in which i watch a kpop mv and take a trip to nampodong

There's two points I want to make with this screen cap of the music video for A Pink's It Girl (에이핑크 잇걸)

1. Sometimes things just fall together perfectly through no fault of my own. If my video hadn't paused to buffer at this exact moment I probably would have completely missed this day-brightening juxtaposition of English translation and the singer's priceless expression.

2. Whenever you become drunk with the idea that you, as a foreigner, completely understand Korean culture, a healthy dose of K-pop is not a bad metaphorical cup of coffee to sober yourself up.

And with that, on to the meat.




Nampodong is a fantastic spot in Busan that is often overshadowed by the more popular Seomyeon, Haeundae, Gwanalli and Kyungsungdae. It has a nice atmosphere and plenty of businesses and attractions that should appeal to foreigners and Koreans alike.

If you live in Busan you have definitely heard of the Jagalchi fish market, and if you haven't already, you have to check it out. I don't personally enjoy the overwhelming stench of that much seafood in one place but it's definitely one of those things you owe it to yourself to experience.

However, this particular trip to Nampodong was not to see Jagalchi, but to get the most faithful re-creation of any sort of a Japanese-style ramen I've tasted in Busan, at a restaurant called Sanpachi, as well as to pay a visit to the international market (국제시장). Don't be fooled by the majority of the vendors here, this place is not just for poorly faked designer clothing, although if that's your bag, there is plenty of it. There are some gems littered around the area. One such gem is a shoe shop called bacilando (바실란도, www.bacilando.com). They stock almost entirely shoes not available in Korea and only stock each style one at a time, their inventory is always changing and the owner Yang Yong Jun's passion for sneakers comes through immediately. If you're a sneaker head and you aren't satisfied with the offerings at ABC Mart and LesMore you owe it to your footwear fetish to stop soon (and often).

The other strength of the international market lies in its used clothing scores. Ask for 중고 (used, second hand) if you're not sure. The find of the day was a pair of authentic Evisu jeans at a steal of a price. There's so much stuff it can be hard to find the golden combination of cheap and authentic, but the feeling of unfolding jeans or a shirt in a pile to find a treasure is something just about anyone can enjoy.

Oh, and it's not a bad idea to stop by a coffee shop on the main fashion street and do some people watching if your legs get tired.

Welcome

I've been in Korea almost a year, but I've generally avoided the blogs of ex-pats and the like under the assumption that they would resemble the end results of giving your average Dave's poster an elevated platform and an audience. Yesterday, I discovered INP's blog (imnopicasso.blogspot.com) and was proven wrong.

So here I am. Welcome.

I hope for this blog to be a record of my experiences, thoughts, and perhaps even insights into life as an American ex-pat in Korea. I will probably cover work, culture, language, and anything else that comes up. I expect to also write about travelling in other Asian countries because I like doing it, goddammit.

The first order of business shall be covering my background, as I feel perspective is important when talking about intercultural interactions and the like.

I started my love affair with Asia in general in Japan. I grew up in Texas, where I was (and all my peers were) forced to learn Spanish throughout my regular schooling, but as soon as it became optional I dropped the classes. When my mother forced me to choose another language to learn, I chose Japanese hoping that its uselessness would cause her to reconsider and ultimately abandon her cause. If that worked, the story would stop here and you wouldn't be reading this. She made me take Japanese classes at a summer program at Rice University. And I loved them. Immediately after graduating from high school I took my first vacation outside of the US to see Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. I fell in love immediately.

After high school I attended a liberal arts university and started my education in all things progressive and social and racial and GLBT and other acronyms I can no longer remember but whose lessons still shape my life on a day to day basis. I also started my major, East Asian Studies (I know, I know. What was I thinking?), which got me learning Korean, Chinese, and Japanese as well as studying the history, literature, and films of each nation (although Korea was often absent, a sad reality in the current state of East Asian Studies programs around the world that needs to be dealt with). I studied abroad in Kyoto for a year as well, which was an incredible experience and completely cemented my desire to live abroad in the future.

After college, I came to Korea to teach English. I came expecting what I got in Japan- an incredible experience of something new that would provide plenty of opportunities to meet interesting people, learn a new language and culture, and enjoy myself while doing so. However, working abroad is a lot different from studying abroad. It took me a while to realize this and for a time after the initial honeymoon I cursed my decision-making skills for coming to Korea instead of going back to Japan.

Like many ex-pats, after loving Korea and then hating Korea I started to fall into a happy[ish] medium. I enjoyed my work when I wasn't being run over by students who didn't respect me when I spoke in either language, and found fulfillment both in teaching and in my social life. I was determined to keep more Korean friends than ex-pat friends from the very beginning and I've managed to pretty much stick to that.

Now I'm doing better still. I'm starting to get a grip on living life as an adult, which is a big deal as this is my first job after graduation so not all facets of adult living came naturally or easily. I'm coming to terms with life as a worker instead of a full time student and finding ways to keep the student aspect of my life together. I'm speaking Korean and spending free time teaching myself little bits of Korean history and trying to understand what is going on around me or at least how I can be a part of it.

Also, I'm a smoker, a drinker, a joker, and I get fidgety when I stay in one place for too long. I read books, play video games, like sports, watch horror movies by myself at 2am on work nights and take very, very few things completely seriously.

Finally, a quote to explain the title of the blog:

"Like all real heroes, Charley had a fatal flaw. He refused to believe that he had gonorrhea, whereas the truth was that he did." Kurt Vonnegut, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater