SE Asia Day 8 (part 1): The Road to the Choeng Ek Killing Fields

On day 7 I went early to the Choeng Ek Killing Fields, just outside of Phnom Penh.  Sunday Guest House made the arrangements and I rode with a couple Brits in a tuk-tuk for a few dollars.  The road there was interesting.  We went from the city out into the “suburbs” with more homes and textile factories, and then further out where the only sign of development were the “People’s Party of Cambodia” signs that were posted on the side of the road.  (Picture from In Search of Siem Reap).
Because I’m a history teacher by training, and since many don’t know much about the Khmer Rouge and their auto-genocidal actions, a brief history lesson.
Its been argued the the bombing of Cambodia by the US during the Vietnam War destabilized the Cambodian government, paving the way for the Khmer Rouge to come to power.  The Khmer Rouge were a Marxist guerilla group under the leadership of former high school teacher Pol Pot to take control of the country.
Pol Pots goal was to, get this, put his country back in the stone age!  Yes.  In Cambodia there are constant reminders in the stone wats (Buddhist monastic temples) and statues of the Khmer people’s might under the ancient Khmer Empire.  So, since the Khmer Empire was a stone-age empire, Pol Pot thought it would be the best way to recapture Cambodia’s glory days.
His communist ideology also fed this idea.  “Khmer” is the name for ethnic Cambodians and “Rouge” is French for red (aka communist.)  Instead of following an industrial model of communism that that the Soviets had followed, or even China was beginning to adopt at this time, Pol Pot believed that true workers paradise was not an industrial society, but an agrarian society (imagine the sickle and hammer symbol, minus the hammer).
And since educated people knew differently, he had them killed.  Here’s a list adapted from the Wikipedia article on the subject of those targeted for killing:

• professionals and intellectuals - in practice this included almost everyone with an education, or even people wearing glasses (which, according to the regime, meant that they were literate)
• ethnic Vietnamese, ethnic Chinese, Cambodian Christians, Muslims and the Buddhist monks
• Homosexuals
• "economic sabotage" for which many of the former urban dwellers (who had not starved to death in the first place) were deemed to be guilty of by virtue of their lack of agricultural ability.

Their policy of genocide--both via execution and starvation--left up to 2.2 million people dead, or about 20% of the population!
We we neared the memorial, the cloudy skies and quiet off the country helped prepare me for the sobering site.

Korea's Revenge

Twenty-six hours after heading to the airport in Busan, Korea, I am home.  Its 6:30 am here in Missouri.  Those that know me know that I would never get up this early by choice.  In a way, Korea chose for me.

The meal they served on my Korean Air flight from Busan to Tokyo made me very sick.  Sparing you the juicy details (Ha ha get it?  Ewww), I had to make constant trips to the bathroom, had a fever, and chills.  It left me hundled beneath my blanket most of my flight from Tokyo to Chicago.

Despite repeated dosage of medicine, it was the after effects of this Korean Air meal that got me up at this inappropriate time in the morning.  By my count, this is the fourth time in my life that I've gotten food poisoning, and three of those times were caused by Korean food:  1.  raw oysters/ gaebul, 2. donkkaseu, 3. the mystery fish lunch served on my Korean Air flight.

Korea, I know you're sad to see me go, and don't want me to forget you, but surely there are less painful ways to remind me.

The Last Goodbye

I just passed through Korean passport control and had my passport stamped for what may be the last time here in Korea.

Last night, I returned from my travels through SE Asia and stayed with a couple friends in Busan.  One of those friends was really the first friend I made in Korea.  We noted last night how our conversations are always weighty—not necessarily serious, but about substantive things.  He challenged me a lot in my faith and my worldview.  He’s Canadian (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and he constantly challenged the American-centric views that I brought with me when I arrived in Korea.

He was also the one that opened my eyes to Geoje’s amazing beauty.  With his car, we were able to explore the nooks and crannies in Geoje that I would have never been able to find or experience if it hadn’t been for him.

We discovered a dead whale on a deserted Geoje beach, ate whale meat (not the same one we found), and ate dog-meat stew.  There was actually an ongoing joke comparing him to John Locke from Lost for his connection to “the Island.”  Geoje would have been entirely different if it wasn’t for his friendship.

Then, I got to know his girlfriend who became his fiance and then his wife.  The past two weeks, I’ve been so overwhelmed with the experience of travel, that I haven’t reflected much on what I’m leaving behind.  Late last night we were catching up, my friend asked how I felt about leaving Korea.   It really made me think about it.

It’s too easy to say that I’m “going home” in returning to America.  Korea has been my home for the past two years.  My heart has become attached to my friends, my students, my co-workers, and my church family.  I’ve become so used to the green mountains surrounding Gohyeon, and seeing the sea almost everyday that its hard to adjust to life on the plains.

Korea will always be some sort of home.  No, I’m not simply returning home.  Instead, it might be better to say that I’m returning to my first home.

A Week of Goodbyes: Sunday

Sunday I said goodbye to much church in Geoje.  When I first arrived in Geoje, I was in a bit of a spiritual funk.  I think it was heightened by the fact that I spent the first few months cut off from any foreigners on the island.  I was me with all Koreans all the time.

I did some searching on the internet and the only thing I could come up with was a church in Busan.  It met in the morning, which would have meant I would have had to go the night before.  But I reached a point that I was willing to do it.

Then, a co-teacher of mine talked to one of her co-workers who knew a Korean lady who helped organized a foreign church.  So the lady came and picked me up and took me to her church and I had my first contact with foreigners and my first contact with other Christians and it was great.

I wrote an e-mail to family back home that said, “It was as if I had been in the desert for a long time and I just had a cold drink of water.”

That same Sunday, one of their long-time members, who shared the preaching duties, was leaving.  This Korean woman who had picked me up, and hardly knew me, asked if I could give the sermon one day.  I was taken aback.  I had never given a sermon before, didn’t have any real formal Christian education, and felt sorely unqualified.

But a month later, the other guy who had been preaching went home for the winter and it fell to me and an amazing Nigerian guy to step up.  He was working in the shipyards and similarly had no experience preach;pl,’,hying.  We tag-teamed it during the winter for six weeks.  It was an amazingly humbling experience, and I stuck with it.

About two years and thirty sermons since I joined the church, I said my goodbye and gave my last message.  These people had become my family.  That Korean woman had become like a mother to me, and the lady who did the song service like an older sister.

In just two years I saw dozens of people come and go (that’s the way it is in the ship industry), but the church has remained strong and I’m confident that it will continue to.

A Week of Goodbyes: Friday

My last Friday at school went so fast. I said goodbye to one student for good. Apparently, he’s taking a break from our hagwon and going to another instead. He’s a very bright and articulate kid, but also a lazy brat. This kid is one of these Korean kids whose mom’s treat kind of like those toy dogs they carry around. by that I mean they take the kids to the salon and get their hair all did.

This kid has the most put together kid of any 10 year old, much less any 10 year old boy, that I’ve ever seen. He has little highlights in his hair, and all class he’s playing with his hair more than most of my girls do. So, imagine my surprise when he came up to me today and said, “Teacher your hair is very awful.”

I had just buzzed my hair, preparing for the heat of Southeast Asia. I looked at him square in the eyes and said, “Really Antonio? You are no one to talk about bad hair.” At the end of class, when were saying goodbye, I wished well, and told him, “Have fun with your hair!”
Maybe I gave the kid too much of a hard time.

After school, my bosses took the teachers out for a goodbye dinner. In addition to me, there is a Korean teacher leaving next week. I have to say that I enjoyed the dinner more than all the other company dinners. When walking home, the two other American teachers and I decided to go out for a drink.

I insisted on the Hollywood Westren Bar (where the above picture was taken). The couple invited a few friends of their friends and I invited one of mine. I got to put a few faces with names and got to meet some readers of the blog. It was surreal to meet so many people who had read my blog and who knew who I was without my knowing them. One guy actually said, “I feel like I’m meeting a celebrity.” Wow, if I meet many more readers, my head my get so big I’ll have to buy an extra seat on the plane.

But really, its satisfying to hear that what began as a way to keep my friends and family back home updated, turned out to be useful for other expats coming to Korea.

You’re Welcome: The cost of living (Part 2/2)

This is the second part of my answer to CW’s question about the cost of living in Geoje.

Food/Drink

Generally, it is a little cheaper living here in South Korea than in the US.  A meal out at a modest Korean restaurant around Geoje can coast as low as 5-8,000 (more if order alcohol).

Drinking is cheap if you are drinking soju.  Soju, Koreans native and ubiquitous alcoholic beverage (its not strong enough to be called liquor).  Costs about 1,500 for a small bottle.  Beyond two bottle of soju and you are on your way to intoxication.  Hence, the streets being littered with drunk men too incapacitated to talk home without falling.

Beer or western liquors are quite expensive.  A .75 bottle of Jim Beam whiskey goes for about 25,000 to 30,000--when you can find it.  A 1.75 liter plastic bottle of Korean beer goes for about 5,000.

Western food is more expensive.  I have an ad Domino’s taped to all the doors in my hall and the large pizza’s range from 19,000 for pepperoni to 32,000 for a “Double Crust Steak” pizza.  Pizza prices are reduced 20% if you pick up at the store rather than have delivery.  However, that discount goes away if you eat the pizza in the restaurant.

Western staples like bread, butter, peanut butter, and cheese are also more expensive since they aren't part of a Korean's normal diet.  A half-loaf of so-so white bread goes for about 1,500.  Cheese is at least 2-3 times the cost in America with a smaller selection.

Utilities

Electricity is much cheaper.  I was amazed--about a third of what I paid for my studio apartment in the states.  For July, when I ran the air conditioner almost constantly, my bill was a little over 80,000.  However, with no air conditioner, its usually half that.   The gas, which is used to heat water and the room is more expensive--those bills can run between 25,000 in the summer when I just use it for cooking and heating water, to 80,000 or so when its also heating the floor in the winter months.

Internet/Cable runs about 45,000 a month.  And the internet is blazing fast.  That’s nice.  The prices are similar to broadband prices in the US, but the speed is much faster for what you pay.  My phone bill is about 15,000 a month (and that's without a rate plan!).

Transportation

A city bus costs 1,000 won.  A ferry to Busan costs 22,000.  A bus to Seoul costs 31,000.  The taxi rate in Geoje starts at 1,800 during normal hours (morning-11pm).  I can get from Gohyeon to Okpo for just about 9,000.  That being said, I usually take the bus.

Overall, without any careful budgeting, I've been able to send about half of my paycheck home most months.  The past few months, I've been budgeting much tighter and have been able to send about 1,300,000 home.  That's still not living too tightly.  Spending about 15,000 a day to buy groceries or eat out and using the rest for utilities.

If you are budgeting to send money home for savings or paying off debt, you have to keep the exchange rate in mind.  Its not good right now in the slightest.  the first year I was here, it was pretty steady at about 1,000 won to $1.15-1.20.  As of today its at 1,000 to $0.71!  So, keep that in mind when doing mental calculations.  The previous rule of thumb of 1,000 to $1 doesn't work any more when you are thinking about sending money home.

You’re welcome.

You’re Welcome: Going to the Movies [Updated 10/3/08]

Updated

Dear American in Geoje:
I’m living in Geoje, without a car, and there’s nothing to do.  I do like to watch movies.  I’m sure there're Korean sites that say the show times, but I can’t read Koran !  I don’t know how to find what are playing until I show up.  Is there a way I can use the interwebs to get my answer?

Thanks in advanced,

Illiterate North American

Well, Illiterate American, don’t be ashamed of your illiteracy.  Plenty of English teachers living in Korea can’t read their host country’s language.  So, I have some suggestions to help you get the answers you need.
First, learn how to read!  The Korean alphabet is designed to be so easy, even women can learn how to read it!  And before you get on to me for being sexist, it was Korean’s themselves who nicknamed their alphabet “women’s script.”  Here’s an introductory video:

But, if you’re thinking of bailing on your contract, and don’t want to take the time to learn a new alphabet, then here’s the easy way.


1.  Visit either CGV's or Lotte's websites for the latest showtimes

A.  Go to the original version of the Lotte Cinema website
This link is specific for Geoje.  Once you are at the site, select and copy the name of the movie.  Then, go to naver.com.  There, paste the name of the movie into the search engine and press enter. 

It should show a movie poster and trailer for the movie.  That way you an see what movies are showing.  See the example below for Hancock. 

B. Visit CGV's website (your welcome for the video I made)

The CGV website is entirely in flash, which means cutting and pasting the names of the movies in Naver isn't possible.  However, CGV does have links to the film trailers if you click on the titles.


3.  Go to the theater
Here’s a map.  This is in Gohyeon of course.  Note the Homeplus building in the left of the map.  Then, the bus terminal in the right of the map.  Parking is on the street (where you can find it), or in the garages at the theaters.  Make sure to get your parking ticket stamped at the box office or you'll have to pay for parking.  Click the map for a larger view.

4.  Buy your ticket
Make sure to grab a number from the machine.  CGV's lobby is on the sixth floor all the way in the back now, ignore the old, empty box office in front.  At Lotte, their lobby is on the third floor.  When your number’s called, say the name of the movie in English.  If they don’t understand (some movie titles in Korean are different), then point to the movie poster.

Then, they’ll want to know how many people (fingers work nice for this if they don’t speak Korean.)  Then, they will want to know where you want to sit.  Chose a seat area from the monitor.  At Lotte, my preferred theater, my favorite seat is D8.

5.  You’re Welcome



Special Note:  Movies are NOT dubbed over for the most part.  If they are, then next to the title it will say “더빙”.  The exception to this rule are cartoons.  Cartoons are usually dubbed, but sometimes come in both dubbed and subtitled flavors (playing on separate screens).  Its usually the bigger budget American ones like Kung Fu Panda, Ratatouille, and Wall-E that will come in both versions.
This means dubbed:더빙 (dubbing)
This means subtitled:  자막 (jah-mahk)
If you are unsure, then ask with those above words.  It would be silly to spend your money and not understand a word of the movie.

Oh and you’re welcome.

10 Favorite Pictures

   A fellow American ex-pat teacher is compiling some pictures and video to make a video sideshow to show to his friend and family back home to give them a better idea of life in Korea.

Here are my contributions:

1.  “Windy Rock” at Hageumgang, Geoje

This moment is when I fell in love with Geoje.  This grass covered rock juts out into the seat.  Its really breathtaking.

 

2.  This was taken along the south edge of Geoje’s coast.  There are evergreen trees, and the water is great for swimming.  

3.  After visiting Bali, I came to realize that in the spring and summer, Geoje can be just as green as Bali.  This is what I call the “wave mountain.”

4.  This was the site that greeted me my first day back in Korea after a visit home.  My new neighbors were drying some fish on the clothesline right next to their underwear.  Amazing.

5.  This shows something I’ve always thought interesting about Korea.  This is a small kimbap restaurant.  We have countless restaurants in America called “Granny’s” or the such.  They often have stylized logos of grandmas for their logos.  This restaurant uses a morbidly serious picture of a woman as there’s.

6.  Game across this lady with her mom and her son and their dog.  They were pushing a stroller and who was in it?  The four year old son?  Nope, their spoiled toy dog.

7.  This was taken right outside of Gyeongbukgong, the main palace in Seoul in February 2008.  Several interesting things.  First, there’s a mound of sweet potatos sicks in the center.  Then, a woman with a “baby bump” under her coat.  Her baby is strapped to her back and she’s wearing the coat over them both.  Behind me (out of the picuture) there was a cigarette-smoking man selling cotton candy from his motorcycle.  I love Korea.

 

8.  Below is a scene from the Hollywood Westren (sic) Bar in Gohyeon, Geoje.  This place is pretty cheesy and I love it.  Of course, what says “western” better than a mini Uncle Sam sticking out of a ice cooler filled with flavored malt beverages.

9.  This is one of the cutest girls in kindergarten.  She’s 4 in this picture, and having an exhausting day practicing her ABCs.

10.  This is the Samgyapsal God.  He watches over those who want to grill meat from his brothers over an open flame and drink soju.  His eyes glow and night.  I’m pretty sure there’s a factory that makes these somewhere because I’ve seen them outside a few places.

2 years and 300 posts

Today is my two-year anniversary in Korea. Last year, on my anniversary, it was just a few days before I left for few week trip in America. I wrote that post as a play on a break-up letter.

At the time, I had come to a point when I was really ready to return to my homeland. I knew that my time in America would be temporary and that I’d returning to Korea. As I look ahead to my final weeks here, I don’t think I’ll be coming back—although I will miss Korean fashion mascots (that's the Teenie Weenie behind me).

This past year in Korea has been good. I’ve learned a lot about living in a foreign culture, and learned a lot about myself. I wouldn’t give that up for anything. But, its time to go home.

A friend who is now married to Korea told me that now he's in a sort of limbo. Whens he's back home in Canada, he misses Korea, and when he's in Korea, he misses Canada. I'm afraid that will happen to me--or already has.

Also, this is my 300th post. I wrote about my 200th post, and “101th” post previously. Amazing, last year in roughly the same time, I wrote 200 posts, compared to about 100 for this year.

The most popular posts (according to Google Analytics) from the past year are:

• Inevitable – where I describe having been lightly hit by a car
• Dakbal & Beondegi – where I describe having enjoyed two Korean delicacies: Chicken feet and silkworm pupa
• How to Survive Jangma ‘08! –where I gave practical tips for people to survive Korea’s deadly monsoon season. The tips were helpful, that they decided to cancel Jangma ‘09! You’re welcome.

My blog is the 4th result under a Google search for Geoje, which is kinda cool. I suppose this biggest change in the past year, has been the creep toward sarcasm—which has unintentionally offended (see my “You’re Welcome” series.)

All in all, I’m proud of the blog, and happy about the past two years in Korea.

An amazing talk about “developing countries”

You're Welcome: How's the Weather?

Dear American in Geoje,

I have no idea what the weather is going to be like day to day.  I ask the Korean women I work with, "Should I bring an umbrella tomorrow?"  They always say,"Yes."  They say this even if its a nice day!  I'm so confused.  The English sites I've found only have information for the big cities.  Where do I go for weather information for Korea?

Thanks in advance,

Always Dry

I've been there.  About the umbrella thing: Korean women often use umbrellas to keep the sun off their faces.  This keeps them looking as white as possible.

As for the weather information, go to Naver.  If you go to http://weather.local.naver.com you'll be greeted with a map.  This will give you an overview for each province.  Click on the province to go to the city level.  On the next page there will be a list entirely in Korean of cities within that province, select yours.

If you can't read Korean, then learn to read Korean!  If that's not an option, then get a Korean to help you, or match up the name of your city from your Certificate of Alien Registration card with the name from the list.

  
For those living in Geoje, here's your ready-made link.

Then, when you find your city, look at the dates for each city.  One forecast day might say: 7월10일.  The "7월" means "7th month" (AKA July).  Then "10일" means "10th day."  So, the forecast is for July 10th.

For those Americans out there, who can't read Celsius, here's a little trick:  go to the Google search bar in your browser (in the upper right corner), or to the Google homepage.  Type in **C in F.  For example, to convert 24 Celsius into Fahrenheit, type in "24C in F".  Then Google spits out the answer:  75.2 degrees Fahrenheit

You're welcome

You’re Welcome: “A Silly Question”

I have decided to start an occasional series of advice columns for western ex-pats living or potentially moving to South Korea.

The title of this series comes from me saying, “Your Welcome” in advance of you saying “thank you” in advance of me giving advice in advance of you asking for it.  Let me put it this way:  I’m so confident that you’ll thank me for the advice, that I’m going to say you’re welcome right now.

The first question comes from “Wet and Bothered.”

Dear An American in Geoje,

I was frantically searching for information about my Tromm washer when I came across your blog. I've been in South Korea for about 3 weeks and haven't had one load of laundry that wasn't completely wet at the end of my wash cycle! We have the same exact washer! (Thanks for putting a picture of it up!) Would you help me out and give me an idea of which buttons do what? The Korean teachers at my school haven't been any help and I'm anxious to experience the excitement of baking my clothes dry!

Thanks in advance,

Wet and Bothered

Well, Wet and Bothered, wet clothes certainly are a problem.  I’m glad that you enjoyed my post on the Tromm DD Inverter.  The red button inserts the heating option into the washing cycle.  Push it until it adds the appropriate amount of time to dry your clothes.

The number options on the left are for the size of the load if I remember correctly.

Then, I usually left everything else the same.  Although, I’d occasionally use the temperature button (the one with the 95, 60, 40 degree options).  I’d sometimes wash my whites on hot if they were getting a little dingy (think pit sweat in the summer).  The last words on the temperature setting mean “cold,” which is where I usually left it.

Remember, when drying, I’d stay away from anything that wrinkles, and anything with synthetic fibers—I affectionately called the machine a clothes oven.  I hope that helps.

As for the rest, I can’t really remember---its been almost a year since I’ve used it.

 

Your Welcome,

An American in Geoje

How to Survive Jangma ‘08!

The Korean press and the ex-patriot bloggers in Korea have focused all of their attention on the pending Mad Cow genocide about to be unleashed against the Korean people. While, it looks like the genocidal beef has been repelled for the time being, another danger has crept up and overtaken Korea: Jangma! (장마)

Jangma! is the deadly monsoon that comes every year. Jagma! takes the shape of a weather front that covers the entire region and brings oppressive humidity, drenching downpours, and gray skies for nearly a month. Those caught unprepared may be washed away. Below are some helpful tips from someone who weathered Jangma! for one (1) season—um last June. Perhaps if you are lucky and you follow my advice, you too, like me, will survive Jangma ‘08!

1. Stock up on umbrellas

You will probably need about 10-12 umbrellas to get you through this rainy time. Why so many? There are three reasons.

First, you will probably want to use at least two umbrellas simultaneously to maximize the shelter and protect yourself from the rain (see 3 and 4 below).

Second, you will probably leave at least one or two behind in a cab or at Dunkin Donuts. Jangma! is sneaky. The rain may stop and maybe even a little sun will shine through so you forget that you had an umbrella. Then just when you’ve left that umbrella behind, the clouds join and you get drenched to the bone.

Third, the wind blows hard. Those of us who have seen the cautionary movie Mary Poppins know what happens to greedy people who cling too tightly to umbrellas. To prevent being carried away by the wind, let go of your umbrella at the first sign of a strong gust. Its better to lost an umbrella and be wet than to lost your life!

2. Make sure to pass out only in well-drained areas.

Jangma! often causes flash floods of streets. The storm drain system, at least in Gohyeon, is very below par. Just last night, as I walked home in the Jangma!, I had to walk over a drunk ajoshi passed out on the sidewalk. At first look, it didn’t seem to make sense. It was pouring rain, and there was this guy, peacefully sleeping off the soju with a little nap in the middle of the sidewalk. Then I realized this guy was a genius.

Water was draining off the sidewalk and into the street and gutter, and thereby minimizing his chances of drowning in a puddle. If you choose to drink yourself to passing out, I suggest you are at least as prudent as that ajoshi. Its better to endure the occasional kick while passed out on the sidewalk than drown in the gutter!

3. Set up a four day pants drying cycle.

You are going to get wet. If wear your pants a few times before washing then take my advice. You will need to implement a four day rotation policy. For example, you wear your Monday pants and despite using two umbrellas, you get wet anyway. The humidity is so high that those pants will take at least four days to dry. So you will need to hang them, and get a different pair on Tuesday.

On Friday, Monday’s pants will be dry enough for you to wear again. Simply repeat the cycle until Jangma 08! has passed us by. Its better to have wet clothes all over your house than get the fungal infections that come with skin that is constantly wet (that could kill you).

4. Protect yourself from acid rain!

The same pollutants from China that cause the Yellow Sands in spring also cause damaging acid rain in during Jangma!—or at least that’s what the Koreans tell me. So, if you do get wet, be careful. Go home immediately and dose yourself with baking soda—this will counteract the acid. Then, wash very well. The acid rain has been linked to male baldness in Korea. Above is a man’s picture before Jangma ‘06! and then after. Disturbing. Its better to be covered in baking soda than to lose your hair and die from the acid rain of Jangma!

5. Never cross the street.

We all know that Koreans are dangerous drivers. However, something happens when it rains: well actually nothing happens, and that’s a problem. See running red lights is one thing, but running red lights in a downpour is another. Lower visibility, oils seeping up from the road, and standing water create dangerous conditions for anyone trying to cross the street. So I recommend that no pedestrians cross the street until Jangma ‘08! has passed. That may sound alarmist, but this is coming from a survivor.

6. Never sleep with the fan on.

I cannot stress this enough. Jangma! makes the air very humid and it is almost impossible to get cool. Many people turn to the use of electric fans to cool the air, or air conditioners to cool the air and suck out the humidity—to their doom! Do not make the mistake that my friends’ wife’s cousin’s friend’s sister made when she fell asleep during the Jangma! in a closed room with the fan on. She never realized her mistake, because she never woke up! Its better to be drenched in sweat, than be cool, dry, and dead!

Final Thought

On that same walk home the other night among the drunk Samsung workers, I realized the great benefit of Jangma!—it washes the sidewalk clean of piss and puke.

Good luck on surviving this treacherous season of Jangma ‘08!

---

Photo Credits:

Umbrellas by ericinrok

Bald guys based on Hair Club for Korean Men by SuzÿQuzÿ

Killer Fan from Extracurriculars

Speaking of Awkward Poses…

This is a picture up for display at the photo studio at the M-Park building in Gohyeon.  Something went terribly wrong when the photographer was posing this guy.  I think she forgot to have him not cover his face.  Oops.

That doesn’t mean what you think it means

This picture is of a glass divider in the Geoje location of the Kortalian (Korean + Italian) food chain Pastario.  I say Kortalian because they have things like Kimchi Risotto.  The reflections in the pic are from the businesses across street.  Pay special attention to the last line.

Despite the slogan, this is indeed a family restaurant.

A million people can’t be wrong…or can they?

South Korea hosted the largest demonstration in twenty years on June 10th.  Protestors estimate that over a million people gathered across the country with half of those in Seoul.  Of course, police drop the number to less than half of that.  The main topic for the protest was beef.

Of course there are always other issues that are bound up here, and I'll readily discuss how irrelevant they are with anyone who asks.

Leading up to the protests, police barricaded the paths to the presidential palace with shipping containers.  They welded shipping containers together, two-high, filled them with sand and greased them up so protestors couldn’t climb them.

Below is a picture a barricade from the Korean blog Modern Day via The Marmot’s Hole (the comments here are also interesting).

Here is a picture of the protest in progress from Chosun.com via Korea Beat.

Here’s a roundup of links for those wanting to read more about the protests and the controversy:

• My own look at the controversy last week. [An American in Geoje]
• The reneging of the beef deal will cause trouble with the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement. [World Politics Review]
• How the Lee Myung-Bak’s government and US trade officials are scrambling to save the agreement [BBC]
• News that Korean auto workers were considering a strike so they could join anti-US beef protests. [Trading Markets]

And in regard to the auto-workers potention strike, I have an idea: you can continue to implement a protectionist trade policy and keep US beef out under the guise of a public health issue.  Then, we could ban Korean-made cars since they could potentially be deadly.

Or, we could prevent the sale of Samsung or LG cell phones since they may cause brain cancer.  This is also pretty damning since Korea is a de facto closed market when it comes to cell phones.  Hey, if the signal from a cell phone can pop a popcorn kernel, they what is it doing to our brains?  We must stop this threat.

Mad cows and electric fans

Below is a picture from the BBC of a clash between riot police and protestors near Korea's Blue House (the counterpart to the US White House).

 

What was the cause of the violence?  Was it an unjust war?   No.

 

Were the protestors fighting for civil rights?  Nope.

 

Was the mob protesting an election fraud or coup?  Uh uh.

 

They are protesting beef.  Seriously. 

I am disappointed in South Korea's common sense.  The issue of US beef imports, which are cheaper and of better quality than domestic beef, has been brewing for some time.  This hysteria has been fueled over an irrational fear of mad cow disease.

Teens have been the most visible force behind this movement to continue the ban on US beef.  There have been several high-profile and well-attended candle light vigils protesting the resumption of beef imports next week.  The campaigning by teens was driven by SMS and instant messages.  I can understand teens being caught up with an issue that has been tied to nationalism and deemed important.

These teens have been flooding message boards with such politically emo comments as, “Are we fated to die so young?” and “I just want to live and fulfill my career dreams, not die mad like an American cow."

These statements have found their way onto Youtube.  One of the most ridiculous is the following video.  My favorite quotes are:

IS THIS ANOTHER US FORIEGN POLICY OF INVADING THE WORLD?  IRAQ FOR NUCLEAR WEAPON AND SOUTH KOREA FOR MAD COW DISEASE?  WHY KOREAN GOVERNMENT IGNORE OUR VOICES, DO NOTHING TO STOP THIS? [sic]

and

WHAT IS U.N. DOING?  WHY DONT THEY INTERVENE TO THIS POSSIBLE MASSIVE GENOCIDE FROM HAPPENING? [sic]

Genocide?  Seriously?  One commenter on the above video noted, "mad cow is the new fan death."  I had to look it up.  Korean urban legend says that fans left on overnight will cause death.  I always wondered why Korean fans had a shut-off timer built in.  Korean news programs even keep a running tally as they report each "fan death" the occurs.  The problem is there isn't science to back it up.

The same is true with this mad cow hysteria.  I thought adults would not be so gullible, but as that first picture shows, the mob has proved me wrong.  The fact is, that this whole movement is really just economic protectionism under the guise of a public health issue.  Korean beef farmers wouldn't be able to compete with US beef.  So, they are trying to bring up these irrational health concerns.

Here are some reasons why this fear is ridiculous:

1.  If you don't want to eat American beef, then don't buy it!  In Korea, beef is clearly labeled as being domestically or foreign produced.  Currently, most foreign beef comes from Australia.  Koreans can vote with their won.

2.  The US has about 100,000,000 cows.  There have been 3 cases of mad cow.  So, for every cow that was found to have mad cow 33,333,333 don't have it.

3.  The US has a human population of over 300,000,000.  There have been 3 cases of vCJD, the human counterpart of mad cow.  That's a 1 to 100,000,000 ratio.  Even the UK, with more than 100,000 cases of mad cow had only 163 human cases, which works out to be .0000027% of their population.

4.  Koreans are far more likely to be hit by a car than come come to harm from mad-cow tainted beef.  As I've noted before, the child traffic accident fatality rate for Koreans is the highest in the industrialized world.  Why isn't the mom starting a campaign for parents to buckle their kids in the car instead of focusing so much attention on such a silly concern?

I'm confident that beef imports will resume as scheduled, and that in time, Koreans will begin to appreciate the quality and price of US beef.  I plan on eating pounds and pounds of US beef a week just as soon as I can get my hands on it.  And I'll continue to defy fan death by sleeping with the fan blowing in my face, and with the air conditioner on at the height of summer.  I know I'll be fine, but I'm just a little worried  to see what the mob will focus its irrationality on next. 

The Restaurant Downstairs

My building has two restaurants on the first floor.  One is a spring roll place and the other specializes in 감자탕 (gamjatang).  Despite the name, which literally means "potato soup," the featured ingredient is pork backbone.  The meat is tender, and in the version I had, there was a potato in the soup.  The picture below is from the wikipedia entry on the soup.

Anyway, I was walking home the other night and noticed the place was closed much earlier than usual and that the following sign was posted on the door.  I took a picture and had my co-worker translated it.  It roughly said:

Due to personal reasons, the restaurant will be closed for a few days.  Sorry.

The next day, I took the following picture inside the front window:

I guess they had to shut down so they'd have a place to dry their clothes...

Get out of my way!

Sometimes in Korea, there are just those days where everything gets to me.  This was one of those days.  Following are some one-sided conversation I had in my head with people I met today on my way to and at Home Plus.

• To some teen boys I passed on the sidewalk (I actually said this one aloud):  Really?  Did you really just throw your juice boxes on the ground and walk away?  Really?  How old are you?  When Koreans call "China peopore" dirty, doesn't that really just mean dirtier than you are?
• To the lady who ran over my foot with her shopping cart in the produce section:  Really?  Did you really need to run over my foot to get to the green onions?  I think they would have been there after I had moved my foot.
• To the nervous looking employee who was pacing back and forth near the paper goods aisle and ran into me:  Really lady?  Is your pacing around, not helping people so important that you had to run into me?  Sorry I got in your way.
• To the guy who was breathing over my shoulder while I was in line at the CGV movie theater box office:  hey guy, if I can smell your breath when you're standing behind me, you're standing too close.
• To the lady at the box office who shoved her arm and money in front of me as I was ordering my ticket:  Lady, the place is not very busy and the next movie doesn't start for twenty minutes.  Wait your turn and you'll still have plenty of to go buy your roasted peanut butter squid.

My broken things...

Two and half weeks ago, with the release of Vista's first service pack, my computer crashed. I'm not a Vista hater like many, but it broke my machine. It went into this endless boot-reboot cycle. Below is a picture of me using my computer using the software I paid for. I'm using the Brikdows Vista operating system. It has the computing power of a brick combined with all the newness and cool 3d effects of Windows Vista.

Yesterday, I wrote about the hazardous, melting hot light fixture incident. Today, 36 hours after it was first reported to her, she decided to come by with her husband and check it out. It probably would have been better if they had come during the day so they could actually have seen things, but you know Koreans.

Her husband stood on my toilet seat, light bulb in hand. I shook my head. This problem was not caused by lack of light bulb--if anything, it was caused by too much light bulb. Here's a picture of when he slipped and his foot fell in the toilet bowel--good thing I flushed before he came over!
She then explained all about what they were going to do to fix the problem. Something like, "

당신은 웰빙 변기를합니다." and "나는 당신을 죽이고 싶어합니다."

Oh well. Who knows what's going to happen? In the meantime, even the simplest tasks are an adventure in my dark bathroom. Below is a picture I took tonight of me trying to wash my hands. Water is getting everywhere!

Hopefully, my things get fixed soon.