"Mint Condition"

This past weekend I visited the "Grand Mint Festival" held at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu (Bangi) -- and not too far from Jamsil Sports Complex.

I didn't know what to expect, as I was offered free tickets by my girlfriend who needed to scope the venue out for her company, as they may want to use it for their own festival.

Grand Mint? As I approached the park area I saw a scattering of tents and stage set-ups. Was this going to be a festival promoting mint flavored products? I expected tea, candies, scented candles, and air-fresheners. Why was there a stage? Were they going to have groups come out and sing and dance about mint?

As it turns out, the festival is a mini-Woodstock rock festival, showcasing all sorts of music. (I think it's sponsored by the paper company "Mint Paper") I found the bands to be pretty entertaining, and was surprised at the large, yet young crowd. The event wasn't very foreigner friendly - probably because the groups were not very popular and didn't sing in English.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

 SOUP Loving Forest Garden -- weird name for a staging area. (SOUP is a company name)

The food was good though - albeit expensive. There was also a lot of alcohol served - good for the crowd. -- I didn't see any mint juleps though....

Surprisingly delicious for Korean Tacos...

Who drinks nachos and/or art?

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Overall it was a nice little festival with many vendors and I got a lot of free stuff - bags, buttons, coupons, trinkets, and too many flyers.

"Work It Out Now"

Ever since I first arrived in Korea (almost a year and a half ago) I began to eat healthier.

This can mostly been contributed to eating smaller portions and just plain better quality foods. I regularly eat spicy dishes, less carbs other than rice, a ton more fruit and vegetables, more soups, and smaller quantities but better quality meats.

After my first year I had easily dropped 30lbs without really exercising. My lifestyle has changed dramatically due to the fact that I walk everywhere the subways don't go (unless it's really far that I need a bus or taxi), and that I get out more often and do more things. - I used to be pretty lazy and a homebody.

I started to plateau towards the beginning of summer, and actually gained around 5-10 lbs simply by being on vacation for a month in the States! I blame the plethora of parties and the frequent visits to restaurants with family and friends.

My new plan has been to start exercising. This is one thing I HATE doing. I am NOT a runner, I have had bad knees for years. I was never really into team sports besides baseball when I was younger. I do enjoy playing badminton with my girlfriend, and enjoy walking. I never liked gyms, but I do like the accessibility and ease of being able to get a workout while watching TV instead of running around in the snow and rain.


Walking around Gunpo is pretty relaxing actually. I like exploring side streets and noticing new small restaurants that don't get the attention of the downtown Sanbon crowd. I've even made it a plan to walk in different directions on different days so I don't get bored.

 

A pavilion over looking some apartments on top of a quiet hill.

The one thing that I really like is that there are outdoor "gyms" almost everywhere -- and they are FREE.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Although these "gyms" aren't really well maintained a lot of the time, or protected from mother nature, they do have their appeal of being readily available to almost anyone at any time (granted when they aren't being used by the elderly -- which is ALL THE TIME except around dinner time). I have found a couple secluded spots where I can lift weights, stretch, and do other sorts of exercises in peace. You'll even find these "gyms" half-way up mountain tops (and usually occupied by 80 year old men and women vigorously working out!).

Some of the equipment I do not use as I don't see the point.

 Does twisting your body slightly from side to side like this REALLY give you a work out? 

Apparently all this walking and light lifting has been helping out. I'm getting closer and closer to my goal. Hopefully by next year I will have a slimmer and trimmer look!

Papa Was A Rolling (kidney) Stone

Last week, I awoke after feeling uneasy and I couldn't get comfortable. I went to the bathroom and immediately felt sick. I thought I might have eaten some bad tuna kimbab (Chamchi-kimbap) from a local franchise.

I thought I might vomit, as I became nauseous and started breathing heavily. Appendicitis was my initial thought - the pain was almost in the right place for it...but suddenly, the pain shifted and became more extreme - this time in my back.

I've had back pain for awhile now - I even saw a chiropractor/acupunturist about it last spring. This felt totally different. It was if I had just been stabbed in the back. As my mind churned, I developed the answer -- a kidney stone.

My gf and I took an excruciating taxi ride to the local hospital where the nurses and doctors at the ER asked my symptoms and did a urine test. (Thankfully my gf translated everything to me, as their English wasn't that great.) They confirmed the stones, and hooked me up to an IV of 5% Dextrose and some pain killer. As they were putting in the needle the pain reached it's height. I began to shake, my hands and chest went numb, and I began vomitting every 15 minutes for the next hour. I thought I was allergic to the medication - but I was told this was normal for this kind of pain.


In between bouts, they ran me into X-rays twice, and a CT-Scan (uncomfortable!) to confirm the stone and get a more accurate assessment.



Turns out, I only had one itty bitty 3-4mm stone.

Once the pain stopped a few hours later, I felt absolutely fine and they sent me home with some pain relievers, antibiotics, and some other medication that I had no clue about - but had no problem taking.

Saturday and Sunday I felt fine. My gf is a great nurse, and watched over me in more ways than I could have hoped for. I even felt great enough to take a walk to Seoul and see the HiSeoul Festival fireworks - which were pretty darn good.

Sunday night the pain started to act up again, as the stone began moving some more, and at 4am, we were in another taxi rushing to the hospital yet again. Of course being one of the only big (and handsome) white guy's the ER has probably seen that month, they immediately recognized me and set me up with the IV's and whipped out my info on their computers. Sidenote: The nurses and doctors I've had every time I've gone to the hospitals in Korea have been great.

Again, after draining the IV's and a little rest, I left feeling fine. We coulding make an appointment with the urologist on Monday - but waited around until he could see us anyway. We had to wait about an hour, but he showed me my x-rays and CT scan to show me the stone, told me that it was too late to remove it, but it wasn't big enough to do so anyways. Instead, I had to wait for it to pass. (I'm still waiting actually). But I've been told to drink a lot of water, eat regularly, and try to stay active. He did hook me up with some stronger pain medication that I've only taken twice since, as the pain has only been dull this past week from time to time.

Some people recommend drinking a ton of lemon juice to move it along, also, I've heard of a lemon juice and olive oil concoction. Others say beer...but the doctor told me no alcohol or caffeine.

All I know is that I wouldn't wish this pain on anyone. I've never felt pain like that in my life. I can only describe it as possibly feeling pregnant, and feeling stabbed in the back.

Hopefully it will pass soon. I don't like the idea that I could be in that pain again in 10 minutes without any notice.

"Lazy for You"

What I've been up to lately:

I've had basically 3 weeks of laziness due to mid-terms. Our teachers are preparing the kids for the tests and want to prep them without me. Oh, darn.'

So, I've completed 3 awesome lessons in my spare time (working on a 4th) and starting to prepare for my open-class sometime late November (open class is where I will be evaluated by other foreign teachers and Korean English teachers).

With all this free time, you would expect me to blog, right? Wrong. I've been keeping busy trying to work out every day, as well as improve my Korean through self-study. I really should do a blog post about the outdoor gyms in my area...

A few weeks ago, I got to see some ice hockey (there are only 2 teams in Korea, and one is located the next town over). The Anyang Halla were fun to watch. Here are some photos:

 

 

 

Also, I visted the Seoul Design Fair (last year called the Seoul Design Olympiad. I posted about it here.). My girlfriend is an event manager for the promotion company this year, so she's worked super hard on it. It actually closes today. I didn't find it as entertaining as last year. It felt larger and more interesting then, but it was still cool to see some of the amazing designs. (I didn't take any pictures though this time around - sorry.)

I'm debating starting a Korean food blog that would incorporate Restaurant Reviews, Cooking, and even School Lunches - so stay tuned for that. It might take me some time to get motivated to start it.

One of the many delicious dishes friend Minyoung's "Cafe Under the Stairs" in Hongdae (Seoul) creates. This one is Pumpkin Curry with Rice

Most interestingly Koreans have been in an uproar about the price of cabbage (Napa Cabbage specifically) - as it is used for making Kimchi. Bad weather (and even industrial growth) has been blamed for the shortage of cabbage this season, and prices have skyrocketed. It's even become a political issue. I love kimchi and eat it 2-3 times a day. Some restaurants are hurting as the prices have gone so high that they are starting to charge you when you ask for more of it. (Usually it's a free side dish). Koreans are referring to it as geum-chi (geum means "gold")

CNN Reports:

Thanks to my parents for sending me a care package! It's always great to get things from home. (Especially the new iPod Touch I purchased - as I can now use Skype on the go, and take photos/videos and send them instantly!)

"Kiss Me"

I had a rather uneventful Chuseok this year. I spent most of my time relaxing and attending a couple events which I will post about later.

There was one incident that has ingrained itself in my mind these last few days.

On Thursday, my girlfriend and I decided to relax in the park nearby her apartment. We spent the day lying in the shade and enjoying the amazing autumn weather. I urged her to play badminton later on - something we love to do, but haven't found the time. Unable to find an empty badminton court,  we hiked to the top of the nearby hill which has two, less frequented, badminton courts at the top.

They too, were occupied and we sat on a picnic bench awaiting our turn to play. While chit-chatting, my girlfriend hugged me and gave me a peck on the cheek, which was immediately followed by a 30-something year old Korean man yelling to us. He approached and started talking loudly to which I just kept replying "I don't know what you're saying" and looked at my girlfriend for some advice. She just stared at the man, and whispered to me "I think he's drunk and crazy..."

The man asked if I was from England, Canada, or the US, and when I replied "U.S.A." he kept babbling on in more Korean.

It turns out he was angry at my girlfriend for kissing me in public, and said  "even though I am drunk, and I know your boyfriend is American and doesn't understand, you should behave better, should have more respect, and be more proper." He yelled at the teenagers playing nearby that they should have told us to behave properly and that they were stupid for not speaking up.  (Read this to know more about Korea and PDA)

An older man tried to calm the drunk man down, apologized to us and tried to walk him away, but he came back and yelled at us some more. He told us if we wanted to behave like that we should go get a motel room, and basically called my girlfriend a whore.

Next came the scary part. He stumbled over to the nearby chain-link fence and picked up an aluminum baseball bat. He started swinging it in anger against the fence, yelling at us some more. Another adult took the bat from him, and the older man told us to walk away - which we did.

As we walked away my girlfriend finally spoke up and told him "You're pathetic and miserable because you don't have a girlfriend!" and "fine! you want us to go to a motel room, that's where we're going now!" (great, I thought, now he's going to get mad and come after us!)

But he didn't and we walked away unharmed but a little angry and shaken.

A little while later as we were leaving the park, we saw a police car leaving and passerby's saying that a drunk man was being taken away. Hopefully it was the same guy - but finding a drunk man in Korea is as easy as finding sand on a beach.

A million thoughts ran through my head afterward. "Why was he so angry?" "What could I have done if he started swinging at us?" "Why didn't anyone speak up against him?"

First, in Korea you really shouldn't kiss in some public places. People do, but especially not in front of the elderly. This man wasn't elderly, he was just drunk - and a peck on the cheek isn't cause for alarm.

Secondly, why is he so upset? I think it's because I'm a foreigner and he is jealous that I'm dating a Korean. Korea has plenty of prostitute areas, kissing rooms, "special massage" parlors where men and women go all the time. Many Korean men cheat on their girlfriends and wives - yet we're the ones "in the wrong"? Hypocritical if you ask me.

Lastly, what could I do? If I get into an altercation with the man I'm liable to loose my job. Basically, Koreans are right, and foreigners are wrong. It doesn't really matter who starts what, others will generally NOT come to you defense, and the police will probably take YOU away. If it was his word against mine, I would probably lose. In this case, if something did happen, at least there were witnesses. Sometimes I just have to suck it up, hold back my emotions, and just take whatever abuse. But in a case of self-defense, or defense of my girlfriend - I wouldn't stand by without taking action if push came to shove. If I lose my job because I'm protecting myself or her, I would fight it to the end, and if I lost - I wouldn't want to stay in a country where I'm at wrong for doing what is right without just cause.

What would you do?

"Full Moon"

Korean Thanksgiving - aka "Chuseok" (추석) is approaching quickly. The holiday starts Tuesday-Thursday this year, and is probably the most popular holiday in the country.

"Chuseok is a major harvest festival and a three-day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Like many other harvest festivals, it is held around the Autumn Equinox. As a celebration of the good harvest, Koreans visit their ancestral hometowns and share a feast of Korean traditional food." - Wikipedia

5 Things to Expect During Chuseok:

1. Traffic: If you are planning on traveling during Chuseok - don't! It's super busy and you are bound to be stuck in traffic jams between the major cities as everyone is going to their families homes - just like in the U.S.

2. High Costs: Transportation books up really quickly, and if you are planning on flying, flights will be ridiculously expensive as many people travel internationally during the free time as well. Also, the major stores seems to increase their prices - specifically food. I have seen all food prices jump over the past week due to the holiday.

Thanks to Simon and Martina over at eatyourkimchi.com you can view their latest video about going to the local supermarket.

Please take the time to read their post as well about what to expect.

Here are some highlights:

Yelling Men: Yep. Men yelling loudly. Not at each other. Not argumentatively. They’re all yelling for your attention. COME OVER HERE! THIS THING HERE IS ON SALE AND IT’S DELICIOUS AND CHEAP! Forget about store signs to tell you their sales. With these guys, you’ll know about the sale before you even enter the place.

Big Crowds: Don’t go to a Korean Supermarket on the weekend unless you’re desperate. The crowds can get huge. You’ll wait in line just to be able to put something in your cart, then wait in a bigger line to pay for it.

Women with Cool Outfits: Sure, each Supermarket has its own uniform, but there are a bunch of women not wearing that uniform. Some of the women who give samples have something that can only be described as baggy socks that start at your shoes and tie up under the knee. Can’t describe it any other way. And that goes with their miniskirts. Other women, especially during the holidays, wear hanboks next to the gift sets the store is selling. Awesome.

Spam as a Gift Set: No joke here. During the holidays, you’ll find lots of food gift sets in the stores. They can be full of apples, or seaweed, or beef, or even Spam. 

 Yes - it's true.

3. Closed Shops: On Chuseok, many stores - (and especially smaller restaurants) will be closed or have different hours. If this is your first Chuseok in Korea you should plan on stocking up your pantry for a few days - although you should be fine, and able to find something if you live in a downtown area.

4. More Vacation!: Depending on your school, you may be entitled to more vacation based on the good will of your principal and/or the education department of your city. (I can only speak for public schools). This year, due to the holiday following on a Tues-Thurs, our school gave us Monday and Friday off as well - meaning, thanks to weekends - 10 days vacation! I wish I had known much earlier as I could have made some major traveling plans in advance and gotten some good deals.

5. Awesome Festivals: I recommend getting out of your apartment and attending some of the local events - specifically in Seoul. Namsan Hanok Folk Village was pretty cool, walking around Insadong has it's perks too. I recommend looking at iTourSeoul and looking at some events.

If you want to see how I spent Chuseok last year - check out the post here.

"I'll Make a Man Out of You"

It's been a couple months since I've posted some North Korea news. Some of you will remember the posts about the sinking of the Cheonan and the reactions between North and South, as well as the flexing of power between the U.S. and China holding naval exercises.

The recent news pertaining to North Korea has been largely focused on Kim Jong il's latest trip to China. He had met with Chinese leaders a few months ago after the sinking of the Cheonan, a trip in which some theorize that Kim was trying to get support from China due to the US/ROK's blaming the North for torpedoing the ship, and then imposing new sanctions on the DPRK.

Kim met again with Chinese delagates a few days ago, this time it seems that he is seeking China's approval to hand over power to his youngest son - twenty-something-year-old Kim Jong Un. Apparently, Jong il has been grooming his youngest son for power over the last year after he suffered a mild stroke. Jong il is reported to have 3 sons - the eldest is seen as spoiled, studied in Switzerland, and likes to travel with fake passports - as he did in Japan trying to go to Toyko's Disney World (and was caught). As an embarrassment to the DPRK he was not a likely candidate. Neither is the middle son who no one really knows of.

 

CNN's story:

Grooming Jong Un for power needs the support of China as well as the Workers' Party of Korea, so his father has been spreading stories of his greatness to the people of the North. Some reports said that shrines were being made to honor him in small villages.

There has also been some posturing due to financial issues on the side of the North. Recently, an American activist (and religious whack job) named Aijalon Gomes crossed into the North to bring attention to the human rights violations and starving children in the DPRK - which he was quickly captured and sentenced to hard labor (seemingly trying to copy Robert Park - another idiot). Former President Jimmy Carter flew to the North to gain his release - who knows what the U.S. actually ended up doing to achieve this - money or aid I'm sure.

The DPRK also captured a South Korean fishing vessel recently, and around the same time suffered some severe flooding. It is reported that the South would be giving the North over 8 million dollars in aid - and all of a sudden, the fishermen were returned to the South.

The game is still being played. The chess pieces of North and South are being moved about by the US and China, and is being bet on by the international community in form of coroporations who want to get cash in their pockets in the long run.

When will we humans ever learn....?