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Published: March 8th 2007
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So I know not all these things are completely unique to where I'm living, but just go with it. This gives you a little picture of where I'm living with and the things I see and deal with on a daily basis. I really didn't realize how strange my life was (by my old standards) until Patrick's sister and friend came to visit a few weeks ago. Things that I am now so accustomed to were really strange and interesting to them so I decided to document some of the things that I would have used to think were weird but now are a part of everyday life. Enjoy.
Only in Korea….
* …would you walk out of the elevator on the floor of your apartment to see a dog and its owner and watch the dog walk into the elevator casually and take it down to the ground floor while the owner watches without even looking remotely concerned.
*…would you see a man carrying a purse nicer than yours while holding hands with another man and fixing this other man's hair and clothing for him. Then in the same breathe be told that homosexuality does not
exist in this country.
*…is it considered "showing off" for someone to talk to you because you're white.
*…would you find a whole store dedicated to selling Airwalk, Hang Ten, LA Gear or other companies beforehand thought to be extinct in the US.
*...is it really trendy to dress the same as your significant other. From shirts, to jeans, to shoes, to purses... everything must match.
*... are faces masks really cool.
*…are there thousands of motels in one city that support adultery. These "Love Motels" make half the window in the rooms tinted, cover the parking lot with car-wash style hanging things and don't require a name to check it to protect their costumers' anonymity. They also sell sex toys in the bedrooms and usually have some sort or gaudy theme that requires mirrors on the head board or ceiling. Classy.
*…is the best pizza in the entire country Domino's.
*... can you work out half way up a mountian on a hike.
*... are there literally hundreds of books dealing with the topic of feces. Quite often it involves the feces on someone's head, plate, hand, etc.
*…can you
bring your family to the bath house for a day of fun and relaxation and sleep on the floor there for the night as well. The bath houses are Asian-stlye spas- you pay like $7, to sit in different baths of different temperatures and scents, get exfoliations or massages and sit in different temperature saunas and cold rooms. They don't make you leave…. EVER. I like to think that whole families just live there.
*…is every food you eat for 'vitality' or 'stamina'.
*…do people believe in fan death. This is when you leave a fan or air con on in a room without windows or doors open. The fan, then, sucks all the air out of the room leaving the room oxygen-less. The person then dies. Fan death is a documented cause of death by Korean doctors.
*…do people get mad when their cab drivers DON'T run a red light.
*…would an entire crowd of people getting out of an elevator just step over a woman that has fallen to the ground.
*…would you find a forty-something business man passed out drunk on a sidewalk in his suit with his keys, wallet and cell
phone sitting next to him on the ground. No one would even look twice and no one would even think about stealing any of his things!
*…would a student request the song "Rabbit Bee" by mistake instead of "Let It Be." Seriously.
*…do the women in the gym hula-hoop for cardio.
*…can you add an -uh at the end of any English word and all the sudden you're speaking Konglish and everyone understands you.
*…can you find carts and carts of venders lining the streets all selling socks. The same socks.
*... do people let their dogs sit at the table.
*…can you find a t-shirt that says: "i once was fed but now i car see"
*…are there private rooms, bangs (pronounced bongs), for just about everything. Norebang (singing room, aka karaoke), ping pong bang, board game bang, pool bang, DVD bang. These are rooms that you rent by the hour for just you and your friends and use them to their specific purpose.
*…does crossing your arms in front of your face violently mean "NO!"
*…would an old grandma literally push you as hard as she can while you're
reaching for a box of cereal in the supermarket and then just walk away.
*... are the signs posting warnings and danger usually funnier than helpful.
*…do you yell the equivalent of "HERE!" (yogi) to your waiter in a restaurant to get them to take your order.
*…do gyms have fat jiggler machines that every woman swears by. You stand on this machine, it shakes you and supposedly that is a workout. Or you have the other option of the fat rubber machine. This one has a large belt that you place over your head and on your back that quickly moves back and forth and rubs your fat right off. Amazing!
*…do children and grown men alike come up to you and say "Nice-uh ta meet-uh yew!" before you've even met them.
*…are you not allowed to try on any clothing in a store that you have to pull over your head.
*…is cheese and butter considered disgusting by the locals.
*…are the buttons on the tables at restaurants that you push to call your server to the table.
*…do children run up to you, point and say "Ohhhhh waegook saerom."
(Foreign people)
*…do women sit side saddle on the back of their boyfriend's moped because it's kind of lewd to do otherwise.
*…does your boss come up to the male employees and say "I need a hug" and hug them and put his head on their shoulder for a minute.
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Jessica (from Seoul, Korea)
non-member comment
Thanks
i quite enjoyed your blog... every statement is true and i laughed all the way threw. I hop eyou don't mind but I'll be passing your mist on to my friends!