"Blossom Smile Some Sunshine Down My Way "

Wow, what an eventful week it has been!

We're gearing up for mid-terms in a week, and the Korean teachers have been hard at work. As for us conversation teachers, we are looking forward to the next few weeks. When exam time comes around, our classes are usually taken over by the co-teachers whose classes are less prepared for the exams. This is usually about half of them, and I get a lot more free time to do lesson planning and fool around online.

I've also taken on an extra 2 classes a week after school to earn some extra cash, but the student attendance has slowly been dwindling and I've actually had to cancel the next 2 weeks of classes because the kids told me they were not coming because the need to study. Thank you diligent students!

In other news...

I threw out my back about 3 weeks ago after a rather intense game of badminton. I have thrown my back out before, but I have usually just rested and the pain has dissipated into oblivion. Also, ever since my second year of college, I have had lower back pain which I mainly attributed to my being overweight. I've dropped about 30 pounds this year, and the pain is still there.

I also visited my girlfriend's blind acupuncture doctor (click here for my January post if you need a refresher) and he told me that my spine is twisting and should be fixed as soon as possible so I don't look like this guy when I'm older:

I thought about visiting her doctor for treatment, but his office is over an hour away on the subway, and I would have to visit 2-3 times a week. He also closes his office at 6pm, and I get out of work around 4:30-5:00. This would NOT be ideal...

Instead, we found a local chiropractor about a 1 minute walk from my apartment. (Top Chiropractor) The chiropractor is also blind, but handles only a small portion of the treatment. The main treatment is done by a physical therapist who has the hands of a God. I laid on a heated bed as this small Korean man worked miracles. I could feel the pain in my back being pushed out my shoulders, then my arms and out through my fingers. The treatment is not exactly cheap. Either $50 per visit, or $700 for 20 visits. (I have to do the 20 visits of course). I also have to do some small exercises every day to strenghten some muscles. Also, I am supposed to sleep straight like a corpse. This will not happen easily, as I tend to move a lot in my sleep and usually sleep on my side or stomach. The day after my first treatment I felt super sore from the massage, but hopefully it will go away as the treatments progress.

heated beds

 

This is my blind chiropractor (and obviously not me)

 

 

On Saturday night... 

We celebrated Hwayoung's birthday. She was away in Saipan with her company on her real birthday so I helped plan an outing at our new favorite restaurant - Pasha (the Turkish place we went for our 100 day anniversary a few months ago if you recall).

 

Good friends, good times.

and good food!

The food was amazing as usual, although it is overpriced and they are pretty strict on some of their policies. (like everyone at the table must order a main dish in order to be able to use the salad bar. Sorry, not everyone wants to pay $20 for a main dish!) All in all, it was still a good time, and I got to see our Korean friends, and meet some other friends of hers as well.

On Sunday...

We visited Yeoido, a spot known for it's park on the Han River which neighbors the National Assembly Building (Seoul's Capital building). This spot is also particularly known for it's cherry blossoms. And they were beautiful! Check out the photos!

Cherry blossoms

and more...

and more...

and more!

 

Just the two of us..

National Assembly Building

A Bridge Over River Han

A night view of Seoul and the National Assembly Building (far right)

"I'm Yours"

I had such a busy weekend.

On Friday, I went out with a bunch of other expats. My friend Ashley had her friend in town, and of course we had to treat her to some amazing Korean foods and later to a bar for beers and soju cocktails.

Saturday, I went with Hwayoung again to see the acupuncturist. She talked me into letting him give me an exam, to which he told me that my back is crooked.....great. But remember he's blind and doesn't take X-rays, so I'm not sure if I should take his word on that...

After the doctor, Hwayoung treated me to free tickets to see the Georges Rouault: Le sacré et le profane exhibit at the Hangaram Art Museum, part of the Seoul Arts Center. I like his style (expressionist) better than Warhol (pop art). It just has more meaning to me and his inspiration comes more from his personal experiences and his feelings on life and death, society, and morality. 

Later that evening I treated Hwayoung to dinner. I had planned for our 100 day anniversary to take her to a nice Turkish restaurant, but the plans fell through. This weekend however, I had the chance. We headed to Gangnam and without reservations got seats at Pasha.  First off, the place is beautiful. It has a wonderful atmosphere of sophistication. Dim candle lights, unique architecture, and vibrant colors. We decided on a set menu to sample all sorts of different foods. It was a little expensive, but well worth it. From Kebabs, to homemade pita bread - I was in heaven. This is the closest to Lebanese food I've had in quite some time, so I made sure I enjoyed it. I met the president of the restaurant, a young Turkish guy who reminded me of a slick car salesman. We got to talking about some of the similarities and differences between the two foods - but we both agreed on one thing. Hummus is amazing. He offered to give me some free next time I visited. I told him I also make my own, but can't find the ingredients (mainly tahini) he told me, it is hard to find, but the best place to buy it is.....at his restaurant. Yes, they sell all sorts of turkish treats, and tahini as well! Assah!

Sunday we went to the wedding of our friends Justyna and Yong. The ceremony was interesting. Different from what I am used to, as it wasn't at a church but rather a banquet hall. This is very common in Korea. Most weddings only last about 20-30 minutes, and then a buffet is served at the hall -- and that is it.

Before the ceremony starts, you can take pictures with the bride or groom in a private room. Meanwhile, you also visit a cashiers desk to give the couple money. The cashiers take your envelope and record your name and how much was given....a bit odd to me, but that's the custom!

This wedding ran a little longer due to everything having to be translated. Even though the hall was beautiful, it had a modern feel to it that reminded me of a Vegas chapel with a fashion runway and changing lights. There were no groomsman, just a best man and maid of honor. Instead, there were escorts provided by the staff at the hall. They seem to dress in a airline stewardress/paramilitary garb which I didn't understand. The even carried swords and did a little fancy show with them when the bride and groom pass by, typical to a military wedding back in the States (but this wasn't a military wedding)...

Wedding ceremonies are typically performed by a educated elder, in this case - a distinguished professor that I assume Yong or his family know. There were also a couple songs that were fairly well done by friends of the couple, and pictures taken after the ceremony.

One thing that annoyed me was the wedding planner. She seemed so focused on making sure things looked good. This is typical Korea - where appearances are everything. The planner would not stop fussing about the dress, making sure everything was where it was supposed to be (in a forceful annoying way), even during the ceremony she would run up and fluff the dress a little. I felt sorry for Justyna in a way because this lady seemed attached to her hip. I'd swat at her like a fly!

After the buffet dinner, many of the young friends of the couple met up at a chain bar called Warawara where we ate and drank some more...(more drinking than eating of course!).

Here's a short video I made:

It was an interesting experience that I'm glad to have seen.

Now all I have to do is find a way to respond to all the people who are asking if the next wedding they'll see is mine and Hwayoungs (whooooooaaaahhh.....slow down people!)

 

"I Got You Babe"

On Saturday I accompanied Hwayoung to see an acupuncturist as her back has been hurting her for several weeks. The "doctor" happens to be her best friends father, a man who is basically a 2nd father to Hwayoung. She invited me to come along to see what it would be like. I was skeptical, but wanted to see what this was all about. My only knowledge of oriental medicine is what I've seen on TV.

There was something odd about the doctor though. He asked to shake my hand, and stood really close to me. He started to massage my arm as we shook hands.

"He's taking an interest in me to see if I need his help" I thought.

He next asked how much I weighed, to which I replied "100kg." He spoke to Hwayoung in Korean in an excited tone.

My mental (and absolutely self-fabricated) translation went something like this:

Doctor: 100kg? He's fat!
Hwayoung: He knows he's overweight, but he's lost 10kg in the last few months.
Doctor: 10 kg? Not bad. But maybe I can poke him with needles and make him drink strange medicines made of roots, herbs, and monkey saliva.
Hwayoung: Maybe if he wants. I've been feeding him a lot of different Korean foods on my patented "Korean Girlfriend Diet". I should write a book or open a restaurant!
Doctor: He has no clue what we're saying does he? Ha Ha Ha, silly American!!

As the good Doctor began his treatment, he seemed to stumble about the room. "Was he drunk?"

He had placed his acupuncture pins in his pocket for easy retrieval. He ran his fingers over the dials on the heater he was adjusting. He walked over to me and I looked him in the eyes. He looked at me with one eye, but the other was askew.

"Maybe he has bad eyesight?" I thought. "Then why would he be trusted poking pins into someone's back???"

Midway though the process of making my girlfriend look like a voodoo doll, the two of them chatted away in Korean and eventually he asked if I wanted to have some acupuncture as well. I wasn't about to let this man touch me, as I didn't trust him. There was still something odd that I couldn't positively confirm - but I had a feeling...

After the acupuncture, the Doctor started his massage therapy. He bent limbs, twisted her body, pulled and pushed on her muscles. I practically watched his man mount and feel up my girlfriend in front of my eyes -- but in a professional way of course. It looked rather painful, and tears came to her eyes. Later she would tell me that it is very painful for one day, but worth the relief for the following week.

As the session wrapped up, and Hwayoung was paying the bill the Doctor asked us if he could treat us to lunch, which we agreed. He flipped open a book....and then it all made sense.

The book was written in braille. The Doctor was completely blind.

I looked at Hwayoung and made some obvious attempt as sign language to ask if he was completely blind. "Oh, I didn't tell you? I thought I did!" (she never did).

As I later discovered, he had been blind since he was 5 years old. His wife is also blind. Hwayoung, explained to me that blind oriental doctors are considered to have a special talent for healing, as they have a heightened awareness of sickness and discomfort that they can sense by touch. Apparently this is fairly common. An interesting theory, but I'm not sure if I would be comfortable if this man was a surgeon!

This Sunday marked our 100 days anniversary as well. With the younger generations in Asian cultures, this is becoming a popular thing to celebrate. Also popular is 200, 300, 1000, days as well as annual anniversaries as well.

I wanted to make a good first impression, so I did some planning. We were going to get "couple massages" at the famous Dragon Hill Spa in Yongsan. You can get massages locally for cheap, but I wanted to treat her. Turns out that you can't just get a massage, you have to pay entry fees as well which makes the prices outrageous. Hwayoung wasn't happy with the customer service people. We didn't want to pay the same amount of money to spend the whole day there. We just wanted the massage part. They denied us that option, so she decided that she didn't want to stay there, and would look for another place.

A friend of hers also wanted to say hello, so we met up with her at a popular mall and shopped together. The three of us were hoping to see Avatar at the IMAX, but the tickets sold out quickly, and have been sold out for a while. It is a very popular film and tickets are very hard to get. Instead, we headed to Gangnam to find another spa, or maybe see a movie at a different theater. I had made plans to bring her to a fancy Turkish restaurant called Pasha (we like to try different foods), but we had the chance to get last minute movie tickets that started at dinner time. Not wanting to eat at 9pm, we had a quick bite to eat at a small Chinese restaurant before the movie.

At the theater we watched the movie "Nine". It wasn't that great of a film, and I don't really recommend it unless you really, really, really like films like "Moulin Rouge" and "Chicago".  I'm willing to bet the Broadway show is 100 times better than the film.

All my plans for a romantic day had failed. The massage turned out to be a no-go. The day was interrupted by her friends visit, the fancy dinner was a flop due to timing, and the movie was a bomb.

I did have one more fool proof thing planned...

Later that night, I surprised Hwayoung with a gift. She loved it! 

I told her of my plans for the day, and she felt awful that they didn't work out, but through her happy tears, she told me that I've been the best boyfriend ever, and how much I mean to her.

Yeah.... it was a great day.