Peanut Butter Sushi in Seoul

One of the things that I was a little disappointed about when arriving to Korea is the lack of cheap, quality sushi. I know, I know, this is Korea, not Japan, two very different countries with very different culinary traditions. An abundance of cheap sushi must have been simply wishful thinking on my part.  It also just occurred to me that this is probably very typical, ignorant, American thinking. Woops.

Anyway, I haven’t eaten much sushi here. While there are sushi restaurants, they’re usually more expensive and less tasty than I’m used to eating in California. Sushi used to be one of my favorite foods to eat out. And, while Korean kimbap initially resembled sushi to me, and I do like it, it’s really very different. So, last night I went with a friend to this “American Sushi” restaurant in Gagnam, Seoul, called Raw. It was advertised on the Korean Tourism website, as well as described on a Seoul food website, SeoulGrub.com.

I was curious to see what Korea’s take on American sushi would be like. And, the blog claimed that this sushi restaurant had FORTY different kinds of California rolls. Being from California, I was obviously impressed, and also curios about how one could possible create forty variations on the California roll (imitation crab, cucumber, and avocado).

After some confusion over the directions (typical), my friend and I finally found the restaurant just a little bit off of the main street in Gagnam. I scanned the menu, and while I did see a couple different “California rolls,” I didn’t see forty. Maybe they realized that this was just plain excessive.

Most of the sushi I saw looked familiar; the caterpillar roll, volcano roll, various sashimi, etc. There were also some very strange, very “American” sounding rolls that I have definitely never heard of, and highly doubt that we would ever serve in America. For example, a couple contained nacho-cheese, and the “Charlie Brown” roll was topped with peanut butter and hot-sauce. I mean, what is more American than nacho cheese, peanut butter, and hot sauce?

We ordered the caterpillar roll, because there aren't many opportunities to eat avocado here, and the Charlie Brown roll, just so we could say we tried it. They were both good, even the Charlie Brown roll. The portion sizes were also very large. America, represent! Would I go back? Yes. Although, I’ve had much better in Japan Town, San Francisco. But, I’ll take what I can get. Moral of the story, living in Korea, one must learn to embrace the full spectrum of their country’s stereotypes, even if this involves eating peanut-butter sushi.

Namhae "Treasure" Island

A couple weekends back, I went with some friends to Namhae Island, also known as the “Treasure Island of Korea,” which is located about 5-hours away from Seoul. According to Official Site of Korean Tourism:

“A bridge that was constructed in 1973 now is connected to the mainland, which makes it no longer an island in the truest sense. This small yet beautiful island has picturesque sceneries harmoniously juxtaposing the mountains and the sea. The jagged 302-kilometer coastline reveals strange rock formations that create a fantastic view reminiscent of ancient Asian paintings."

We went with a group called Seoul Hiking Group, which is run by a good-humored Korean man named Warren. There are a few groups that offer trips to various spots in Korea. I’ve also gone with WINK (When IN Korea). I liked going with Seoul Hiking Group because it was a very active trip. At some points it even felt a bit like bootcamp. You’ll see why.

We got on the bus to Namhae late Friday night, after everyone had finished work. Five hours and next to no sleep later, we arrived at Geumsan Mountain, the tallest mountain on the island. The goal was to make it to the top by sunrise, but the busses left a little later than planned, in typical Korean fashion, so the sun was up by the time we reached the temple at the top, which was nonetheless extraordinarily beautiful.

mountain peaks

almost there

Geumsan Temple

view from the top

After the hike, we migrated to the beach for some R & R. We also needed to set up our tents. Most of the foreigners on our trip were staying in a hostel, but my friends and I had opted to stay in a 6-person tent on the beach. The Korean campers all seemed to have these extravagant multi-room tents with raised beds, patios, and grills. Ours was more like a collapsing teepee, but it did the trick.

Sangju Beach

not our tents

our tent

We hung out at the beach for a while, and ate some sausage sandwiches (ew), before taking a bus to another beach to go kayaking. We had a few kayak-options available; 1-person, 2-person, stand-up paddle-boards, and canoes. We rotated in and out of these various flotation devices while exploring Namhae’s beautiful coastline.

After three hours of hiking and two hours of kayaking in the hot sun on next to no sleep, we were all pretty worn out. We went to a restaurant for some much-deserved Korean barbecue and beer. Afterwards, we returned to the beach for a bonfire, where we lit sparklers and drank makkoli (Korean rice-wine).

The next day, after another breakfast of sausage sandwiches (still ew), we went on a bus-tour of Namhae. They took us to a beautiful cliff overlooking the ocean, and a garlic festival, where we sampled various garlic concoctions, including “black garlic” (a cooked, sweet, gelatinous version), and got our chi cleansed with incense cones.

the cliff

 

garlic statue

chi cleansing

must be some sort of incense cone

Then it was back to the beach to pack up our tents, and for some of us to take a much-needed nap on the sand. We left mid-day and I got home late Sunday night. Luckily, the next day was Buddha’s Birthday, so we didn’t have to work and could catch up on sleeping and showering. What a glorious weekend! What a treasure of an island indeed.

In Search of Doctor Fish

Today Jackie and I wandered around Hongdae, a district in Seoul is known for Hongik University (the most famous school of Fine Arts and Design in the country), and it’s nightclubs. Hongdae has a Brooklyn-like feel, with intimately tucked away shops, and trees lining the many small side streets. The design is one-of-a-kind, free and artsy, yet intentional, with every detail carefully considered. Our original intent was to go to a place called “Doctor Fish,” which offers a spa-like treatment where fish eat the dead skin off you feet. Some friends of ours had gone and recommended the experience.

With our out-of-date guidebook in hand, we wandered around in search Doctor Fish. It was chilly and rainy, but we were determined to get our feet fishily refreshed. We knew the subway exit that it was near, that it was on the second floor of some building, and it’s name in Korean. There aren’t really street names in Korea, so this information is usually what you have to go off of. Thankfully, a friendly Korean woman saw us looking at a map and took about 30 minutes out of her day to help us find it.

I’ve realized this magic trick if you are lost in Korea (which I often am)…Instead of going up to someone to ask for help, since many people can’t or don’t want to speak English, just stand on a heavily populated street holding a map and looking puzzled. Someone will come up and ask to help with surprising frequency. I’m not sure if this is a result of Korean culture, which dictates hospitality to foreigners, or perhaps many people just want the chance to practice their English. Either way, it’s helped me out on numerous occasions.

The woman eventually discovered via her iPhone that Doctor Fish no longer existed, so we thanked her graciously and parted ways. Perhaps a fish got a little too hungry? Since we were already in Hongdae, we decided to explore the clothing boutiques and cafes, which are numerous, and overwhelmingly adorable. Some shots of Hongdae:

New Camera

I just got a great new camera, a Canon EOS 600D. I've been having fun playing around with it. I like being able to do justice to some of the unique, eye-catching images I am privy to living in Korea. I'm also looking forward to using it while visiting other Asian countries in a few months. Here are some shots from last weekend:

the street in Gagnam 

into the subway

Ttukseom Resort Station

the sun going down and a train passing by

Jackie, William, Jeremy, and Audrey

at Rainbow, our favorite spot

neon lights, people trickling in

table=canvas

a rear-view of the reggae band

They may be young, but they're not colorblind

Today, after teaching a math lesson involving flag stickers to my four and five-year-olds (Korean six), I was giving an impromptu lesson on flags of the world. “Where are we now?...What colors are the South Korean flag?” They could do that pretty well. “And, where is Austin Teacher from?” “AUSTRALIA!” “No…” “CANADA!!” “No…” “MIGUK!!!” “Yes...Miguk in English is AMERICA…what colors are the American flag?”…They seemed to get it. “Now, one more time…who is from America?” I asked, just to make sure we were clear. “AASHI!” one of the boys yelled, pointing to the only Indian child in the class. “Um, no, AUSTIN TEACHER is from America” I said, jabbing my finger at the flag. Way to make it awkward…and so much for trying to make my students globally aware. :)

The Voices in My Head

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, the end of our last Kindergarten semester was marked by a musical production. My class did Peter Pan. Just imagine for a second what it would take to get a class of American kids to memorize a musical in Mandarin. Needless to say, it was a challenge. How do you get a bunch of seven-year-olds who barely speak English to memorize a 30-minute English musical? By doing a lot of yelling and threatening that we would not be allowed to do if we were teaching in America. And, by practicing over and over and over and over.

Towards the end, I would come home at night and find that the musical was playing, on repeat, in my head. Not just my lines, but all of the lines. Trust me, after practicing with the kids for hours on end the last thing I wanted on my mind was a steady stream of “Look out, it’s Captain Hook! He’s trying to shoot us with the cannon!…” Sometimes the songs would be playing in the background “Yo ho yo ho a pirates life for me…”

As mildly disturbed by this as I was (having uncontrollable voices in your head is usually not considered to be a good thing), I knew it was a passing phase. The semester would be over soon enough and my head would be free to return to the thoughts that normal people have; about friends, money, laundry, whatever, and if a song were stuck in my head, it would be one that I actually liked…or so I thought.

The kids I’m teaching are younger now, and I’m not sure if it’s their age or just my new Korean co-teacher’s personal teaching style, but my teaching these days seems to revolve in large part around teaching the kids songs, songs about playgrounds, animals, letters, fingers, etc. This can be cute (how could happily singing children not be cute?), and fun, a nice break from worksheets. But sometimes it can be a little too much.

We will practice the songs with the kids, and to reinforce their learning we will play them as background music during lunchtime, morning circle, and playtime. The same songs are on repeat throughout my morning, songs that I never liked to begin with. My co-teacher comes into my classroom carrying the CD player and I cringe. Please, just let me teach math, phonics, anything else. And, to top it all off, the voices in my head are back.

I wake up on a Saturday morning and what do I hear? “This little duck that I once new, a little yellow duck with a feather on his head, he leads the others with a quack quack quack…” I’m not sure what is worse, pirates or quacking.  All I know is that I’ve had enough of both of them to last me a lifetime.

Spa Day in Korea

Last weekend, feeling under the weather (everyone at school has been sick) I decided to venture into the spa part of my gym. I use the gym, Bobos Sporex, frequently, but have only peeked into the shower part of the locker room (it takes me about five minutes to walk home from the gym, so I just shower there).

Inside the locker room at Bobos, there are glass doors leading to shower area. There are rows of showers, some requiring you to sit on a stool, as well as a hot pool of water, a cold pool of water, and a steam room.

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but spas are very popular in Korea. There are many public “jimjilbangs,” which can be used for only a few thousand won, and even slept in. One of the first things that foreigners will tell you when describing jimjilbangs is how “very naked” they are. Koreans of all ages use the facilities completely unclothed. I don’t think they would let you wear a swimsuit if you tried.

The spa at my gym is no exception, which was fine with me, but I was very aware of the lingering glances of the older Korean woman that were sharing the facilities with me that Sunday afternoon. I’m sure they were just curious as to what a waygook (foreigner) looks like unclothed. They were all polite, however, as Korean woman tend to be.

I was instructed by one of the woman to shower upon entering, which I did, and then relaxed into the hot pool. Meanwhile, the other woman meandered throughout the steamy, cave-like corridors, hair wrapped in towels, chatting with one-another.

It took a little getting used to, but was a very pleasant experience. I can see why this is such a favorable past time in Korea. I mean, after working like a maniac in frigid weather all week, who wouldn’t want to spend a couple hours at a spa with friends, naked and engulfed in steam?