Monday, March 31, 2008

Welcome to Blogtown

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve communicated with people. Sorry, I guess. I started this blog to motivate me toward at least write down the experiences I am having. Somehow public journaling seems easier and less intimidating than writing an email to family and friends every week. So, I will try my best to keep this up-to-date with all the amazing things I am seeing and doing here in Korea.

Where to begin? If memory serves, the only sign that I am alive came from an email I wrote the first day I was in Korea. That was about a month ago, and I’ve experienced so much since then that it would be stupid to try to write about it all. Instead, for this first post I think I will just talk about the general impressions I have of Korea, and maybe highlight some experiences that have shaped those impressions. Hell, it might even motivate me to go out and do more stuff, just so I have something to write about.

The Food

I think food is as good a place as any to start this thing. A man’s gotta eat, right? During my first full day here at Ewha, I met up with some other international students and went to a restaurant called “Bab.” I didn’t really know what to expect. My Korean friends from home actually tried their best to prepare me for the food here, but who knows how good a job they really did? Looking over the menu, my eyes immediately found bulgogi, an awesome marinated beef dish usually served with rice. Back home, this had always been my friend Min Taek’s favorite meal to cook, so my expectations were high. I mean, if he could create something so delicious from the ingredients available in the US, how must that same food taste in its native country? It turns out that Taek is actually a pretty good cook. I can honestly say that the bulgogi I tried here was very similar to what had been prepared for me back home.

What I wasn’t prepared for though, were the side dishes. Good lord, the side dishes. I ordered my meal expecting to get a nice plate of meat, and maybe some rice on the side. In fact, our table was soon covered with a dizzying array of vegetables, fish, and other things that I can’t even classify. I looked around for some familiar sights. Kimchi? Yeah, I love this stuff. Weird, crunchy tadpole-looking things? I think I’ve tried these before. These other foods? I have no idea, but I’m going to fucking eat them all. It was an all-around good culinary experience, and it did a great job of preparing me for the Korean way of eating -- order what looks like a small meal, and be prepared for a feast. I think the only times I’ve left the dinner table hungry have been at the cafeteria here on campus. And really, does that need any more explanation? It’s a cafeteria.

I guess this would also be a good place to talk about the Korean style of eating. Sometimes, you will order a meal and get your own plate of food, as well as some side dishes that are shared with your fellow feasters. Far more common though, is to order either one big meal, or several individual meals, and share them amongst everyone at the table. I think a lot of Americans would be put off by this style of eating. To those who are, I have two things to say: Other people don’t have as many germs as you think they do, and you have a lot more germs than you think you do. Just relax and let your body take care of itself. The spicy food and soju (delicious beverage, stay tuned for the “Drinking” post to come) probably kills all the bacteria anyway. Sharing food in this way really changes the atmosphere at the table. When I see someone devouring a particular food, I think to myself, “Man, that must be better than I give it credit for. I should eat more of it before it’s all gone.” Also, chopstick-fencing for that last piece of kimchi is both fun and rewarding. I love Korea.

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