October 2008
17 posts
Odds and Ends
I went to a wedding last Saturday. Jordan and met the groom the previous weekend at his business. It a small cafe called the Culture Complex. The owner, Young Jin has four branches. The one we went to in Heywha is the main office, so to speak. It’s more or less a club where Koreans who want to learn English can go study. They pay a membership fee every month in order to use the...
Thug Life
I had my first encounter with the Korean mafia last night. I was at Mr. Kim’s place, sitting in my usual spot, quietly letting my mind wander as I sipped soju and ate my kalbi. It was kind of late, maybe 10:45. A party consisting of 3 young girls, two middle aged men and one older gentleman on crutches came in and sat down. I could tell they were drunk and this was probably their third...
Adventures In Street Food #6
Whatever this is, it’s sold at a cart just outside my building. I asked my students what it was but no one knew. They said it was Japanese. Somehow that prevents them from having any clue what it might be called. Their hate for Japan (something I will write more about at a later time) extends even to food, excluding sushi, which everyone seems to love.
What I thought would be a solid...
Insomnia
Almost 2am, can’t sleep. The bugs are Goddamn merciless tonight. I’ll be close to drifting off and get jolted back to life by the buzzing of a mosquito in my ear. I’ve tracked down and killed 4 of the little blood suckers so far.
Got a solid 14 hour day ahead of me tomorrow. All of it spent teaching or commuting from one school to another. Someone I have never met named...
Hospitality.
With my new schedule, I don;t have to be anywhere until about 2PM. So I stayed up late tonight, talking to Julie and dicking around on the internet. At about 12:30 I needed som smokes, so I left my pad to walk over and buy some butts. On the way I ran into a guy named YoungTae, who is Mr. park’s nephew and I have only met one time before. He was walking up the street, obviously drunk,...
Adventures In Street Food #5
This will be sort of a double post, since I get both of these things form the same cart. it’s right around the corner from where I work. Like most things, they’re quick and cheap. I showed pictures to my students and they told me what they’re called, but couldn’t tell me exactly what either one is made of other than to say they both have lots of kimchi and green onions....
Who I Work With
People have been asking about my coworkers. Here they are. Up to this point we have all gotten along famously. Since my schedule change this week (had to start teaching children at the elementary school) I have met a lot more Korean teachers, but this is the heart of BCM’s new native English speaking staff. Sean, 39, from San Francisco by way of up state New York. Jared and Jordan, 23...
Ouch...
Saw a guy get hit by car tonight. Well, I didn’t see it so much as I heard it. A small screech of tires and the sickening slapping noise made by this poor guy hitting the pavement 15 feet away from where the collision took place. All this while my friend Sean and I were going through the opposite cross walk. If there’s a bright side, it is the hospital is just up the block, mere...
I Just...Ate a bug....
Straight Over Board style. Two nights in a row I was presented with something that looked like Stagg chilli. It wasn’t beans and meat at all. No way to even relate the buggy-ness. Took a good look at the bowl in front of me tonight and realized it was, in all probability, the silk worm things I have been reading about. Fucking gross, sort of. I wish I had a picture of it for you.
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Adventures In Street Food #4
This is sundae. No ice cream, syrup or sprinkles involved. It’s sold mostly alongside Topohki, which I have since learned is pronounced “Dokpohki” and will henceforth be referred to as such. Sundae sits on a steamer covered by plastic wrap, usually with an assortment of offal (liver, lungs, etc., anything Americans tend to discard) which I’ve yet to try. You can bet it...
