Korea Life Blog - At the Store (1)


After posting the grocery ad, I got the idea to take my camera to the store when I go. This time I got off a measly five shots before running out of room on the memory card once again. That's becoming very annoying. I'm running out of old pictures that I feel OK about deleting. Pretty soon I'll be back to stealing pics off the internet or begging readers for more send-ins. In the meantime, enjoy this first post in the exciting new series: At the Store.



Well, if you didn't believe me before, here it is: SPAM. A whole heap of it too - with quite a lot already sold. The cans go 3 for 8,800 won. That's about $7.50...comparable to back home? I have no idea. I've never actually tried this stuff. There's something about meat packed in a can that's a turn off. However, I used to love Dinty Moore Beef Stew in can. Now where can I get some of that? I think I've seen it in Seoul before, but I can't remember.



Here's Tony the Tiger and his frosted corn flakes on sale in Nowhere-dong Korea. I just noticed that the Korean name is not Corn Flakes, it Corn Frost. Huk!



In the back of the store are several more American cereals. There's a few kinds here I've never seen before. Now that I've become like a Korean ajushi and eat rice and kimchi for breakfast, I don't buy cereals. Chocolate Chex looks pretty good, although I'd prefer to see the original kind. One cereal I just thought about and really would like to eat again is Cinnamon Life. That kid Mikey liked it and so do I.



Not the best picture, but here it is nonetheless. No. 1 Spirits in the World: Soju! And now available in lunchbox packable container! The only thing that's missing is the plastic straw to go with it. I often wonder who buys soju in a box. I've never actually seen anyone drinking from one. I placed it tantalizingly in front of the glass bottles and stood around for awhile ready to sneak a photo from the shadows of an unsuspecting alcoholic. But while bottle after bottle flew off the shelf, unfortunately nobody took the box. Dang!



Also flying off the shelves is Cass beer in a can. The Hite, while tasting pretty similar, just can't keep up. Usually cans are sold individually in this manner and they're not cheap. One small can like this is 1,800 Won, or about $1.50. However, you can get a slight discount if you can find a six pack.


Well that's it for now. I'll get more pics for this series sooner or later. Stay tuned...

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - A Hearty Meal


The students and I went out for bulgogi last night. They had just gotten a fresh cow in that day and gave us extra "service" in the form of raw cow heart and liver. It grossed me out. Harry gobbled down the liver but it wasn't long before the other students put him to the ultimate test: eating a piece of the heart. At first he refused but eventually caved under mounting pressure.



In disbelief, I made him wait while I got out my camera. I didn't have enough space left to shoot a video, but I managed to snap the sequence and "gif" them together. It actually came out pretty good. Here it goes: first he picks up a piece and examines it, then he sets it in the salt sauce. After a preparatory shot of soju he gobbles down the red and bloody chunk. The ensuing expression on his face says it all: "Mmm, now that's damn good cow heart."

Here are a few more mouth watering pictures from the dinner:



This is called bulgogi jeon gol. Basically it means bulgogi boiled in water, spices, and vegetables. I prefer regular ole bulgogi, but this was pretty delicious too. There was a bit of an argument during dinner as to whether this style is traditional or modern.



The ajumma volunteered to have her picture taken while tending the meal. I'm not sure she would have volunteered so eagerly had she known she would end up on this website, however. I feel bad for these ajummas that have to bend over like this all day. Their backs must really feel awful by closing time.



Here are the side dishes. There certainly is no shortage of food in this country. In front of the lettuce salad on the left is stingray and go chu jang (thick soypaste mixed with red pepper). I felt a little disgusted after trying the yellow dish. I found out those are jelly fish. Yuck!




Another shot of the side dishes. The flat green things are bu chim gae, which some people call Korean pizza, although it has absolutely no resemblance in any form to pizza. It tastes delicious though and I ate most of it. That salad has entirely too much mayonnaise on it. I ate a lot of the two kimchis, coleslaw, and greens. All in all, a hearty meal indeed.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Eyesore (1)


No matter which city you live in the world, you have the good, the bad, and the plain ugly. Korea, of course, is no exception.



An example of a real eyesore sent in by one of my field reporters. It's not uncommon to see sites such as these. There's not a lot of space to work when taking down a building and clean-up is sometimes left unfinished until the next building goes up. Not a lot to look at outside those windows. This kind of view on a daily basis would make me a little depressed. And when the new building goes up, the neighbors will be subjected to construction noises all day and night for the next few months. Looking again at this picture, I can't help but think how dangerous it is to have so many gas tanks clustered about like that. They are sitting right next to central air-conditioning units and an assortment of other electrical wires. Perhaps a few "no smoking" and "danger" signs would be useful here. Yikes!

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Grocery Store Ad


An ad for the local grocery store came in my mailbox box today. I thought I'd share it with you. It may be interesting for people thinking about coming here to see it, or for Koreans living in America to compare the prices of their favorite items. Shopping in Korea is still difficult for me as I don't know exactly what to cook. I should invest in a Korean cookbook in English, or print out some recipes from online. If any of my Korean readers have some good recipes for simple Korean dishes, send them along. I plan on making a lot of Korean meals now that I have my new rice cooker. Today I bought kimchi, dwen jang paste, soy sauce, ko chu jang, kim, garlic, tofu, onion, sam gyeop sal, mi yuk guk, and a bunch of canned fish for "my" cats. I really felt Korean checking out with that assortment of goods. When in Rome do as they do.



There's quite a lot of stuff going on sale this week. The store is pretty small...it looks like there's a sale on pretty much everything. There's a few American things here: Del Monte Orange juice, Coke (of course), Maxwell House coffee, and Kellog's Frosted Flakes. There's also Spam but it's hard to see. Believe it or not, Spam is very popular here. They even sell huge Spam gift sets (a must get photo for a future post.) Sorry about the glare on these pics. I didn't notice it until now. Other things here are rice, cooking oils, mayonnaise, eggs (brown eggs are just as good as white eggs don't worry) ramyon, cold coffee drinks, dry cream, milk, yogurt drink (yum!) etc....



Another part of the ad. Dove Soap and Pringles are the only American products on this page. Korean versions of what you need are just as good and sometimes better. I remember how stupid I was when I first got here. I had my family send me soap and toothpaste for awhile. Now I think Korean soap is actually better and I found a great LG made toothpaste that has some kind of gritty substance in it that makes my teeth clean and bright. However, I have yet to see any razor or shaving cream that even remotely compares to Gillette. You can find Mach 3 and Gillette shaving cream pretty much anywhere here at equally outrageous prices as back home.



There's no shortage of vegetables or meat here, don't worry. Vegetables are abundant but meat is just not in the same shape and form you would find at home and is understandably more expensive. Don't fret - bulgogi and sam gyeop sal are reasonable and wonderfully delicious. You won't see T-bone, NYS prime rib, or Filet Mingion so forget it. On a real down side, you can't buy fresh deli meats in Korea and I have yet to come across a turkey. Now that I think about it, I really miss cold cut sandwiches and deli pickles. Good thing there are several Subway franchises in Seoul! Now, what cracks me up is the middle section of this page. I'm not sure why, but the fish and fruit are listed side by side. Nothing goes better with an apple than some fish. Also, notice the tomatoes there in the same row. In Korea tomatoes are considered a fruit.


Tonight when I went shopping, they were having some kind of no rae bang contest in the store. Right next to the vegetables people were lined up to sing their favorite song. An ajumma, carrying a full basket of groceries, sang Korean country music so passionately that other ajummas applauded loudly and practically broke into tears. I wish I had my camera with me.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - KLB Stats


Page views today: 751
This week: 3036
This month: 10827


I hit a record high of 751 hits today. That's far beyond what I ever imagined. I remember being happy when I got 20 hits for the first time. I'm not sure though how many hits are from individual readers and how many are coming from people checking back for updates frequently. Blogger stats doesn't keep track of that and I'm too lazy to sign up for another sitemeter. Anyway, thanks everyone for reading my blog. More updates to come soon.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Sushi


Another delightful food I never once even considered trying back in the states is sushi. Now I love it. It's a little expensive even here. Luckily I've never actually paid anything the times I've had it. My bosses have taken me out before and two of my adult students took me to have it on Friday. A new restaurant just opened up across the street from my home (next to the new stationery store in a quickly built but functional building). Here are a few pictures I took. Unfortunately I ran out of room on my camera's memory card (must get computer soon) before the main sushi dish came out. These are just the side dishes:




I tried everything here except the one that is most to the front. I'm not exactly sure what it was, but it was still moving! I tried to take a video of it with my camera, but there was not enough space left on the memory card, drat! In the back to the far left is a sushi salad. That was one of my favorites. You can also see the two raw shrimp. Those tasted pretty good too.



Within a few minutes the waitress came back with yet more side dishes. Keep in mind I thought all this was the main meal, but it wasn't. On the left is a bowl of clam soup. The clams were cooked and the soup hot. You can see the mandu next to that. Next to the mandu is some breaded sushi, raw salmon. That was delicious. I forgot the name of that cooked fish there. Regardless, the site of that thing would have grossed me out a few years ago, but now I eat things like that without flinching. It tastes absolutely delicious - just be careful of the bones. Meanwhile those dark red things in the front are still squirming. To my disgust, one of the students ate a bunch.



Another shot now a little to the right. Notice the corn - it's sizzling on a hot plate. Mmmm...There's some raw salmon in front of that, sliced a little thick, but it tasted great. It's probably my favorite raw fish. To the front are the sauces. I've heard people say that the sauce can make or break a sushi meal. They tasted fine to me. The dark one is ordinary soy sauce. More cooked fish can be seen to the right. You're not going to believe this, but I are two of those whole. Yum! Again, I forgot the name. A bit later the waitress brought out caviar dor sot bim im bap (rice and vegetables served sizzling in a hot bowl). It was the first time I have tried caviar...not bad, but I'm not sure what all the fuss is about.



Another angle. I'm not sure why I'm including this...just to show you how much food there is...and these are just the side dishes! Whoa!


Well, I'm disappointed I was unable to take a picture of the main course. I should have deleted the picture above instead. Oh well...I wasn't thinking straight after awhile. The three of us went through 5 bottles of soju and I was clearly off my rocker.


The two students:



Harry. He has a brand new Tusconi or Tiburon as it's known elsewhere. It's a really nice little sports car that is quite popular here. All the female Korean teachers fancy him. He's 32 and still living single with his family. Where is his perfect bride? he wonders. After a lot of soju he confesses he's a little lonely.



Harvey. He's my oldest student, close to 50. At first I was nervous when he joined the class. But he is very nice and speaks English quite well. He lives in Nowhere-dong but his wife and kids live in Pusan. He goes home every weekend. In tonight's class he told me how his son and daughter, high school students, go to various private schools and receive private tutoring until 12 AM, after which time they go to a study room until 2 AM and finally return home at 2:30 AM. He pays 1,300,000 won a month, or about $1,050 for their combined after-school studies. Not only that, but I was surprised to find out Korean parents have to pay 500,000 won, quarterly for public high school education as well. No wonder families are shipping off to other countries by the thousands. Anyway, in the photo he's gearing up for another piece of that dark red seafood that's still moving. Notice the omnipresent bottle of Coca-Cola. Yes, it's everywhere - even at this small sushi restaurant in Nowhere-dong, Korea.



Well, the main dish came out, one gigantic dish full of more sushi. The meal and soju came to a total of about 100,000 won, or nearly 85 dollars. I tried to chip in, but they seemed almost insulted by the idea. We all got wonderful? free gifts: a dish towel and a lighter with the restaurant's name and phone number on them. I took a bag of leftovers for Chongak and Gang, including the fish carcass - all of which was gone by the morning.

Poor Harvey. After paying, he discovered his shoes were gone. (In sit-on-the-floor restaurants you take off your shoes near the entrance). The owner gave him a pair of sandals to wear home, but offered no discount or resolution beyond a business card and telling him to call back in a few days. After spending 100,000 won on dinner we all found this ridiculous. I guess we won't be going back...

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Peeping Wangs



I accidentally deleted this post. Here are a bunch of guys in China oggling at a promotion girl. One of my reader's found this and sent it to me. Before I had commented that while Korea also has promotion girls like this, you don't see people staring at them as obviously as in this picture. I said some other things too, wonderfully amazing, hilarious things that I have now forgotten...fate is sometimes cruel.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Bap Sot



Well, here it is. My brand new Cuckoo rice cooker. It cost me a mere 50,000 won at E-mart. (Is it me, or does E-mart sound quite similar to K-mart?) It really is a wise investment and sure to save me money from eating out all the time. I cooked up a batch (right word?) of rice the same night I got it. These things are amazing. They cook the rice to a perfect texture and then keep it warm and moist with steam for almost 2 days. When the batch I made started to get a little hard I mixed up the remainder with some tuna and put it out for the cats in a big bowl. The next day it was all gone. Now I'm eating rice for breakfast, something a few years ago would have sounded preposterous to me. The other morning I made mi yuk guk (sea weed soup) and ate it with kimchi and tomatoes. A wonderfully healthy breakfast. Again, the thought of eating sea weed soup and rice for breakfast would have made me laugh before...but now it seems, well, quite natural. Skeptics may cringe, but it's true.

I'm excited at all the new dishes I can now cook up. Last night I made sam gyeop sal, and tonight I made plain rice and ate it with processed seaweed, kimchi, spicy leaves, and tater tots. Tomorrow or the next day I may make some kimchi chigae of dwen jang chigae.



As for kimchi, I've become highly addicted. For the past 3 months, I've been consuming about 1 KG per week, which doesn't include what I munch down at the restaurants. (By the way, I also find myself thinking in the metric system more and more. It just makes better sense.) Until I got the rice machine I was eating the red delight with french fries, ramyon noodles, mandu, eggs, or whatever else was in the fridge. I even put it on my hamburgers in place of cheese. It goes well with everything, in my opinion. I eat it with breakfast, lunch and dinner. I've even woken up in the middle of the night to gobble down a few pieces. It's absolutely delicious. Yes, you may think I've been in Korea too long, but it sure beats everything else I used to consider appealing in terms of healthiness. The only thing I worry about is whether I'm consuming too much salt now.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - In the Interim

I uploaded a bunch of new pics today but won't have time to post and comment until later or maybe tomorrow. In the meantime you can check out this new blog called Lost Seouls. I found a link there to this funny game that will also keep you busy for hours un-end. Swiss James dug it up in his noble, unbridled quest to bring the truth to the world about Korea.

Click here to play the Ddong Chim Game!




You can also read this story which I posted recently on a Korean discussion board:



I went to get my haircut, something I always dread here. I picked a new place near my home, a salon. The ajumma was completely taken off guard by me, same with her assistant. They crowded around me and spent more time asking me questions in Korean than cutting my hair. Finally, my limited Korean ran out. But no matter how many times I said "I hae moteyo," ( I don't understand) they continued to ask me again and again and again... Finally the owner ajumma called her friend who could speak English. This new woman, English name Stella, came running from across town to meet me. Huffing and puffing she sat down next to me and asked me 4,000 questions in English while my hair was being cut - painfully slowly. Finally the haircut ended with a good wash and rinse. This is where the story turns.

I wanted to leave and badly. I had already been there almost 2 hours. But Stella, who is married and has 2 sons, wanted me to eat with her and drink beer. I said no, as I wanted to go to the health club. "Oh," she said. "You use health club?" She followed me out to the hallway and asked for my number. I gave her it out of politeness and tried to go. She followed me all the way to the health club, and then to my amazement, she actually joined the health club, paying for a 3 month membership! Fortunately she didn't have any clothes with her to exercise in and finally left. That night she sent me a text message saying how happy she was to meet me. 9:00 AM next day, she's calling me. I didn't answer. She called me 3 times. Finally I answered and she asked if we could eat together that night.

That night came and she called. I tried to make a story. I said I had to go to E-mart to get a rice cooker. What a lame story, she offered to drive (which was actually convenient for me). During the ride she told me about her boring husband who is overly religious and sings gospels songs every night for 1-2 hours. She told me she wore a slip and did a salsa dance for him and he just looked at her strangely and shrugged...more stories like this followed.

Finally we got back. I got my new Cookoo Rice cooker from the trunk and other things. I shook her hand to say thanks, and she gasped, clasping my hand between hers. "I miss the feel of warm hands - and a hard body," she said looking at my chest. Then she blushed, "I sang hae?" (Is it strange?)

I chuckled and said goodbye and went home. She's called me several more times, but I live in a small town and don't want to start a scandal amongst the neighborhood. I haven't answered her calls since. I'm not sure if I'm over reacting, or if she's really flirting with me. Hmm...

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Self Contained Stores



I've seen hundreds of self contained mini-stores before; they usually sell drinks, newspapers, and cigarettes, but I've never seen one that services and shines shoes and also makes duplicate keys. The exclamation in the window reads chin jul! I think meaning kindess, but I may be wrong. I wonder if these shops are legal. Can anyone set one up in an open space? Do you need a permit? Do you pay a bribe? If it were legal to teach privately, I'd consider opening a self contained English school and give private lessons to passers-by for 35,000 won/hour. "English to Go", that's what I'd call it. I'd even sell "English to Go" books and "English to Go" T-shirts (featuring my happy face). Perhaps I'd also serve up some "English to Go" o-daeng to boot.

written by shawn matthews    -|link