Bored with weekends in Daegu, I decided come Hell or high water that I was going to travel to the coastal city of Ulsan to visit a girl named Marie, who I had never met face to face. Marie didn't know it, but she was instrumental in my decision to come to Korea. After hours of fruitless scouring and surfing on the TaLK Web site and random expatriate blogs on the internet, I was unable to find any decent photos or videos having to do specifically with the TaLK program that showed what life in Korea would truly be like. Disheartened, I visited Youtube.com as a last ditch effort thinking maybe someone had uploaded something. Lo and behold after typing in "TaLK Scholar Program" into the search bar, a list of videos popped up from a girl my age who documented her flight to Korea, her first few weeks of orientation, even a night out drinking with the locals (soju bombs!) Obviously, this girl is Marie, and she is originally from Oregon and liked her experience with the TaLK Program so much that she has stayed in Korea for over a year now.
Getting to Ulsan to visit Marie was quite the trek. First, I had to take the subway to a far off stop called "Seondangmot" (which translates to "liver," I think), which was nearby Seobu bus station. The word "station" conjures on image of shiny, clean bus terminals, a constant flow of traffic to and from a ticket counter and a spacious lobby in which you can wait for your bus, right? Instead, Seobu had shoddy, half-hazard....somewhat illegal... feel to it. I had to wait for a woman to come come back to her desk to buy a ticket (there was no "break- I'll be back in __ " sign anywhere...) and despite my best efforts at asking for the bus number in Korean, she still stared at me as though I were shrieking rather than talking to her (Many Asians wear this pained expression when you speak English or butcher Korean). So, I paid 7,000 won for a pink post-it-note-sized piece of paper and hoped that it was for Ulsan. The "waiting area" for the bus was a line of benches outside under a tarp, some just plywood boards propped up on cinderblocks. I sat down and contemplated eating my lunch, but I was attracting a lot of stares, so I just pretended to play a game on my phone instead. A man with a germ mask sitting next to me was not content to let me mind my own business, so he waved his hand in front of my phone and said "foreigner". When I looked up at him, he immediately declared "I do not have swine flu" (In Korea, speaking the term Swine Flu is as good as screaming "bomb" on a plane or "Anthrax" in a post office"... they are extremely suspicious of foreigners right now for fear that they will bring the disease) I told him that was good news (what the heck do you say to that?) and he continued to speak shaky English to me. He gave me his business card and tried multiple times to get my cellphone number. Realizing that I needed help telling the bus driver that I wanted to be notified of my bus stop when we arrived, I gave this guy a fake number so he would do me the favor of talking to the bus driver. Then I scrambled on to my bus before he could talk to me any more!
The bus ride was an hour and 45 minutes. When I got off, I had to take a cab to Ulsan University where I met Marie. Originally, she taught Elementary school-aged children through the TaLK program. Since her contract with TaLK is done, she now teaches students at her college, which she said is much less stressful. One of the requirements as a University teacher is to spend at least 1 hour with your students outside of the classroom. That's where Honey, Gigs, Zero, Jackson and Ghandi come in. These were 5 of about 9 guys who Marie and I spent the day with walking around the beaches of Ulsan. We took two cars to the beach, which was 30 minutes away. The car ride was a quiet one as first because as I have mentioned- Koreans are very self-conscious about their English. It was a good chance for Marie and I to talk some, and the guys would offer comments about the weather and maybe Michael Jackson or Barack Obama (two names that I think every Korean knows, young or old).
When we reached the ocean, it looked as though a hurricane was imminent from the white caps on the water. Stepping out of the Kia minivan, I was blasted with gale-force winds and nearly lost my sunglasses. The beaches of Ulsan are covered in black pebbles, and because of the high tide, we chose to walk down a cement bridge that led to a bright red lighthouse that looked out over the tumultuous water. We arrived at around 3, and the harbor was full of fishing boats, unloading their catch into a market that was right in the beach parking lot. After taking dozens of Titanic-themed photos with he guys (think Leonardo Dicaprio and Kate Winslet on the prow of the ship doing the semi-flying stance) we decided to walk through the fish market. The smell of seafood, alive and dead, hits you like a punch to the face when you enter the big, flapping white tent that houses all the fishmongers. There are no prices, and you are sure to get charged triple if you are a lone foreigner, but thankfully we had all of the Korean guys, and the plan for dinner was sashimi. Marie and I were hustled to the restaurant (it makes Korean men uncomfortable to have women lingering when there is "business" being discussed...) and waited for the guys to negotiate a good price for 3 different types of fish.
Glorious weather- freezing, but beautiful.
Marie and Jackson. He chose the name Jackson as a nickname for Michael Jackson.
The boys were too afraid to climb out onto the sea wall. I thought they looked like giant jacks or maybe asterisks!
Revolting! The guys bought a few of these for our sashimi dinner, but I would not touch them!
One of our fish. They sprayed his gills with something so he would start to die, I think...The whole time I couldn't help but feel amused because this was just like an episode of "No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain" or "Bizarre Foods" on the Travel Channel. There I was at a stinky fish market, about to eat a creature that was alive literally moments ago with a group of people that probably played drinking games at breakfast that day. The plates of fish that were served were massive, and there was no rice served with the fish, rather some shredded cabbage with spicy chili paste mixed in. Traditional sashimi involved taking a sesame seed leaf, stuffing it with some of the spicy cabbage and raw fish pieces, rolling it and popping it into your mouth for one big bite. There were also quail eggs (which I tried for the first time in France- they are delicious!), raw peanuts and raw garlic if you wanted to get really adventurous with your fish wrap. Thoroughly stuffed and vaguely concerned that I had swallowed more fish bones than I cared to think about, I jumped when there were two bubbling pots of red broth placed on the table in which the heads of our fish were bobbing, staring at us, eyeballs, teeth and all. Koreans consider the head the most flavorful part of the fish, so this spicy soup was intended as the coups de gace for the already bloated diners. I couldn't stomach it. Not that it tasted bad, but picking around the scales, cartilage, bone and unidentifiable floating bits just wasn't worth it since I was already so full. The meal ended with several drinking games where the penalty was eating a spoonful of raw wasabi (I watched several guys double over in coughing/crying fits after losing) and then we left to visit one more beach further down so the guys could stop and get coffee and throw pebbles at seagulls.
2 different types of fish (I suspect one was red snapper) and the stuff in the middle are a few of those sea worms RAW.
Pebble-throwing game. They were hitting each other and seagulls.
A beautiful sunset. This is misleading though- it was frigid out!
Jackson had a food baby. He estimated that he was about 6 months along.
We arrived back at the University at about 7:30, and I decided that it was probably best to leave then because I did not want to chance missing the bus and having to sleep on Marie's floor that night. When we parted ways, we agreed that the next hang out would be with me in Daegu.
Sunday proved to be one of my favorite days so far in Korea. After much harassing and pouting, I finally convinced Seong Ji to come out and do something with me that doesn't have to do with getting groceries/picking up mail/anything where she has to be a mom and not a friend! SJ suggested that we climb Gotbawee Mountain because it is famous among locals for a large stone Buddha at the top. She said that I could go and give a "big bow", which is the nickname Koreans gave to the act of bowing to this particular Buddha.
We met on the subway at noon and took a 45 minute-long bus ride up into the mountains. I often marvel at how incredibly exposed I always appear whenever I am with SJ. Her hiking outfit consisted of jeans, a long sleeve shirt that said "Elvis is Alive"and then a light cotton jacket, a hat and a handkerchief to pull around her face. I was wearing running shorts and a tank top. SJ's multiple layers are to cover up every inch of her skin because Korean women obsess over the paleness of their skin. While Americans bake in tanning beds, Koreans are slathering on SPF 50 BENEATH their gloves, hats and jackets.
Let me tell you: it was certainly no easy feat getting to Buddha. The hike itself only lasted a little over an hour, but it was nearly vertical- SJ and I were using our hands to crawl up stairs on all fours as often as we were standing upright. Many of the stone steps were crumbling and dislodged, and the entire time I marveled at how treacherous this hike was. And then there are the people completing this hike: children hanging in slings from their parent's backs and women that could not possibly be a day under 80. It's flabbergasting how spry the elderly are here in Korea because they have to be- there aren't any wheelchair ramps or cable cars in Korea. A squat toilet alone is enough to cause a broken hip but when you walk into a restroom with an elderly person and there is a choice between a Western toilet or a squat toilet, they pick a hole in the ground every time! But how worth the exertion it turned out to be! I knew we were close when I could hear a Buddhist monk chanting. It's a strange, inhuman sound because these men practice chanting their whole lives until they begin to utilize sections of their vocal cords that the normal person never uses. And they chant for hours on end without so much as a sore throat.
All along the climb you see these little stacks of rocks. They are meant to send good luck your way as long as they remain stacked.
SJ- she must have been unbearably hot.
Less than halfway up.
The view from the halfway point.- SJ was too afraid to climb out onto the cliff with me.
At the top, the air was thick with incense and a low hum of whispered prayers. As far as I could see, we were enclosed in a lush green mountain range. Daegu was a dot of civilization- you could cover it with a fingernail if you held your hand up to your face. The spectacle of so many Korean people performing the proper Buddhist bow (remember my post about Dongwhasa Buddhist Temple and the tea ceremony) simultaneously was mesmerizing. Up and down, up and down on the mats, people were holding prayer beads, eyes closed, sending out their wishes of good health and longevity for their loved ones. Since I was literally the only foreigner on the entire mountain, people stopped and stared when I got on a mat to bow, and several elderly people accosted poor SJ, asking if I was Buddhist, if I could speak Korean, if she was Korean, etc.
Prayer candles and prayer beads for sale.
That haze is largely from all the incense smoke wafting around from the altar to Buddha.
I had just finished my three bows, now I had to clear my mind and try and stare at the tip of my nose for 5 minutes. I cheated and posed for this picture though!
Look how much I stand out.
Another tradition On Mt. Gotbawee is to place a coin on the stone wall for the luck and success of your children. Since I don't have any children though, I re-routed my Buddha blessing to my Mentor Teacher Jay's two little girls. He actually cracked a decent joke and said "maybe you should pray for your vacation time." Haha Jay...
My coin.
SJ saying her prayer after placing her coin.
Rice offerings for Buddha. So that's what is inside all those Korean people's backpacks!On the hike back down, SJ and I had the shakes. Our legs were trembling uncontrollably, and we kept laughing at eachother because all these Ajummas (ladies with the visors, hiking gear and sandals with socks, remember?) were passing us with ease, up and down, while we were clinging to the guard rail for support. The truly devout Buddhists were exiting the mountain just as you are supposed to exit a real temple: backwards. Yes, they walked down the mountain backwards so as not to turn their back on Buddha. And one last thing I must comment on: the extreme hiking attire of Koreans. It's hot right now , people. But that doesn't dissuade Koreans from wearing Northern Face and Under Armor cold weather gear from head to toe. And brandishing hiking sticks, canteens, backpacks, water-proof watches with compasses, etc.
The bus ride back was quiet and pleasant. SJ and I talked some about her future with her boyfriend (she thinks he is husband material :) ) and then for a short while about North Korea. SJ confirmed my suspicion: that Koreans really feel mostly a sense of loss and sadness at losing half their country to a man who has lost his mind. She spoke very lovingly of Northern Koreans, almost like they were simple-minded as sheep and just being misled. I asked if she was ever scared or nervous to live beneath North Korea with the constant threat of bombings and she shrugged her shoulders and said "Nope, not really."
A fine weekend, indeed. The first nip of Autumn is in the air, and soon I think the temperature will begin to drop. I look forward to the coming of October because the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving: Chuseok, will be celebrated. Look forward to more exciting chronicles from the adventures of SJ and Katy!
p nut
ReplyDeleteonce again we are right there with you in your adventure can't believe how steep the hike was and yes you do stand out but in a good way
love and miss ya
mom and dad