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11/29/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Oba OB
And I used to think we had big beers back in the states. Take a look at this new item. 1.6 liters of OB mek-ju in a plastic bottle. They just started carrying these a week ago at the store nearby and they can't keep them on the shelves...the local university students buy them all up. They cost only 3,500 won, which is another reason why I don't like going to bars. At a bar you pay 5,000 won for a small bottle and there isn't a notebook computer with ADSL access. Then again, at my home there isn't a hoard of pretty Korean girls hanging around either (well, at least not usually). The problem with this size bottle is that unless you drink it fast, the beer will get warm and flat. Problem solved: I drank it fast. I thought afterward I should feel drunk. Instead I felt tired, extremely full and had to use the bathroom 20 times. Like American beer, Korean beer is light and weak. It's kind of like drinking carbonated water with beer flavor added. Unfortunately it's the only kind of beer I can buy at the store here in Nowhere-dong.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/28/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Barber Babes
While I was walking around in Sadang, I noticed these barber poles. However, I didn't notice any barber shop or hair salon. It was rather an odd site in a purely entertainment district. I have heard before that if you see a series of these lights in front of a barber shop, it means there is a barber and also ladies available to "service" you inside. I'm still not exactly sure what it's all about. A long time ago I naively went into one to get a haircut. While this strange guy was cutting my hair, an ajumma wearing sexy? clothes and too much makeup put her hand on my knee and asked me questions over and over. At the time I had no idea what was going on, but I'm assuming now that she was asking me if I wanted a little extra with my haircut. I just kept shrugging and finally ended up with the worst haircut of my life. Luckily I only got charged 6,000 won. If anyone knows the real story or has had an experience behind the scenes, please fill us in. Either way, it's a peculiar concept. Nothing better than getting a haircut and a little action to go with it. Hah!
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written by shawn matthews
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11/27/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Store on Wheels
I love mini-truck stores - you see them all over the place. I'm not sure if it's a legal business. I doubt it, but it's giving me an idea. I'll get a bunch of potential foreign teachers and stick them in the back, then park in a Hagwon area and sell them off at a million won a pop. If you want to invest in the deal, be sure to send me an e-mail.
I've seen all these snacks a million times but I don't know the names. I generally don't eat snacks, but if I did, this would be the place to stop. He's obviously a professional dealer, notice the scale there. Nobody's gonna walk away a gram short.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/26/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Eel Delight
You think my dinner from yesterday looked bad, take a look at this:
Fresh eel here! Get your fresh eel! First come, first serve! Step right up, no pushing.
Remember this scene from my Geoje-do story? "I asked the ajumma for a menu. She led me outside and pointed at a fish tank. I put my face to the glass - a thick swarm of eel stared back at me." I still don't think I'm ready to try one of these just yet. Anybody out there like eel? What's it taste like? Is it good for a man's stamina? When a food looks unappetizing it's usually said to be good for a man's stamina. I'm not sure I buy that.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Bachelor's Dinner
I really need to hire an ajumma, buy a cookbook, or get married to someone who can cook well. Look at what I'm about to eat: beans, anchovies, seaweed, ham, rice, kimchi, and milk. What a delicious combination. Ugh! Also, now that my computer is on my desk, I'm stuck eating dinner on the floor. I need a small table, but that's not so easy to get when you live in a small town and use public transportation.
This kimchi is incredibly delicious. One of my adult students gave it to me. Most people make their kimchi this time of year. I have to get a picture of the pile of cabbage in front of the local store. It's huge!
Not that long ago the site of people eating anchovies grossed me out. One day I gave one a try and I liked it. Now I eat them all the time, eyes and all. It's amazing how much your appetite can change after living here so long. They taste great and are good for your health.
Update:
Amazing, after eating that rather bizarre combination of food, I thought I may end up in the bathroom for awhile. However, I'm pleased to report that it's several hours laters and I feel fine.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/25/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Cheon Won Store
Dollar stores are extremely popular back in the states and 100 Yen stores are equally common in Japan. I hadn't seen a 1,000 won store before but figured it would be a good business idea. I finally found one in the Sadang subway station in Seoul last weekend and took a few pics. Everything is actually 2,000 won or less, not bad at all. It would be a good idea to stop here when setting up your new apartment or just to pick up some cheap supplies. Why there aren't more of these, I'm not really sure. The place was packed with eager customers.
Lot's of stuff for the classroom here. The items with Korean writing on the packages would make decent gifts to give out to your friends back home. Imagine the surprised look on their faces as you give them Korean glue sticks.
Another angle. Notice to the left the toy clubs. Some teachers use these to hit students on the head with. It doesn't hurt at all and the club makes a squeaking sound. To the right is a huge collection of batteries from Japan. Not a bad deal, but I'm not sure about the quality. I bought some dollar store batteries back home once and they lasted about 2 hours in my walkman.
They had a good selection of dishes to choose from. I would have liked to have bought some, but I didn't want to carry them around with me all day. I wish there was a 1,000 won store in Nowhere-dong.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Surprised Pig
Korean restaurants often display in their windows a cartoon replica of the animal they specialize in serving. These cartoon images usually depict a happy cow, chicken, or the like. What they could be happy about is not really clear. Here we have a more realistic expression: a somewhat cute pig with a rather surprised look on its face. Yeah, that's right, Wilbur - your sister and brother are inside grilling up on the barbecue.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/23/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Sadang, Seoul at Night
Here's a few random shots from my evening in Sadang this Saturday.
Sadang looks a little like every other downtown-ish area, except it's smaller and there's no fast food burger joint, which is nice. There's a Dunkin Donuts however. We stopped there and picked up a couple of donuts and a coffee.
The other side of the street. Yeah there's nothing unique, but it's the nightlife and I still like it. A lot of bars and bangs.
After you get tanked on soju, you can easily take your drunk loved one to one of the many, conveniently located motels. These places make a fortune in Korea. The owners almost always have an Equus or other luxury car parked nearby. What an easy life - hang out and collect money from horny drunk people and have an ajumma clean the rooms. My ideal job! Some of the seedier ones have been known to place secret cameras behind the mirrors...I've seen the videos off Kazaa. (One of my friends, the sick barbarian! - he downloaded them onto my computer and I just happened to find them one day, horrified of course!)
Here's dinner: garbi tang. Just looking ate this picture makes me want to eat it again. It tastes delicious. That chongak kimchi was excellent. I also at a lot of those small anchovies. Mmm.
Look behind the crane game. What? - does every area of Seoul have one of these insult shouting gorilla punching games? I wonder who the person that decided on the design is. "Hmm, let's see. I'll make a punching game in the shape of a gorilla, yeah! And...well, it should have blue sunglasses, of course, and a matching vest to boot. Am I genius or not?" Ironically one of the insults the gorilla shouts is, "Hey, you're ugly!" Yeah, you're not looking so good yourself, Monkey Jackson.
The crane game had some unique prizes. There's a couple of jars of honey in there. Everything looked too heavy for the small crane so I didn't even bother to waste my money.
I got a few other pictures, but I'll save them for future posts. It sure is nice having this new computer at home. It makes it much easier to update. Come back again soon.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Bus Seat Advertising
If you take one of the comfortable busses, they usually have advertising cases over the seat tops. Here's one for a guy that is an expert at reading your palm. He sure looks professional. Last time my friend checked my palm I was told I will get married late and die young. It wasn't clear if the early death will be caused by the marriage or not. I'd better be careful.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Happy Liquor Pia
I found this oddly named bar in Sadang, Seoul. I don't know about you, but the name sounds a little strange to me. I don't think I'll be drinking anything here.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - It's Never too Late for Soju
In Korea, it's never too late to drink Soju. One of the things Koreans do when paying respects to the deceased, especially during Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving, is to offer up some food and drinks to their lost loved ones. This deceased elder is enjoying a few shots of his ex-favorite beverage. Ah, it's good to be alive...or dead. One shot!
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Natural Siding
A reader of mine was surprised to see pumpkins growing on a roof so she took this picture. It gave me a good idea. Instead of aluminum siding, plant some pumpkins and they will grow all over your little house, providing insulation and also asthetic beauty. Then you can harvest your siding and make jack-o-lanterns or pumpkin pie or. It gives the the expression "to kill two birds with one stone" new meaning.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/21/2003
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Korea Life Blog - New Computer
This is my first post with my new laptop and ADSL connection. The computer works great and the internet connection is lightning fast. I bought the computer at Note World, a small notebook computer shop in Technomart. It's a Presario 2510AP, Pentium 4 2.0 GhZ, 40 GB, 512 MB RAM, 15" SXGA screen, combo drive, 64 MB video Ram, English XP and Office. The guys there are really friendly and helpful. Don't forget to negotiate the price; they came down 50,000 and upgraded the memory from 256 to 512. It came with a free bag, mouse, and screen cleaner as well. They were supposed to give me anti-virus software, but they forgot. I'll have to stop back to get it.
Here it is. I got the 2000 Watt speaker set-up for only 40,000 Won, also at Technomart. The bass is thumping and the sound is bright and clear.
I like the new Compaq design. It resembles many of the Centrino models that I liked. The high resolution is crisp and clear. Pictures look much sharper and brighter. I love it. Check out my cool desktop picture, one I took at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Gwanghwamun.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/20/2003
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Korea Life Blog - DSL!
The DSL guy should arrive tomorrow morning finally. Now I will be able to write and update more often and never have to go to a noisy, smoky, dungeon-like PC bang ever again!
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written by shawn matthews
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11/19/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Poll
I turned off the moderator setting on the poll comments. I didn't realize it was on. Thanks for the comments there so far. My favorite one is "The most informative site on the web." That made my day.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - In the News (3)
Ddong Chim takes another victim. Take a look at one of the funniest news stories in recent memory:
Arrest for "Ddong-Chimming" a Woman
"I don't have a girlfriend. Women seem to hate me. So I ddong chimmed them."
After a female passenger's butt was "ddong chimmed" on the subway, there was an arrest for this unprecedented incident.
On the stairwells of JongGak Station, Dongdaemun Stadium Station and other stations during rush hour, the late twenty-something Mr. Kim (unemployed), approached young women in pantsuits from behind, put both of his hands together, thrust them between their buttocks, and then quietly escaped after performing this bizarre deed.
Mr. Kim's bizarre behavior came to an end on the sixteenth when he was caught by a subway police team at Exit 12 of Dongdaemun Stadium Station. As usual, on this day he was looking around for a "target" at Dongdaemun Stadium Station. But fortunately, subway police were hiding, and they had him in their trap.
Mr. Kim, being unaware of this, spotted a 20-something woman, wearing a pantsuit, inside the station and followed her out. Then while she was standing at a street stall to buy something he came up to her from behind, dong-chimmed her with both hands and ran away. In spite of Mr. Kim's quick getaway, the subway police pursued and caught him.
According to the subway police, "Sexual misconduct happens quite a bit, but this was the country's first case of dong-chimming on the subway." "We were also very shocked," they revealed. Mr. Kim was arrested for sexual misconduct.
A police investigation revealed that Mr. Kim had also been fined in April 2001 for dong-chimming a female pedestrian at Dongdaemun Stadium Station. During the investigation Mr. Kim revealed, "Women seem to hate me, so I dong-chim them."
Nam Tae Hyun - Ilgan Sports
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written by shawn matthews
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11/18/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Computer Game Addiction
One of my Korean readers sent me a bunch of funny pictures she found on the net. I thought I used to have a computer game addiction when I got hooked on Diablo, Starcraft and other RPG games, but get a load of these losers:
Somebody better call the fire department and report this fire hazard. It seems someone has had way too much to drink and one too many cigarettes by the looks of it - take a look at that keyboard. It's just a matter of time before he kills himself and everyone else in his apartment building.
Another guy with a not so healthy lifestyle. A load of cigarettes, orange cola, soju, beer, ramyon, milk, toilet paper, coffee...looks as if this guy hasn't left his chair in a week. And check it out - he's even got a blanket for when he falls asleep playing his game.
Coca Cola hit the jackpot with this customer. Look at that pile of garbage! I can't imagine what kind of insects are living under in it. This guy's even got two monitors, one for computer games and one for Playstation 2. Judging from that Hulk/Ghost Rider poster and from the lack of booze and cigarettes, this is probably a teenager's bedroom. I'm not sure what kind of parents would put up with this however. Maybe it's a college dormitory.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Threatening the Customers
Customer service isn't always helpful and comforting in Korea. A picture sent in by one of my soon to be married readers. One of the signs says: "It is white. Don't touch it. If you do, you will get nosebleed!" If I knew where this place was, I'd go there and touch it on purpose, take it off the rack and examine it closely, then I would hang it up backwards. I can't believe someone would put this rude sign on something they are trying to sell. Sure is a thoughtful way of making people want to purchase something. The only thing it makes me want to do is leave my fingerprints on the outfit then, as the owner has a fit, feign foreigner ignorance and leave.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/17/2003
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Korea Life Blog
I've been a little busy but I'll update again soon. I got a computer finally and hopefully will be hooked up to the internet this week. I got a great deal on a laptop at Technomart. Last night I transferred off the pictures from my camera so I can take new ones again finally. The bad news is on the way back from Seoul this weekend I left my backpack on the bus. Fortunately it was the first time I didn't have my camera in the bag. However, I lost my Korea notebook in which I had penned another 50 or so pages on the Geoje-do story by hand and my other notebook with several long stories I wrote about living in the states. That really was depressing. I realized it immediately and we contacted the bus station several times but the bag wasn't turned in. At least I have the computer now and will be able to write more quickly, but I was really excited to rewrite what I had from my notebook. Oh well...that's life. I'll take a picture of the computer and write about it soon.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/16/2003
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Korea Life Blog - TP Ten Pack
As I was walking down the street with this package, I ran into one of my students and her mother. There's nothing like meeting someone for the first time while holding a 10-pack of toilet paper. This is the smallest size they come in here, unfortunately. You can however buy single rolls at the smaller strores for 500 won.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/14/2003
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Korea Life Blog - What's in my Fridge? (2)
Let's see what I have in the freezer: chicken balls and mandu. In the fridge: a bag of seaweed my co-worker gave me, the usual plastic box full of kimchi, some water, a few condiments, and some dwen jang paste. Wow, exciting.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Seafood Chips
Well, after trying seaweed chips, I decided to give Seafood chips a shot. I want to know once and for all if it's possible to taste the delicious flavors of the sea in my potato chip. Notice the picture of plump and juicy shrimp, tender clams, and octopus. Sure looks tasty. Perhaps I should pick up a bottle of wine and some oyster sauce as well. Now unless there is something wrong with my tastebuds, these chips taste exactly like this company's other ruffled chips. If you try really hard and rub your tongue all around, there is a very slight, barely perceptible resemblance to those toasted sae-u (shrimp) chips they serve you in bars. Hardly the robust flavor you would expect from this picture.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/13/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Banana Milk
Here is a carton of delicious banana milk. I love the cute artwork on some of the packaging here. Notice the cartoon girl's red hair and her cool banana shaped boat. I don't know how it's possible, but I find Korean milk tastes better than milk back home. I noticed the difference right off the back a few years ago then forgot about it until I went back to the states. There is definitely a noticeable difference. I'm not sure if all milk here is pasteurized or not. Maybe that's what's different. Also, it's not easy to find lowfat milk, but who cares! I'm not on a diet. It taste great in cereal. But it doesn't taste that great with kimchi. I used to drink milk everyday back in the states, but here I drink a few glasses a week. I'd better buy a calcium supplement.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/12/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Playstation 2 Bang
There's yeat another kind of bang emerging on the scene: the Playstation 2 bang. The only place I've ever seen them is in Sinchon, one of the popular nightlife districts, but I'm guessing there are more of them elsewhere. They're another place for young people to calm the stresses and woes of daily life and/ or a great, cheap place to take your date and crush her at a game of baseball. It costs 2,000 won/hour per person. If you are particularly cheap but confident, you can tell her loser pays!
It's a Sunday afternoon, but it's not that crowded. I guess everyone's at the PC bang. I was surprised to see mostly young couples in here and almost all of them were playing soccer. They have just about any game you could want to play. Most of the games are in English but some are in Japanese. Don't worry, the ajushi will help you get started. I wish there was a place like this in Nowehere-dong. I stopped buying console systems and computer games as I get so addicted that I can't stop playing, especially RPG games. But here I could just stop in and play for an hour or two and leave.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/11/2003
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Korea Life Blog - On my Desk
Let's see what we have here. My remote, which I use to flip through my 3 English channels several hundred times a day, an English dictionary for kids which I use to study Korean, an English-Korean dictionary, a Korean phrase book, another book called "Making Out in Korean" that I borrowed from someone and which has the worst of Korean language in it (swearing, fighting, and love-making phrases that would surely get anyone smacked in the face), a bottle opener for beer, aspirin for the next morning, cold medicine, a lovely letter I saved from my boss warning that if I miss work he will deduct it from my pay, an old newspaper which I set food on (my desk is also my dinner table), a container of pepper, my empty wallet, a roll of toilet paper, of course, and a few other items I can't make out.
Some other things that I keep on my desk:
It's November. It's cold. But this is Korea and mosquitos are still out in full force. Here is F-Killer. I must have killed a hundred-and-fifty mosquitos with this can, not to mention a few flies and about 30 cockroaches. Cockroaches come in through holes beneath the hallway screens then walk into my apartment at night through the space under my door. Thanks Korean contruction design team!
Inevetibaly I get bitten at least 2 or 3 times a week, usually in the middle of the night. This roll-on stuff stops the itch pretty quickly. Like F-killer, it's a must have for anyone living in Korea.
A box of "Ode" cake bars. Nothing like processed cake. Yum!
It's hard to find deoderant in Korea and, if you do find it, it's expensive. Koreans don't use it, and except ocassionally at the health club, I never notice anyone's body odor. However, I notice mine, so I had my family send me some. Thanks for the dollar store brand, Mom.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/10/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Miyuk Guk
Here's another dish that would have made me cringe a few years ago. It's dark and murky and full of green stuff. It looks like swamp stew, I admit. No, it's miyuk guk, seaweed soup. I often eat it with rice and kimchi for breakfast, or late at night - a non fattening meal before bed. After all, you don't want to eat noodles before sleep as that will make your face get bigger. The best part is the miyuk guk is very easy to cook, especially the instant kind. A box costs only about 1,000 won and it tastes pretty decent. However, as with any food, the homemade kind tastes much better. It's not common to find it in restaurants, although I have. I should learn how to cook it. It can't be that hard. Feel free to tell me how to make it. I can see the recipe now: First, boil water. Second, add seaweed. Finally serve and enjoy. I think there's some kind of meat in it as well. I'm not sure what it is. Anyway, there's a superstition in Korea about this soup. You're not supposed to eat it the day before taking an exam. I really don't understand the reasoning. Something about the soup being slippery. Slippery things make you fall down. I guess that means to fail. If anyone can explain this better, please do so.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/8/2003
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Korea Life Blog - One Car
Whether it's a luxury automobile or a sports car you want, there seems to be only one of each kind to aspire to among Korean brands. Equus, a car with a look and a name that is strikingly similar to Toyota company's Lexus, is the luxury car associated with success. If you have this car, you've conquered Korea. It's the ultimate domestically made status symbol. On the sport's car side is the rather humble in price, Tuscani, also known as Tiburon. It seems to be the only sport car made by a Korean auto company and therefore, seeing as it's affordable, it is very common here. It's a nice looking car actually. One of my adult student's has the newest model. He took me for a ride in it one day, something I will never do again. There's really no point in having a sports car in Korea with the traffic and dangerous back roads. I really thought I was going to die as he took me full throttle around Nowhere-dong. It was one time I prayed to get pulled over. However, there seems to be a lack of traffic enforcement here. We zoomed all over the place without hassle. I was never so happy to get out a car in my life.
Sexy promotional girls show off the latest Hyundai Tuscani model. Yeah, I need to get me one of these. (Car or girl, you be the judge). Maybe they come hand in hand.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/7/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Technomart
This is a nice shot of Technomart in Seoul. It's located next to Kam Byeon Station, stop 214 on Line #2. Inside this building is every electronic item available in Korea at the cheapest prices you will find except in the Yongsan area. Why anyone would purchase a computer or TV in a department store when you can get it for so much less is beyond me, either here in person or ordering it online. The same computer I saw for sale at a department store in Suwon was 400,000 Won less here at Technomart.
There is also a movie theater in here and a food court, if I remember right. The tall part of the building is for offices only. What I don't understand about Technomart is that they have store after store after store selling the exact same brands and models for the exact same prices by way too many salespeople. Seems to me if they cut out the extra stores, salespeople, and display models, they could lower the prices considerably. The day I went it, a Saturday, it wasn't busy at all. I mean on a given day, how many people are lining up to by 3,000,000 won notebooks and 8,000,000 won TVs? Yet Samsung has at least 20 stores in here selling the same items and hoards of salespeople standing around doing nothing and display models being wasted.
If you can dream it, you can do it. Hmm, I just dreamed I can get a Samsung X15 notebook by snapping my fingers. Huk! Foiled again.
Promotional girls hanging out front. I'm not sure what they're promoting, but they don't look too enthusiastic.
Here's the Samsung X15 computer I've been dreaming about:
I've also considered the new Hyunju notebook that came out this month, which is much cheaper and has pretty much the same specs and looks just as cool.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Examination Suicides
I was going to write a piece about the growing number of suicides after this week's national university exams, but everyone else is already doing it on their blog. Click here to see Jeff's write-up.
A girl jumped to her death from this building shortly after running away from the exam.
Click here to read other reactions.
To read an interesting article on the problems of the Korean education system click here.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/6/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Seaweed Chips!
Bringing the wonderful taste of the sea to your potato chip, it's new Seaweed Chips! If I had seen these a few years ago I would have cringed but I picked up a bag today, almost eagerly so. I love processed seaweed; I buy it every week. But this is the first time I've seen seaweed chips. At first I thought the idea is a little strange, especially seeing those two rolls of kim bap there. Then I realized seaweed is mostly salt anyway, so why not? Well, I was disappointed when I tried them. They taste just like ordinary everyday potato chips. There's not even the slightest hint of seaweed flavor. How frustrating!
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - A New Poll (4)
There's a new, exciting poll to vote on. Here are the results of the last pole, now deleted.
what makes you happiest?
pay day at last! assa! 26 (22%)
no tipping 12 (10%)
my korean lover/spouse 21 (17%)
my job 0 (0%)
korean food 6 (5%)
im not in my home country 5 (4%)
korea 8 (6%)
im never happy 3 (2%)
im only happy when im drunk 10 (8%)
korea life blog updated! assa! 27 (22%)
It was a pretty tight race between pay day and my blog updated. It's nice to know that an equal number of people feel just as good to see my blog updated as they do to get a huge wad of Korean won! Thanks everyone.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/5/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Events
All sorts of companies in Korea stage what they call "events." They are public promotions for their goods and services. I've always found them a little silly, but a lot of Korean people really enjoy them. They usually involve some kind of demonstration and a free sample gift, or a gift for signing up for some service or other. I was half tempted to take part in a Pepsi Event one day for a free can of Lemon Pepsi, but the line was much too long.
Here's a pic of some kind of bizarre SMEX brand clothing event sent in by a kind reader. This show looks pretty ridiculous yet somewhat funny. I can't imagine how stupid those workers must feel. However, they are probably used to this sort of thing. They likely work for a promotional agency. Perhaps tomorrow they will be in grocery stores shouting into megaphones to promote peanut butter and the next day in sexy clothes dancing in front of a bar.
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - What's on TV? (1)
I was pretty bored this afternoon. Let's see what was on TV. I took some pics of the screen to show you. While the camera made the reception look all distorted, you can get the idea.
Some kind of Korean puppet show about history. Looks pretty exciting.
A cooking show on Arirang. This is the only station to watch Korean shows with English subtitles. I don't feel like waiting while he "prepares the meat," however.
Is it me, or is this kind of performance always on TV? Lots of weird singing and drum banging.
I have at least 5 home shopping channels. Who sits at home and orders meat off the TV?
Another shopping channel. This time bedding is for sale. I like Korean bedding, but I don't like watching commercials in Korean about it.
Great. Another soap opera is on AFN (American Forces Network). I usually watch this channel at night. They run "Jay Leno" and "David Letterman." Most Koreans hate Jay Leno after he made fun of that Korean skater that got the shaft in the Winter Olympics. "He was so angry he went home and kicked his dog," was the joke. Personally I think he'spretty funny. I can't get enough of those headlines.
I ended up reading a book. That's the good thing about not having much of a selection on the tube, you aren't glued to the set all day.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/3/2003
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Korea Life Blog - A Short Trip to Fukuoka
I have now finished the section on my trip over to Fukuoka. It's pretty long and there's a lot of pics. I apologize to dial-up users. Click on the flag and go out for a nice ride in the country. By the time you get back it should be loaded. DSL users click and then grab a Coke from the fridge, come back and enjoy.
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written by shawn matthews
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11/2/2003
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Korea Life Blog - Kim Jong Il Comic Book
Anyone know where I can get a copy of this book in the Korean version? I read that it was pulled off shelves here at the start of the Sunshine Policy (though I'm not clear on whether this was translated or the Japanese version). I bet it would be a great collector's item.
I read about the book before, then I saw it Japan at the airport bookstore this weekend. Of course I could never read it in Japanese, so I didn't buy it. It looked pretty interesting, thumbing through it. There's a lot of drawings of him getting angry and murdering people and a load of scenes of him and various women in bed.
I'll check Amazon, but I don't think they made an English version...yet.
Here's the brief description of the book which got me interested:
"A comic book on North Korea, written by Mr. Lee, a renowned South Korean comic author, was published in Japan and is selling well among the Japanese people. The book was banned in South Korea.
The comic book depicts a variety of aspects of North Korea including the abduction of Japanese civilians by North Korean spies, nuclear weapon development and the private life of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il which is top secret in North Korea.
Particularly in the story of Kim Jong Il's private life, the comic book tells vividly how the North Korean dictator approached female dancers, singers and nurses in an attempt to seduce them. The name of each woman in the story was identified.
The comic book was originally published in 1998 in South Korea, however, immediately after, it was banned due to the 'sun shine policy' of Kim Dae Jung, the then South Korean President, toward North Korea.
The comic book is titled in Japanese, 'Introduction to Kim Jong Il,' and was published in Japan in July. The book has been selling very well."
By the way, when I was searching Amazon.com I came across this book:
Yes, it's by the leader of North Korea and it's his views on Opera and "Independence, peace, art, literature and friendship..."
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written by shawn matthews
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Korea Life Blog - Back From Fukuoka
Sorry I haven't updated the last few days. I went to Fukuoka, Japan for the weekend as my tourist visa was up. Now I'm back with another 90 days to figure out what I'm doing for the long term. I'm tired now but I'll do a post on my trip sometime during the week. I was only there for one night, and it rained half the time, but it was fun and I've got a few interesting pics and stories...surprised? It was the sixth time I've visted Japan, the first time I had a digital camera with me. I wish I had more time.
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written by shawn matthews
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