Apocalypse bow

  Here are a few strange, but special things that I know I’ll miss about Korea.

Yangmyung Elementary I’ll miss my school, and the strange, yet amazing co-workers. I’ll miss my 5 minute English conversations chats with my Principal. I’m happy to say that I’ve seen a great deal of improvement in his English-e. Throughout my time here, I've  had eight different co teachers...all great I might add.  I’ve  also had to say goodbye to one of my best Korean friends  I made here.  Mr. Kim, the former 2nd grade teacher and I were drinking buddies, noribang buddys, and dog eating buddies.  He was the first Korean co-worker to really take me under his wing and make me feel comfortable in our school. I’ve been to his house, he's been to mine; something I cannot say about any other Korean co-working after spending nearly every day with them for almost two years.

My co-workers

My Travel buddies I read a really interesting article, concerning the unique anomoly of the "travel  friendship" Check it out here.

It's pretty spot on. Throughout my six years  and 28 counties, I've met many amazing people from all over the world.  GLS, ATI, SMOE throughout all my adventures, changes, and travels, I find myself surrounded by great people. Now, I'm not saying that I'll never seen them again, but much like the article states,  it becomes more of a long shot than you think.  I consider myself  fortunate that I still keep in close contract with some of my friends that were there from the begining (GLS 2006) In fact, one of my best friends in the world started off as a " travel buddy"  I'm excited to say that after 6 years  Tim Matthews (GLS alumni and Cyprus roomate) and I still keep in touch reguarly. 3 weeks ago, I flew out to Hong Kong to celebrate his birthday.   Now, I'm  looking forward to seeing him  return to Seoul for one last hurah!  As for my other expat travel  buddies, I will truely miss them. I hope that somewhere down the line, when the  opportunity presents itself, we'll meet again.   Then again we may never see each other again,  who knows. 

The more I travel, the more I put my faith into the road, knowing that wherever I may roam, there will be good company near.  (Magnet Theory 101)  The Korean friends I’ve made will also, be missed.  I’ll always be grateful for their friendship and all  the new experiences we shared together. Like the article states,  travel friendships should be treated much like the desinations we visit. They are great, while your there, but you can't take em with you.

Christmas in Taiwan 2009

Chiang Mai, Thailand (ATI)

Cyprus, 2006 (GLS)

Seoul, Korea (AIT/SMOE)

Seoul. Korea 2010

Tim and Derek.

Chiang Mai, Thailand 2009

Kimchi...
What?? Yeah, that's what I thought too. Truth is, I kinda like it,  and somewhere down the line, I'm sure I going to miss it.   To me Kimich is like that long term girlfirend that you've invested too much time in.  You've spent soo much time together  that you end up just going through the motions, knowing that realationship is no longer healthy or thrilling.  Yet, in the back of your mind it's hard to see yourself alone.  After 2 years of having  fermented cabbage  served for almost EVERY one of my Korean meals.  I've developed that same sort of proxcimity infacation.   Let's hope for a clean break.

Seoul 
Yeah, I know it's general,  but the big city life that runs South Korea  will be missed.  As I mentioned in an eariler post. Seoul, is not an attrative city to visit.  I doubt most people have it on thier must see list when thinking about visiting Asia. It is however a city extermely kind to it's long term residents. Cheap alcohol, cigarettes,and an awesome party scene. Not mention, great food from all over the world at relativiley cheap prices.   Even though Seoul has the middle child complex, there are a lot of cool things to do and see in this place. 

The Drinking Culture : A bottle of Soju is cheaper than a bottle of water....

The Subway system:  pretty intense 

Honorable mentions:   The buttons at each  restaurant table

                                  Sampling beer at the grocery stores

                                  The free glasses cleaners outside eye glass stores

                                Hongdae

MY BACK PAGES : All I leave behind is only what I've found

*** The following was written while on the plane to America somewhere of the Pacific. ***   

Although it's over a month old, I made the decision to go ahead and post it on here as the first of many for 2011. Rather than have this piece discarded into the archives of other Asian events, I thought it would make for a  good example of  the excitement, ignorance, and anticipation I was experiencing while at the same time preparing for 

 what lie ahead.  The interesting part about this "dated piece" is how much has changed in that short span of time since writing the about my return home.  

However here it is uncut, in its original from ; A mini time capsule if you will.

“ Been around the world in a dirty gondola.

  Oh to be back in the land of Coca Cola”

-       Bob Dylan

"The KoreaCoaster"

In what seems like a lifetime, this Friday, after 17 months abroad, I make my return home. Currently a wide range of  feelings  and emotions  are swirling through my head  some good some bad.  My whole experience in Asia has been a rollercoaster of weird fun, awkwardness.  I don’t even think Cedar Point can top the drastic ups, downs, turn, and loops that this place with take you through.  

With that being said, I wonder how much, if any, has life changed in my world back in America.  Since making Seoul, my home away from home, I often get swept up in the madness here.   It’s probably going to  take a day to overcome the jet lag, but I don’t know if I’ll ever re-adjust  to the pace of rual Ohio.   I think Nelson Mandala said it best when he said.

“There‘s nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered. “

So, before  I look forward to a return home, and  a new year . I  want to look back on the last 17 months, to see the events that have helped forever alter my life.  Here are 17 experiences  in which I know have had a lasting affect on me.

17  Asian Events that  altered my world. 

(in no particular order)

1.                                                 

      1. Trekking along the Great Wall:  Obviously.

    2.     Being Stung by a Jellyfish in the Gulf of Thailand

     3.  Eating Dog

4. Couch Surfing

5. Motorbiking the mountains of Northern Thailand  

6. Hong Kong.

7. Eating Live Octopus

8. Meditation class.  

9.   Daily life in  Korea.  

10. Chinese New in China

11. Tim  & Derek  visit  Seoul.

12.  Life as an ESL teacher

13.  Bob Dylan:
 Front row  live in Seoul 

14.  Eating  scorpion 

15. Life as a minority  

          16.  Soju &  Makoli

17. Chopsticks  

Well there you have it.  My Asian experience in a nutshell.  I hope 2011 will be just as eventful, and I can’t wait to bring it in with my family and friends, and the place where it all began.

Merry Christmas America.
Here I come. 

-Nick

  

*** The following was written while on the plane to America somewhere of the Pacific. ***   

Although it's over a month old, I made the decision to go ahead and post it on here as the first of many for 2011. Rather than have this piece discarded into the archives of other Asian events, I thought it would make for a  good example of  the excitment, ignorance, and anticipation I was experiencing while preparing 

for what lie ahead.  The interesting part about this "dated piece" is how much has changed in that short span of time since writing the about my return home.  

Defending the Hermit Kingdom

"This kind of lifestyle is worth protecting"
-George Bush 2001

Is comfort the enemy of creativity?  I’m currently 3 months into my second "season" of planet Korea and I'm wondering how much longer I'll remain a part of this "Hermit Kingdom"?  As of now I can't think of a reason to leave. This ultimately worries me.  I often wonder if I’ve become too comfortable. A few other questions to come mind as well; When my time is "finsihee" here, will I miss the strange backwardness of Korea?  More importantly have I become a part of the strange backwardness of Korea?  To quote Neil Young “Am I too far gone?"  Why does this worry me?  Well one should never let one’s own moral compass go unchecked for long. The world changes too fast. The worst thing is to become stagnant.  

The national past time of Korea

On a  pragmatic level, it’s true that Korea is the best place for me; for the time being.  Yes, at times I’m out of my comfort zone, but more often than not I find myself thrown into very pleasant circumstances.  Aside from all the cultural differences, and borderline xenophobia, Korea does have its perks.  Its' an easygoing gig with a comfortable lifestyle (thanks to an overgenerous salary). Top it off with the fact that you have no other responsibilities, a free place to live, and way too much free time. Jackpot, right?

Well, from the outside looking in it may seem absurd.  For example, the tourist on the other hand would be severely disappointed, that is unless of course they love cabbage museums and a junior varsity version of Japan. The typical backpacker probably wouldn’t enjoy the fact that the current conventional wisdom here is dictated by K-pop and ignorant stereotypes. Why deal with that when you can go to Kao San Road or Boracay? Then of course  any visitor should always take in consideration the wild card of being attacked by an ajumma on the subway. 

Yes, the hermit kingdom isn't for everyone, but it never really claimed to be in the first place.  Korea is a strange little anomaly, because it chooses to be a strange little anomaly. It's not going to change for you or for me. In a way, you have to respect that about them.  If you want tourism go to Thailand, if you want beaches go to the Philippines (or stay in Thailand) if you want chaos go to China.

 Looking back I realized that part of the reason I’d chosen to stay was because almost no one else would. I don't love everything about Korea, and I  certainly don't hate it.  Here, I'm always entertained and at times fascinated.  In a sense it's just like watching The Twilight Zone. It's weird, it's cheesy, it's sometimes awesome, and just when you think you have it all figured out, they thrown in a twist that completely blows your mind. 

Right now I'm comfortable. So should I exchange comfort for creativity or is creativity as overrated as Kimchi?  Until I've had my fill, I'll be here, in The Twilight Zone, defending the Hermit Kingdom

맛있은: The many foods of Korea

 After discovering a story from the Korean Herald concerning the 7 gross foods of Korea ( as chosen by their foreign staff)  I read the article (which can be found here) and was surprised to find that I've tasted 5 of the 7 chosen dishes.  After feeling a nice sense of accomplishment and reminiscence of the actual experiences of eating these foods I decided to document the story's behind the dishes themselves; from my point of view. 

Once again many thanks  to the Korean Herald and their foreign staff for inspiring me to write/re-write this interesting take on the foods of Korea.

1st Silkworm larva (번데기)

This was one of the worst foods I've ever had. It's a big hit with the older crowd, and sold on the streets in many places in Seoul. My school obviously convinced me to try it. I think they had good intentions because they seem to love that stuff, but I almost threw up.

    2nd  Chicken feet (닭발) 

Rachel (my GLS friend from Cyprus & best 친구 here in Korea) and I accidentally had this one night in Seoul.  Back before my Korean reading ability was good, I convinced her to  randomly point to something on the menu and have sort of a "Korean roulette dinner".  What we pointed to unknowingly, was this....  Now, to be honest It wasn't bad, but that's because we thought it was fried squid/octopus tentacles, after about 5 minutes of us chomping on the unfamiliar texture, I realized that what I was chewing was cartilage and what we had ordered was chicken feet. After figuring this out I couldn't eat anymore. Looking back I can't believe it took us this long to figure it out. I  mean after all they are covered in an orange sauce and once you really pick one up, it look exactly like a chicken's foot.

    #3 Live octopus (산낙지)

Old Boy (2003):  A famous Korean movie

I thought about writing this  yesterday because I just had this dish again last night.  The staff at my school had a huge celebration last night, and for dinner one of the main courses was live octopus. (the other main dish was live shrimp).  I've only had this 3 other times in Korea and each time its been with a large group of people. It's a fairly expensive dish, and one that many people in Korea believe is a delicacy. True story: last night I almost died from eating this. You see, the hardest part about eating this is  that fact that they are always moving and wiggling around. Whether its crawling off the plate, or inside your mouth. Last night I ate a pretty big piece and tried to wash it down with some beer; However it suctioned part of itself to the roof of my mouth. This made for a very strange scene. I had half of it down my throat but the rest was stuck to the top of my mouth, add to the fact that my mouth was full of beer and I couldn't open it or beer would come spewing out. After panicking and gagging but not trying to draw to much attention to myself, I spit the beer into my cup, and had to quickly reach into my mouth and pull the thing off, then drag it out from down in my throat.( think of how a clown or magician pulls out  some string or cloth)  Pretty gross right?  Well,that's the story of how I almost died yesterday from eating a live octopus.

Here is a video of us eating  live octopus from last thanksgiving


(thanks to Mark & Andie for providing the video)

  # 4 Sundae (순대)

I was presented with this dish during the "ceremony" where I  decided to re-sign my contract for a 2nd year. This dish is also another big favorite with the older crowd. A co- worker told me that it was big honor to be presented with this from my principal. We had some drinks and ate this as a way of my school saying thank you for staying in Korea again. This wasn't too bad, but If they are going to try to get me to stay a third year, they are going to need to chose something else besides pig intestines.  

   # 5 Bosintang (보신탕)






 

Last but not least, Bosintang. (aka dog soup).  Now in all honestly I was curious about trying it. There was something about being in a 1st world country like Korea and eating something that is usually (these days) only found in 3rd world places that fascinated me. One of my drinking buddy's at my school is an older Korean man. He was a big fan of this stuff. One night over many drinks he promised to take me out to a place nearby that has this dish let me experience it. Well weeks went by and I forgot about his promise, until a random weekday when  he came into my classroom and reminded me. Contrary to my assumption,the restaurant was not a sketchy hole in a wall. In fact it was a very famous and nice  looking place that I always pass by on the way to work.  My friend told me how this place was one of the few places our area that had bosintang. The weird part is that it's not advertised on the menu, and there was a bit of hesitation from the waitress when me friend asked for it. (mostly because he was with a "waygook" aka foreigner aka me) After some more dialogue between the two, the lady put us in a separate room, away from the public eating space, and served it up to us.  I was sketched out of my mind about the whole process, and couldn't help think of my own dog Max. It was really sad, and strange. I've never been that emotionally involved about a meal in my entire life. On the bright side this dish cost around 50 US dollars  (for 2 people). I was happy about that because I feel like the high price may deter many of the other people away from this dish. Also I felt more comfortable eating it for such a high price.. as opposed to 3 dollar dog night in the back of some Korean alley.

I hope this provides you with a little more insight concerning the strange little planet know as Korea .

Made In China: 北京 Edition Vol. 3

The Temple of the Five Pagodas

The Lama Temple

The 3rd and final installment of my   北京  trip.  Covers the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and  the Temples of Beijing.  Rather than ramble on about the history, facts, and other assorted tales contributed to these monuments, I'm just going to let the pictures speak for themselves. If  perhaps you'd like more information about these iconic symbols of China find them here.  Otherwise enjoy.

The Great Wall

One of the gates into the Forbidden City

The Temple of Heaven

Made In China: 北京 Edition Vol. 2

So what do you do when you land in Beijing by yourself in the middle of the night???  Well apparently whatever you want. A good friend of mine said " Its a strange thing to travel by one's self, there's a lot of time spent thinking, and a lot of forced interaction."  I however found it to be one of the most insightful experiences since the duration of my time in Asia.  I took a train from the airport to the city center where I planned to start my journey. Along the way I was helped by various Beijing'ers and others who just wanted to practice their English. This was a bit different from the "Gawk and Awe" approach that is usually reserved for the people of South Korea. Much like southern China I found that the people from the north can be just as warm and welcoming as those in Guangzhou.  At one point while wandering the city center, I  was approached by a guy who offered to help. (I guess I must of really looked lost). About 2 minutes of the usual  "where are you from" icebreaker stuff, I found myself in a really interesting debate about the NBA/ Lebron James situation and why even a stranger from China thinks it was unethical and  an over all a poor choice for LBJ.  Did I mention that their English is a bit better over here??  Also it should be noted that China has a huge  passion for the NBA. Their most famous "National Brew" has the NBA logo printed right on the bottle.  I suppose you can thank Yao Ming for that.

After an insightful conversation with this nice guy,  I offered to buy him a Tsingtao.  I then made my way to my Couch Surfer Adam's  place.  Adam had been my only contact in Beijing....and Adam was a complete stranger.  In an earlier post I explained the concept of Couch Surfing. If you missed that or simply don't want to go back  and look for it: Click Here. This being my second time surfing (and first time alone)  I was still a bit nervous.  But much like the Lebron hater I had randomly met on the street, Adam did a fantastic job welcoming me to Beijing.



So How much does a Polar Bear weigh you ask?  
Well, enough to break the ice, thanks to some of the local brew and
some intense conversations concerning the strange place that is Asia. Adam and I hit it off immediately.  I stayed at his place for the first two nights of my Beijing experience.  I dug it so much that later in the week I went back, but this time, according to Adam,  not as a CSer  but as a "mate".   Adam was the first person I've ever met from the Isle of Man.    A strange little place with the locals as backwards and awkward as my home town of Alliance, Ohio.  After a few stories and Tsingtao's  Adam introduced me to Beijing's nightlife. The  atmosphere that first night can only be remotely compared to  my first time on Khao San Road in Bangkok.  I woke up the next morning with a headache the size of China.  I looked in my wallet and realized that my first night of China's  clubs, confusion, and craziness, had only cost me nine dollars.  It was then when I realized this trip was going epic.

Next up part 3: The Great Wall