Recent Blog Posts
Why is Jesus Wearing Hockey Pads?
On the way out my friend's door last night I noticed picture taped to the door. The dog ear on the upper left corner was drooping so much that it covered half of the drawing, indicating that it had been hanging there for a while. Despite spending most of my Monday evenings in that apartment, watching trashy TV programs, I hadn't noticed it before. Or perhaps I previously noted and had since forgot; This seems more likely.
The drawing was made on white printer paper with a single blood-red marker. A lonely stick-man was depicted, in a scene that looked suspiciously like the crucifixion. He hung from a single plank of wood, which his arms were spread out on. Blood gushed from the stick-man's arms and fell into pools below him. Large rectangular objects appeared to be attached to his legs - This part didn't quite fit.
"Uh.... why?" I pointed at it.
"A student gave it to me. I ... don't know."
"You didn't ask him for an explanation?"
"I'd really rather not know," the proud owner of the piece explained.
"It looks like the crucifixion of Jesus, except this time he wore hockey pads. Why is Jesus wearing hockey pads?"
My friend glanced at me in disgust and pointed out that the "artist" was an elementary student, who couldn't possibly have thoughts like this; that only my 27-year-old mind would come up with something that demented. Usually true, but this time not. This piece was clearly inspired work, by a child who didn't realize that hockey wasn't really a thing back then.
I have no problem believing that children can be that demented. I was one once.
Message for Anyone Who Links Me Via Pusan Web/Koreabridge
My blog originally was about my life in Korea, but it's been five years now, and I'll often write about other topics. I'm not sure if you could even consider a "Korean blog" anymore, despite the fact that its usually updated from The Peninsula.
So, if you enjoy this blog - if you like my writing and wish to keep updated on all the posts - I would encourage you to bookmark me instead of relying on koreabridge to link it. I'm going to have a lot of big posts coming up, and I'd like as many people as possible to view them.
And if you don't like the new policy (I'm not big on it), let the website know!
Destination: Yuldong Park (Bundang / Seongnam)
Yuldong Park is somewhat known for being the only place to bungee jump in the area - but there's plenty more to do beyond jumping off with a giant rubber band attached to your body. Opened in 1999, the park offers a large lake, a 4km walking trail around said lake, and a few surprises up the hill.
Start by getting to Bundang, through the large parking lot, and up one of several sets of stone stairs - the lake is visible from the top. Turn left, and begin enjoying the view of the lake along with the walking trail that goes around it.
An interesting bench - with a computer built-in to the side! Touch the screen to listen to popular music of various genres; there's something a little odd about listening to Jamie Cullum's 'I'll be home for Christmas' in the middle of a Korean park...
A very impressive fountain in the middle of the lake. While not on all the time, it would start spraying around 100 meters high every 5-10 minutes.
The opening of a sculpture park - in case all other forms of musical notation don't survive, this one will.
The inside is fairly standard for a library, and books appeared primarily for Korean children. A brochure in English picked up here helps with the names and purposes from here out.
The facility as a whole dealt with books and the art form in one way or another. Engraved in stone are characters from many languages, in different sizes and fonts. This particular mural went around like a corkscrew on the roof of the library - er, 'Book Theme Park'.
There's even more tombs to see, depending solely on how far you wanted to walk.
A couple of insects were kind enough to stay still for a few split seconds.
Yuldong Park is a tale of two parks. One park is almost entirely wheelchair-accessible, and offers a view of the shindobi from the trail surrounding the lake. The other park offered a somewhat more rugged (but short) path up the hill to get a closer look. Either way, there aren't any explanations of the tombs in English; the more adventurous climb doesn't have any signs at all. However, there's enough to see for an entire day after the momentary thrill of the bungee jump.
Directions to Yuldong Park: Take the Bundang line of the Seoul subway system to the Seohyeon station. Take exit 2 to the lower level of a large mall. Go up ONE elevator, then straight out the mall (it'll be gate 4 as far as the mall is concerned) and to the bus stop right in front of you. Get on bus 17 or 17-1 and go 9 stops to the park. Use the pedestrian overpass to cross the street, then keep going through the parking lot.
Alternatively, bus 1500 can take you there from exit 6 of Gangnam station., as can bus 119 near Jamsil station.
© Chris Backe - 2009
Life in Korea: Checking out a Korean job fair
As a whole, the event seemed productive, drawing a number of professionals and future professionals. How many jobs were offered or available is anyone's guess, however - here's hoping the graduating university students find jobs worth working at.
Start carrying your ID's, people
The Korea Immigration Service's crackdown on illegal immigrants this year has been met with controversy due to allegations its officers are making random checks on those who look like foreign workers.
Members of the legally residing foreign community are also upset at the failure to stick to a legal set of procedures.
"Immigration officials make raids on the street," said a foreign scholar in Seoul who spoke on condition of anonymity.
She said three Nepalese foreigners were grabbed on their way to get a haircut recently, while a pregnant woman was taken outside of the city last week. Others are caught during routine shopping errands, she said.
KIS spokesman Ahn Kyu-suk neither denied nor confirmed these allegations in an e-mail interview with The Korea Times, but simply cited the legal procedures.
Ahn said the Immigration Law dictates that "if foreigners residing here always carry a copy of their passport and alien registration card, the concerned shall satisfy the requirements of immigration and passport officials."
"Therefore, suspected foreigners in these circumstances must show their identification" during on-the-spot checks, the spokesman added.
No, this isn't Nazi Germany, and the 'papers please!' request probably sounds a bit nicer from the Korean police officer than German military personnel. Seriously, though, carry your ARC (Alien Registration Card) with you at all times. If you don't have it yet, carry another form of ID at all times (your old driver's license is probably acceptable). I don't recommend carrying around your passport unless necessary - something like that is harder to replace than you think, and more easily stolen than you think.
© Chris Backe - 2009
On female Korean bloggers UPDATED x2
EDITED 22 September 2009 to include some blogs that weren't mentioned already.
Every now and then, looking at the K-blogger scene reminds me of how many of us are male. In the interest of turning my wonderful readers onto some new blogs - and in the interest of discovering female K-bloggers, I've put together a list of active K-bloggers of the fairer gender. This list is far from complete, of course, and only represents the ones I've heard about or actively read:
- http://foreignerjoy.blogspot.com/
- http://abbyoff-air.blogspot.com/
- http://www.eatyourkimchi.com/ (husband and wife team)
- http://datinginkorea.tumblr.com/
- http://hookingupinhanguk.tumblr.com/
- http://jenniferteacher.blogspot.com/
- http://katie2korea.blogspot.com/
- http://kurichaninseoul.blogspot.com/
- http://gyopowife.wordpress.com/
- http://itaewonfatty.blogspot.com/
- http://walkingthroughalife.blogspot.com/
- http://mediocracies.blogspot.com/
- http://imsoboredwiththeusa.blogspot.com/
- http://danormansinkorea.wordpress.com/ (hasn't posted since June)
- http://www.vegetarianinkorea.com/
- http://tuesdaysborrower.blogspot.com/
- http://storysinger81.blogspot.com/
- http://bredainkorea.blogspot.com/
- http://serenityinseoul.wordpress.com/
- http://mommycha.blogspot.com/
- http://www.buhaykorea.com/
- http://t-bonesteaks.blogspot.com/
- http://tamicat.wordpress.com/
- http://chersurvivingkorea.blogspot.com/
- http://gyopo.wordpress.com/
- http://saladdayskr.blogspot.com/
- http://me-and-other-stories.blogspot.com
- http://reijene.blogspot.com/
- http://kimchiiorsomethinglikeit.blogspot.com/
- http://mgakwentoninemie.blogspot.com/
- http://mishanguyen.blogspot.com/
- http://kobarea.blogspot.com/
- http://www.anythingbutsquid.blogspot.com/
- http://sasha-astray.livejournal.com/
- http://wanderlustlover.livejournal.com/
- http://supergirljimmy.livejournal.com/
- http://junnnnn12.livejournal.com/
- http://emilyvanderson.livejournal.com/
- http://michelle-ragno.livejournal.com/
- http://aruba2korea.blogspot.com/
- http://rachaelgoestokorea.wordpress.com/
Most of these blogs probably weren't already on your 'to-read' list, but I hope that a few of them will be of interest to you.
© Chris Backe - 2009
The Business
A hippie, yuppie and womanizer battle fiercely inside me.
—John Dunphy
Recent comments