A Tasty Radish

I Am Darth Vader

If I am to give you some notion as to how society functions in South Korea, it is necessary to explain the Ajumma (technically, a middle-aged, married lady but see http://coffee-helps.com/2010/04/28/ajumma/ for a more detailed description) in transit. You can consider yourself fortunate when an Ajumma seamlessly sidles into place in line in front of you. That way, you know that shes there just by looking at her, and you would be a fool to interrupt the cultural flow of age before youth by giving her the evil eye, the only way to communicate that she 'budded' in line.

Ofttimes, however, you will feel a strong, capable force charging head-down, bull-style at your back, or needling your side with a rough, dextrous elbow or palm. When you turn, you will see that the only thing to be done is to quickly surrender your space: the mighty Ajumma gets from A to B at the metro, and nothing stops her. The following visual depiction does my experience justice; follow the link if you'd like to see an Ajumma in action!

(Note: Do imagine me in the place of Vader, but, really, when I am ride the metro, the Ajumma reaches the seat first, and I'm pretty sure the Ajummas I've met could leave Vader eating their dust on any old day.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iV65KJW17d4

A Roll of Kimbap

Although America was treated to a small morsel of the K-POP phenomenon when "Girls Generation" performed on David Letterman and Live! With Kelly (Feb. 1/12 See the Live! show @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KxoCDgYdag&feature=related), you just can't escape the POP when in South Korea. Mechanical store mascots lurch to the catchy, polished tunes, K-POP stars dance in immaculately rehearsed unison across every stores' TV screeens, innocent and fresh female K-POP stars gleefully spill across a scarlet couch on your home TV to advertise boxes of tantilizing fried chicken, and the girls at my elementary school are eager to introduce me to their favorite music videos and groups. On a few select occasions, I have been priveleged enough to observe a couple of students when they feel brave enough to demonstrate some of the new moves they've learned in their K-POP dance classes (classes that are popular throughout South Korea).

You have one of my students to thank for the two videos I have to share with you today. If you are interested in exploring the world of K-POP, I would invite you to browse youtube for the latest "Girls Generation", "Wonder Girls", or T-ara video. However, if you would fancy a look at K-POP beyond the rutted track of the synchronized dance and the processed tune, I present to you a girls group called "After School", who tap and drum their way to promoting themselves with a slightly unique flavor.

See "After School" Tapping:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6utponLXbo4&ob=av2e

See "After School" Drumming:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMv1W5VnR_g

A Roll of Kimbap

A Free Pass to the Gym


Outdoor gyms are commonplace in South Korea. They provide users with conventional equipment, among them, the Bench Press, Dumbbells, and the Decline Abs machine as well as gadgets that Westerners might be less familiar with: ones that allow you to swing your appendages (arms, hips, etc.) in mysteriously beneficial patterns. I have observed mostly middle-aged, or senior, men and women at these fresh-air gyms, typically located at the bottom, middle and tops of numerous hiking trails.

Seeing that physical activity appears to be highly valued here, it is not surprising that the Korea Times reported in a 2009 article that,

according to a survey conducted between 2006-2008, South Korea had the lowest obesity rate when compared to the other countries that make up the membership of the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development. South Korea was winning with a 3.5% obesity rate, and Japan and Switzerland were not too far off with their, respectively, 3.9% and 7.7% obesity rates. For the sake of comparison, the United States reported their obesity rate as 34.3%. * And, for my fellow Canadians, in 2007, Canada's obesity rate was at 15%.***

Although the aforementioned rates apply to those aged 15 and
older, the OECD claims that every single one of their member countries have seen an increase in both their overweight and obesity rates in both children and adults.** Although I couldn't find any updated statistics in my search, it is obvious that the weight issue in South Korea still pales in comparison to many other countries. Perhaps part of South Korea's secret can be found their outdoor gyms, where it only pays you, the user, to pump a little iron, swivel those hips, and swing some arm.

* The Korea Times article: "S. Koreas Obesity Rate Lowest in OECD": http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/05/113_42993.html

** OECD iLibrary: "Overweight & obesity among children"

http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/health_glance-2009-en/02/04/index.html?contentType=&itemId=/content/chapter/health_glance-2009-22-en&containerItemId=/content/serial/19991312&accessItemIds=/content/book/health_glance-2009-en&mimeType=text/html

***OECD iLibrary: "Overweight & obesity among adults"

http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/health_glance-2009-en/02/07/index.html?contentType=&itemId=/content/chapter/health_glance-2009-22-en&containerItemId=/content/serial/19991312&accessItemIds=/content/book/health_glance-2009-en&mimeType=text/html

A Bite of Kimchi

If you are interested in more information on Kim Jong-Un (the new leader in the North), watch this video from The Young Turks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqe3izSNunw

A Roll of Kimbap

Dirty Dish Delivery

I had to capture this peculiar sight for you -- dirty dishes stacked neatly outside of a walled-in yard. Its the remains of a delivery meal. When you call for delivery in South Korea, you receive your meal in plastic dishes. And, when you are finished eating, you leave your dirty dishes outside for the delivery person to make their rounds again, scooping up the dirty dishes as they go. Brilliant!

"Yummy, Yummy,Yummy, Yummy, Yummy & Good!"

Yes, I can confirm, borrowing the lyrics from a song frequently recited by the children at my school, Korean food is "yummy, yummy, yummy yummy & good" (minus the dish of nerves I tried once). Korean food culture is thriving; 4 months in to my stay here, I was quite tight-in-my-pants, ripe with the results of being treated to regular 3-4 course dinners of blatantly fatty duck, beef, and pig's legs & pig's skin (quite often, the percentage of fat in a piece of meat is equal to, or greater than, the meat part of the meat), free teatime rice-cakes at school, Lotteria (Koreanified McDonalds) experiments with my Western friends, and the bi-weekly pizza/fried chicken days that the teachers have at my school.

During my first week here, I was told that, instead of the English greeting, "How are you?", in Korea, I would consistently be asked: "Bap mogosoyo?" which means: "Did you eat?". I was instructed to reply (disregarding the truth of the matter): "Ne, bap mogosoyo!", which means "Yes, I ate!" I took care to learn the phrase, but havn't had a chance to use it. I can recall being asked the question from my Korean friends in English a handful of times. However, after my frequent encounters with food here, I can still verify that this alleged question and answer routine represents the somewhat obsessive relationship that Koreans have with food.

Given the centrality of food to Korean culture, I will model my blog after a few tasty dishes/meals well-loved by Koreans, and, by me:

- A Roll of Kimbap
- A Hearty BBQ
- A Slice of Radish or Kimchi


The A Roll of Kimbap sections will be quick reads. Kimbap, a rolled-up combination of seaweed, rice, pickled veggies, ham and other optional goodies is served in the orange and yellow buildings housing Kimbap joints across South Korea. You can choose from a variety of combinations to have tucked inside your Kimbap Roll: Pickled Veg & Processed Cheese, Pickled Veg & Kimchi, Kimbap wrapped in Egg, Pickled Veg and Beef, etc. Please enjoy my rolls of Kimbap - a collection of pictures, stories, and the brilliant ideas/methods that I've picked up from South Korea.

A Hearty BBQ will feature a more in-depth look at what it is like to be a South Korean. South Korea is inhabited by a wide variety of meat houses featuring meats like pork, beef, duck, and dog. As the wide selection of meat restaurants matches the tastes of the South Korean populace, I will also present you an ecclectic literary feast of my own interviews and research. My first project is to gather information and willing interviewees on the subject of what a South Korean mother's life is like (I'm aiming to have this posted by the end of Feb 2012). I hope that, as Korean hospitality would dictate, you will leave these posts feeling satiated.

A Slice of Radish or Kimchi: Radish and Kimchi are, respectively, the bright yellow and firey red side dishes supplied with all Korean meals. The Kimchi can be spicy, and may not appeal to foreigners, while the Radish is slightly sweet, and a touch salty; the food I turn to when I need to cool my mouth. Even though they are only a tiny portion of the meal, you are not truly eating Korean-style without them. In this blog, then, I will provide you with a sides: some controversial and intriguing links to compliment my own writing and observations.

This blog is my attempt to regularly serve you a taste of as much of South Korea as you would have. Just as my culinary experience has been in South Korea, I plan to make this blog something savory, memorable, and diverse. Please enjoy and, of course, do let me know how you like it!

Coming Soon...

I will be posting a few tidbits soon, but I plan to have something more substantial up by the end of February. See you then!