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i’ll jump right into a story. i’ve realized that my last few posts have been pretty ranty and i want to change the tone. because really, the traveling’s been truly awesome and so good to me, and i can honestly say that this has been the best experience of my life. the complaining was probably instigated from being just so tired and agitated from moving about every few days, anxiety that the impending ‘End’ was near, getting too much sun (too much heat and sun exposure make me fussy), and reverting back to the second phase of culture shock – that being the irritated phase.
so to jump right into a story because… well, i’m already nostalgic for the last few months.. it’s hard living in the past tense, but i think if i put these stories down on paper (well, online, as is the case), i’ll be better able to cope and try to do things in the present tense, like find a job and find a place to live!
ok, so to begin, bali then kyoto.
well, i had a pretty good last 2 days in bali as i mentioned in my last post. i was awesome in bargaining for the most part. i bought two nice traditional masks for about $6 altogether, and some other goods. part of it had to due with the fact that i got to the market just before closing when the vendors wanted to get rid of stuff before leaving for the day. the other part had to due with the excessive rain we got on one of the days i was there. the vendors were hoping that if they gave me a good deal, the rain gods would bestow good luck upon them in return! you see, the vast majority of the balinese are hindus (keep in mind that indonesia is predominantly muslim except for bali), and it’s a special division of hinduism only found in bali itself. so a few of the vendors, although displeased with how little they were getting, gave me a great price in hopes of good karma.
oh! also, i did get to meet up with my dutch friend mark again who i was suppose to meet in bali. we apparently had some sort of misunderstanding in our online communication which was partially the reason for his delay. anyway, all in all, i was generally happy with where i was. oh, mark also taught me how to say “no thanks” in indonesian, so that when taxi touts started hassling, i could snap back with “tidak, ga mau.” i love being able to say no in the native tongue!
anyway, we both got back to kuta beach from ubud on our last day together (he also had a flight, to sulawesi, a different island in indonesia, the same day i was flying out), and we got a sweet deal of 10,000 rupiah (less than $1) for the both of us to use the shower and the pool for the afternoon, before our flights at the guesthouse he had stayed at some nights before. at around 6 pm, it was time for us to go to the airport. well, my flight wasn’t till 1 am, but i decided to take the taxi with him, since it would cut costs for the both of us (drivers usually charge more for single passengers). and so after our brief goodbye, i had a 7 hour wait at the outside terminal area of the airport, not realizing i couldn’t just sit at the gate and read my book! the JAL check-in desk wasn’t opening until around 10 pm!
one gripe i have about bali is that they have very few banks, much less legitimate money exchange centers. and when you do exchange money (or have to deal with money in any form), a lot of times they’ll cheat you a couple thousand rupiah by rounding down. at an exchange place at the airport, this money exchanger tried to do the same, and i really had to twist his arm to give me the exact amount – although the second time i needed to exchange money again to pay immigration the mandatory exit fee, i changed my mind and figured it was chump change (and besides there’s no tipping in asia). so, thought what the hell, i’ll let him keep the 2,000 rupiah. (at a different place, the guy actually refused to exchange any money at all because he knew i wanted the exact amount).
freeze for a second here. being back to reality in the states, i’m having serious trouble getting used to tipping again. and bad bud light. and cars actually in real marked lanes and on the right side of the road! okay, had to get that out there. continuing on with the story..
so i finally got to the gate area, and jesu christo, there are cockroacks sneaking about on the seats and i’d catch sight of one every few seconds! i mean, i had seen a cockroach on the window of the money exchange place downstairs that i was taken aback by, but shit, on the seats in the gate area made it difficult for me to sit still. by this point, i had switched into socks and sneakers (which i had only done on treks in the entire 5 months i’ve been away by that point) and put on my long-sleeved flannel – one of only 2 long-sleeved shirts i still had with me, not counting my rain jacket. also, i had no pants, as i had sent my only pair of jeans home before i left seoul. so, i knew kyoto would be interesting (or that I would look interesting in it), because it was going to be 50 or 60 degrees over there, and i was only going to be in my denim short shorts and could expect to get a lot of strange looks. oh well!
i was really excited for my flight on JAL (japan airlines), because i’d heard so many things about how it was a lush airline. but sadly, it wasn’t nearly as nice as my asiana airlines flights to seoul and to bangkok. i mean, that airline was loaded, even on economy. each passenger was provided eye masks, ear plugs, long socks! (for the chilliness in-flight), a pouch for all of that stuff, great service, pretty hosts and hostesses, great food and drinks, and a nice set of good, plastic playing cards for those who requested (haa).
anyway, digression aside, about 7 or 8 hours later, i arrived in osaka kansai. as soon as the plane landed, i was in a ‘touch and go’ state of mind. you know, ‘no time to lose, i only have 12 1/2 hours in japan and i gotta make it worth it!’ so i was literally speedwalking the entire way to the exit, got to 2 different information desks asking ‘okay, i have 12 hours in japan, what can i do?’, studied a few maps, and decided on kyoto an hour and 15 minutes away by the express train.
okay, i’m going to have go to sleep now and continue the story tomorrow. stay tuned…
i am currently in bali, indonesia. i’ve been here for about 4 nights and 5 days, and quite honestly, the first few days (well, nights really) have been absolutely crappy. i mean, AWFUL. yesterday night, i could not stop hating, i mean really HATING, kuta beach, the beach that i’ve been on until today (this afternoon, i have transported myself to ubud, a nice quiet country town a few hours to the north).
what was the problem, you ask? well, kuta beach is extremely, OUTRAGEOUSLY touristy, and is entirely full of couples, holiday-makers and schoolies. schoolies are the slimey aussie kids and 20-somethings who’ve only just finished high school and are just bumming around with a little cash to burn, surfing and clubbing around the area. the afternoons have been fine as the first two full days i learned how to surf for the first time ever, and yesterday, some people i knew and i took some scooters around to the other beaches on the island (this place called dreamland beach was just absolutely glorious – three shades of clear blue and massive killer waves). so, mainly it’s been the evenings and partly the company that haven’t been so great. the people i know are these guys (and some girls who are all right) who i met in ko phi phi and phagnan, thailand and who cause a lot of drama and are kinda crazy. anyway, this plus the club scene, which i absolutely hate hate hate were sources of extreme exasperation and agitation.
a few other things: i was quite paranoid about the security and the police here as this is indonesia and extreme intoxication is not a good state to be in in a country like this (although everyone was pretty much hammered every night and this is bali). and once again, i’m again totally annoyed of the locals street hawkers and the taxi drivers’ touts. there was literally no street, store, or corner i could go on without being hassled or harassed in some way.
this is how a ‘conversation’ normally went on kuta beach (and even in ubud) with the locals and me:
‘konichiwa, nihon mo? japanese? taxi? transport? where are you going?’
‘no thanks’
‘yes, transport? where do you need to go?’
‘no. you don’t need to know where i’m going.’
alternatively, it starts like this:
‘(whistles/cat calls) konichiwa. japanese?’
shake my head
‘chinese’
shake my head
‘where are you from?’
don’t answer
‘korean’
‘none of your business.’
every 2 minutes dude! it drives me insane. they ALWAYS all speak to me in japanese. hell, they know way more of it than i speak french now! granted, there are heaps of japanese tourists (probably the most of any asians here, and here in ubud, they’re absolutely everywhere and are apparently the largest group of expats). in thailand and bali, i cannot get away with someone not initially thinking i’m japanese, although a few times, i’ve gotten chinese/taiwanese/singaporean/even malay for being so dark now.
okay. now the surfing. trying to surf was loads of fun. but learning was insanity. not because it was hard and not because i was frustrated, but because of the freaking local surf instructor. he did not really speak english that well, he did not really teach me much of anything other than one basic form, and he could not stop hitting on me – actually to the point of harassing me. 1. he continuous said i looked japanese about 1000 fucking times, after EVERY single surf. 2. he continuously opined that i looked like the other japanese girls he taught how to surf the previous day. 3. he wouldn’t stop talking about how beautiful i was and how i looked like a japanese artist (?!), and 4. he just made me absolutely sick. digusto. awful awful awful.
so basically, the best part of kuta beach was going to the other pristine beaches nearby, flying at about 70 miles an hour on the small hilly windy roads hoping not to get killed in a motorbike crash riding behind this crazy dutch guy named sunny. yeah.
anyway, basically, bali is probably really nice for couples and vacationers, but not for the average backpacker. it’s really a mistake that i’m here. but it’s my own fault. i was supposed to go to melaka, malaysia and singapore, and/or fly to oz or back to bangkok, but decided oz was too expensive and vast to do in a couple of weeks. and again, as i LOVE to think in hindsight, i should’ve gone with my gut instinct and gone back up to chiang mai and pai in northern thailand as i longed for. but ‘course, i didn’t go with my instincts and didn’t really do my homework in advance. also, i was supposed to meet a friend here, but basically, flying all the way to another country that’s not so close is kind of a bad idea to do when plans are made so far in advance and not set in stone. basically, i kinda got ditched but again, i mostly blame myself.
in fact, the day before i left KL for bali, i met an irish guy who was just there, and he sort of forewarned me about what it would be like. i almost, just ALMOST changed my plans and wanted to cancel my ticket and fly back up to bangkok, but i didn’t take the right risk. it’s also low season here, which could be why it sucked too. bali is a big place, and i’m only going to basically 2 places, when most people spend about 2 weeks here with a week in the gili islands alone, which is the ko phagnan of indo but is really quiet right now.
that’s enough complaining. if there are a few lessons i learned from traveling, it’s: DEFINITELY go with your gut instincts even if it means having to take some small risks (like changing plane tickets at the last minute); always get advice from multiple sources and never just one person as you go along; compare notes with others; go where there are hostels or more likely to be a backpacker scene; get the latest lonely planet guide (’cause they really know what they’re talking about – and mine’s 2 years too old); if you meet someone really cool and your gut instinct is that person is really legit; don’t be shy about traveling with them (which i was a few times to do); it’s never a bad thing to go back to a place you’ve already been and liked; don’t trust too many people (which i did a few times too many); and finally, never travel too fast. that i think could be the biggest mistake a traveler makes (even the lonely planet and rough guide say so, which i initially didn’t take seriously!).
hmm, i don’t know if i’ll ever be able to go on a proper vacation or holiday again. i just love the rough lifestyle of backpacking way too much!
anyway, ubud isn’t so bad. it’s picturesque and sort of reminds me of chiang mai. i’m also really digging reading “eat pray love” while i’m here as well, as a third of the book is set in this town. i’ll be able to do plenty of shopping here. indonesia’s quite cheap. the other saving grace is that it’s cheaper to fly out of here to honolulu than bangkok, and i have a stopover in osaka, japan for 12 hours! maybe i’ll try to see some of japan! i don’t know, we’ll see! that would be SAWEEEET though.
This is an old post from like 2 months ago that I meant to edit, but didn’t have time to. I’m posting it anyway, because I still think it’s insightful about my life in Seoul and the things I went through. Enjoy my broken English, haa.
Below this post is FINALLY a new post about ‘Nam.
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man, i’m so delayed with these updates… i wanted to write earlier in the week, but just couldn’t get myself to write in a way that i was pleased with. (my english is also deteriorating. i’ve been dropping articles and mixing tenses, having to simplify my speech for the students at work. i start a lot of sentences with “first of all” since i’m teaching them how to use transitional phrases in multi-paragraph essays. so sorry about the hasty writing style.) to sum up, my days have been really catatonic – it’s been mostly pleasant the last few weeks, but there were indeed a couple of really hellish days. i’ve gone sightseeing and visited a couple of historic places, and that’s definitely made me a lot happier. i’ve decided stressing out about work is useless. the job shouldn’t be a priority for me. i’m here to enjoy myself and my time here, right? and not just waste my energy at the hakwon all day long.
okay, quick summary of work (i will definitely have to go into more detail about this later, because there are a lot of interesting cultural differences that i’ve been shocked to learn in the school environment):
have i mentioned that the schooling system is insane here? the parents are insane. the kids are insane. the whole system is insane. with some classes, the most poorly behaved ones, i’m essentially a glorified babysitter. i can’t tell if the kids misbehave because they’re taking all of their anger and hatred of the system and their parents out on me, or if they’re simply spoiled kids – i think it’s both.
but some days, i do sympathize with the kids. if the kids don’t do their homework, are late or are absent, i have to tell the front desk people, who call the parents. often, i hear the next day that they got yelled at by their parents. one really adorable and good student forgot to do his homework one day and begged me not to call his house, or else he wouldn’t be able to come to school on monday (this was a friday). i asked him why, to which he said that he’d be too badly bruised to come to school. um, yeah. another got yelled at for a couple of hours. it’s really pretty insane. then i asked them if they loved their parents and they automatically said yes. i don’t get it. i mean, my parents were pretty strict with me too, but i don’t know. i was shocked and unnerved to hear these things…
i really didn’t realize the whole idea of “saving face” was a big cultural thing here (because it’s pretty subtle), but it is. that’s why so many of the kids don’t participate, because they don’t want to embarass themselves. and here i am, a thoroughly American teacher (who, by the way, doesn’t know any of the pop starts, celebrities, historical figures, or Olympic athletes of korea – EXTREME SHOCK FROM THE STUDENTS, like the whole class gasped in horror and disappointment) trying to teach the class American-style.
but because the kids DO know that i’m American and we’re supposedly easier to manipulate and nicer than Korean teachers, and because they know that i’m one of the younger teachers with less experience, the kids really do try to test my limits. they try to break you (me). really, they do. also, teachers used to get a lot more respect even in the ’80s or ’90s, but with the advent of the internet, cell phone cameras and small video cameras, they haven’t. why? back in the day, teachers used to be able to use corporal punishment. but not anymore… because kids started taking photos of their bruises and whatnot and posting them all over the internet. parents have also begun spoiling their children immensely. and although teaching was considered a respected profession even through the ’90s, it’s less so now…
anyway, where i was going with this is that kids are less fearful and respectful of teachers. plus, i’m a young Korean American. so they talk back and stand up to me even more. i had to kick a kid out of class early last week, but he didn’t even budge. there’s also a way of talking in Korean that’s really rude (opposite of the honorific) and some of them had started using that. i took a kid aside after class earlier this week and he just said right to my face, “i don’t want to talk to you” and turned around and left. this is the shit i’ve been dealing with.
PLUS, so many kids, even the good ones, expect you to get them snacks for class (this is very common). and they’ll ask for things. it’s weird. but yeah, they want you to buy things for them! it’s insane. and they say, well, you’re older so you should buy us things.. this is a cultural thing – older people do really buy lunch for the younger people all the time. for instances, my relatives give me money all too frequently. each week, they give me an allowance of $100! i’ve started refusing, because honestly, it’s nice, but they don’t need to give me money and i feel awkward accepting so much.
the kids make fun of me often, because i can’t speak korean and they will say things in korean to test my comprehension level and what not. they also talk about me among themselves like i’m invisible and can’t hear them. for instance, “the teacher has a small face.” and i responded, “oh really?” as in, “i heard you” but they remain unfazed. or they will talk about weight in front of you. “does Min teacher weigh more than 45 kg?” um yeah…
the maturity level of most kids is SO LOW! i thought a lot of them were in middle school, like 13 or 14 – 15 at the absolute oldest. but a lot of them are 17 or 18. some of the kids are so adorable, but really, they’re devilish. also, the kids, admins, and teachers alike all gossip so much.
oh yeah, i used the word “fucking” in one of my worst classes and got in a little bit trouble for it. yeah.. i was so frustrated and said “this will get you a fucking zero.” the kids immediately told the front desk and some even told their moms. i mean, fucking asshole kids. BUT.
there’s a big but. i’ve dropped two of my classes (those classes with the worst kids), and have a much lighter schedule now, and i love the kids i have in the mornings in the remaining classes i teach. but then, there’s the whole thing of becoming TOO friendly with them. they want my facebook/myspace/cyworld (a korean social network i don’t have), they want to visit me, they want to TAKE ME PLACES like this island called Jeju island (one female student told her mom about me. and now her mom and her both want me to visit her hometown – Jeju Island which is a super nice kinda tropical island that’s a plane ride away. like whattt??). they want to hang out with me. i mean, this is a little overboard. i know other teachers are more lenient in a lot of ways, buying their kids lunch and stuff, but i would never do that. and to hang out with them on weekends? i mean, some of the kids are cool.. but like, this is kinda weird.
Currently in Hoi An, Vietnam.
The below is most of an email I wrote to a friend, copied and pasted. Some wild times were had.
The drinking’s decreased a bit, which I’m partly thankful for but partly not! It adds madness to things which can be fun.. But I suppose it’s better for my health.
Also, since when was UWisconsin such a great school? I mean, I know it’s not bad, especially for a public university, but um, to compare it to Harvard? This American girl I’m traveling with is cool, but she can be so f-ing pretentious at times. Comparing UWis to Harvard? I mean, come on! It’s put out more CEOS than Harvard, she says. Well, for 1, it’s a freakin huge school, and 2, what caliber are these CEOS really? Anyway, that pissed me off. Americans are bound to piss me off though at some point without fail, it kinda sucks..
A few other things. The Vietnamese love to holler. I hear they’re ruder in China and India though..
My previous presumption that Aussies are the coolest travelers still holds true. However, Israeli travelers are often quite haughty, cocky and rude than not. Believe me, this has nothing to do with Judiasm as nearly three quarters of my friends back home are Jewish. But these Israelis act like they own the freaking place, and so I generally dislike them. Some Brits can be asshole too, but they’re usually pretty cool. Germans are awesome as well.
I still dislike how people try to put me in a box, as far as my appearance/nationality is concerned.
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Currently, I’m a bit stressed about when I need to come back to the States… The whole American pressure to advance (and it IS American, and perhaps a bit East Asian) is getting to me. I’m traveling with a 34 year old Israeli woman and another 24 year old American girl (the UWis grad), and although I like them overall, it can be annoying to be with them 24/7, for different reasons with each… Being with another American reminds me of the pressures to DO THINGS and to MAKE SOMETHING of myself and think about what I want to do next constantly, because that’s what we’re often talking about a lot of times. But then again, that’s about all she and I have in common so I’ve been continuously submerged (it does feel like I’m submerged) in this pressure, since a few days ago at least… What do I want to do? Law, film, international stuff? I still haven’t figured it out. I think the rents also want me home soon, which is a whole another issue that I don’t even want to get into. Apparently the Brits and Aussies don’t feel this pressure for which I commend greatly..
Other than that, I’m having a blast. I’m in Hoi An, Vietnam right now. It’s a nice, lovely old town, definitely a reprieve from the madness of Hanoi. You have to literally dodge and dart between motorbikes, bikes and cars left and right when crossing the street, as there are no lane markings on most streets – neither markings for lanes on the same side nor oncoming traffic. Also, very few streets have traffic lights.. People don’t ever seem to use turn signals, but honk to alert neighboring vehicles and people.. No road rules whatsoever. It is insane!
I had a couple of wild adventures my first few days in Hanoi actually. I was nearly held hostage at the Lao-Vietnam border for not giving a dollar (yes, $1, but it goes a long way here) to this one random Vietnamese guy on my bus. There were only three foreigners on the bus: myself, an Aussie guy and an Irish girl. I was actually sort of getting ready to pay up (most people do when they cross the border) until the Aussie guy asked why we need to. That got all of our gears rolling, so the Vietnamese guy started shouting at us and demanding money without any explanation, and actually had the nerve to hike up this no-name fee to $2. So we started mildly arguing with him and saying that we’d pay the border officials but not to him. We spoke to the border official who didn’t speak a lick of English (we were at an unofficial border that foreigners generally can’t cross because there was a land slide by the official one) who also concurred with this random guy and said we needed to give him the dollar. We still refused and finally after about a half hour, the guy gave up. BUT not without telling the entire bus full of Vietnamese people and turning them all against us. By this point, the Aussie guy paid up (what a wuss for starting this whole thing but paying in the end), while the Irish girl and I still hadn’t, and so they were pretty pissed. They pulled the bus over about 100 meter down from the border crossing, and I thought shit was gonna go down. They all got off the bus and sat at the curb for about 3 HOURS (part of which was their lunch) in protest of our not giving the money. I didn’t get off the bus for fear that they’d just leave us there or steal my stuff. When they all got back on and the bus finally started going again, Jesus Christ, I thought they were going to drop us off in the middle of nowhere so I got no sleep the rest of the ride, and was delayed about 6 hours from when we were originally supposed to get to Hanoi (I was supposed to get in at 5 pm, but didn’t make it till midnight, ruining plans to meet up with travel buddies). I am however proud to say I didn’t give the dollar. Much trouble for a dollar though. I don’t know if I’d do the same thing again if it happened again, I probably wouldn’t. The problem was that I didn’t want to pay up as soon as the guy started yelling, as I don’t deal well with people coercing me to do something I don’t want to do. Once we started arguing, it was also hard to back down. Plus, by the time the third hour of waiting rolled around, we’d pretty much resigned ourselves to whatever fate was ahead of us. Bus ride from hell, really. And this doesn’t even compare to the breakdowns we had on the minibuses in Lao…
Another time in Hanoi, this woman at a food stall started yelling at a German friend and me for not giving her enough money for our food, which we paid for but she wanted double. As soon as we got up to go, fifteen of them surrounded us and we were thinking, fuck, shit, this is gonna be bad. I let my German friend do most of the talking, though I did my share.. They were literally blocking us from walking even a foot forward. As I’m trying to walk away, the owner, this older 50-something year old woman who was about 4 foot 9, suddenly grabbed my right upper arm really hard. I was jerked back, and at this point, I was suddenly boiling mad, just extremely pissed off, the do-not-tamper seal was broken, the jar was dropped and shattered. (Poor analogies? Perhaps..) Anyway, I turned around and started yelling at her at the top of my lungs – I think I said, “Don’t you fucking touch me, you fucking bitch!” It was her finally crossing the line and touching me that did it. At this point, I was standing over her and nearly about to punch her teeth out. Yes, I was enraged. She was still yelling at us, but we finally broke through the crowd and walked away at a brisk pace. And it’s suffice to say we avoided that street until we left Hanoi the next night!
Anyway, just a few adventures. I’ve heard of even more horrorific stories from friends and fellow travelers. The Vietnamese, especially in the North, definitely aren’t as friendly as Thais and Laos, and in fact, can be downright hostile. Currently, I’m in this small town called Hoi An fairly close to the coast and also on a river. I think I’m headed out of this town tomorrow for Nha Trang, another coastal-ish town, then Dalat, Mui Ne, and then Ho Chi Minh City. But yeah, I’m seriously considering coming back to the states relatively soon, maybe after Cambodia and southern Thailand. Like late Oct/early November-ish. Which would mean I’d cut out Malaysia, Singapore and Australia, maybe even Hawaii. Which would suck, because I always meant to end up in Oz towards the end of my trip. But I don’t know… Too many unknowns! Ahh!
Any suggestions?
I PROMISE I’ll write a substantial post about my adventures soon, because adventures HAVE been had – it’s not as if I haven’t and don’t have anything interesting to write about.
But today, I had a bout of homesickness… probably because of my TWENTY-NINE hour bus ride from Vientiane, Laos to Hanoi, Vietnam. yeah… I also spent about 2 hours on facebook looking at pictures of some of you in the States. I just realized it’s FALL in New York and in Boston and in New England in general. It’s kind of hard for me to fathom except through looking at pictures of New York and the orangey-yellow leaves on the trees, because it’s been about 85 or 90 degrees here. If I think hard enough, I think I can almost smell the fall. But it’s not the same.. Oh, I do miss New York dearly. How I miss it…
Stay tuned. Seriously.
sorry about the lack of posts, but it’s hard to find a chunk of time online nowadays. i’m in Vang Vieng, Laos. It’s been SICK (in the good way). but today, i needed a day to myself. it’s hard traveling with a 19 year old aussie girl. she’s definitely still a careless teenager, less mature than the other 20-somethings around, a high schooler, dare i say a child. BUT it’s worked out for the most part, and we’re among other people from our slow-boat journey down the mekong.
anyway, I seem to write when I most feel like not writing. hmm. perhaps next time.
apparently, this is the hottest song in korea right now, i was corrected by my students. not that other song i posted before.
i think this song and mv is pretty representative of the somewhat narcissistic/vain (or alternatively, confident?) society here. the song is all about how the narrator think she’s so hot and turns heads. niiice. i have to say it’s a pretty addictive song.
and i hear this song below in every freakin store i go into.
these ones are popular too. and hilarious. also about being pretty. they love their bubblegum pop.
kind of like the states, korea’s really into the whole ’80s thing right now. hipster clothing is also big here. for instance, i went to several different optometrists over the course of the week trying to find a pair of eyeglasses, but the majority of the stuff they carry right now are the ray ban-type frames or really thick artsy frames that i couldn’t really wear on a normal basis. yeeeeea.
i think phase 2 of my culture shock has finally ended (this would be the frustration/irritation stage where things generally irked me). it’s now evolving into the adaptation phase, phases #3.
today, a taste of pop culture in korea.
such a popular song right now. these girls are really popular. and women in generally are very beautiful and put together here – always dressed up from head to toe with make-up.
pics from the past week: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28819999@N08/sets/72157606739701906/
descriptions will have to come later.
also, the link to charisma man mentioned in a previous post.
i’ve written an as-yet unpublished post on the school system, my students, family life, and cultural differences. but it was so poorly and hastily written, i couldn’t bear to publish it. at least not yet. i’ll revise it sunday, as i’m going to the east coast of korea this weekend (seoul is on the west).
so a few interesting things: there’s been shock on the part of my students at my thoughts and behavior… they were shocked to know that i don’t know much about korean history (no clue about the names of famous korean historical figures or heroes), korean geography, or korean celebrities and pop stars. this surprise is partially unfounded. i mean, they KNOW i grew up in the States and that i don’t speak Korean well, and probably of all the teachers, speak it the worst.
BUT most shockingly, to the students demise, i am not actively supporting the korean olympic team. cue gasps from the entire class! i mean, i’ll definitely support them if i see them on tv or hear that they are doing well. but really. it’s not like i wouldn’t cheer them on if i were to see them on tv. so wtf, leave me alone.
“so who are you going to support,” they ask? well… umm… i mean, i’m probably not going to follow the olympics that much, but i did imply that as i AM from america and feel as though i am one, the answer is the obvious. “WHATTT?!” even more gasps. well, at the very least and if nothing else, i know a lot of the U.S. swimmers names. but really, the olympic coverage here doesn’t show the american team much, so it’s not like i can easily support them anyway.. and it’s not like i’m saying i’ll take sides if they’re up against each other. just let me be.
edit and side note: korea has been doing really well in the olympics, and i’m very happy for them. for such a small country, they leave a pretty big mark – i now know korea’s good at archery, shooting, judo, weight-lifting, and fencing. some reuter’s reporter even labeled the dude who won the 400 m freestyle as the new ian thorpe. congrats to him. his win is a big deal here and along with the chinese guy who came in second and the japanese dude who won the butterfly, the pundits are starting to say that the asians, who were never strong in swimming, are catching up to the White Man.
olympic medalists are treated like heroes in most places around the world (more so than the states), and likewise, here as well.. they keep replaying the moment when that swimmer won the gold. good for them, keep it up. just don’t call me a traitor.
