A Disclaimer

This blog will hopefully be an interesting and relatively witty account of my time in Korea. If this turns out to be false, please don't read it, and accept my apologies.



Also, I have lived here for 8 months, so I don't have all the amazing 'I've-just-got-here-wow-look-at- that' stories. But I saw a woman walking down a street with a dog on her head. Stood up. On her head. These kind of stories I will share.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Reversed Awakening

****DISCLAIMER. *****

This is not me writing, but a friend of mine who wanted to improve the quality of the blog. I tried to talk him out of it, asserting that I was happy with the poor standard, but he was persistent.
It's actually quite clever, as I don't actually have to write anymore.

Plus, it's quite darn good.


So here it is. Drum roll please for the first guest writer............






An.nyong.ha.shim.ni.kka? This is not Dave writing, but a guy who sees the world about 12 inches south of your normal writer. My name is Lex. Hailing from America and living in Iksan for about 18 months.



I was telling Big D last night that I wanted to write something for his blog, probably for the sole reason that it gives me something to do other than inspect and chase down where the moldy food smell is coming from in my room. I preceded to tell him the following story, and he agreed to turn it over to you netizens via D’s blogsite.



I spend most nights in my chair; hit the tunes, watch tv, studying various things. And Tuesday was no exception. Still drained all over from a weekend vacation and heavy soccer and MMA training, I decided my night would end with a few shots of Soju and I’d hit bed. As planned, I was in bed quite early, proud of myself and looking forward to an easy Wednesday!



Fast forward to Wednesday morning at 9:30am. My eyes open to the alarm and the room is spinning. Now stop! Imagine this scenario so you can understand where I am. You walk into your house, put the keys on your little key holder, you mechanically toss you phone on the counter and you reach into the fridge to grab a lil snack before dinner. As you are munching you head towards the bathroom, open the door and flick on the lights BAM! On the other side of that door is no longer your bathroom. You are somewhere in France, with a bag of squid in your hand. You know this feeling because you have been to France before, but the sun is unusually bright for this time of year. You are in a field, but there are empty boats sitting in a meadow and you know they don’t belong there. You question where you are. There are six bees in your ear, three in each just buzzing away like they were performing for a crowd, yet your hands are so heavy you can’t swat them away. You just moan. Long and loud (that’s what she said). Now keep that weird feeling, and change the elements.


You aren’t in France, you are naked in your bedroom yet you never sleep naked. That’s not squid in your hands, it’s an empty bottle of BBQ sauce. The sun, bedroom lights. The boats, empty soju bottles decorating your room like balls on a Christmas tree. The alarm clock, which already shows you woke up two hours late, is ringing with no intentions of stoppingMaybe it was confusion, the soju, just the AM in general, but I just sat there looking around the room. I had just been hit blindside. I went to bed sober, and woke up drunk. It didn’t matter, because when you are two hours late you just scrub your poophole, (What the!?-Ed) brush your teeth, wear anything that is clean-ish and jet to work.


I spent the whole day trying to understand what happened to me. I started learning a few things. I remembered there was an apple core and tons of egg shells in the sink, empty soju bottles, a plate that had salad on it at one point, and all my chicken was missing from my fridge. I thought someone would text me later saying they had fun. Maybe I just didn’t remember waking up and got so quick that I blacked out before waking up. But no messages, no emails, no phone calls.


If you don’t know what soju is, it’s a traditional Korean alcohol made from potatoes. This stuff sneaks up on you, similar to jell-o shots or maybe a wet stain in your pants when you thought you were pushing a dry ‘fluff’. Normally people are in a bar, and don’t leave soon enough before it sneaks in for the power punch and leaves them sleeping beside their friends at the bar. But this is ridiculous. Cousin to the Sock Monster that sneaks into your apartment and takes that one sock, the Soju Monster hit a game winner sometime between 10pm Tuesday and Wednesday two hours after I should have awoken…. Needles to say, I have changed the locks on my front door.





'Go on then, I'll stay for a couple.'


Tuesday, September 7, 2010

A Jisan Music review. Kind of. PLUS -16 Things I Learnt in August.

Alright me old muckers

This will be the first blog in a while, apologies for that. As a special treat, this one will be short, with no pictures! This special, no picture blog is due to a 'what happens in Jisan stays in Jisan' rule which came into force immediately after the festival, and was passed by the majority of Jisan attendies.

Plus, my Mother wouldn't approve.;)

A Jisan Music Review, kind of.

With my tennis rackets, tambourines, and various inflatables packed, (including a blow up Dolphin named Desmond) I trudge off to the bus station. On the way the taxi driver turned to me and said, 'you have a very beautiful face.' I knew right then it was going to be a great weekend. 'You too fine sir!'

I got a bus to Icheon, where I waited for the rest of my gang. 2 of them nearly went to Incheon, but I talked them out of it. From my experience, there's very little need to ever go to Incheon, I went once for a couple of hours, then went back to Seoul, wondering if I'd ever get that time back. It hasn't even got a train station, even Iksan has one of them!


So, we arrive on the Thursday night, and there's no queues! As a UK festival goer I'm used to big queues that don't move for no reason. The last one lasted approximatley 3 hours. In fact I'm so used to them I look forward to them! (Thought process: 'right, I've got my tent, sleeping bag, now then, what should I take for the queue? The Complete works of John Milton perhaps? But will that be enough? Maybe the latest Stephanie Meyer book? This could also double as toilet paper.' But will that be enough toilet paper, etc.')

Despite us been on of the very few people to arrive on Thursday, our arrival seemed to cause great surprise and confusion, even though we could be seen walking down the hill for about a mile. Massive panic ensued, and it took about 15 minutes and about 8 people to find our tickets. At this point I got all teary eyed about the 'Leeds experience.'

Then, without warning, they were found. And we walked towards the campsite.

On our way in we were asked, 'Excuse me, have you got any bottles, knifes, alcohol?'

'Nope.'

'Enjoy the festival!'

'We will! (wink)

That's one of the great things about Korea. They HAVE to ask, but, ya know,......

Where was the suspicious rummage through the bag? That inevitable moment when they pull the bottle of the certain glass liquor you just told him you didn't have. Then the embarrassment as you search the ground for empty water bottles and attempt to decant as much as you can before you give in and hand the remainder over to the guy who by this point is sharing a joke about your misfortune with another, bigger, possibly stupider accomplice.

However, if and when you do get in, it is worth turning round, pick the biggest hippy in the crowd, and watch him sweat as he gets closer to the search area...........None of that in Korea though. You'll die if you get caught. Maybe. Or something else slightly less horrific. Maybe they send you to Leeds Festival every year for the rest of your life. Sweet Jesus.

Anyway, we walked in and I picked up my rented tent. Yes, you can rent a tent, and give it back at the end. Possibly, this was to counter Koreas out of control tent burning at previous festivals, but I very much doubt it. I remember waking up on the last morning of Leeds festival 2004 and I thought I'd walked into some apocalyptic nightmare, fires, helicopters circling, toilets expoding, fireworks, naked people fighting, police, naked police, tents burning, and the SMELL from it all.

I remember people would burn tents for no apparent reason, and I'm afraid to admit I was an accomplice to a tent burning incident in my youth. It was our tent though, I'm not a twat! And it was broken. I'm not wastful. And I kept my clothes on. Sensible.

It's strange what Leeds does to people though. That's Leeds for you I suppose; tent burning heathens. Perhaps the citizens of Leeds burn the tents reaction to the fact that it was different to their normal dwelling of a cave. OK OK, it's all relative. Middlesbrough havent got caves yet!

Where was I. Right, so the only tents available were 4-man (or 5 ladies) tents. Which was a relief, as I was unsure where I was going to put 4 women AND Desmond; my aquaintence, friend, and soon to be midnight lover...........

Right, I don't have the time or desire to ramble on about the entire festival. Safe to say, it was awesome!

Instead, here is a condensed list of what I learnt in the month of August.

16 Things I learnt in August


  1. When camping at a festival, it is not necessary to sleep in a tent, when there is a perfectly acceptable rest area conveniently located next to the bar.

  2. Saying 'stronger please' to the bar lady before you've tried your drink is not always a good idea.

  3. Ruth can dance to the Pet Shop Boys 'Go West' better than anyone alive.

  4. Koreans jump at music festivals to every kind of music. There are no exceptions.

  5. Kula Shaker are not shit!

  6. I like Knights of Cydonia WAAAYY too much.

  7. Dancing in the sand to electronic music can cause the speakers to catch on fire.

  8. Crashing other peoples birthday parties is easier and more fun than it sounds.

  9. Finding out your friend has a 512MB SD card is hilarious!

  10. Dropping your camera in a puddle is not.

  11. I realized that if I was anything, I would be Buddhist.

  12. Singing in a Naraebang is usually a good time. Listening to a friend power through 'Everything I do' by Bryan Adams is not.

  13. Clapping your hands in a taxi whilst trying to sing a Korean birthday song with your friends on the way to a bar does make you forget about how dangerous the driving is.

  14. When the driver starts clapping, you remember very quickly.

  15. 'Hey babe' sounds similar to 'hey Dave' when spoken by Americans.

  16. The answer to that puzzling question, do bears shit in the woods? (They DO!)

Im ganning fa a nap liek pet. See yas laterz! Ma next 'un will be liek mor aboot korean n that, justa bin keenda busy n that liek pal.
x

Friday, July 23, 2010

Wonderful Korea, Breastfeeding, and Thierry Henry.

Salam!


I turned up at school yesterday to men in white suits walking around. I thought for a minute they had finally caught up with me. Luckily, they were just doing an incredible amount of painting. It was the last day of school, so afternoon classes were cancelled and then we went hiking. It's well over 30C. Unbelievably difficult to walk up a mountain in this weather. I was with a group of middle aged Korean men, so I felt as though backing down would be seen as some sort of abject failure as a man. So I stayed, and we climbed!




Afterwards, all the teachers, (about 150) ate and drank and sang at a Noraebang that was set up outside. I managed to avoid singing, although one teacher was convinced that me singing Candle in the Wind would make the whole event more enjoyable. In my avoidance of the stage I did attract the attention of some middle aged Korean women who took a liking to me. 'Cutey boy.' Apparently. There was also a teacher who speeeksh englishh verish wells. I could'mt believe how great his english was, although bizarrely he's picked up a strong Dutch accent along the way, so I had to try my very best not to laugh in his face! 'Iss reallys wantsh to be friendsh wish you. OK?' It always amazes me how many teachers only speak English when they have been drinking, and then theres nothing at school, until the next time everyone meets up. Good and bad I suppose. Overall I had a fantastic time, I met lots of new great people and I'm reminded that this is why I like Korea.


(other great Korean experience; bumped into one of my teachers at the supermarket, he was buying ice-cream and looked a little worse for wear. We walked home together and he was making very sure I wasn't hit by a car; arm around me at all times, almost throwing me into the bushes when he thought a car was near. Then he held my hand, before we parted ways. I saw him at school the next day, and he acted like nothing happened! Loving Korea at the moment! )

In 10 days I have Sean and Laura over for 2 weeks of Korean Experience. I just hope the Dog restaurant is open when they arrve, the traditional way to introduce people to Korea. If the rumours are to be believed, it enhances the sex drive. So I may well have 2 jet-lagged, tipsy, horny people to take care of, which I can't say I'm looking forward to. Anyway, 10 days guys, it's going to be emmense. Just don't forget my Colgate toothpaste.



The co-author of Korean Capers complained the other week, saying I wasn't making enough references to North Korea and Kim Jong Il. For those of you who are unfamiliar with him, here's a picture of him relaxing at home. (Caption suggestions welcome) The thing is, I'm starting to doubt some of the stories. 'Kim Jong Il is the only person in the world that can play all of Mozart's compositions with the harmonica while standing on top of a mountain breastfeeding a duck in 30 seconds.' Humourous? Possibly. Accurate? Highly unlikely. Andy, I'll release a little known fact about Mr Kim every time you publish a blog post. Anything will do, even some banal tale about buying a fan, or eating spicy food and getting the trots, or strange Korean women licking your fingers in bars on Saturday nigh....oh, wait a minute, that was me. Cycling stories though. We want more of them.





In other news, Thierry Henry reitred, sorry- moved to the MLS. Heres an American chatshow interviewing him. Very thoughtful. It starts really well. 'So, OK, so, you've just won the world cup, right?' and, 'where are you originally from?' Fantastic interview, I wonder if he regrets it yet. Actually, I'm not that bothered! Bye Tierry!
http://www.majorleaguesoccertalk.com/is-this-the-worst-soccer-interview-ever/9890




Assalaam-O-Alaikum to you all!

x

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

England you are a complete disappointment. Cheers!


'England fans! Don't be disappointed about all those unused St George flags, simply paint the red cross white and sell it to the French to use.'
Ah, how jokes get old fast.
One thing I will say is that the World Cup has reminded me of how overwhelmingly dull our national anthem is. No wonder Gary Neville never sung it.......




Ours is about 300 years old, sounds like a nursery rhyme, and reminds everyone how we should pray to God to save the Queen. It's 2010. Two people I feel I couldn't have less in common with. Neither, it seems, does Scotland. Not a God or a Queen to be heard in theirs. Although plenty of anti-English rhetoric. Around 1996 they decided to use the Flower of Scotland as their unofficial anthem. (yes, as bizarre as it seems, god save the queen is shared by everyone.) Well, not everyone, anymore......On that note, a big happy independence day to all you Americans out there.....Your welcome!

A simple idea to help make the World Cup more enjoyable for English people.
Decrease the quality of refereeing.
It's simple, and, as Capellos bulging package (wage package, you dirty buggars) will attest, much cheaper. All you need to do is reduce the amount of referee training; in 5 years you would be able to save money AND see a noticeable drop in footballing standards. This would also be a great time to begin and reduce referees pay. Then we will have a level of refereeing similar to that in South American countries. Unfair? How very dare you!
Take this example; the (Brazilian) referee for the England v USA game was suspended in the Brazilian league for, as Flemengo eloquently argued; an 'unambiguously inconsistent, unfair and inequitable technical performance.'

Not to be outdone, the Palmerias chairman piped up, calling him a
'a crook, a scoundrel and a shameless bastard.'

And he was the referee that Brazils FA picked to officiate at the World Cup. He was their NUMBER 1 man! If England are going to be outplayed in tournaments for the foreseeable future, the least we can do is make it a bit more exciting by sending an incompetent, possibly corrupt, refereeing team. This would mean we could cheer on 'the boys' well into the semis, and possibly even the final.

Man it's been a funny one at work. Had the students making World Cup Posters;
So, what's your team name?
'Blackmans'.
'Excuse me?'
'Blackmans.'
Erm, you can't have that.'
'But I like them.'
'I'm glad you do, but you have to change it.'
'Oh, Ok.'
They had to write English on the poster. Heres what we got.....
Height: 189cm
Age :29
Position: Defender
'He played Bridge wife very bad boy.'

And Joseph Yobo?


We got this.
Is that racist? I recall Sarah Palin refering to the country of Africa. Is that racist? Or just naive and innocent? Thing is, Palin wasn't, and to my knowledge, still isn't, a Korean high school boy.

I think I might have to do a lesson on the different races and countries in the world. Could be fun, will definitely be an eye opener! Sarah, your invited to my School in South Korea (Asia).
In other amazing news, I got Air Conditioning! Unannounced, obviously. My mentor teacher, who is a HERO, took a phone call, turned to me and said, 'You will get air con today. Lets go to your apartment now.' He was slightly concerned about the state of my apartment, too many water bottles being his chief concern. However, despite all the bottles, it was successfully installed, and I am now enjoying sleep at a reasonable temperature.



I bought a new camera, so I will really try and get some new snaps up soon. As soon as I see anything that interests me. We'll get the ball rolling with this sticker on the back of a car. Can't work out what it means really.



It says



'At the celestial body is personified god, at dawn he rises up across the sky from the Eastern Ocean, the Oceanus to the Western. In the night he sinks under the Western, crosses the ocean by golden boat, and turns back flow of the ocean to the East. He goes around the sky, and is known to the witness of pledge and oath as being able to observe everything of the world.'

For those Marvel fans with a keen eye, yes, the sign below is indeed the top of the Spiderman logo. Is the text describing Spiderman, or is it some religious thing? I genuinely have no idea. It could be a Korean Christian thing........Arrrggghh!!!! (PLENTY more on them next time)

Catch you crazy kids next week!
x

Friday, June 18, 2010

Football, Sexy Ladies and Hairdoos. A mans blog.

Greetings comrades!

Right then, lets get the world cup out of the way..........

Congratulations on Englands 0-0 against the great footballing nation of Algeria. And the 1-1 defeat against the U S of A. Bloody useless, the lot of them! Thankfully, as an Englishman, I crave disappointment so in a way I'm content However, my week at school was frustrating, 'teacher, Rob Green, very very stupid', and demanding they see the 'highlights'.


That's right (Ex) England goalkeeper Rob Green, there's South Korean children laughing at you, my ball catching-challenged friend.


However, there was some payback on Friday when I showed the defeat against Argentina. That 4th goal really quietened them down, and I recommend all teachers in Korea to show it to noisy classes.


I watched that game in a park, and the atmosphere was amazing! An incredible turnout, and lots of fun. To top it off at full time there were fireworks at the end and we all cheered, although I'm not entirely sure why.

Kim Jong Il's boy narrowly lost to Brazil. Made better by Jong Tae Se crying like a baby before the game. Not sure why, as he was born in Japan to South Korean parents, but there you go. Maybe he realised that to play for North Korea you have to live in North Korea. (Update; he actually lives and plays in Japan.) One of an elite group of people with a envied North Korean passport. I mean, with that you can go pretty much everywhere!


The North also shipped over some cheerleaders for the event, which was, erm, different.



I might send Kim Jong Il an email suggesting he should change his nickname from 'the peoples Wayne Rooney' name to, like, someone decent. I recommend Torres or either of the Slovenia strikers. He probably gets a lot of emails, given his popularity, but he is an internet expert after all, so it should be no problem.



It appears the South Korean President commented on my last blog, insinuating Mr Kim enjoyed gazing at pornography in his free time. Thank you for you post Mr Bak. However, as an (incredibly) unofficial spokesperson for North Korea, I would like to state for the record that Mr Kim takes no satisfaction from watching a ridiculous amount of pornography, it is research for his next book entitled 'Porno; I watch it, you can't. Deal with THAT peasants'. It's not available yet, but in my role as unofficial spokesperson I am obliged/forced to assure you that the first draft is 'incredible', and 'contains lots of anti-American sentiments'.






As a disclaimer, as my new role as 'Very Unofficial Ammbasador of North Korea' grows, this blog will be sprinkled with pro North Korean comments. My aim?: to get one of these nice little badges.







There was a BBC documentary the other week on the the Glorious Democratic Peoples Amazing Republic Awesome Korea, and a fantastic moment when a worker is explaining how the country is completely self-sufficient, and a tractor with an EU sign pulls up. Sad yet funny. Made funnier with him trying to stand in the way of the flag and getting the driver to 'fuck right off' (the Korean is still a bit patchy), before admitting they had 'some problems' in the past. Understatement doesn't even begin to describe it. (Up to 800,000 died of famine in the 1990s.)


Quite shocking. (Although in my new role I feel obliged to point out that the tractor in question was in fact part of last weeks 'paint a flag on a tractor' competition, in which it finished 2nd. The worker drew the correct number of stars, and was rewarded with an a day-pass to Euro Disney and a large glass of milk.)


On a happier note, I've had a haircut. So thank you to Ruth for that. I'm sat in a flat full of hair, but I'll deal with that later. Also, thanks for hacking my account. Someone said I'd been 'face-raped', which is a new term to me. And quite unsavoury one at that. Kids these days with their face-raping!


Anyway, they have a wonderful blog I recommend you read ( http://koreancapers.wordpress.com/ )which unlike mine, is very well written, although I will warn you sometimes her boyfriend writes on it so the quality fluctuates. It's good in that it actually talks about their experiences in Korea, rather than defending Kim Jong Il's alleged pornography addiction, but I will warn you; there's a lot less swearing. I read it and actually had to add in my own swearwords. For me, it reads a lot cock smoother.



So, what else, I made a band called the Willy Wooden Dilcocks. All members have to have phallus-related surname. There's someone called Frick, so she's a possible addition, although it probably has to go to a democratic (Peoples Republic of Korea) vote. I think she's got a foot in. For those of you who don't know, we are a folk band that does Weezer covers with a female singer. Watch out PLANET EARTH!

In other news my school declined my request for air conditioning.


There's my answer to THE most popular question for the summer...


'how are you?'


'Hot. as. Fuck. '
(Sean and Laura, I'm not giving up on it, I'll get something sorted.) One of my teachers suggested I could 'maybe open the window', so I could always try that.........


Finally, last week one of the English teachers, to preserve his anonymity we'll call him Mr Park, told me there was a sex education class. Oh, so....my class is cancelled then?.....



It was mandatory, for all the teachers.

'Will it be in Korean?'

'Yes.'

'I can't speak Korean.'


'I know. It's mandatory.'


'That's ridiculous, I've had sex like 6 times.'


OK, Ok, the last bit I made up. Turns out it wasn't as mandatory as they thought it was, and as a treat I taught an extra class. But man I would have LOVED to have gone. I had lots, and I mean LOTS of questions after, but they were a bit reluctant to tell me. I could only think it was because they picked up awesome tips.


Wouldn't happen in the North, that's all I'm gonna say...........

Thursday, June 3, 2010

How much is that doggy in the basket?

Greetings good people!

Horticultural update: the 2 plants are alive and well. The third is still 'resting' underground.


These are my kids, there is a paternity dispute over one on the right, as I didn't technically buy it, but I've looked after it (albeit not very well)ever since. I know it's dead, but it's mine!

Also, the tall leafy one ( a Lily?) was lovely like 2 weeks ago, but did I remember to take a picture then? Did I fuck, is the answer. I'll give that one about 2 weeks.


Right, who died this week. I might do a weekly 'who's dead' section, depending on who dies, of course. It seem that people are dropping like flies at the moment. Take note Rolf Harris, you won't live forever, despite your outstanding version of Stairway to Heaven.

The definitive version there for your enjoyment.

So he's a re-cap of some of the newly dead;
  1. That small American actor, you don't know his name but you'll recognise his face. Cause of death? Awesomeness.

  2. Slipknots bassist. (still) Cause of death? Anonymity.

  3. Dennis Hopper. Was he in Easy Rider? I've never seen it. Probably should.

4. Liverpool FC. Technically not dead yet, but there's no sign of life.

More positively, it was a great week at school! No-one died, the students were great, and the World Cup begins in a week so everyone's getting very excited about it. I might have to change my sleeping schedule to accommodate all the matches, but it'll be great fun. This week I taught the kids about Wayne Rooney's head resembling that of a potato. I actually started this last week, they didn't get it at first, so I showed them a picture of Rooney..... Everyone was excited. I showed them a picture of a potato. Not so excited. Showed them the picture of Rooney AND a potato, said 'same'. Immediate success. So successful that the students came in the week after saying, 'Wayne Rooney, 'Mr Potato Head'. In English. It's great to think that they will be 500 kids in Korea cheering on the potato-headed one next month.

I was planning on cheering on good ole' North Korea. They are in a group with Brazil and Portugal after all, so they need all the support they can get. However, due to their recent naughtiness, I have formally withdrawn my support. I hope Brazil beat them 7-0 just to hear Jong Il blame 'America and the puppet government in the South.' Again. I wonder if anyone in North Korea will actually be able to watch it.* I don't imagine Sky has a foothold in there yet, and I'm not sure how widespread the broadband is. Although, some people must have it. In fact, The Dear Leader describes himself as an 'internet expert'. Whatever that means.


*just about to post the blog and I found out that South Korea were going to show the Norths games as a good will gesture. That would be until they sunk the ship. I make that 1-1 between the 2 then.


It was election time in Korea, which has thankfully passed. Number 2 won, in case you were wondering. He was always the favourite, and had my full support. Korean elections are similar to elections throughout the world in that hundreds of middle aged women line the streets and dance to passing motorists. Also present were speaker systems pumping out different songs for each of them to dance to. Sometimes you had 4 sets of ladies at a junction, dancing at the passing traffic, with a big picture of the man (all men) they supported. I'm pleased to report that the best dancers won, and I managed to get a cheeky picture of them as I was whizzing past on a bus.



I was at a traditional market and I saw some dogs for sale. Normally I would assume they are for pets, but now I'm not sure. I've have lived in Korea long enough to not see dogs purely as potential pets, but also as meat for a soup. Sometimes I catch myself checking out the dogs, and I have to stop myself. Anyway, these guys were way too small for a man my size, although I was tempted to buy this one. As a pet, obviously. It was only £10!




If dogs not your thing, there's also an excellent fish market, and lots of it is still alive! There's also a man with a bag of live frogs, he takes a frog out of the bag, whacks it over the head, cuts it open, guts and skins it. All in about 30 seconds. Whilst smoking. I'll try and get a video of it up next time. The man is skilled! He throws the 'good bit' in a bucket and the legs are still twitching. I feel sorry for the frogs in the bag watching their friends meet an untimely demise. But I suppose it's fine, they are only frogs after all! I never knew Koreans ate frogs, I shall have to try some sometime.

Now go on, off you go and enjoy your weekends!


x

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Korea Mourns.......

I had a long weekend (Happy Birthday Buddha!) so I've been out and about Jeonbuk. On Thursday I went to the University in Iksan for a festival, if felt as if there were hundreds of stalls selling beer and food. A fantastic atmosphere, although we didn't stay all night, some of the people I was with had to leave early; 'I have diarrhoea!'


On Friday I went to Jeonju for a music festival. There were unsigned bands from Seoul, the final 2 are worth a mention. Kingston Rudiska are a Korean ska band fronted by a very cute boy, I am told. Not much of a Ska fan as a rule, but it was brilliant. Get Yr Skates On better watch out when I'm back in the UK! The last band were a reggae /dub band with a Korean woman in traditional dress singing Korean folk songs. Yes, I was sceptical too, but it was fantastic! As you can see, the venue was also fantastic.



So, turns out North Korea sunk that ship after all. Not the biggest surprise in the world. I'd have been more surprised if it just sank, as some of the newspapers suggested at the time. It turns out my theory that it didn't just sink because ships don't just sink turned out to be accurate. To my knowledge, they try really hard to design them so they stay afloat, to prevent any kind of sinking issues. It's just a little frustrating that both sides responded by whipping their cocks out in a show of masculinity (an argument for more women in politics?)and beating their chests Tarzan style, but after they get tired they'll zip the old boys back in, put a shirt on and start talking.



The thing is, it's probably quite difficult to talk to a leader who told people he shot 11 holes in 1 the first time he ever played golf. (Thats 36 under par, for you golfers out there.) Not bad for a first time. Or when the South found tunnels that North Korea were digging underneath the country, he insisted that the North was looking for coal. Whats even more amazing/ridiculous is that before they left they painted the tunnel black! 100% true, I've seen the paint! What I would have given to be in that room where the brains of the country met to discuss tactics.

'Erm, so, like, they caught us digging the tunnels.'

'Shit.'

'What shall we do?'

'Have we got any black paint around?'

'I'll get my brush.'






In bigger news, Korea was rocked (sorry!) this week by the news of Dio's untimely passing, causing shops up and down the country to hastily erect homemade DIO placards above shop windows. I'm constructing a life-size Dio made of cardboard to take to school as my assistant for the week in remembrance. On a personal note, I'm disappointed as it scuppers any chance of that Rainbow reunion I've been after. Dio, Korea loves you! You will be greatly missed. Well, a little bit missed. Maybe. Who is he again?



Oh, and my flushing tactic I employed on the plants seems to have worked. I'm delighted to report 2 out of the 3 plants are alive, and while I wouldn't say they look healthy, they are hanging in there. The other one faded pretty quickly, it had been mistreated quite badly over a number of weeks; the

food poisoning was the final nail in the coffin, but it was on the cards. But, as Meatloaf once mused, 2 out of 3 ain't bad!

That's 2 rockstars I've managed to squeeze into the blog. I've actually just found out the Slipkont bassist has died, and am tempted to write about himbut I'm going to refrain. First, he wasn't popular in the 80's, and secondly because he wasn't very good. I doubt no-one even knows his name, eternally known as 'Slipknots bassist'. .....



It's all quiet on the Pickle front, so I'll love you and leave you with a students review of Bad Boys 2



........In the end, the guys bastards die.

x