Living In Korea

Korean Adventure (September 20, 2002 Chautauqua)

I'm going to try and reflect some facets of my life here, in the hopes that they may complete a picture, and show what I am experiencing.
I live in a one-room flat, in a three-story building. The other foreign teacher at my school has her apartment next door. Most schools provide the apartment rent-free, and all the teacher has to pay for is the utilities and the TV. As you walk in the door, there is a small area to leave your shoes. It is impolite to walk into a Korean house with your shoes on. I like to walk around in my slippers at home and at work. It is very comfortable.
I have a fridge, which is fairly large compared to other fridges I have known. Opposite is the sink/stove/cupboard area. It's all one unit, and that's my kitchen. I've gotten fairly good at preparing delicious meals on a two-burner gas range. It's pretty standard for most Korean households. Ovens are a rarity. Most Korean dishes are prepared without one.

One of the roads up to my con-apt, which was a block to the right. I did get a lot of what Flint calls 'Christers' visiting my con-apt. I was never as... curt as Flint was, but I did learn to shut the door on them after a while.

I have a TV/VCR unit, and I am limited to watching movies or whatever programs are part of the American Army's channel. They get most of the shows that are part of the lineup I was used to, but they can be some months behind. They have no paid advertising, but a lot of service announcements that let the soldiers know what's going on in their area. There are a lot of reminders about what it means to be a soldier. These are produced by the soldiers themselves, and some of them can be a little amateurish. I get a lot of laughs in this way.
The bathroom is a tiled room, with a toilet, a tap with showerhead attachment, and that's it. There's a drain in the middle of the floor, and that's where all the water drains. I've gotten used to washing my hands while standing back from the tap. It will be strange to return home and get used to water that drains "normally."

The street leading up to my building, which was on the right, the last building but one.

There are taps in my bathroom that would usually hook up to a washing machine. The other teacher has to deal with this, but my washer has been installed in the "back room," which is like a storage area. I have no dryer, and I take care of that job by hanging my clothes on a rack, which is standard issue for most teachers' apartments. Some buildings have a tap out front, and I have seen some Koreans using this to wash their dishes and their clothes.
I was really lucky to have a double bed in my place. Most flats have single beds (my first one did). Koreans, of course, sleep on the floor, and one of my friends (tired of the cramped and lumpy single) has switched to this with satisfactory results. I also scored a microwave, which comes in handy when I want to cook up some popcorn. That is one of the snacks that I really missed when I came here.

There were two busy streets that I had to cross on the way to work. North of this one was the neighbourhood where my con-apt was situated, which was mainly three-story one- and two-room buildings. South was full of those huge blocks that marched off into the distance.

Koreans don't usually eat popcorn. They have some... different...flavours for their chips, too. Some of them are really spicy, and can cause your tongue to dial the fire department if you're not careful. Some of their chips are sweet-tasting, as well. I remember a comedy sketch from a while back about a man who gave a snack bar attendant fits by asking for "Raspberry Ripple" flavored chips, and so on. He would have got on well here.
I live approximately fifteen minutes away from the school (by foot). There is a big hill behind the building, where I like to go hiking on the weekends. The trails are well maintained and travelled. Hiking is a favorite activity for many people, and there are camping areas that feature equipment for the serious hiker. You can do chin-ups, sit-ups, play badminton; there's even a set of barbells to do some press-ups.

This is the second busy road I had to cross. Right on the corner, almost at my feet as I took this picture, there was always a pile of tofu for sale. It sat on the corner every day, absorbing the exhaust fumes, burps and farts, narrowly missing being spat on by some mook. I... never really liked tofu after that.

The area I live in is predominantly three- and four-story apartment buildings. There are a couple of private dwellings, but these are scarcer than hen's teeth in a space-premium country like South Korea. I imagine you have to be wealthier than Croesus to afford a private dwelling. Surrounding the neighbourhood where I dwell, is the main living space for Koreans, the high rise, which go on for miles. I tried to get a picture that would show these buildings stretching to the horizon.
I pass through these on my way to work, and they are like little villages. The buildings are about 15-20 stories high, and about 10-15 apartments wide. They each have their own little strip malls, and "police" forces to keep an eye on traffic. There is a lot of foot traffic going through, mostly mothers with their kids in hand. Foreigners have a lot of eyes on them.

The building where my hagwon lurked. The PC room I used was across the street. The hagwon's name was New York, and the lobby featured a mural of the city skyline featuring the twin towers of the World Trade Centre front and centre. I worked here the year after 9/11, and it was always a little jarring to see that photo every day.

I've heard that this type of dwelling is more expensive than the one I live in. They don't seem much different inside, and I'm not sure I would want to live in an area so crowded, with people on either side, and on top as well as below you. You have to deal with a substantial loss of "personal space" when you come to Korea. There is no such thing as waiting patiently in line for anything. It's every man for himself, and don't be afraid to use those elbows.
Still, there are perks. I use a computer at a "PC Room," and the owners have gotten very good at arranging for a monitor away from the smokers. I get a nice comfy chair, and an iced tea. Being served in a restaurant is a pleasant experience, and you get a lot of "service" (free stuff!) if you become a regular.
And the beer! Ah, the beer. Their draft comes in inexpensive pitchers that always taste like another one. A night out with a group of teachers looking for a way to unwind can go on for a long time, with no appreciable dent made in your wallet. Most bars like to try and sell you a side dish to go along with your beer, and it's not unusual to see a table of Koreans enjoying a nice array of ... fruit?... to go with their beer. Or if that's not to your taste, you can always try the seaweed. Dip it into a little soy sauce. Mmmmm.
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I've had a couple of hagwons try to get away with just supplying me a beer fridge. They look at me strangely when I tell them I need a regular sized fridge. When you consider they have fridges just for kimchi, I don't think it too much to ask.
I remember in my first year, my roommate's girlfriend kept kimchi in the fridge, and whenever you opened the door, the smell would hit you like a punch in the face.
I was always impressed with the relentless way Koreans exercised. I was never able to get motivated enough to follow their example. I'm flabby and out of shape, and I would be of no use in a crisis. I thought, 'Either get in shape or hope there is never a crisis.' I always hoped there was never a crisis.
I remember going to one teacher's wedding. He invited me up to their con-apt. They were just moving in. The place was chock-a-block with all the newest appliances and electronics still in their boxes. It was too bad when she gave him the boot the day after the wedding, but he deserved it. He romanced a foreign teacher and then dumped her on the advice of a fortune teller.
What a douchebag.
I almost lived in one of those highrises during my third year, but was lucky enough to get a solo con-apt. For me, it's the only way to go.
I still didn't have a 'puter, and I didn't get one until my third year. The PC room I used in my second year was a pretty good one, and the owners were very nice to me. But having your own 'puter is the bomb. I was really happy when I got my first laptop.
This neighbourhood was in West Daegu, and the local bar we went to was called Elvis. More often than not, the waitress would insist we order a side with our pitcher. I got to like the dried squid with peanuts. You could dip the pieces of squid in mayonnaise, or hot sauce, or both. Mmmmmmmmmm.
But getting used to the side dishes that most Koreans took for granted was difficult for me. I missed the usual salty snacks that we get back here in The World. There were a few places that served popcorn, like the Hollywood Bar in Cheongju, but then you'd go to a place like The Berkeley in Daegu, which served squid-flavoured crisps.
Eurgh.

Hello, Sailor!

One of the great things about teaching overseas is the chance to travel. I am a historian, and it was great to go and see things and places that I had read about and studied. Since Korea is bounded on three sides by water, there are many opportunities to travel by boat.
There are a lot of choices if you want to go to Japan. One of these is a hydrofoil that makes the trip from Busan to Fukuoka in a couple of hours. I preferred to take my time (and the hydrofoil was sold out), so I opted for the overnight ferry, the Camellia.

Busan Harbour

It was Chusok, and I had about a week off, so I was going to see Hiroshima. Travelling there would occupy two days. I would have three days to explore the city, and then a couple more to get back.

The ferry dock. The Camellia is the one in the middle, on the right.

The ship sails about six in the evening. The crossing takes about six or seven hours, and the ferry lies in the harbour at Fukuoka until the next morning, when it docks.

The ferry terminal in Fukuoka, from the deck of the Camellia.

Japanese Coast Guard vessel.

I had a basic ticket, which meant that I would sleep in an open area with most of the other people on board. The price of a cabin was prohibitive for such a short trip. You get a mat to lie on, a blanket, and a leather-covered block that's supposed to be a pillow.
There were a few other foreigners about, and I fell in with another guy making his visa run. Lucky to make the trip at Chusok, and on the ferry. I think he spent the balance of his time in Fukuoka while I was in Hiroshima, and I met him again on the return trip.
I don't remember a cafeteria as such. I think there was just a counter, where you could buy cup ramen or dried squid and kimchi. We drank a lot of beer from the vending machines. As we were headed to Japan we stuck to brands like Asahi and Kirin. Even though it was October, the weather was mild, so we spent most of our time up on the top deck, watching the moon set, and the lights of various fishing fleets that we passed through.
It was an amazing feeling to reflect that I was actually sailing across the Sea of Japan. (Even though I'd been in Korea for almost a year, I hadn't yet run across the term, "The East Sea.")
The Koreans occupied themselves with things drinking, talking, and playing games. One of the games they played was "Hwa-To," or Go-Stop, a card game that I very nearly learned how to play. I thought it might have been a way to bridge the gap between myself and my students, and I caused quite a stir when I tried to start a game in class one day. Apparently, go-stop is a betting game, and I was told parents would not be pleased to find out I was teaching their kids to gamble!
Anyway, it was fun to watch the Korean men playing the game. They really get into it. At one point, one of the ship's crew passed by, gave them the fish eye, and asked a question. It must have been about the gambling, because the players started to put the money away, all the while looking like little boys caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
I took this ferry on two different trips. The second time the weather was a little rougher, and you could feel the slow roll of the ship as it went through the swell. On one side of the ship, you were sheltered from the spray, but if you went to the other side, you were absolutely drenched. It's a good thing I had a change of clothes.
I didn't get seasick, but I could see some of the Koreans were green around the gills. There's a kind of patch they wear behind the ear that releases anti-seasickness medicine into the bloodstream.
I was on my way through Japan to Vladivostok in Russia. My thought was that I had come halfway around the world to Korea, so why not continue on in the same direction and so circumnavigate the globe?
And rather than just fly (like some mook), why not travel on the surface? Why not take the time to enjoy it? So I took the ferry to Japan, another ferry to Russia, and the Trans-Siberian Express to Moscow.

The ferry that I took was called the "M. Shokolov," and it traveled from the north coast of Japan, near the small port of Takaoka. It didn't sail until two or three days after I boarded, but I didn't care. I had finished my contract in Korea, and was kind of taking my time about getting home.


The crew loaded the ship with as many cars as it could possibly carry, even taking up all the available deck space.

Japanese don't drive on the right side of the road, so these cars had steering wheels on the opposite side I was used to. Russians do drive on the right side of the road, and it was interesting to see these were the majority of vehicles in Vladivostok.
I was travelling alone, so I did have some language barriers to cross. But the crew were helpful and courteous. The food in the restaurant was good. A lot of typical Russian dishes like borscht, served by the tallest, most beautiful blonde waitresses I have ever seen.
That trip took about three days. There was nothing but the ship, the sea, and the sky. My cabin was right on the waterline, which gave me quite the view.

Another ferry from Korea departs from Pohang to the island of Ulleongdo, which is just a hop and a skip from the Dokdo, where Koreans long to see the holy sites and meet the seagulls.

The Ulleongdo ferry docked after the trip.

This ferry is a kind of hydrofoil. The trip takes about three hours, and you're stuck inside for the trip. There's not a lot of open deck space. The seating is theatre-style, but my friends and I fell in with some English-speaking Koreans who helped us pass the time.
There are a lot of islands around Korea, besides Ulleongdo and Dokdo. There's also Jeju-do, which I visited with Flint. It was a good trip, but we didn't take the ferry there. We did, however, take a day trip around and about the southern coast.

If you go to the southern port of Tongyeong, you can get on a boat for a day trip to some of the islands in the area, one of which was the headquarters of Admiral Yi Sun-shin during the time he fought back the Japanese invasion of 1595. There's a re-creation of the place that he lived, and a channel marker in the shape of his famous "turtle boat."

One of the last trips I took in Korea was to the south-western island of Hongdo, Perhaps the last landfall before you reach China.
The ferry was another fast hydrofoil, with no opportunity to go out on deck. The island is so small that four-wheeled traffic is banned, and the islanders get around on motorcycles.
You're basically stuck with the main town, which occupies a neck of land in the centre of the island. The northern and southern areas are protected nature preserves.

There is a day trip around the island offered. It was interesting to see the protected area up close, as the captain took his ship as close to the island as possible at various points.


That day was very sunny on one side of the island, while the other was wrapped in cloud.
I neglected to wear sunblock, and got very burned. The trip ends with various fishing boats gathering around with fresh fish for sale. A lot of the Koreans took great styrofoam boxes home, packed with fish on ice.
But I think if you asked Flint or what our favourite boat was, I think we'd both agree on the "Casa Bianca," which is moored in Cheongju. The main floor houses one of the best rib joints we've ever tasted. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Shit Koreans Do

Well, Flint has had some good posts going, so I thought I'd expand on them. It's not that I don't have any examples of shit Koreans say. I have plenty, but I was thinking of the incident I'm about to relate, and thought I'd get it down while it was fresh in my memory.
One of the things Koreans do is touch your stuff. They're endlessly curious about foreigners, and don't feel any compunction about examining you and your things like you're one of those special exhibits in a museum.
My students do this, but they're kids. I teach them to be more polite (something their parents seem to neglect to do).
Flint has already talked about how people in supermarkets'll go through your cart, but this incident occured while we were drinking.
Once, when Flint and I were at Road King enjoying some cigars, a Korean friend of Flint's noticed my lighter. It was a Zippo I had picked up in Japan, featuring The Beatles' logo on the side.
He asked me if it was genuine, and I said that I assumed it was. Whether it was genuine wasn't really important to me, the fact that it had "The Beatles" on the side (and it worked okay) was more to the point, I thought.
But apparently the genuineness of the item in question was important to this mook.
I call him a mook even though he was a friend of Flint's, because he proceeded to take my lighter apart without so much as a "by your leave."
That's right. He took out a screwdriver and began to disassemble the lighter right then and there.
What the kimchi?!
I was too gobsmacked (and maybe a little TOO polite) to do what I should have done - smack him liberally about the head and shoulders.
Well, I got my lighter back okay, and Flint and I continued with our process of withdrawing from going to Road King because the people there were just getting too fucking weird.
That mook could never understand why I refused to drink with him from that point on.

Goodbye Korea

Well, after ten years of Morning Calm and Afternoon Difficulty, I'm finally closing down my Korea station, and moving on.
I've thought that it was time to go for quite a few years now, and it very nearly came true two years ago, when I was run out of Daegu for trying to kill a Korean teacher at the middle school I was working at.
But then Flint needed my help, and I came to the 'ju to work for him for a couple of months, and that led to me finding a job at the hagwon which I finished working at on Friday.
I had hoped to stay for one more year, and lure Flint back for more cigars and tapping on the deck at Dunkin's, but my director decided the kids could use a change of pace.... er, face. She thought a new teacher was in order, and I was given my walking papers.
I tried (half-heartedly, I must admit) to see if there were any other opportunities here, but nothing turned up. My folks were urging me to come back to Canada and try getting a job as a teaching assistant in my hometown, and that seemed the likeliest of possibilities for my future, when the job of a lifetime, literally a dream come true, popped up in my inbox one day.
I am leaving Korea, spending about a month in Canada, and then going on to my dream job - wait for it - teaching English in London, England!
I am so excited, I can barely contain myself. The opportunities, the history, the chance to live and work in the capital of the UK... words fail me. It's what I've wanted to do most of all, ever since I came to Korea and found out I could teach. I never thought it would really happen, as the difficulties and drawbacks seemed nearly insurmountable. But that's all changed. I'm going.
I have lots of memories that I'll be sharing here, and I just might cobble something together on a new blog about life in England.
My final days here have been kind of anti-climactic. My director didn't even bother arranging any kind of farewell party or dinner or anything. The kids'd been told I was leaving before I had the opportunity to inform them, and they seemed, for the most part, kind of neutral about it. So my time there just sort of petered out, rather than ending with a bang.
Oh well, I've had other, more enjoyable (and memorable) departures from Korea that I can look back on fondly. It's been ten years, as I said, but now it's over.
Goodbye, farewell, and amen.

Mook Of The Week

Last week, I finished my TESOL course, courtesy of Juseong University in Cheongju.
We had our graduation ceremony on Friday, which is where I ran into this week's mook.
The hallmark of any mook, as I have said, is the complete inability to use common sense. Even the simplest of snags or snafus can completely buffalo mooks and derail their entire day. The problem is, they usually take someone with them.
While I and my fellow students were busy getting our certificates, and being congratulated for finishing the course, we had left our cameras with a couple of assistants, who were asked to please take photos of the group, and the ceremony, and the handing over of the certificates, etc.
By the way, the certificate I was given mispelled my name. The mook in charge of making sure all the names were properly spelt texted me a few days before to make sure he got it right. When I pointed out that he got it WRONG, he checked the text on his phone, which sure enough had the right spelling.
D'oh!
But he's not the mook this week. He's the bonus mook, I guess.
No, this week's mook was one of the assistants handling our cameras and taking photos.
Now, I have a digital camera, just like most people these days. One of the things I like to do is shut the screen off when I'm not going to immediately be using the camera, as it saves the battery. I should have re-activated the screen before handing it over, but I neglected to do so in all the excitement.
The mook in question was completely baffled by the absence of a picture on the screen when he picked up my camera. I could see him milling around in the back, holding it this way and that, trying to see if the picture would show up from a different angle. Meanwhile, group shots were being posed, and individuals were taking their place next to the instructors, and all the while this mook is trying to figure out how he can take a picture without any preview available on the screen.
You and I both know that all anybody has to do is look through the viewfinder, and voila, the picture is there, ready for framing.
Do mooks understand about viewfinders? Does anybody use the viewfinder anymore?
I like the viewfinder. It makes for a better shot, I think.
Anyway, judge for yourself.
Here is the group, students and instructors, all together.

Here are the instructors: Daniel, Nick, and Dr. Kim.

And this is a shot of myself with Daniel and Nick.

These are the best of the photos the mook took, so I'll let you imagine the rest of them.
Sometimes, people remark that a really intelligent person can "think outside the box."
Mooks are not only happy inside the box, they cannot conceive of an outside, let alone imagine navigating their way through such treacherous waters. I hope the mook who took these photos is happy inside the box that I left him in, because he's going to be there for a looonnnggg time.

What the... Asking Permission?!

I had kind of an up and down day on Thursday.
It was beautiful in Korea, a real sunshiney kind of day, clear and bright.
I was up early, because I had to get my car inspected and passed to drive on Korean streets.
The inspection went okay. There were a couple of things the mechanic pointed out as possibly needing attention further on down the road, but generally the car was in good running condition. I stopped in at my regular mechanic because James, my director's husband thought one of the tires was a little low. It turned out it wasn't that necessary a job, but it gave me the opportunity to get a photo of a typical Korean mechanic's garage.

Not much to look at, is it?
Anyway, the inspection was the 'up' part of the day. The 'down' part occurred when I was on my way home, and got clipped by some mook trying to cut me off. He started coming into my lane while I was still alongside of him. I sped up to get out of his way, but his right front slammed into my left rear.
I hate it when mooks try to slam into my rear!
I heard (via James) that the mook claimed I was trying to merge into his lane when the accident occurred.
Fucking mook.
The next day, James asked for my car key. He was going to look at my car. I wondered why he needed the key just to look at a scrape down the side of the vehicle, but I figured he wanted to see if it could still drive okay. It seemed all right to me, but another opinion is always welcome.
I was just about to go into my first class when he took my key, and it was about five hours later (just before my last class) that I was informed that my car was in the shop being repaired, and wouldn't be ready until Monday!
What the kimchi?!
I was kind of surprised, and I may have let my anger show at the presumption.
When James and his wife Sun (my director) told me I had to take a cab home, I asked ( a little tensely), "Who's going to pay for that?"
I mean, the insurance is going to pay for the paint job, and it'll help the resale value, but what the fuck ever happened to courtesy. Did it even occur to James that he might want to ask my permission before just going ahead and commiting my vehicle to four days in the shop?
James and Sun are a pretty good couple, and I enjoy working for them. I'm going to be sorry to leave theur employ. Good hagwons in Korea are rarer than hen's teeth. Just ask Flint.
But... jeez... can you ask first next time? Please?

Oksan Views

It was a beautiful day on Thursday. One of those days when you can see forever. These days aren't that rare, but I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to go up on the roof of the kindergarten and take some pictures of the surrounding countryside.


The Hosanna Kindergarten where I work one day a week, is set on a hill, so it's commands quite a view.





Cheongju is off to the east, and some hills and countryside are to the west.
North and south is a kind of vally between mountain ranges. It's pretty from up there, and not too bad when you're down in it.




There're a lot of rice paddies around the town, and they're being flooded at this point in time, as the Kim Kadiddlehoppers get ready for planting.


Here's an aerial view of Oksan's main drag, leading off east to Cheongju.







As I've said in previous posts, it's not much more than a wide spot on the road, but it does have a few highlights.

What The... Chemical Warfare III?!

You may remember from my previous post about the giant fans stationed outside of Oksan, spraying some kind of chemical disinfectant on every vehicle entering or leaving the town.

I always button up my car real tight, as who the fuck knows what this shit is. It's been installed to halt the spread of hoof and mouth disease in cattle, but it kind of reminds me of the hand sanitizer liquid that became popular here during the swine flu scare (following the mad cow scare).
But I've seen mook after mook on bicycles and motorcycles drive through the spray without even a helmet on, much less a mask or any other protection.
I just know that in the coming zombie apocalypse, these mooks are going to be the first ones in line to try and chow down on my brain.
Mmmmmmmmmmm brain.
Anyway, coming back from dropping Flint off in Incheon (of which more later), I passed through the toll gate to come into Incheon, and damned if there aren't more of these things set up. It was a different kind of device, though. They looked like speed bumps, and the chemicals were sprayed upwards, mostly on to the bottom of vehicles, but high enough in the air to cover the roof and windows.
I was a bit taken by surprise, and had to slow down in order to make sure my windows were rolled up. Sure enough, some impatient mook behind me beeps at me to hurry the fuck up. I let him know he was number one, and then finished rolling up.
But that's not the end of the story. I came into Cheongju at the main interchange, but every day on the way to work I pass by the west interchange. I keep expecting to see chemical sprays set up there, too, but nothing so far.
A-ha! A hole in the net! All you hoof and mouth spreaders out there, I've found the chink in the armour!
Good job, Korea!
What the kimchi.

Mook Of The Week

As you may know, I live in Cheongju, and commute to a small town called Oksan. I see many, many mooks and mookish behaviour on the road, but it's difficult to document when you're driving. I think I would be considered a mook if I was concentrating more on taking pictures than taking care of business.
It's also not a good idea to take your mind off of watching out for the next accident coming your way, because you know the mooks are selfishly oblivious.
But, I have taken to having the camera at the ready, just in case the opportunity presents itself. And, as they always do, the mooks obliged.
I saw this mook just as I was coming into Oksan. The road crosses a river, and then comes to a T-intersection. I was waiting for the light to change when I saw him.
That's Oksan in the distance. Not much more than a wide spot on the road, but it's smack in between here and there, so it gets a lot of through traffic, including heavy trucks, buses, etc.
There're also a lot Kim Kadiddlehoppers on their tractors and forklifts(!) clogging the highways and byways. Oksan is full of old ajummas and adjussis who just don't give a fuck about traffic safety. I think they must've grown up walking on the road simply because there wasn't anything else. Sidewalks are one of those recent innovations that come with entering the 20th century, and these mooks are still looking askance, deciding if they're really that practical. The jury is still out.
I mean, look at this guy! There's a guardrail there, but why would he want to walk behind that?! And walking against traffic, so you can see it coming?
No way!
They should look out for me!
Mookmookmookshepalmookchoahmookgesekimookshepalnommookmookmook.
The bridge is ahead of this mook. He was probably going across. Why? Fuck if even he knows.
But it's kind of narrow; only two lanes with no sidewalk. It wouldn't take much for some selfishly oblivious mook to rub him off against the guardrail and over the side into the drink.
But he doesn't care, 'cause he's got places to go.
You sir, are a mook.

Mmmmmmmmmmmm Ribs

Flint and I have been talking about posting some food reviews. Mostly it's Flint urging me to get off my lazy ass and contribute more to this blog.

But we have had some pretty good food here in Korea, and we'd like to share our culinary experiences with the rest of you, just in case you need a particular type, and are wondering where to go.

Flint and I both love ribs, and have a couple of excellent places to go for delicious savoury pork ribs. You can go to a western style restaurant like Outback or VIPS, and be perfectly satisfied, but the Korean offerings are just as good, if not better.

The first alternative, for take-out ribs, is the rib truck. This is a Bongo-type vehicle fitted out with a wood-fueled rotisserie where the owners cook up ribs and sam gyup sal. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water.

I don't know what kind of wood they use (Flint?), but it gives the meat a particular flavour that keeps us coming back for more. I remember having to wait for some ribs to finish cooking once, and the owners invited me to sit in the back of the truck next to the fire. My coat still has that smell...

For 10,000won you get a generous rack of ribs, some pickled onions, hot peppers, and a savoury sauce that compliments the ribs to perfection. The owner usually throws in a few slices of sam gyup sal as "service," but I usually pick up an order of that with the ribs (10,000won) anyway.

The rib truck we go to sets up next to the OK Mart in Gagyoung-dong in Cheongju every Tuesday.

There're also trucks that sell BBQ chicken, but the main focus of this article is ribs, so we'll go on to the second of our suppliers.



This is a restaurant called "Cho Shim," which is located in Habukdae just down the street from my con-apt. It's on the ground floor of a ship-shaped building known as "Casa Bianca." It's the landmark I always give to cab drivers when I'm wending my way home from a night on the town. Most of them know it.

The restaurant has an equal number of tables with chairs and floor seats. Flint and I don't do floor seating, so we usually get a table next to the grill where they pre-cook the ribs.

My mouth is watering again.


Each table has a grill in the middle, so the patrons get to finish cooking the ribs for themselves. The ribs come with the usual multitude of side dishes, and especially a bowl of sweet sauce for dipping the ribs. You prepare the sauce by adding sliced onions and (in my case) grilled garlic slices.

I also like to grill the kimchi and the few slices of pa-jon that come with the side dishes. I also get to eat the "salad" (coleslaw) as Flint is not particularly enamored.

Flint commandeers the tongs, and makes sure the ribs are cooked to a turn. Each patron is given a cotton glove to wear on one hand, which helps protect against burns from the fresh, hot-off-the-grill ribs.

The set-up is fairly simple, like most Korean restaurants. You go in, order what you want, and are cooking it at your table within five minutes. There's not much else to it, besides the enjoyment of a very good meal.






The staff at this restaurant has come to know us, and the boss man even speaks good English. We sometimes see each other when he comes out for a smoke, and we are sitting on the benches, enjoying a good cigar and shamelessly ogling all the Korean hotties out on the street.

After a good long feed of ribs, there's nothing like a good cigar along with some scotch or rummmmmmmmm.

Cheongju Immigration Office Take 2

Ok, before you read this sit down. I know my last post about Immigration was a shock to people, a double shock to some. Saying nice things AND about a government department. You don't usually see that in any country I have lived.

Today I had to go back to Immigration and pick up my Alien Registration Card (actually I should have done it yesterday but it was too wet out.) I like to be early and I wasn't sure if the scooter was going to work so I left about 8:30, they open at 9AM. Except for one wanker that almot hit me I made it there with no problems. Maybe even too quickly. It only took 10 minutes.

Well, the doors were open so rather than wait outside I went in. At 8:45 a couple of Immigration employees came in and started getting their stuff in order. I got my number and waited.

At 8:55 my number, 1 of course, flashed on the screen. FIVE MINUTES before office hours start! That would NEVER EVER happen back home. Trust me on that, I did some casual work with different departments back home. They delay everything to the last minute and ONLY do what is required. Which is what makes the following joke so funny.

Why doesn't the civil servant look out the window in the morning?

Because he would have nothing to do in the afternoon.

She took my receipt, got my card, and had me sign for it. All in all it took about 1 minute and change. I was out of Immigration and on my way to work THREE minutes before they were even supposed to be open.

Once again I have to say a hearty Thank You!! The folks at Immigration in Cheongju are doing a great job.

Korean Immigration in Cheongju

As you can no doubt tell by now I am damn quick to complain when something irks me. Well, I also try to be quick to give praise when it is due. Korean Immigration in Cheongju deserves a healthy heaping.

I had to go there today to switch my VISA over to another school. It was quick and fairly painless, at least for me but not so my boss. But I digress. I was in and done in about 10-15 minutes. The guy who was processing me was quick, efficient, and ... friendly.

This actually isn't a new experience. Last year they made a lot of changes in the local Immigration office. Out went a lot of the stodgy old guys that tried to make you think they were doing you a favour by actually doing their job. The ones who dragged their asses and made what should have taken 10 minutes become 30+ minutes.

When I went to renew my VISA last year I was expecting the same old same old. A long boring process that shouldn't actually take that long. What a surprise when I went in and there were two women there whose sole function was to translate for people and assist with filling out forms if needed. The woman at the desk had me processed and ready to go in about 5-10 minutes. What a change from the 40 minutes the year before doing the EXACT same thing.

I really appreciate the improvement in service they are providing. Kudos to the 1st floor.

My boss .... well he was informed that the last teacher who left never turned in their Alien Card. He had to go to a different department to be processed ... and fined. I waited outside after I finished. From what he told me he got to deal with the stodgy old guys who take their sweet time. It took over 30 minutes for the guy to do the paperwork. He had told my boss it would only take 10 minutes. A mantra he kept repeating every 5 minutes. All that to process a fine ... which of course my boss had to go somewhere else to pay.

Good start to the day for me ... not so good for the boss. :)