Much Love

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There are so, so many things one goes through, experiences, notices, accepts, and learns while doing something along the lines of travel and working abroad. Big things, little differences, and subtleties along the journey are the spices that put so much value into the experience. I realize that here, in Korea, most of those spices have to do with kimchi or that potent red pepper paste I love, but it’s those along with so much more that have moved me to share some of Korean life’s little pleasures. I love love; so I will share these things. Please enjoy the sometimes fun, sometimes silly, sometimes interesting, sometimes outlandish observations. I will leave this entry simply as a conglomeration of these random thoughts, because nearly all of them pass through my mind during the course of a typical day.This list is appropriately called;

I Just Love…

…that every sidewalk is made of patio blocks.
…watching the kamikaze scooter pizza delivery guys weave around traffic and even using sidewalks as avenues.
…the Korean oranges. They are some type of beautiful mutant tangerine hybrid with a very thin skin that can be peeled with ease.
…Korean instant coffee sticks and the scorching hot baby coffees they make.
…badminton played as a true competitive sport. It reminds me that anything, truly anything that is done with passion, and emotion can be cool.
…kimchi. There, I said it. I love kimchi, and the radish kimchi, and kimchi soup, and kimchi stew, and the spinach leaves with kimchi spices. All of it, it’s all good.
…taking a rest at school. Literally, getting some sleep if you need to. Brilliant.
…unlimited and massive amounts of side dishes at every meal. It’s a bit like gambling, but I can say I’ve never met a side dish I haven’t liked.
…unsupervised children at school.
…having that be okay!
…yelling, and I mean yelling, at the waiters or waitresses to “yogi yo” or ‘come here’ every time you need something. It just seems so rude to me, but I’ll keep trying to get used to it.
…bowing to people. Try it sometime, it’s pretty neat. In fact, try a bow/handshake combo.
…soju. Just kidding, I don’t think anyone really likes soju, it’s just too engrained in the culture to not like it.
…okay, okay, okay, okay, okay…
…the sheer amount of honking that goes on. Along with badminton and littering, honking could be the national sport.
…Reagan-led cultural heritage tours of the Greater Yoju Metropolitan Area.
…sitting on the floor style restaurants.
…sitting on the floor and grilling your own food style restaurants.
…Korean style. Everyone looks good all the time. I must say, I’ve been slowly improving my style by living here, so look out USA! Introducing, new and improved Wick Song Sing Nim. Wait, if everyone has style, then no one needs style, and that leads to complete and total freedom. Kind of like the superhero dilemma.
…chopsticks, even though it’s still a little game called ‘Me vs. The Chopsticks’ at every meal.
…Karaoke, No Rae Bongs, and Dancing Queen! But who doesn’t love those three, I mean really?
…Kpop. Basically the rise of the Korean MTV generation, including music, movies, television, etc. Please, if anyone has time to kill at the office, Youtube- Nobody But You by the Wonder girls and you will have that song stuck in your head for the rest of the day.
…parking on the roof of E-Mart. Imagine how much real estate Walmart could turn into green areas if they adopted this idea. Hm… like 10 acres of parking lot at each store times a gazillion stores, you get the idea.
…the Korean run-walk. Seeing people do this never gets old.
…trying to decipher the computer everyday. Thankfully I can recall where ‘save’ is by memory.
…Starbucks. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, so many of my friends cringe at the sound of that word. I do too, still. There is something to be said about the taste of home, regardless of brand. I say this because there is a Star… ah… one of those, at the Yeoju Outlet Mall.
…the water explosions from under the washing machine that fills up the entire back hall.
…eating tentacles that still have their suction cup things and whole crabs only with your chopsticks.
…experiencing everyday things that would put someone in jail in America, or at least result in a long drawn out lawsuit, i.e. student punishments, bones are included with all your school lunches.
…forcing myself to eat strange things because it is either a “Korean Custom” or “Very Healthy.”
…watching people blatantly run red lights.
…that l sounds turn into r’s, and k sounds can be either k or g, and Cassie turns into Cashy, and p could sound like b, and b could sound like p, or not, or sometimes.
…bus turns into bus-a, nice turns into nice-a, English is Englishy, and Wick turns into Week.
…having every nook and cranny of downtown occupied by some kind of business.
…hearing the word ‘hello’ on the street and knowing that there is no one else those words could possibly be meant for.
…Yeoju magic. When ordinary plans magically turn into wonderful memories.
…the rice cooker.
... “rural living” in a city larger than any city in Montana.
…here to downtown Yeoju and back in 10 minutes… while rocking our cruisers.
…the hiking trails close by our apartment that have public free weight sets and huge weighted hula hoops at the summit.
…electric water boiler pitcher. They really got us beat with this one.
…nobody, nobody but you. I want nobody, nobody but you… argh… the Wonder Girls again.
…the skinniest of ladies telling me they are, or need to be on diets. I invite you all to the US for awhile.
…top right corner of the school lunch tray. It’s fail safe. No matter what strange spices and tastes there are, I will always like the top right corner, always.
…the fact that no matter how hard I scrub the bathroom mirror, there will always be a film on it.
…knowing that people are talking about you, but not to you; through the person who knows the most English in the group, even though it may not be much.
…the four foot long shoe horn in our apartment. So useful.
…our clothes feeling more like cardboard than cotton.
…ironing my cardboard clothes. Not!
…being away from the ugly news stories, if for only a little while.
…being so used to talking in the broken English that ‘I- speak- all- times.’
…every drain being built right into the floor.
…restaurants that have the slogan, for example, “America runs on Dunkin.”
…the English signage everywhere that is totally wrong, but kind of correct at the same time.
…the Korean fall colors. They were truly incredible and lasted almost a full month. Which reminds me, I don’t think I’ve experienced an actual autumn season in years.

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Photos

The million dollar picture from the billion won bridge
from our hike up Malgum mtn.