Burning the Morning Calm |
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Barb and Toby's adventures in Korea. Toby has unfortunately left the Land of the Morning Calm but Barb will continue to update you until we are together againin Canada.
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Saturday, August 30, 2003
Barb and I came back to Daegu yesterday morning. We watched the women's volleyball game, the men's volleyball game and the women's soccer game. good times, not enough wins. You can follow my wrting progress at the Gauntlet sports page. Today we watched more women's and men's volleyball. We're having a really good tme. Will keep you posted. Thursday, August 21, 2003
So the Universiade started in Daegu today. There are several athletes here from the University of Calgary, my alma matta. I have been asked by the illustrious rag, the Gauntlet, to cover the games. I obviously said yes, as I'll take any opportunity to write. Now I've never written a sports story in my life, so this will be fun. Come to think of it, I've never even seen a water polo game... The Women's soccer team lost their first game to Korea today, 3-1. One of my fiends, Jessica Horning, plays on the team, so it's a bit of a disappointment. Well, hopefully they get some wins. Follow the results here and see press updates here. Tuesday, August 19, 2003
Sunday, August 17, 2003
Ah, an action-packed weekend. Where to start? On Thursday after school I went out with my 8pm adult class [Photos]. This is a "Level 2" class and consists of an interesting mix of business men and (male) university students. I had not been drinking with the class yet, just my friends Jin-cheol (pron jeen churl) and Yeong-seok (yes, young suck). So after work we hit Beer Hunter, a pub near the school. Yeong-seok and Jin-cheol came; as well as Yeong-Seok's girlfriend, He-ok (hey oak); John, a business man at Bosch; and Barb joined us also. J.S., who works at 3M could not make it. 
Beer Hunter is an interesting place. It is one of the few places in Korea where you can get good western greasy appetizers - potato skins, nachos, wings, etc. The food has a German tinge to it - lots of sausage, etc. I think the Germans must travel more than any other nationality, because their (none too exciting fare) fare is everywhere. Korea, Thailand, Canada, you name it. The decor of Beer Hunter is very odd, being about 80% German pub-ish and 20% Egyptian. Weird. Maybe it's a Rommel (sp?) thing? We had a few rounds of beer and appetizers - an interesting mix of greasy goodness and Korean spicy/sweet/fishy stuff. It was a lot of fun and the guys loosened up a little more and spoke more English whilst drinking, especially John. John generously picked up the tab (hooray!) and we were off around midnightish. Friday was Independence Day in Korea, so most people had it off, including our friends Colin and Lilly in Gumi. So they decided to come visit Seoul, since they only have a few months left in Korea. They arrived at Wangsimni (the subway station near our house) at around 1:30 am and Barb and I went and met them. They of course wanted to go out for drinks so we went to Cass House for another few rounds. We then went back to our place, tucked Colin and Lily into bed, and got to bed ourselves at around 4 am. Now normally this wouldn't be a big deal, since we didn't work on Friday. We did have other things in the works, though. Yeong-seok asked Barb and I if we wanted to go rafting on the weekend. We jumped at the opportunity to get out into the Korean wilderness (if that was what it was to be), get off our asses and get some exercise. So we were to meet Yeong-seok and He-ok at 7 am at Wangsimni. So yes, we got about two hours of sleep (ouch). We were hoping for a good sleep on the bus (and we would be lucky in that regard). We got to our departure station at around 7:30-ish. Here we met Jin-cheol and his girlfriend, Chan-hee. It would be the six of us venturing out to go rafting. We eventually got on one of the three tour busses waiting for us. We thought we would be leaving around 8 am, but we didn't get going until 9 am. Now, you know what long weekend traffic is like in Canada. Well, add 20 million people and then squish them into somewhere the size of Newfoundland and you can imagine a fun driving experience. The trip (to just outside Seoul) was supposed to take around 3 hours. It took us at least 2 to get out of Seoul. Bounding down backroads at what seemed like a snails pace, we arrived at Dongna, our destination, six hours after we left. You can usually traverse the whole country in less than six hours. But at least we were well rested. We had lunch (bibimbap, included in the deal) and joined what seemed like thousands of Koreans at the riverside and were split into our rafting team- The six of us plus six others. The instructor gave us directions which we learned via good body language and we were off. I've been rafting twice in Canada, and it was pretty much par for the course. Liberal amounts of being dumped into the water by your instructor, lots of splashing, and occasional paddling. It was a lot of fun. The area we were in was very beautiful and natural. A much-welcomed break from Seoul. We rafted for about 3 hours, which was a good amount of time, as the sun was setting. We then headed for some showers (I'll spare you that irksome story) and climbed aboard the bus again. It took us about 4 hours to get home with frequent pit stops. Despite the fact that the day was 75% bus riding, it was a lot of fun. I'm very glad we went, it was just what we needed. We got to our house around eleven-ish. While this might seem like it should be the end of the day, I assure you it was not. In addition to Colin and Lilly, some of our other friends from Gumi (including Rhoni) were in town, and wanted to go out to Itaewon. They called us up and said they were at Gecko's, a nice little pub in Itaewon. We jumped in a cab and joined them there. Colin and Lilly were trashed by the time we got there and only lasted about an hour more before they had to go home to bed. Drunken friends are fun though. After we left Gecko's and Colin and Lilly departed for their yeogwan we went to Limelight, the current "it" dance bar in Itaewon. Although generally full, Limelight plays lackluster electronic music and Barb and I usually avoid the 10 000 Won cover charge. But Rhoni and her crew wanted to go, so we obliged them (plus paying for a cab would have been 6000 Won anyway). [Photos] 
We had a pretty good time at Limelight. I danced the night away. Barb's a bit of a wet blanket at dance bars, but I think she had fun. We saw Julio and he didn't yell at me for being a drunk (although I think he was on E), so hopefully I'm not banned from Bricx. Tracey (from South Africa), a gumite, is going home soon, so we said our goodbyes to her. We stayed at Limelight until subway running time - around 6 am. We then bid everyone farewell and trained home. We crawled into bed, 24 hours after we got up, for a nice sleep. Our weekend was not over yet, though. We had plans with Colin and Lilly to visit Gyeongbokgung Palace on Saturday. They called us around 2 pm and we headed out to meet them. After some confusion (There are many palaces in downtown Seoul) we met up at Gyeongbokgung (gyuhng-bohk-goong). Gyeongbok is the main Joseon (joh-sun) Dynasty palace in Seoul and quite beautiful. It's also a little similar to the palace we visited in Nara, Japan. Unfortunately the main building at Gyeongbok is under renovation, so we didn't get to see all of it. It was a nice city-sightseeing event though. It rounded out our weekend of outdoors, drinking, and culture. [Photos] 
After we left Gyeongbok we went to Insa-dong. Insa-dong, which in Korean means basically "Ginseng neighbourhood," is a traditional street in Seoul. It's an interesting mix of old handicrafts and artwork as well as modern art galleries. This is a rare place in Korea, as it is about 95% cheesiness-free. By contrast most of Korea is 70% cheese, while Itaewon is 105% cheese. It's a beautiful place and Colin and Lilly bought many souvenirs to take home to Canada (no floaty pens though). We went out for dinner with Colin and Lilly at Pizza Hut - Colin is allergic to fish and therefore 99% of Korean food is off-limits to him. They caught the train back to Gumi at around 9:30. At Barb's urging we then went and saw Bad Boys II. It was an Ok movie. Some good action with a lot of unnecessary gore (dead bodies being beheaded, etc.). The ending was quite implausible, but hey it's an action movie. So, that pretty much sums up the weekend. Thursday, August 14, 2003
So, I'm walking home for lunch. Our house is at the top of a hill. At the bottom of the hill is the entrance for Hanyang University Hospital. Traffic going down the hill is stopped at the traffic light. There is an ambulance rounding the corner with its sirens on, it's obvious destination being the hospital. The driver in front of the ambulance actually stops to let passengers out! And not even quickly. His passengers sidle out of the car slowly and then wave toodles to him. What the fuck? What kind of country is this where you're so self-absorbed that you block an ambulance to let people out. And all this in front of a Police Station! Argh! Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Toby would not get out of the women's washroom. And this is a single staller we're talking about. No room for any other ladies to pee, and the men's has only a urinal. Very bad. But at least it was late in the event and most folks had already headed home. As for Toby's story, I can't verify the times as I no longer wear a watch. I know the crowds were thining when I went downstairs, and I know that the go go dancer was finished. Raelin was one of maybe 10 people downstairs when the rush to the ladies room occurred. Now, unlike most bars in Korea, Bricx actually does tend to have a closing. They try to shut down between 3 and 4 am most nights so that the staff can go party. This being the beach party eve, it was definately later than usual, but it was still dark when we got outside. After Toby had been gripping the basin for a good fifteen minutes, I finally convinced him to let me leave him in there to get a bottle of water from the bar. When I emerged, Soo Jin (the owner) was surprised that we were still there. We were the only people left there, and they were quite obviously closing down the bar. An eternity later, Toby let me drag him away from the basin, up the stairs to street level, and outside. Where he promptly fell into a pile of sand. One of the guys who works there whose name I don't know was cleaning up the barbee outside and got to see Toby's tumble, and his subsequent curses and flails towards me when I tried to move him. I finally succeeded in getting him to his feet again, only to have him fall again about 5 yards later. A joyous experience, really. Have you ever tried dragging a sick, drunk person out of sand with only the promise of a 200 meter walk to catch a taxi to lure them? Not fun. And when he finally complied he only managed to make it about 20 meters, where he collapsed behind/beneath a van. This is when I knew he was really sick. He was still making those horrid vomitting sounds, but nothing was really coming out. And the worst part was how little effort he was able to expend in lifting his head from it's concrete pillow to allow miniscule quantities of bile to escape from his lips. Yum. I swear to you he spent a minimum of 30 minutes beneath/behind this green van. His condition was no longer frat-boy amusing. He luckilly improved enough to be moved to a more dignified perch on a concrete ledge a scant 5 minutes before the Bricx crew exited the bar and came our way. They were rather concerned, and Julio sat down and talked to Toby, but I sent them on their merry way, as he was breathing, not really vomitting anymore, and becoming somewhat more coherent. Dignified. The trains were running by the time he was ready to be moved, and we managed to get to the subway station and onto the train without any incidents. We had to change lines and navigate those tricky staircases they put in all the stations in Korea and he survived. Well, he survived right up until the moment we got off line 5 at Wangshimni station (our home station) where he walked through the doors, went straight for a bench, sat down, put his head in hands, and puked on the tiles. The colour of the liquid matched the pale green subway decor nicely. At least he didnt' lose it on the train. We then struggled through the long walk uphill to our apartment, up the 31 stairs to our door where my fears were confirmed. Toby had indeed locked the bottom lock of our door, and somehow misplaced the key during his exploits. I rang the doorbell of our neighbour/landlady's apartment sometime around 7:30 or 8:00 am on Sunday morning, and she led us to the spare key hiding place, and let us into our apartment. An adventure, I tell you. And the Gumi kids are coming up this weekend. Fun times are in store, I'm sure, if they let Toby back into Itaewon. Sunday, August 10, 2003
Had an interesting night at Bricx yesterday. Indeed the best of nights and the worst of nights. Now the "worst" part is a little hazy, so hopefully Barb will fill in the details from her side of the story. But I shall do my best. Bricx was having a "Beach Party" last night. Now Bricx, as I may have previously mentioned, is a tiny little bar in Itaewon (the foreigner district of Seoul). While Barb and I don't fancy hanging out with mainly foreigners (well, they're not foreign to us...), the lure of two-dollar-ish beer (2000 Won draft) has allowed us to fall in love with Bricx. Add to that the friendly Latino-Edmontonian bartender and it's a great deal. Although Bricx is by all other means a pub, Julio (the bartender) likes the electronica (or whatever the kids call it these days) so it usually has some funky beats flowing. This is what allowed them to have a party, or cabaret as us U of C folk call it. A cabaret is where you pay money to go to the same bar you usually go for free. Smart university kids... But I digress, Bricx decided to have a beach party. So they trucked in some sand, got a DJ (a Canadian with a computer) and charged 10 000 Won a head. Girls with bikinis got in free, and yes, Barb sold herself to save 10 000 Won. After missing the subway (boo) Barb and I headed to Bricx around midnight-ish. The setup at the bar was great, they had some sand and patio furniture outside, as well as inside. They had a barbecue going outside, and a Korean go-go dancer inside. There were lots of people there, most of whom we had not met yet. I started off my night with a Crown Royal and Coke. Julio, being the great guy he is, let me have it as my free drink, even though it was supposed to be beer. After the CR&C I stuck to beer, with its 2000 Won cheapness (I did have two vodka drinks at home). Barb and I met some really fun people. We met Greg, from (various locales in) the U.S. Greg had arrived in Korea a manner of hours earlier, and his apartment is to be above Bricx. Trouble. Greg just finished his PhD and is in Seoul to teach History to American soldiers in Korea who are taking university degrees. While that's a job that's not to appealing to academics with families, it's great for a wandering grad student. Greg was a lot of fun and it's nice to talk to someone who speaks English and has a PhD. We also met Ken, from Nigeria, who is also here as an English teacher (he's an Ibo for those of you who know what that means - Duncan and Nic). Ken was working in Geojedo (Guh-jey-doh). Geojedo is an island off Korea's south coast. Barb and I visited there in June with our bikes. It is an absolutely beautiful place. Geojedo is fairly small population-wise, and a little isolated (by Korean standards). It's pretty comical to imagine Ken, a huge black Nigerian guy, walking down the streets of Geojedo. I thought I got stared at in Gumi... So I met a lot of great people and had a lot of fun. And if anyone asks I didn't look at any of the girls in bikinis except Barb. I was drinking fairly consistently, but as I mentioned I was drinking beer. Those who know me well know that I don't drink beer very quickly. I was drunk but certainly not what I considered really drunk. I was having good conversation, but none of it with furniture or beach umbrellas. Now, at around what I can only assume to be 5:30-ish the night took a dreadful turn. Anything I write after this is only pieced together, and as I said, Barb will have to fill in the rest. I was having a good chat with Raelin, on of Julio's friends. Barb came downstairs to join us. Barb had the hiccups and Raelin started some bizarre ritual to try and cure them. I think it involved Barb drinking water through a shirt or something. I took the opportunity to visit the little boy's room. While I was there I felt a little queasy and had a small "incident." I left the bathroom and walked back towards Barb and Raelin. Then all of a sudden I felt more than a little queasy. Have you ever been drinking and you're getting to the fairly drunk stage? And then, despite the fact that your reasoning abilities are still somewhat present, you do like 8 shots of Tequila or something, and it sends you into complete and utter drunkenness in a matter of seconds? Well, that's how I felt, except that I didn't have any shots. I was just pacing myself well, when all of a sudden, I was incredibly sick. I don't usually get sick when I drink. It hasn't happened in Korea yet (not even the dreaded soju night), and quite frankly I can't remember the last time it did happen. And even when I do get sick, it's usually puke in the toilet, go to bed, wake up semi-ok. No puking all over myself or any of that frat-boy nonsense. But I knew when the feeling hit me that I was sick. I think I made my feeling known to Barb and I dashed back towards the bathroom. Someone was now in it though, and I could not wait. Barb somehow navigated me into the women's bathroom, and I made friendly with the facilities. I'm not sure how long I was in there, or what exactly occurred. I just know that my body felt the need to continually empty my stomach (which was already quite empty). I also came to the realization that I was not only sicker than I have ever been in my life. I was also more drunk than I have ever been in my life. I mean, I was gone. I couldn't stand or open my eyes. To do either was pure pain and hell. Somehow, and I can't figure out how, Barb eventually got me out of the bathroom and up the stairs (the bar was closing you see). As soon as I was outside, I immediately collapsed onto the ground (which was thankfully covered in sand, this being a beach party). I never pass out when drunk, but sown I went. I'm not sure how long I was there, but it felt so good to lie in that sand. It felt so bad, however to open my eyes or move. Once again Barb somehow managed to get me to do this. After walking about 5 meters I collapsed again, this time onto pavement (and according to Barb under a van). Once again, I did not want to move. Sweet gentle asphalt caressing my face. Barb , once again, somehow managed to get me to move. This time I was seated on a ledge. I could still not move or open my eyes. Despite Barb's attempts, I stayed like this until around 7:30am. I then managed to get myself up, and wobble to the subway in the painful morning light. I'm still not sure what happened to me. How do you all of a sudden become super-drunk? I drank no more than Barb, and she's usually (ie always) drunk before me. But I went from 0 to super-drunk in a matter of minutes. Maybe someone drugged me, who knows, but it is literally the most drunk and the most sick I have ever been. I don't know if I can ever drink again. Yuck. I haven't let the experience sour me, though. I had a great night up until the "turning point," so I don't regret going out, but wow, I went down frat-boy style. Tuesday, August 05, 2003
Sunday, August 03, 2003
I just spent 3 hours writing up progress reports on my 4 classes. Who knew it would take so long to write a few lines for each kid? I have a new appreciation for what my teachers used to go through. My friends called me today. It was so nice to talk to them. It's been at least 2 months since I heard their voices. Although, they do sort of make it harder to be away. Knowing there are people that miss me makes me more homesick. Nevertheless, it was great to hear from them. In other news, I kept with my retail tradition of the weekend and bought a book today. It should be an interesting read. Toby and I went to a place called COEX today. It's a huge mall in Seoul. The best things are the bookstore, the airconditioning, and the X-Box cafe. We played some lotus fighting fist game for about two hours over coffee. It was great fun, and apart from the coffee, it was free. Who knew I could enjoy video games so much? We may make a weekly trip out of it. Vacation is officially over. It's 3:00 a.m. and I'm off to bed. Friday, August 01, 2003
Ah, what an interesting night last night. There were no classes on Thursday, as it's "summer vacation" at Kang's until Monday. My 10am class wanted to go out for dinner and drinking (the two favorite Korean past-times). Wednesday was Christine's last day in class, as she is going to take a TESOL course (to be an English teacher). She's been at the school for a year, so everyone wanted to have a going-away party for her. Now everyone in my 10am class, except for the two guys, Thomas and Ross, are young housewives. Thomas and Ross couldn't make it out last night, so it was destined to be an interesting night. Now nearly all Korean housewives are university-educated, and many have had careers. Needless to say they can find the housewife life a little boring, so they love to cut loose. Barb and I met the girls (minus Amy) at 3:30 and from there we went to see Terminator 3 at the Daehan theatre. The movie was nothing deep, but it was a fun action flick. And who doesn't love Arnold? After the movie we met up with Amy and went for dinner in Myeongdong, Korea's trendy fashion district. We had galbi (beef) rib dinner. It was ok, but I've never been a rib fan. After that we went for ice cream / drinks at a cafe. We had several options for the night ahead of us. I thought we would be hitting a pub or an outdoor soju-tent. Man was I wrong. We went to JJ's, one of Korea's ritzy hotel nightclubs. I was in no way dressed for clubbing in my T-shirt and sport sandals, but we went nonetheless. We were treated to 8000 Won beer (very expensive for Korea) and cheesy electronica. We still had fun though. I played pool and darts with the girls and they complained about married life. I even got them on the dance floor a couple of times. Hopefully I'll be able to go out with them again sometime.  |
