be evenly distributed between 2-3 nights in an empty apartment. This is the first time in my life where this is a rare occurrence; one that is only possible on weekends, when, I feel like I should be out and social. I feel like I’ve always had conflicting feelings about being stingy with my time, but living here is taking self-time management to a whole new level, and is slowly driving me crazy. I’ve convinced myself that if I’m not at school (my job), I have to be doing something productive. Unfortunately taking naps, cleaning, watching TV, cooking, shopping for necessities, relaxing, and exercising haven’t made my list of productive activities and if I fall into one of their tempting traps, I feel guilty and beat myself up about wasting precious time. Now my time at home has to be spent reading, researching, studying Korean, or writing.
I’ve come up with a few theories on why this is. First, this is the longest period of time I’ve gone without being in school. I never took any sort of break and have been in some sort of class since I was three up until last November. Besides weekly Korean lessons, I feel bad that I’m not really learning anything in a structured, practical way. I’m aware that daily observations in a foreign country challenge me and I end up learning a lot almost everyday, I just hate not being able or forced to use and apply my knowledge to anything solid.
Onto my job. I am positive everything I say or complain about will sound like it’s coming from a spoiled baby who moved to Korea for all the wrong reasons, the most important of which didn’t involve actually ‘teaching’. I admit that I’m an idiot for not acknowledging or just ignoring the long hours mentioned in my contract and waving them off as minor details in a rush to leave Cleveland, Ohio as soon as possible. Working 9-7 never even crossed my mind as a possibility. Neither did getting home at 7:30 and being too tired to go out experience the awesome city I’m now living in, other than on weekends. I was also not prepared to deal with the copious amounts of extra ‘work’/bullshit that teaching at a private school involves. I feel like I’m just in a constant race against time that’s not readily available anymore and it’s kind of a bummer.
The past statements definitely sound like a 21 year old who is not adjusting to a full time work load, and if I look at the big picture that is exactly what it is. Now if I could only figure out a solution.
On a not-so-debbie downer note, I’m still so happy to be living in such an interesting country and eating delicious food everyday. I’m also very happy to be working with great people who take drinking as seriously as it should be taken. The list goes on and on, and I feel my current life would be near perfect if my work hours were cut in half.
I feel pretty lame about this blog, I just felt that I needed to satisfy those requesting updates from me, and this is how I’ve been feeling the past week. I won’t make a habit of complaining on here and will try to write more regularly about more interesting and pleasant experiences that I’ve had so far; there have been many.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
unrelated thoughts on sex
My friend Kurt and I started writing a manifesto last year; some parts I still think are worth mentioning, like the one below. The manifesto aimed to explain the causes behind human’s separation, consciously and subconsciously to nature, and ultimately, other human beings. I want to use this blog as a means to publish my thoughts as well as talk about my time in Seoul, so expect more random posts like this.
(the previous chapter questioned the initial emergence of clothes and discussed reasons behind humans necessity for covering only certain parts of the body.)
Besides bathing, the only time we’re really naked is when we’re engaging in sexual intercourse. The constant covering of our natural bodies has ultimately made our society starved for sex. Initially, this theory sounds ridiculous with sex everywhere in the media, but I’d like to offer a different stance on how the media is actually playing into our being starved for sex.
C.S. Lewis explained the notion of sex starvation in the following example:
If you place a crowd of starving Ethiopians in front of a stage that’s full of food, their mouths would begin to salivate and they would feel a tremendous urge to eat the food. Such is the case in strip clubs, where, naked women are placed on a stage in front of male patrons who salivate and urge to be with them sexually.
:
Many people would disagree and argue that our culture has become ‘over-sexed.’ It is true to say that sex is everywhere, especially in the advertising we see on a daily basis. Our movies, television, video games, and many other forms of media entertainment are full of sex because there’s a huge market for it. We enjoy seeing good looking people undress and touch each other; it gives us an ideal to look up to and offers escapism to the monotony of our daily lives. But, if our society wasn’t starved for sex, than these sexual images wouldn’t be effective.
By constantly covering our bodies, and leaving what’s underneath to the imagination of the opposite sex that’s revealed only during sexual intercourse, we’ve enforced that we should be ashamed of our naked bodies. Religion teaches us that our bodies and sex are sacred by condemning premarital sex and condoning abstinence. Religion also enforces that we should only have one sexual partner our entire lives; we should be monogamous. The media on the other hand, has presented the opposite to be acceptable; that sex and sexuality should be flaunted and having multiple sexual partners is normal, even encouraged. This view of the media’s is presented by featuring promiscuous sexual behaviours in movies, television shows, commercials, magazines, etc.
Now, consider our natural instinct to rebel against what we’ve been taught by our parents, elders, religion, and other forms of hierarchy that have told us to lead restrictive, conservative lives-that promiscuity is wrong. Because monogamy has been associated so much with the strict constraints of religion or controlling parents, it only makes sense that the majority of our society has had inklings to rebel and act promiscuously. Think about how much our current Western generation (those now in their twenties or early thirties) have veered away from religion, compared to our parents and grandparents. People still claim to be part of a religious sector, but it’s rare to meet anyone who actually lives their lives adhering to the constraints and rules of their original religion, or that of their parents, let alone attending mass on a regular basis. Our generation is no longer defined or influenced by religion. It’s lost its impact and importance and has been taken over by mass media.
So, if we’re rebelling against the repression of sex, we’re taking in the acceptance of sexuality and promiscuity that’s being imprinted on our brains from mass media. Our generation is so influenced by mass media, that we’d have an easier time defining ourselves by our movie or television preferences over the religion that our parents raised us in. Religious ideals and expectations have become outdated, and the ideas and behaviours encouraged and condoned by mass media are much easier to follow, and much more enjoyable.
Our generation has become one that doesn’t focus too much on the consequences of our actions. Sex has become something to give us pleasure, instant gratification, not an activity that results with having a baby. Birth control has given us the freedom to have sex without the repercussions of becoming a parent. Abortion has made the inevitability of becoming a parent even more avoidable.
Our generation has become detached from our fellow human beings by constantly occupying ourselves with our work, technology, media, and other forms of non-human contact. By doing this, we’ve distanced ourselves from communicating and spending time with other humans, so it makes sense that when we want to have sex, we’re able to get it without the time consuming ‘hassles’ of dating or having serious relationships. One night stands are as normal and accepted as the use of mobile phones in our generation. We’ve become de-sensitized to the feelings of others. It doesn’t bother us when some one gets attached to us and wants a relationship after sleeping with us; we can easily brush them off, tell our friends how desperate they are, and never see or talk to them again.
It’s interesting to look at prostitution, one of the oldest jobs in history, when considering how our society regards sex. For centuries, men (and more recently, women) have exchanged money to experience sexual gratification without the strings attached such as reproducing, having a relationship, marriage, etc. People have chosen to have sex with sex workers who are strangers instead of turning to their own partner or finding a partner to fulfil their sexual needs. No one’s feelings need be considered when engaging in prostitution; the customer is in and out as soon as he/she’s finished.
Similarly, pornography in general is good to look at in the same regard. Viewers and listeners of porn are able to experience sexual gratification by themselves using fodder available through print, television, internet, or even over the phone. In these circumstances, we don’t rely on having a real woman or man preset; we’re able to get aroused by pictures or words of strangers whom we’ll most likely never meet in person. We don’t need physical relationships in our lives to experience sexual pleasure. Prostitution and porn are just two other examples of how we becoming less and less reliant on other human beings for anything.
(the previous chapter questioned the initial emergence of clothes and discussed reasons behind humans necessity for covering only certain parts of the body.)
Besides bathing, the only time we’re really naked is when we’re engaging in sexual intercourse. The constant covering of our natural bodies has ultimately made our society starved for sex. Initially, this theory sounds ridiculous with sex everywhere in the media, but I’d like to offer a different stance on how the media is actually playing into our being starved for sex.
C.S. Lewis explained the notion of sex starvation in the following example:
If you place a crowd of starving Ethiopians in front of a stage that’s full of food, their mouths would begin to salivate and they would feel a tremendous urge to eat the food. Such is the case in strip clubs, where, naked women are placed on a stage in front of male patrons who salivate and urge to be with them sexually.
:
Many people would disagree and argue that our culture has become ‘over-sexed.’ It is true to say that sex is everywhere, especially in the advertising we see on a daily basis. Our movies, television, video games, and many other forms of media entertainment are full of sex because there’s a huge market for it. We enjoy seeing good looking people undress and touch each other; it gives us an ideal to look up to and offers escapism to the monotony of our daily lives. But, if our society wasn’t starved for sex, than these sexual images wouldn’t be effective.
By constantly covering our bodies, and leaving what’s underneath to the imagination of the opposite sex that’s revealed only during sexual intercourse, we’ve enforced that we should be ashamed of our naked bodies. Religion teaches us that our bodies and sex are sacred by condemning premarital sex and condoning abstinence. Religion also enforces that we should only have one sexual partner our entire lives; we should be monogamous. The media on the other hand, has presented the opposite to be acceptable; that sex and sexuality should be flaunted and having multiple sexual partners is normal, even encouraged. This view of the media’s is presented by featuring promiscuous sexual behaviours in movies, television shows, commercials, magazines, etc.
Now, consider our natural instinct to rebel against what we’ve been taught by our parents, elders, religion, and other forms of hierarchy that have told us to lead restrictive, conservative lives-that promiscuity is wrong. Because monogamy has been associated so much with the strict constraints of religion or controlling parents, it only makes sense that the majority of our society has had inklings to rebel and act promiscuously. Think about how much our current Western generation (those now in their twenties or early thirties) have veered away from religion, compared to our parents and grandparents. People still claim to be part of a religious sector, but it’s rare to meet anyone who actually lives their lives adhering to the constraints and rules of their original religion, or that of their parents, let alone attending mass on a regular basis. Our generation is no longer defined or influenced by religion. It’s lost its impact and importance and has been taken over by mass media.
So, if we’re rebelling against the repression of sex, we’re taking in the acceptance of sexuality and promiscuity that’s being imprinted on our brains from mass media. Our generation is so influenced by mass media, that we’d have an easier time defining ourselves by our movie or television preferences over the religion that our parents raised us in. Religious ideals and expectations have become outdated, and the ideas and behaviours encouraged and condoned by mass media are much easier to follow, and much more enjoyable.
Our generation has become one that doesn’t focus too much on the consequences of our actions. Sex has become something to give us pleasure, instant gratification, not an activity that results with having a baby. Birth control has given us the freedom to have sex without the repercussions of becoming a parent. Abortion has made the inevitability of becoming a parent even more avoidable.
Our generation has become detached from our fellow human beings by constantly occupying ourselves with our work, technology, media, and other forms of non-human contact. By doing this, we’ve distanced ourselves from communicating and spending time with other humans, so it makes sense that when we want to have sex, we’re able to get it without the time consuming ‘hassles’ of dating or having serious relationships. One night stands are as normal and accepted as the use of mobile phones in our generation. We’ve become de-sensitized to the feelings of others. It doesn’t bother us when some one gets attached to us and wants a relationship after sleeping with us; we can easily brush them off, tell our friends how desperate they are, and never see or talk to them again.
It’s interesting to look at prostitution, one of the oldest jobs in history, when considering how our society regards sex. For centuries, men (and more recently, women) have exchanged money to experience sexual gratification without the strings attached such as reproducing, having a relationship, marriage, etc. People have chosen to have sex with sex workers who are strangers instead of turning to their own partner or finding a partner to fulfil their sexual needs. No one’s feelings need be considered when engaging in prostitution; the customer is in and out as soon as he/she’s finished.
Similarly, pornography in general is good to look at in the same regard. Viewers and listeners of porn are able to experience sexual gratification by themselves using fodder available through print, television, internet, or even over the phone. In these circumstances, we don’t rely on having a real woman or man preset; we’re able to get aroused by pictures or words of strangers whom we’ll most likely never meet in person. We don’t need physical relationships in our lives to experience sexual pleasure. Prostitution and porn are just two other examples of how we becoming less and less reliant on other human beings for anything.
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