Thursday, June 01, 2006

Field Trips of the Gentle Tiger

The time just seems to pass by so quickly. Every day I get to experience, taste or do something new. I feel so lucky to be here. For the past few days I’ve been hanging around a lot with Otto, Pete and Annina (yeah, that’s right: Finnish people). But we’ve been participating in a lot of culturally significant soirees such as Norebang (karaoke), so I don’t feel bad.

Last weekend a bunch of us Finns took a trip the notorious Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which is the 4 kilometer wide strip of land between North Korea and South Korea. The place has a very misleading name, because it was full of soldiers and barbwire and road blocks. I didn’t know it before, but the two countries are still officially at war with each other. After the Korean War in 1953 only an armistice was signed. For me the highlight of the tour was a tunnel that the North Koreans had dug to the South. It was a pretty gloomy place. While walking down the tunnel about 70 meters underground I was just thinking to myself “Imagine where you are right now!” The downside of the day was that is was raining nearly the entire time. The view of the North Korean side was really foggy. What was also surprising about the place was that it was full of life. There were souvenir shops, army bases, a train station and people actually live there. The unification process of the two Koreas is at full speed and both sides are really striving for it. Though it may seem utopistic, the people here actually believe that some day the country will be united again.
Even though it's raining in South Korea, the sun always shines in the North.

Wouldn't wanna take that train.

We're such badasses.

Without the helmet a tunnel tour would never be so authentic.

The entire day of Sunday I spent at the temple where Annie goes. I partook in some meditation, did some ritual walking and listened to two Zen masters’ Dharma-talk. I learned the basics of meditation and a few things about the Buddhist way of thinking. We also went out for dinner afterwards with a lot of nice Korean and foreign people. Unfortunately I did not experience enlightenment, but the visit was still worth it because I made a lot of new acquaintances. So I just might give temple another try some weekend.

Temple-hoppin'.

Danny and I went out a few days back in Itaewon, which is the area designated mainly to US military troops and other tourists. I made Danny take a walk on the wild side and we bravely rose up a place ominously called Hooker Hill. I don’t think I’ve ever seen prostitutes before, so it was a real hoot. Actually it was pretty lame: there were just girl sitting on the porches of bars. Some of them made a little effort to try to get us in, but surprisingly they were met with little interest. On the next street we encountered a group of five Portuguese gentlemen with two Korean hosts entering a shady looking bar. So naturally we followed them in. Knowing my nerdy nature, I still can’t believe we had the chutzpah to do it. But again, it was a disappointment. There were just some girls there who were willing to sit down and chat with you. Once we found out that the company was included in the pricing (one beer for 15 000 won, which is like 13 €), we suddenly felt the urge to leave. I was so disappointed :).

Excellent news on the professional field: I got my first article published! It’s not a very big or socially significant piece, but at least it’s a start. You can see the caption online at: http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/special/200605/kt2006053015471467670.htm. So from hereon I shall consider myself a renowned international journalist.

One thing I love about Korea is that they can actually pronounce my name here. After years of being dubbed Jewhoe, Yuuhuu, Yahoo, Huo, Hugo and Ugo, I’ve finally found a place where they understand me. I won’t let the fact that they think its spelled Yoo Ho bother me to the slightest. As you know, in Asia the last name comes before the first name. Ted’s last name actually happens to be Yoo. Therefore I am officially a part of the family. What’s even cooler is that Yoo means gentle and Ho means tiger. So from hereon I shall only refer to myself as Gentle Tiger.

4 Comments:

At Sunday, June 04, 2006, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Seems like you're having a blast down there! I'm leaving in 2 days myself - - nervous, nervous..

 
At Sunday, June 04, 2006, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I bet the DMZ is a hoot! It's one of those places one wishes to experience at some point. Have fun You Ho.

 
At Wednesday, June 07, 2006, Anonymous Anonymous said...

too bad about the bar in itaewon! go to hongdae for cheaper drinks and cheaper women.

so what do they have you doing all day in the office? surfing the net? updating your blogs?

nice sweater!

 
At Monday, February 26, 2007, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello! 

By the way, I love that too!  Where did you get that at?  

Bye, - MyGirl! 



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