Japan part 1

Konnichiwa,

Here lies the tale of my first week in my two week trip in Japan..

Osaka:
I arrive in Osaka after a long flight on Jetstar (budget flight) late
at night. The culture shock wasnt that great because alot of Japan
reminds me of Korea but with few differences. Anyway as usual, my
first few hours in a new country always goes awry and I find myself
lost running around dark alleyways filled with bikes (Japanese seem to
use them alot here) until eventually a convenience store worker left
his post and walked me to the hostel I was looking for. Not before he
got lost himself though.

Anyway, Osaka is a nice place to go shopping (they have the longest
street mall in the world, at 2.5km long). Theres a nice castle and
several department stores, and a famous riverside area of shops and
restaurants called dotonbori, which is extravagently lit up with neon
lights, massive advertising and models of all manner of sea creatures,
some mechanical, stuck above restaurants serving the live real version
of it below. And some famous mechanical clown banging a drum. (but
they dont serve him).

What I liked the most about Osaka is the food, particulary the street
food (budget traveller that I am). Osaka is famous for takoyaki
(octopus pieces in a batter ball, covered with sauce and fishy flakes
from some animal), and okonomiyaki (which i:ve only just been able to
pronounce, its a type of flour pancake mixed with vegetables and
seafood, egg and or pork, cooked on a hotplate in front of you, and
good with beer).

Nara:
I caught a train to Nara, former traditional capital of Japan, only an
hour away. Nara is mostly a parkland filled with temples, trees and
lots and lots of tame deer that would come up to you if you had food
and sleep around all day. The grandest thing here is the Todaiji
temple, which is apparently the largest wooden building in the world
(and its reconstructed form is currently 2/3rds of its original size
after the original burnt down in a fire). In any case it is still
massive, and a massive bronze buddha inside to match.

Tokyo:
I took the express (shinkansen) train to Tokyo. It took 3 hours and
would have cost a fortune if I didn:t have my 7 day Japan Rail pass
(which also cost a fortune, but allows unlimited travel on Japan Rail
lines for 1 week). Anyway, I go to the Asakusa area, which is the old
area north east of Tokyo, to find the hostel and to check out the
largest temple in the city there and walk around the stores still
selling traditional wares as they did for centuries.

I met some people at the hostel and we went for sushi (and saw a large
cockcroach on the wall after finishing, yummy!), then visited Tokyo
tower at night which is exactly like the Eiffel tower. We then walked
down the Roppongi area, south west of Tokyo, which is a expat and
westerner hotspot for drinking and clubbing and being foreign.

Wanting something less westernised, we head to Ginza, in central
Tokyo, and find a bar selling cheap drinks and filled with Japanese
people. The Japanese people were quite happy to drink with us - at
one point we started a spontaneous arm wrestling match (we won in the
end). We ended up back in Asakusa where we joined another group of
Japanese for Karoake until 7am.

A few hours later (12pm), I wake up and, not wanting to waste my time
here, head for Akihabara, other wise known as Electric town, just
north of central Tokyo. Its a good place to play with new gadgets and
computers, and also check out the girls dressed as french maids
handing out brochures to their `maid cafes` where you get served
coffee and food from them, play games or conversation for a price, and
nothing more than that.

After taking some photos of them in a way that could be considered
stalker-ish, I head of to the youth culture area of Shibuya!

Shibuya (west of central Tokyo) is where young people come to see and
be seen. The latest trends and fashions begin and end here; the
streets are like a series of catwalks where girls parade their stuff.
It also happens to be the setting for a game on my Nintendo DS, so I
had to excitedly compare the real with the virtual. Yes im such a
nerd. Anyway, after taking more photos of shibuya and the fashion
trends that happened to be worn by very attractive girls, (cause
clearly i:m so into fashion, right?), I delve deeper into their
subconcious and find myself in Harajuku, north of Shibuya, a famous
area where youths disillusioned with life and filled with teenage
angst flock to dressed up in what can be described as mangaesque
gothic lolita style costumes, a way to escape reality and live a
fantasy life, and be photographed and admired, before heading back
home to the humdrums of normal teenage life.

Content with my camera full of photos of girls - i mean examples of
japanese youth and pop culture - i head back to the hostel, where i am
dragged out again for another night of mayhem - back to shibuya - into
one of the famous clubs in Tokyo. Unfortunetly named `womb`, this club
was 4 floors of awesome drum and bass, electronic trance, and oddly
enough, latin style rock.

Again, I got back to the hostel at 7:30am, and slept until 12pm. We
all went back to Harajuku to see the harajuku youths dressed in
costumes again, and into yoyogi park nearby to check out the
rockabilly boys - men of all ages dressed in leather with greased
slick hair and rebellious attitudes, dancing to Elvis style rock and
roll. They were kinda fearsome and yet also hilarious to watch.

Further in the park, was a multitude of rock and ballad bands and
buskers all playing within a few feet of each other - amazingly no one
drowned out or clashed with the other bands - it worked seamlessly.

I then dashed off to meet with an Aussie friend I met in Korea, who is
now teaching English in Tokyo. He met me in Shinjuku, north of
harajuku, and is an area known for business, entertainment, and
sleaze. He took me to a Japanese style bar and got me drunk enough to
try raw horse meat sashimi - which actually tastes pretty good, and
skewered organs, which doesnt.


To be continued...

Hong Kong and Macau

So after Singapore with it's food and shops, I went up to Hong Kong...
with all it's food and shops... hmm..

Anyway, my first impression of Hong Kong was "Ah what a dump!" Which
is not really fair for Hong Kong seeing I decided to stay for 5 nights
at a place in the Kowloon side called ChungKing Mansions.


THE INFAMOUS CHUNG KING MANSIONS

ChungKing Mansions is a big seedy building wedged between nicer hotels
and affluent buildings. It is a kind of sore spot in the famous Golden
Mile Road (a long road full of neon signs and department stores and
expensive hotels). Although I hated staying there, I kinda liked it's
raw unique in-your-face character. In this place you'd find all sorts
of strange and unusual characters and vagrants, hear stories about
dead bodies, bloodstains on walls, ghosts and disappearances, and
other kinds of oddities. Indeed, my room featured torn wallpaper, and
strange switches that seemingly had no purpose (or a random
combination of which would turn on the hot water). We had a cable TV
which I fidgeted with until it worked (I'm sure we're not supposed to
use it), and for some reason, two outdoor floodlights connected to the
wall (but didn't work. But why are they there?!!) We also had the
tiniest shower/toilet in the hallway seperated from everyone by a
see-through glass door - which meant that anyone who showered there
would not only be pressed against the door, but can be seen by people
who walk past. I still have bad images burned in my brain of distorted
anatomy from what I saw walking past.

Anyway, a little depressed about my first impression of Hong Kong,
thank god I was able to meet up with Marie (who I was with in
Singapore), who also came to Hong Kong for a day on route back to
Korea. Even though she was sick, she still helped me find the hostel
(it was in a different building block from the reception - and the
reception didn't even have a sign!), showed me cool places to eat
(street dim sum yay!), and introduced me to the largest light and
sound show in the world, known as the "Symphony of Lights". This
involves laser beams dancing from buildings from the Hong Kong Island
side over the river to the sound of cheesy classical music every night
for 30 minutes. The view of the Hong Kong skyline in lights is one of
the most beautiful I have ever seen.

Afterwards, we walked along the Avenue of the stars, which is similar
to Hollywoods hand prints in ground by famous actors place, except
here it was just Asian celebrities such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li,
Stephen Chow, and others i'm not Asian enough to have heard of.


HONG KONG ORIENTATION
Hong Kong consists of 3 parts, the rich businessy hilly Hong Kong
Island which has a very british feel and design, the rough asian
Kowloon mainland side which I was staying in, and the peaceful Lantau
Island.

I prefered the Kowloon side of Hong Kong, as it was full of street
food vendors (I lived on dim sum for $1.50 a dish), night markets
selling pretty much everything, from gold fish to adult toys, and
department stores (which were my source of public toilets, seeing that
in Hong Kong, decent public toilets are so hard to find!)

I actually went and bought myself two tailored suits, as Hong Kong is
one of the cheapest and best places to have one made. I got them quite
cheaply too and was impressed with their quality. If anyone wants a
tailored suit I can surely recommend a place. :)

In Hong Kong Island, they have some affluent stylish drinking areas,
an old temple, and the longest outdoor escalator in the world (800m
long, heading uphill as most of Hong Kong Island is on a steep slope.
Thats about it. Well there was a tram going to the peak of Hong Kong
Island to witness amazing views, but I never went due to the poor
visibility of the cloudy misty weather.

Lantau Island is a cool place to relax, because of its giant bronze
buddha on mountain top thang, and if you are willing to walk into the
wilderness a bit, a peaceful quiet area called Wisdom path, which
features a series of tall sticks in the middle of nowhere in a figure
8 stating something called the heart sutra. There was also a monastery
where you could eat vegetarian food prepared by the monks. The
portions were huge but nothing spectacular (they're monks, not
cooks!).

I wasn't alone in my travels, as I was fortunete enough to meet a cool
Swiss girl named Leila, who was seemingly the only other normal person
in the whole hostel. Together we went to Macau, which is a 1hr ferry
ride away.


MACAU, WHERE EAST MEETS PORTUGAL
Macau is a place more well known for its over the top kitsch casinos
(over 20 i think on a small area), but I was more interested in its
Portugese history (as it was formally a Portugese colony - and
Portugal is one of my favorite countries). Macau failed to dissapoint
- you can tell the influence of the Portugese by its beautiful tiled
pavements, aculejo tiles, stylish colorful buildings and the food
(custard tarts). I also noticed the large divide of rich vs poor, with
old decayed buildings with clothes being hung outside on barbed wire
on one side of the road, and expensive boudoirs, fancy cars and
department stores on the other side of the road. Somehow it all works.
:)

Anyway, after 5 days in Hong Kong it was time to head home (via
singapore and laksa at an exclusive club my sister belongs to).

So thats about it for now. In July I'm headed for Japan, so until
then, keep in touch y'all!

Singapore

Hey all,

So, after having gone back to Melbourne to study teaching and live
with my Korean girlfriend Sammy, three weeks later and i'm overseas
again! :) Guess I can't stay put for too long these days. This time
it's just a week in Singapore followed by a week in Hong Kong.


TRAVEL TIP #103: DON'T RELY ON MOVIES AS RESEARCH ON EXOTIC LOCATIONS
Anyway, I arrived in Singapore with images of old rickety boats and
seedy characters on decrepit piers and wooden walkways in an old dirty
port city as characterised from the movie "Pirates of the Carribean
3". Clearly I should do my research and not rely on pop culture, for
Singapore is far from that.

Singapore is a very humid hot city (as it sits on the equator), filled
with shopping malls, food centres and restaurants, and lots of
vegetation. This makes the city quite clean and pleasant if not for
the oppressive heat! They say Singapore has two climates: the hot
humid outdoors, and the freezing cold air conditioned buildings
inside. I'm surprised people don't get sick from the constant change
of environments.

It is pretty much illegal to do anything here, from bringing in drugs,
to eating on the subway, to chewing gum! That's why you have tshirts
calling Singapore the "Fine" City (Fine as in penalty for doing
something).

Singapore I'm told is also very family orientated city, as there are
lots of facilities and activities where families can happily live and
spend quality time together on the beaches, east coast, shopping malls
and the famed Singapore zoo. In fact, as I was staying at my sister's
apartment with her husband and two kids (first time I saw my 2yo
niece, awww so cute!), the first place they took me to see as a family
outing was indeed the zoo.

The Singapore Zoo is reputed to be one of the best in the world, and
for good reason, since it is very well designed - bars and cages are
rare, instead there are wooden walkways through open enclosures where
you feel you're actually getting quite up close to the animals. The
place is more green with vegetation and waterways than modern style
concrete and steel structures. The environment is very natural.


EATING AND SHOPPING OUR WAY THROUGH SINGAPORE
I met up with Marie and Beckaroo (two friends I worked with in Korea)
in Orchard road, which is a mecca for shoppers since it is lined with
department stores. Marie also introduced us to a local friend called
Suresh, who was nice enough to drive us around places and give us the
grand tour of Singapore.

Over the week we explored Chinatown (i'm told that it's a little
strange that a country with 70% of the population being Chinese, that
there is a Chinatown in the city!), Little India (which was a little
dirty and seedy - i've heard the real India is worse), Sentosa Island
(which is a beach Island and resort area off the Singapore mainland
which we accessed through a cable car enabling lovely views of the
construction work around us). We also looked around the riverside
exploring the clean quays with pastel coloured buildings and affluent
bars and restaurants. I imagine the movie "Pirates of the Carribean"
would not have had the same effect if it was represented this way. We
also did a lot of shopping around all the huge malls (actually Marie
did the shopping, I mainly did the tagging along looking bored kinda
thing that guys generally do when dragged to shopping malls).


FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD!
I ate alot of food here (as it was a welcome respite from all the
shopping). I tried the famous Chilli Crab, Black Pepper Crab, Stingray
(as revenge for what it did to the Crocodile Hunter), Laksa (a yummy
seafood and rice noodle dish in a light spicy coconut soup) and
various versions of noodles, rice and curries. Yep, Singapore is
definitely an awesome place to eat. Its not too expensive and has a
great variety of dishes as it is virtually a meeting place of
cultures. Alcohol is very expensive though :(

I also tried a singapore sling, which is a famous cocktail, sweet with
cherry and pineapple and other spirits. We chose not to try it at the
original location of Raffles Hotel, as I heard their version is
expensive, premixed and not the genuine version anymore. I actually
thought I was clever when I came up with a great pick up line, go up
to the counter next to your intended victim and say "would you like a
singapore fling?" Never tried it though as I'm sure Sammy would not
be impressed.

Final Thoughts on Korea

So, here I am with my last email on Korea and my travels (for now).
I'm quite sad to leave Korea.. it's been a interesting and fun
1.8years of my life. Life is full of chapters, and this one is about
to close. I don't think things would be the same if I came back, with
different characters, people and experiences. This doesn't mean i'm
regretful of my decision to leave, but that I'm just sad to go while
things are so great here. Quit while you're ahead I guess..

Anyway,

SNAPSHOT OF KOREAN CULTURE

From my experiences so far, South Korea is like the Portugal of
Europe. Mainly overlooked by it's more popular neighbours (China,
Japan, Taiwan and Russia), Korea is a peninsula covered with many
forests, mountain ranges, and small village towns full of old people.

Korean people differ from the Japanese in that they are more
emotional, honest, outgoing, and individualistic. They can also be
depressed, hot tempered and introverted. When you first meet a Korean,
they tend to be shy and reserved, but once you get to know them, they
become the nicest people you'll ever meet. The Japanese tend to cover
their real feelings and thoughts, which means you never know if they
really like you or not. Koreans would just be blunt and tell you what
they think.

Living in Korea sometimes feels like living in 18th century England in
terms of etiquette and social conduct. People respect their elders,
they also bow to each other in greeting and farewell or when walking
by (even to complete strangers). Women are still treated differently
and unequally, though things are rapidly changing. Homosexuality is
unacceptable. Body contact between the opposite gender is usually
avoided, no one hugs or kisses in public, and expressive gestures such
as hugging friends are usually reserved for big occasions like going
away for a long time.

Koreans tend to criticise their country, but will defend it to the
death if overseas or if any foreigner tries to do the same. There is a
strong sense of identity and national pride, characteristic of
peninsular countries who were often invaded due to their geographic
locations. (Korea's been invaded over 3000 times in written history).

They are also persistant and hardworking. Only in Korea can you turn
one of the poorest countries into the 10 most powerful economies.. in
50 years! Sure, they had to put democracy on hold to do it, but
still...

Korean's also do everything in the extreme. They study, work, play
computer games, etc like fanatics. Add to that a hot tempered
emotional impulsive personality and you find most Korean's to be a
little crazy. But if they are on your side, they are with you forever.


COOL THINGS I LIKE ABOUT KOREA
-Ondol hot water floor heating system
-drink driver service - they drive you and your car to your home.
-free water and handtowels at restaurants
-soju
-Door bell on table service - you press this for service and they come
right away
-food street stalls - great for after drinking
-fashion
-hot girls
-cheaper dentists
-cheap Korean food
-hongdae, gangnam, sinchon
-mandu lady
-nambi, pool bar, deck bar, brix, helios, loft, geckos, bungalow,
playstation bar, samgypsal place in hongdae, and other drinking holes
- my friends
- some of my students
- my bachelor pad


THINGS WE CAN DO WITHOUT
-Bad smells
-rude ajummas
-drivers
- pollution
-extreme weather conditions
- no sidewalks in residental areas
-haebangchon hills
- mopeds riding on sidewalks


There's probably more I could write but I can't think of right now..

Anyway, that's it from me! I gotta get back to my farewell party (take
two) now. So Anneyonghi gaseyo!

James' return to normality

Hi all..

UPDATE IN MY LIFE..

First of all, yes Korea's national symbol (Namdaemum, which is the 600
year old City Gate) has been burnt down, in a possible arson attack by
a disgruntled senior Korean. Just after the Lunar New Year too!
Wikipedia is on the ball and you can see for yourself at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namdaemun

This tears at the heartstrings of all Koreans, who are very proud
people. It's the equivalent of the Lincoln memorial, Sydney Opera
house or Big ben burning down! Even I'm sad and angry about it. :(
They are also furious at the lack of security at such an important
monument, and the incompetency of the fire crews who took failed to
control the blaze because they were trying to work out how to put out
the fire without damaging the structure! Hello?!! It's on fire!!
Better some damage than all of it, right?!

Secondly, yes I'm still alive and in Korea. :)

Lastly, I won't be in Korea for long.. :(

In two weeks time I'll be back in Melbourne Australia, to study my
Diploma of Secondary Education. This is a one year course, which will
enable me to either find work as a high school teacher in Australia or
- should I get the urge to flee again - enable me to find more
teaching English jobs overseas with better pay and conditions
(although Berlitz is a good company to work for, 6:45am classes are
killing me right now!).

Will I be alone in my endeavour? Wasn't I planning to get married with
Sammy and settle down you ask? Well, that plan has changed a little.
Instead, we've decided to try living together first in Australia to
"test the waters" before committing to something that we're both
admittedly a little scared of. Yep, we've gone the "modern marriage
way" and chosen to go de-facto instead.

So while I'm studying my DipEd, Sammy will study Cookery and should be
a chef in 2.5 years time. After that we are both free to settle in
Australia or travel around the world together teaching and cooking.
:) So my original 10 year travel plan to travel the world has not been
completely abolished as yet, just significantly altered. Plus, should
anything happen to the relationship, I am also free to go back to my
original plan anyway.

Right now, Sammy is in Australia preparing for her cookery course.
I'm still in Korea packing my things up and closing up my life here.
I like to thank my trustworthy reliable mates Nathan and Daniel for
helping look after her while I'm away. :)

I must admit I'm quite reluctant and sad to leave Korea. I mean, I'm
actually really happy with my life right now, and isn't that what
people want? I'm making good money, the work is fun, I have lots of
friends and an active social life. To leave that to go back to study
and hardship is not appealing (I won't be earning money at all while I
study but living of my current savings originally set aside for
travel). But I guess that nothing lasts forever, times change, and
good things come to an end, and I should consider my future.

So, my priorities in life at this point is to find a way to maintain
employment in my life, and to find someone to share my life with. I've
always believed that it doesn't matter what you experience in your
life, if you don't have someone to share your achievements with, it
doesn't feel quite complete. I don't want to be one of those people
who travel around the world experiencing many things and then die
alone with no one to remember them. It's a lonely life and life is too
wonderful to be lonely in. Sammy may or may not be the one for me, but
I can't just give her up without making sure first (she was going to
study in Oz anyway). Hence my decision to return.

So, see some of you all soon! ;) Let's not forget I also miss you all too!!


CRAZY BUT TRUE

-News readers bowl to the camera before and after reporting the news.
I feel so honored.

-Korean girls insist on wearing miniskirts in the deep cold of winter.
Now that's brave.

-Korean guys have outrageous hairstyles, like a black mop placed on
the head and styled and dyed (though not as much as Japanese)
manga-esque style. They must spend hours fixing their hair up!

-Koreans think the adjective form of "Fun" is "Funny" eg I had a
funny time! instead of I had a fun time!

- They also think that "hardly" is an adverb for very hard eg "I was
pushed hardly" instead
"I was pushed hard".

-Korean men always carry their girls handbags.

-Korean men sometimes have their own handbags - in the name of fashion
of course.

-Korean men can be very feminine and are not the least homophobic, yet
most are prejudiced against gays.


KOREAN DRINKING CULTURE
In Korea, drinking is used to build relationships, especially between
companies doing business together. As a result, many managers and
people working in sales end up with health problems, and is sometimes
fatal! However, even though many people want to stop, they don't, as
it is taboo to decline a drink from their bosses or clients, as that
is a sign of bad business or disrespect to elders. Social rules take
over common sense in this one.


KOREAN WEDDINGS
They typically consist of bride and groom inviting everyone they know
and their friends. This could exceed 500 people sometimes. People
would arrive wearing whatever they felt like, no formal suits needed.
They would say a few words to the bride/groom, then sit down on one of
the many banquet tables and eat the expensive food provided. The
ceremony takes place while everyone is eating, talking, and not even
watching the ceremony. It feels like having a wedding ceremony in a
noisy restaurant. Afterwards, people can take photos (but most don't)
or leave as they feel like. But they should leave some money as a
gift.

This money is counted and written in a book next to the persons name
by the family, who will remember how much they gave so if they are
invited to that persons wedding next time, they will give the same
amount (more or less). Theoretically this money should help finance
the high cost of the wedding. Unfortunately it doesn't as people don't
contribute as much as they should, leaving the families' quite poor
afterwards.

If that wasn't enough, the groom (and his family) have to buy the
house, whereas the bride (and her family) buy all the furniture.
Therefore, it is common for both families to save for a long time just
for the wedding and housing for their children. No wonder Koreans
aren't having much children anymore!


WHY THE SUICIDE RATE IS SO HIGH HERE

Korea and Japan have the highest suicide rates in the world! The
reason for this is, as some of my students have told me is that:

During teenage years, the intensive long studying from childhood to
adult, from 6am to 2am, consisting of normal school and lots of
private tutoring and "cram schools" and learning institutes, means
these poor kids don't have a life. Lots of pressure from parents to
excel and emotional teenage angst can drive many Koreans over the
edge.

All this hard study is actually not for anything practical it seems,
but to study facts and figures that will help them do well at the
university entrance exams. Thus, if a Korean does not achieve the
score they have been studying for all their life to get into the
university they want, this would cause them to commit suicide.

Then its trying to find a job in a very competitive country where
there is so many people and so few jobs available. Again, this stress
will cause major depression.

Then it's trying to raise a family, buy a house (Korean housing is one
of the most expensive in the world!), pay for their children's clearly
very expensive education, and their weddings, and save enough money
for retirement (retirement age in Korea is so young, at 55!). So
parents burn themselves out very quickly. This life style and stress
can make life seem so bleak.

So, it's no wonder these poor Koreans have one of the highest suicide
rates in the world.

Will attitudes change? Possibly, but it will take a long time. Korean
psyche is steeped in Confucianism, where education is most important
tenet, as is social position and tradition. But the effect of
globalisation is starting to change these views.


AN-NE-YO! MY ARABIAN HOMIES!

Koreans have a strong friendship with the Turkish nation. This is
because it is believed that the Turkish language shares similar
structures and forms to the Korean language (along with Mongolian,
Uzbekistan and parts of Central Asia). The reasoning behind how this
is possible stems from the history of man's migrational patterns: from
Africa, man came up through the Middle East and spread out through
Europe and Asia; Man then crossed the Bering Strait in Russia to
Alaska, or headed south to Australia during the ice age.

Anyway, clearly there was a migration that started in Turkey and ended
in Korea, via Central Asia. Some interbreeding with Mongolians and
voila! The Korean was created. Sounds more plausible than a bear
eating garlic myth. Interestingly the Koreans say they have no genetic
relation to the Chinese race despite being neighbours.

So what is the result? Well apparently Turkish people understand this
also, and embrace the Korean people whenever they visit on vacation.
They are very well looked after, and there is a strong feeling of
brother/sisterhood in the nations. This is why during a recent World
Cup soccer match a few years ago, the two nations playing against each
other were happy to shake each others hand and be friendly to one
another.

Further cementing this relationship also is that Turkey was one of the
countries that helped them a lot during the Korean war.

One could say that Australians, like Koreans, have a similar certain
"mateship" with the Turkish as well, due to Gallipoli in World War
I...


Anyway, I'll write my final essay, uh email on my last thoughts on Korea soon..

Till then,
James

A week around the Hermit Kingdom

Annyeong!

Here is an account of a week travelling around Korea with my Korean girlfriend Sammy (So Hyun Yoo)...

Day 1: JEONJU CUISINE, DAMYANG AND THE BAMBOO FOREST

We left Seoul on a sunny morning, with poor Sammy having to drive us
through the whole of Korea since I don't have an international
license. Though the way people drive in this country, I'm not sure
people have any license at all. There's a saying that if you can drive
in Seoul, you can drive anywhere. This is true (with the exception of
Cairo, which is worse!)

Anyway, it is amazing what lies outside Seoul. Being inside, you think
the whole country is just one concrete jungle of polluted twisting
disorganised streets, apartment building clones, and traffic. But
venture outside the city and you'll find an amazing beautiful country
filled with mountain scenery (Korea is 70% mountains - a hikers
paradise), rivers, lakes, and old ancient stuff that should be tourist
sites but aren't really well known outside of Korea.

We stopped for lunch in the city of Jeonju, a few hours south of
Seoul, because I heard this city is famous for good quality
traditional food. One such speciality which I had was bimbimbap, a
rice dish topped with assorted fresh Asian vegetables and meat (raw or
cooked). Sometimes a fried or raw egg is added on top. It's all
arranged very nicely. Then you ruin it by squeezing a large amount of
red pepper paste and mixing it until it looks like a kind of reddish
fried rice. It's quite delicious and comes with a brothy soup and lots
of (free and with unlimited refills) side dishes (kimchi, salads,
seafood).

Korean style of eating always guarantees you're full - I love it!

So, stuffed from the nice lunch, we waddled back to the car and
continued to our destination - Damyang. This is an interesting
village, as it is famous for the bamboo forests that grow there.
Damyang is at the perfect latitude to grow bamboo, as the weather
conditions are ideal and always consistent.

We also visited an old abandoned large traditional villa, very
picturesque with stream, old stone bridges, and buildings of stone,
painted wood and paper walls. Sammy was my guide; there was no
mention of this in my guide book. The main entertainment room had 4
walls that swung vertically upward, turning it from a house to a
pagoda, which was good for hot or pleasant nights to drink and share
stories and music in the past.

Finally, we headed to our hotel for the night in a valley, surrounded
by other odd-looking kitsch novelty hotels. Some were shaped like
toadstools, others like castles or mountains. Most were lit up like
Christmas decorations at night! We chose the most normal looking one.


DAY 2: ADVENTURE ON JIRISAN MOUNTAIN

The next morning, we continued south for Jirisan, which is the second
highest mountain in Korea (1915m). We drove through stunning scenery,
ate fresh mountain food at a picturesque location, and observed
busloads of children being taken to a traditional Korean village in
the mountain. There are several of them here, where the villagers
still live as they did in the past, except with cell phones, cars and
satellite TV. They do still live in the old traditional houses, wear
traditional Hanbok peasant clothing, and address each other in
traditional old ways. It's like stepping into the 18th century here.

Anyway, the reason for the children visiting is actually not for the
history lesson, but to take them to "Etiquette schools" which are run
by the villagers. Basically, these kids are badly behaved and have no
manners or respect for other people. These "traditional people" are
used to teach and discipline them by, that's right, the "traditional
way".

So, we started our hike up to the very top of the mountain. The plan
was to hike 5 hours to a mountain hut near the top where we would stay
the night, before continuing another 1.5 hours to the top in time to
see the sunrise. The hike was a lot of fun but difficult. We would
walk along dirt trails strewn with oversized rocks, occasionally we
would have to climb over or around them. Sometimes we would walk over
precariously perched metal bridges with the sound of the stream below
running into pools of turquoise water where we would occasionally
splash ourselves to cool down. Some places along the way we saw
smaller rocks piled on top of larger ones like a mini pagoda.
Apparently they are from people who are making wishes. The last 2kms
was painful, having to clamber up a steep rocky trail; at times it
felt like actual rock climbing.

Finally, we reached the mountain hut, tired, hungry, and hoping to buy
some food for dinner, as we had (for some reason) not brought any with
us. To our disdain, we found the mountain hut only had a few things to
buy, so we had to settle for a small supper of canned tuna, rice and
canned peaches before settling down for the night in the crowded hut
full of smelly (but full because they had the sense to bring food)
middle aged men and women.

I swear that maybe I was in some sort of Korea's best snorer's
competition, and that I was sleeping between the two leading
competitors. The noise was deafening. On the left was an old guy whose
nose was getting a good workout; the guy on the right was probably the
weirdest snorer I've ever heard. His snore sounded like a duck
quacking.

I opened my eyes a few hours later (note, not awoken, since I didn't
get any sleep) to Sammy shaking me, suggesting that maybe we should
leave now and get there early, since we are not going to get any sleep
that night. I couldn't have agreed more! We left the snorers
convention and went up the mountain to the top incredibly tired,
hungry, and blind as it was still quite dark, and wary of the bears
that come out at night.

Finally, we made it to the top, and after a while waiting in the
freezing cold, we saw the sunrise. It is said that if you see the
sunrise on top of Jirisan, 3 generations of your offspring will have
good luck. My offspring? What about me? I did all the hard work! And I
think after the strenuous hike and sleepless night we just had, I
think the mountain should at least grant us 6 generations!

I was thinking in the back of my mind that I would propose to her on
top of this mountain when the sun rose, but considering our poor
condition, I didn't think it would be as nice as it could be. So,
after seeing the sunrise came the daunting task of coming back down
the mountain, which felt actually worse than going up due to no sleep,
no food, and tired sore limbs.


DAY 3: NAMHAE AND THE GERMAN VILLAGE

After a hearty much needed lunch, we drove further south to the
coastal Islands known collectively as Namhae (which means "South
Sea". 3 Islands off the main coast connected by large modern bridges,
it was quite nice to finally see some sun and surf (Seoul is on a
river, so you don't really see the beach there). For the first time in
a year, I was able to walk on the beach into the ocean! It doesn't
quite compete with the Great Ocean Road in Australia, but it was still
impressive.

We drove along the coastal roads enjoying the views, checking out some
museums and watching old women work in the rice paddy fields which
were terraced along the steep hills leading to the coast - looked like
giant curved steps had been carved on the side of the hills. We also
stopped to see the biggest oak tree I have ever seen! Finally, we
settled for the night at a German village.

Yes, that's right, German village. Apparently, during the 1960's,
Germany was in need of miners and nurses. So, many Korean people went
to Germany to make money. In the process they intermarried, or they
fell in love with German culture. In the end, some Koreans stayed in
Germany; the others came back with a desire to recreate what they
experienced. Thus, a group of Koreans designed and developed a whole
village in the German style, complete with German houses, flags,
gardens, and German people (who came with their Korean partners).

We stayed at a pension owned by a Korean, who I attempted to speak in
German (since my German at the time was better than my Korean). His
place commanded views of the harbour below, where we enjoyed a
(Korean) barbecue and beer, followed by a walk along the harbour. It
was quite peaceful and very quiet, which I felt wasn't quite German at
all (What? No German style pubs?)


DAY 4: TONGYEONG AND THE DINOSAUR PARK

We left Namhae with no clear idea of where to go next. We decided to
drive along the coast eastward and see where we would end up. On the
way we noticed a sign saying "Goesong Dinosaur Park". We had to check
it out!

Goesong Dinosaur Park is a modern large museum and dinosaur park on
the coast. The exhibits and specimens were impressive for a museum not
many people know about, and certainly allowed me to relive my
childhood days when I was fascinated by them.

What was also good about this museum is that you could walk down to
the coast past huge lifesize models of various dinosaurs. On the
coast, there were huge plains of solidified volcanic lava from ages
past, where, embedded in the rock, are thousands of dinosaur
footprints, of various kinds and sizes.

We continued along the south coast until we reached Tongyeong
(referred to as the "Naples of Korea" - Nice try guys!), a small
picturesque fishing town famous for handbags and their huge fish
market. Sammy bought a few good quality handmade handbags, and we
explored the fish markets where we saw all kinds of fish and unusual
seafood I never knew existed!


DAY 5: GAMPO - EAST COAST

The next morning, we walked along the harbour enjoying the sights. One
of the sights was the famous "Turtle Warships" designed by a great
Admiral and National hero.

These turtle warships consisted of a boat with a curved roof that
enclosed the whole ship like a turtle shell. This kept the crew inside
safe and dry. Portholes on the sides allowed for visibility and cannon
fire. It's almost like a water tank. The roof had spikes on top, which
would deter most enemies from trying to board and enter the boat.
Finally, there was a ram on the front of the boat, which could be used
to tip or puncture other enemy boats. The enemies at the time were the
Japanese, and these turtle boats were very effective at destroying
them during the Japanese invasions.

We then headed towards the east coast, driving quite a bit, getting
lost at one point, picked up an ancient hitch hiker, and finally
settling around the coastal town of Gampo. This town didn't have
anything special to see, but it did offer many rooms to stay right on
the east coast. Unfortunately for us though, they were all closed as
it was off-season. So, we settled for a hotel instead.

We explored the east coast a little more, visiting sites such as the
underwater tomb of an ancient king, which is marked by rocks 50m out
in the water, laid out in a way where you can imagine it to be a
dragon (but only if you squint, and have an overactive imagination).


DAY 6: GYEONGJU - CAPITAL OF THE 1000-YEAR ANCIENT SHILLA DYNASTY

From Gampo, we headed back inland towards the ancient town of
Gyeongju. On the way we went to Bulguska Temple, which is over 1000
years old and one of the most famous beautiful temples in Korea.
There were some huge stone pagodas, one plain, one decorated. I can't
remember the significance of them however.

We also visited the Seokgarum Grotto, which is one of Koreas most
valued national treasures.It was discovered one day when a shepherd,
caught in a rainstorm, seeked shelter in what looked like a cave. What
he found in there was something untouched for 1000 years. It was a
huge white stone Buddha, placed inside a hill, the interior lined with
stone in a dome shape, carved with ancient gods and protectors, so the
effect feels like you've walked into a hill to find a little temple
carved in stone inside it. Indeed it is a spectacular ancient
treasure which I think could rival some of the Ancient wonders of the
(western) world.

We entered Gyeongju, ancient capital of the the powerful Shilla
kingdom from 1000 years ago. The Shilla dynasty had such power in the
past that people liken it to the East version of Rome, with its power,
affluence and trade routes. In fact, they have even discovered Roman
coins and artifacts in some Shilla tombs, which proves there was trade
going on between the two countries at that time.

Then again, my information is largely supplied by the very nationalist
fiercely-proud Koreans.

We had lunch at a traditional "Sambap" place, Definitely one of my
favorite Korean meals, It's origins from Royalty banquets, Sambap
consists of not 1, or 5, but about 20 or more different dishes, of
various kimchi, meat, tofu, and seafood, eaten with rice and soup.
It's like a buffet for 1 (or 2). Your table is covered with so many
dishes you have nowhere to put your chopstick down! And the best thing
is that it's not really that expensive!

We then walked around a bit, observing many old buildings having left
their facades the same as it was 1000 years ago but only modifying the
inside. This is in order to preserve the beauty and the history of the
place by the government. The result leaves you feeling a little like
you've gone back in time (except they didn't have cars back then, or
soccer fields, or cell phone towers, or satellite dishes).

We visited some of the ancient Shilla tombs. These aren't just normal
tombs with gravestone as you'd expect. They were in fact huge burial
mounds that look like very neat circular hills (and in fact Koreans
treated it as such until they it dawned on them that those hills
aren't natural or normal, and after excavation and examination,
discovered they were actually tombs).

These are the Korean versions of Pyramids, where Royalty is buried in
a tomb of stone and left with many treasures, then covered over with a
sort of semi circular burial chamber, which is then covered with
stones and dirt.

We then went looking around for the famous Gyeongju bread, which is a
kind of bread filled with a red bean paste. There is one original shop
that makes it and a few varieties stemming from the original. To be
honest I don't know why it's so famous around Korea; I didn't think it
was mind-blowing stuff. But anyway we bought lots of them to
distribute to family and friends, which is what Koreans do when
they're in Gyeongju.

Afterwards, we went to a place called Anapji pond, which is a man made
lake designed by one of the Ancient Shilla kings as a place to
entertain guests. We walked around a series of colorful gazebos
located at various places around the large pond, enjoying the scenery,
the ducks, squirrels and various wildlife, and the sound of the loud
bullet trains that storm past just outside the peaceful park!

Anyway, Sammy had a nice surprise for me. She took me to a fancy 5
star hotel by the lakeside just in the outskirts of Seoul, as her
family had some sort of special membership that allowed them a great
discount on staying there So we had a nice view of the lake from
our nice balcony, where we enjoyed the sunset over Gyeongju bread and
wine.

Again, I was thinking of proposing to Sammy over the sunset, but I
guess suddenly I was overcome with shyness and I missed the
opportunity!


DAY 7: BULAT - A TRADITIONAL KOREAN VILLAGE

Originally we had planned to go to Seoroksan mountain and the hot
springs in Sokcho, on the north east coast, before heading back to
Seoul. But after Jirisan left us still with sore tired limbs, we
decided that we did not want to do any more hiking. So we had the
idea of trying to stay in a traditional Korean house in a traditional
rural village for fun. Sammy did some research and found a place that
would allow us to stay the night.

This is how, after driving a few hours through winding narrow mountain
roads, we ended up in Bulat, a tiny village nestled in the mountains
south of Seoul. This town is famous for making a kind of traditional
good quality paper using the old methods, which they then send for
sale in traditional Korean shops (I wonder how many times I'm going to
use the word "traditional" in this entry?) Anyway, I think I'm the
first foreigner to have ever visited the place, as I don't think
anyone else has heard of the place before or would even know how to
find it (as there's no public transport, and it's not easy to find by
car).

Anyway, we met a famous couple who featured in some Korean
documentaries there. This couple was famous because they decided to
leave their lives in modern Seoul in exchange for a more traditional
rural lifestyle. Adding to this is the small boy they have, who is
growing up in this traditional environment, in a village where there
is no one under the age of 30 (we were the youngest there). The film
crew were interested in his development without people his age and the
environment. He was clearly excited to see us!

They invited us for some herbal tea and homegrown food while we talked
about our lives (well they talked as it was all in Korean, I just ate,
played with the kid and the goats and had Sammy translate for me ).
They then took us to the paper-making factory, and showed us all the
equipment and process of making it. They also showed us some paintings
and sculptures using the paper, and gave us a few gifts.

Afterwards, they took us to the house where we were to stay the night.
It really was quite traditional, complete with paper doors and
windows, and a underground "ondol" heating system based on a fire lit
underneath the house, and having to sleep on the floor. At night we
could hear the sound of large insects scratching on the paper trying
to get in; I'm just glad it held or we would not have survived the
night!

The next day, after a nice breakfast at another villagers home, we
decided to walk to the lake near the village before heading g back to
Seoul. We walked along a trail until we came to the clear blue lake,
lying still and tranquil in the clear sunny day.

Afterwards, we headed back to the village, and visited the house of
the elder (who was a kind of local sheriff/mayor - the village
probably only consisted of 20+ people). He was kind enough to show us
his cow and his dog, who appeared in the documentary since they were
filmed as being best friends and always looking after each other.
However, we were disappointed to learn that since the cow had a new
baby calf, the cow and dog have stopped being close friends,
especially since the dog bit the calf, and now have to be separated
until the calf is big enough to look after itself without the mother
cow.

And so, after farewelling the villagers we have met, and after Sammy
managed to finally escape the little boy who kept following after her,
we left the village, back to civilisation!

In-SEOUL-ted!~ ^^

Annyeong, shiksa hashossoyo?*

*=hello, did you eat? = hello, how are you?

WHATS UP?

Yes I know it's been four months since I last wrote, but thats mainly
due to the fact that I've settled myself nicely in Korea and have not
really travelled to many places since, apart from hiking around some
mountain fortress walls of several fortress towns dotted around the
Seoul vicinity.

As many of you know, I also went back for a week to Australia to
attend a friends wedding and visit some of youse guys and family - It
was nice to be back home and should have probably stayed longer than a
week because it was over before I knew it!

Work has been same old same old, with a few extra teachers from
Australia beefing up the aussie contingent in Korea (as there are
hardly any here, they tend to go to Japan instead).

My work load is not too bad, as I am generally free for most of the
day (classes are usually in the mornings and at night due to people
working), but I would prefer not having to get up at 5:30am each
morning to teach a 6:45am class (and I don't think the students really
appreciate it too - however most of these students are made to by
their companies, and the students must attend at least 70% of all the
classes or else the student will have to pay for the lessons
themselves. English is such a critical skill to have to Korea as it
is usually one major factor that gets you a promotion).

It's also amazing that it was only less than a year ago that I didn't
know any grammar rules or how it works - now I can spout things like
"present perfect progressive" and "past participle" and actually know
what I'm talking about! I can finally know how to explain what
"unless" means, or the difference between "something" and "anything"!


YELLOW DUST PROBLEM

If extremely hot humid summers and freezing cold winters aren't enough
to drive you completely nuts in this country, it is usually around
this time of year that Korea suffers from
another environmental effect, this time partially man-made.

This is known as "Yellow Dust", which is basically sand from the Gobi
Desert in China that decides to go on vacation and scatter itself all
over Korea using the wind.

Now normally this wouldn't be so bad a problem, except this sand is
usually toxic and causes respiratory and skin allergy problems. It is
toxic because the sands are tainted with industrial chemical pollution
from Chinese factories in the desert.

Even I felt a little itchy and had a sore throat one particularly bad
yellow dust day, which often leaves the city bathed in a slight yellow
fog.

One way of avoiding breathing the dust is to stay indoors, street
washers wash the streets, and people wear paper masks over their mouth
and noise.


THE FORTRESS TOWNS SUWON AND NAMHANSAN

These fortress towns have massive walls that stretch of kilometres
around the city, kinda reminiscent of the Great Wall of China in
appearance and majesty.

Guard towers are located at regular intervals along the walls,
allowing for more spectacular views of the surrounding forests and
mountains beyond and below.

Inside the fortress walls lies the town itself, a collection of old
traditional style houses that have been there for several hundred
years and virtually unchanged (except for the addition of cable TV
and/or converted into a traditional style restaurant).

In the town of Suwon there is also a small palace featuring terrocotta
and wooden slanted roofs, the wooden beams holding it uniquely
characteristic of Korean culture, being colorfully painted in green
and cheerful brightly coloured patterns and murals (Japanese roofs are
unadorned, bland and drab in comparison).

Korean culture is famous for bright colors of white, red, yellow,
green, blue and black the most prominent in architecture, paintings
and traditional clothing. In fact, the social status or occupation of
a Korean in ancient times was displayed by the color clothing they
wore.

Inside this palace were courtyards containing courtyards containing
open buildings containing models of traditional costumes, weapons and
furniture. One courtyard contained traditional games that visitors
could play with, such as throwing rings around a pole from a distance,
the throwing of several large sticks up in the air and the way they
land determines the winner, and finally, a simple see-saw meets
trampoline, which differs from the child safe see-saw versions we know
of today, since these ones involve actual jumping up and down on a
see-saw and flying high in the air, careful how you land lest you end
up with the board coming up to meet you between the legs, or landing
too heavily on the ground resulting in back and neck pain!


THE CLAWS COME OUT

While at a Berlitz party with other teachers and students, I see one
of my female students standing alone, who shares a class with her best
friend. Her best friend was elsewhere talking to another teacher, so I
decide to talk to her. Feeling mischievious, I ask her:

"So, who do you think is better at english, you, or your best friend?"

"She is."

"O.K, what about who is more smarter?"

"She is."

"Really? O.K then, so who would win in a fight between you two?"

"Her, for sure."

She then starts to walk back to her best friend, but not before
turning her head around and saying:

"..But i'm prettier!!!"

Korean girls can be so "catty".


KONGLISH ANYONE?

Konglish is a collection of Korean words that have adopted English
words to describe or explain things that do not really exist in the
Korean language. Here are some examples:

"handy (phone)" = cell/mobile phone.

"eye-shopping" = window shopping.

"hwaiting!" = fighting! = Go (sports team)! Pretty much what you say
when you cheer your favorite team.

"one room" = studio apartment.

"apartment" = apartment building, rather than the apartment itself.

"big liver man" = brave/strong.

"one shot!" = bottoms up, said when taking a shot.

"cut out the film" = to pass out/black out after much drinking.

"make a promise" = make an appointment.

"make a meeting" = to go on a date.

"make a booking" = to go on a date that results in more adult
activities, what us westerners may call a "booty call" (in possibly a
love motel)*

"sexy bar" = topless bar (Korea are still conservative enough that
there are no strip bars)

"booby booby" = what one says to a girl in a club if they want to
pursue intimate relations with said girl (in possibly a love motel)*

"children's day" = a day when all the managers are at training outside
of work and employees are less stressed, and relax as a result.

"100 years guest" - usually referring to the son-in-law, who is always
welcome at the parents-in-law's house.

"skin-ship" = close friendship**


*A love motel is a series of hotels scattered around Korea that allows
you to rent one of their rooms for 2-3 hours at a reasonable price.
The reason for this is that most Koreans live at home, so to do
anything of an adult nature, Korean couples would go to these places.
Love motels have a seedy feel to them, especially with the drapes
covering the entrance to the parking area under the hotel so no one
can see the cars and couples that enter and leave.

**Even though Korean culture is quite conservative, it is quite ok for
close friends (usually of same gender) to touch each other by stroking
the arm/leg/thigh, and even holding hands or having their arms around
each other walking down the street. Hence the Konglish phrase
"skin-ship", a friendship so close there is skin contact.

Despite knowing this, it always catches me off guard whenever one of
my students reach out and stroke my arm/hand/thigh affectionately in
mid-sentence!

Another sign of good friendship is when they will carry your bag or
backpack for you, even when you try to decline or physically resist
their tugging at your bag!


Anyways, till next time,

Ciao!