Trip to Korea

There's no measuring how relieving it was to touch down in Korea again. Even being on the plane (where services were provided in English, Japanese, and Korean) was comfortable in comparison to a world without any linguistic understanding. Airports are probably the most stressful places in the world, especially with all the extra hoops to jump through these days, but I was so 시원해 just to be back in what really has come to feel like home for me. If it felt like that in an airport, don't get me started on how exciting it was to be back in my neighborhood and then finally in my actual room. It's incredible that we humans become so attached to location, scenery, familiarity, and security when we think of that as so animal. Well just one week away taught me that it's an instinct we still haven't really shaken.

The majority of my week in Korea with David was in fact just a 7 day compression of the 6 months I've already spent here. Personally I didn't do but a few things that I hadn't already done yet, but it was a learning experience to do these things for a second time nonetheless. Of course the primary focus of our cultural exploration of Korea was food culture. When we weren't having meals, we were having snacks. David and I ate 4 or 5 times a day just to pack in all the innumerable different dishes that one needs to experience to understand the full "palette" (ㅋㅋㅋ) of the colorful Korean culinary canvas. (BAM! OUT ALLITERATE THAT!!!)
불고기
제육덥밥
떡볶이
라볶이
떡만두국
비빔밥
삼겹살
보신탕
김치찌개
돼장찌개
해물파전
김밥
닭갈비
순두부
LA갈비
산낙지
두유
꿀물
밀키스
식혜
누룽지
to name what I can remember for those of you that care.

I had for the first time since I've been here the much anticipated dog stew. I must say, not too shabby. First, I asked a Korean friend to search for a decent restaurant (since quality of dog preparation can vary dramatically...). Once we knew a name and general area, David and I headed out. Of course, by the look of the restaurant it wasn't really a restaurant at all. There were no other lit buildings on the alley where the sign was, nor was there really nothing recognizable in the area besides a parking garage. We went down a half flight of stairs into a quasi-basement dark and dingy restaurant that serves dog. Sketch? Oh yeah. I was starting to think it was a mistake, especially given that everyone in the restaurant looked at David and I as though we were school girls in a porn store. Not to say that they shouldn't have, because we definitely didn't match the characteristics of the clientele. Every single person in that restaurant was a middle aged Korean man. No exception. (Later I learned that dog stew is thought to give men some sort of sexual power)

After we were seated, I looked at the menu and found nothing named dog-anything. I began to suspect we must be in the wrong restaurant. For this reading of Steven and David in the supposed dog restaurant, the part of the waitress will be read by Joan Cusack, the part of Steven will be read by Bill Murray, and the part of David will be read by Silent Bob.

Waitress points to an adjacent table, assuming that Steven and David can not read the menu.
Waitress: "Would you like what they're eating?"
Steven: "What is it?"
Waitress: "Stew."
Steven: "What kind of stew?"
Waitress: "...Meat stew."
Steven (insistently): "What kind of meat???"
Waitress (under breath, noticeably reluctant): "그~~~um...dog meat."
Steven: "That's what I want!"

Clearly, they did not expect us to enjoy eating dog one bit. As skeptical looking as the restaurant first appeared, it was in fact very high quality meat (hence every other table full of middle aged men). I don't think that dog meat was any better than any other meat could have been, but since the restaurant was high quality any meat they served would have been just as good. Ultimately, it was very reminiscent of a rump roast or other stew style beef. Slightly fatty, very tender and striated.


Another new event for me was going to the top of NamSan tower, a tower placed on top of a mountain and over looking the entirety of Seoul. As per suggestion, we went up at night to get the full effect of the all the lit buildings and bridges and their reflections in the Han river. Unfortunately, our timing could not have been any worse. Paying no attention to the actual date, I foolishly overlooked the fact that it was in fact Valentine's day. As intolerable as Korean couples are on any other day of the year, it was ten times worse to be crammed in between all of them on a sky lift to the tower. While the lovers stared at the mesmerizing lights, David and I snapped a few pictures and quickly made our escape.


A last interesting event that I hadn't yet experienced was during our trip to Pusan. I had learned before about a series of islets at the mouth of the bay to Pusan harbor, named in Korean the "five or six islands." If this strikes anyone else as stupid at first glance you are not alone. I could look out and clearly count the five islands from anywhere in the city, but it seemed as if the whole of Pusan was as of yet unsure as to the number. It was only later when we took a ferry out to the islands and back that we learned one of the five islands splits into two at high tide, thus justifying the name five or six. Intriguing. Not to mention the ferry ride happened to coincide almost perfectly with sunset, affording some excellent shots back into the city.

Overall, Korea rules and Japan smells. 대한민국!!!!(짝짝~짝짝~짝)