Chopstick Tale

The Middle

One of my favourite phenomena you experience when travelling abroad is when you stumble across a fellow Caucasian person and exchange a telling nod, wink or simple look as if to say "Hello. I acknowledge your existence as a fellow white person and realize you are probably immersed in similar struggles while living abroad in a foreign land".  Yeah, you can communicate a lot with one quick glance in the cereal aisle at the local Homeplus.


I've come across that moment quite a few times here in Daegu.  On the one hand, it can be comforting to know you aren't alone and there will always be people to fall back on.  On the other hand, however, there are the unfortunate few that take that moment for granted and jump at every opportunity to complain or gripe about their experiences here.  Clearly, they have been put outside their "comfort zone" by a situation they have encountered or come across a school meal they didn't quite like.... but what did they really expect?

The way I see it, back in the day there was East and West, with clear divisions culturally, linguistically, and of course ethnically.  As the world turns and years go by, these two previously mutually exclusive hemispheres have come closer together creating a cultural Venn diagram.  On one side you have the Western world who think anything foreign to them is either third-world or other-world.  They see it as us and them. Many of the American Army folk that I have encountered thus far still haven't been able to shake this.  On the other side are people of the East that are perfectly content with the state of affairs, who have been doing things the same way for years, who acknowledge the other side but don't see any point of changing for anyone.  This has led them, I think, down a path towards efficiency and prosperity.

In the middle of all of this is a grey area of which I am currently smack-bang in the middle.  I share this space with Western people who are open to exploration, accepting of differences and welcoming to change as well a a bevy of Eastern people inexplicably esteeming to become more Western.  In this gray area you will find Asian teenagers that beg their parents for double eyelid surgery (to make their eyes look bigger) as a present if they do well on their exams, poorly translated t-shirt and slogans, attempts at western foods, and an awesome Spice-Girls-esque fashion sense derived from K-pop. In Korea, the boy band is very much still alive.  Throw into this mix all of the foreign English teachers abroad in Asia and you have a clashing of world where it is hard to tell which side is more fascinated by the quirks of the other.  So where do I stand?  I would like to think I am in the middle, taking it all in and enjoying every moment, watching the pantomime that is taking place, wide-eyed and wondering; what kind of weird shit am I going to see tomorrow?

In other news, soccer started up yesterday and my team the Daegu Devils rose to a 10-1 win over Sparta Busan.  We have a two-day tournament coming up this weekend in Ulsan which should be a good time.  Apparently it is televised on local networks so I will be sure to celebrate in style by dancing with the corner-flag if I score.  I managed to catch up with a lot of the friends I made at EPIK Orientation and get to know the nightlife of Daegu a little bit better.  So far, I like what it has to offer. Especially the casino where Koreans aren't allowed, and all foreigners are given free food and drink all night as well as 10,000 won upon arrival.  Sounds like there a few holes in this business plan but it didn't stop me from capitalizing on the offer while it lasts and allowing them to take 20,000 won from me at the blackjack table.  It's all good in my books

Much Love!
D

Venture

Yesterday I got back to Daegu after a great weekend visiting my friend from home, Tom, who lives in Busan.  It was Korean Thanksgiving, Chuseok, so we had a nice long weekend and an opportunity to explore.  I took the train down on Friday afternoon and met up with some friends for a few quiet drinks at the pub.  We took off early because we had a long day ahead of us travelling by bus to Wolchulsan National Park with Tom's friend Hillary.  It is Korea's smallest national park being only 8km across but it offers some of the best hiking in the country.  Since it was my first hike here I really had nothing to compare it to but it certainly wasn't a cake-walk.  Our transit there took a while given that we hadn't taken intercity buses before and compounded by the fact that everyone was travelling to visit family that day for Chuseok.  Every Korean we spoke to warned us that our travel times would double but it really wasn't that bad and we got in to Yeongam, the closest town to Wolchulsan, at a decent hour and found ourselves a motel for the night.  We hung out in a pagoda playing cards , sipping on beers and attracting the attention of locals curious as to what we were up to.
The next morning we got up early and made it to the trailhead just after 9 am and began what turned out to be  a 6-7 hour hike.  It wasn't raining but it was misty so everything was a little slick calling for extra attention to where our feet were being placed.  The hike was pretty relentless with climbing up and down the steep peaks aided by ropes and steel ladders.  We eventually came to a suspension bridge that was 150m in the air.  While the mist didn't allow for spectacular views, it served as a blessing in disguise as it did keep the air temperature bearable.  It was very eerie being on top of a mountain and not being able to see how high you actually were.

After the hike we made our way back to Busan, exhausted but satisfied that we actually did something with our long weekend.  That sense of accomplishment allowed us to treat ourselves to a day at the beach in Busan.  Why not, right?  The sky was blue , the sun was hot and the beach was empty which was fine by us.  All the more room to toss around the frisbee without knocking the sun-hat off a middle aged lady.

I traveled back to Daegu the next morning on the KTX train which cut my travel time significantly and allowed me to make it back in time for training with the Daegu Devils.  We met at a five-a-side pitch at a university on the other side of the city to me.  We played for over two hours in the sweltering heat which left me with a face like a slapped ass and an aching body in need of some rest.  I trekked home, looking forward to a quiet day today to catch up with everyone from home including my parents, my girlfriend and my two best friends James and Brock on Skype.  It was a cool feeling to come back to Daegu from Busan and already feel like I was coming home, although I've only been here a short time, I've already got that comfortable, easy feeling despite being so far from my actual home.

Much love,
D

Foothold

Hello everyone!

So I have my first week of teaching under my belt and so far it has gone famously.  I'm in the midst of what they call the honeymoon period when I am a local celebrity and everything seems golden.  I'm just waiting for it to finish...  The kids all stare in wonder as I walk down the hall and some manage to squeak a "hello" before giggling with their friends and scurrying away.  I've had some moments when it was hard to hold back laughter especially as they pull on my arm-hair and ask if it's real.  My Grade 6 class had already chosen their English names which I have to refer to them by. Calling out attendance on my first day I got a rude awakening as I came across Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Daisy, Illusion, Lishita, Monkey, Monster, Red Power Ranger and Black Power Ranger among others.  Each was greeted with a roar of laughter from both myself and the classmates.  This went against my intention to not smile for a week as we had been instructed during training.  All in all though, I'm enjoying being in the classroom.

Since my last post I've managed to settle in to my new place and get to know the city a bit more.  Daegu has been alive since we got here due to the IAAF Track and Field Championships at the Daegu Stadium.  I managed to catch a full day of events with some Canadian friends, decked out in red and white.  I couldn't turn down the opportunity to see Ussain Bolt run the 100m dash and Oscar Pistorius run a qualifying heat for the 400m.  Unfortunately Ussain Bolt false-started in the final which meant he got disqualified automatically.  A wholehearted sigh that crossed every language barrier heaved through the stadium as he ripped off his shirt and stalked about in a huff.  I have to say, I was really disappointed but at least I got to see his qualifying heat a few hours prior.  Watching Oscar Pistorius run was really special.  All eyes in the stadium were on him and his metal leg attachments following a double amputation.  The struggles that he has had to go through his whole life as well as the obstacles he has overcome in the face of doubters and detractors in the athletics world really showed as he powered his way to a second place finish in his heat.  It was cool to watch history happen and I can't wait to see him at the London Olympics in 2012.

I've also managed to get to the downtown area a few times to be surrounded by the neon glow of the signs, the smells of countless restaurants and the thump of music emanating from all the clubs.  This city never seems to sleep.  Whether it is enjoying a drink in a bag (the name speaks for itself), and sharing a bulgogi bbq dinner with some other EPIK teachers, I've really enjoyed getting out there and discovering more of what the city has to offer.  Through a contact I made during Orientation, I looked up a local soccer team, The Daegu Devils, and managed to nail down a tryout.  The team is in a foreigners league and the core of the team has been together for quite a few years.  They said that they were impressed with the new talent coming in and were looking forward to the upcoming nation-wide tournament.  They also iterated at the end of the training session that they were more than just a team on the pitch but that they all hung out on a regular basis.  They seem like a great group of guys from Ireland, England, USA and Canada which I am looking forward to being a part of.  There are even a few people from Halifax of all places so it will be good to have a Maritime presence!

This upcoming weekend is the Chuseok Holiday which is the equivalent of Thanksgiving.  I have 5 days off! I'm planning on heading down to Busan to meet up with my friend Tom, from Carleton who is going to show me around hopefully and then venture to Wolchulsan National Park where there's great hiking, a waterfall, and apparently some hot springs. Say no more!  We just have to figure out how to get there but that's all part of the adventure.

Until next time!
D