I'm Going To Brazil! Yeah, Baby!

Well....not until the year 2014 at least.

I've always dreamt about attending a World Cup tournament and I totally missed my chance in 1994 when they were holding games right in my backyard when I was attending college at Cal. But back then I was just a poor student so shelling out a few hundred bucks for tickets (as my roommate did) just wasn't financially feasible. Then of course, I missed the 2002 World Cup in Korea/Japan as well as the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The 2010 World Cup will be held in South Africa but I really have no interest in going there.

So I was anticipating the announcement of the 2014 host country and lo and behold, it's gonna be held in Brazil! That is awesome!

I can't wait to go. Of course, I will be 41 years old at the time and have no idea what I'll be doing then but I'm sure I'll be able to find time to go visit a cool country like Brazil. Who's coming with me?

Anyone Listen To Hawaii Public Radio?

There's a show on Tuesdays at 5pm called Business Beyond The Reef on KIPO, station 89.3FM. Tomorrow's show (10/30) will focus on all things Korea such as religion, entertainment, the visa waiver, education, business, etc.

I don't normally listen to the show myself but I hear they're having this guy on at around 5:30pm to talk about Korean business in Hawaii. I know the guy they're going to interview and I don't want to reveal his name but he's the last guy they should be interviewing. He doesn't know a thing about Korean businesses even though he is a member of the Korean Chamber of Commerce. I'm just curious to hear how stupid he's going to sound.

Sorry, I don't usually like to bash people but this guy really bugs me with his smugness and 잘난척 (high maka maka aka "dan-da-la") attitude.

Korea - Random Thoughts....

Here are just some random things I noticed about Korea....I may add more later as I think of them....

- Hardly anyone wears sunglasses here. I wore my sunglasses during the day just out of habit and I could "feel" getting looks from people....probably thinking, "who does that guy think he is? A celebrity? Punk!"

- Gangnam girls wear miniskirts no matter what the temperature. There were a couple of pretty chilly nights like in the low 50s and still you see girls in short miniskirts with no stockings. I don't know how they handle the cold.

- People eat their meals at all hours of the day. That's why there everywhere you go restaurants are open till like 2am or even 4am and they're still packed.

- You can't just order liquor. You gotta have "anju" or something to snack on or eat while drinking, even if you just finished dinner 15 minutes ago. I think this was already in my blood as I'm like that over here too. It's a wonder how Koreans stay so skinny with all of the drinking and eating.

- I question celebs who try to stay incognito by wearing large hats and/or sweat clothes. If ya ask me, they just draw more attention to themselves. Seeing a person walking around at night with a large cap or other type of hat only makes people seeing them think, I wonder who that is? I think they wanna be noticed so they dress that way. Especially if you're a B-list celeb. Who cares if people see you?

- I was so lazy this time around that I spent a few hundred on cab fare. I caught the subway a lot on my last trip but this time, just found the cabs to be more convenient. But every trip across the Han River costs a minimum of $10 so of course, the costs added up. If there's lots of traffic, the subways are actually faster.

- Traffic is no joke. Rush hour time at night is from like 6pm - 9pm so there's constant traffic. And people here don't pay attention to red lights. They treat them as stop signs. Pause for a while...and then if you don't see anyone, just go.

- My Korean is decent but I can imagine Korea to be a very difficult city to navigate if you can't speak the language. If you choose to visit, best to go with someone who can speak the language.

- I used an old fashioned toilet for the first time this trip, you know...the ones where you squat and the toilet is actually a hole in the ground? I didn't want to use it but I was desperate. Man, it's hard to maneuver in that position! I kept getting worried that I was going to soil my own pants or miss the target!

- I seriously need to detox. I've drunken everything there is to drink in Korea and on top of that, was smoking like a chimney! I don't normally smoke but it's one of those when in Rome things. It just fits the environment. I need to eat like nuts and raisins and drink nothing but water for the next week to clean out my system.

- Everyone holds hands. Yeah, you've seen girls do it and it's no biggie but I'm telling you....guys do it too. Not with fingers enclapsed or anything but guys do hold hands. But they do it only in short spurts. Not like girls who walk down the street together hand in hand. When guys I knew started doing it to me, it felt really weird but that's just how it is. Korean people are just more open about skinship. It's just their way of telling you that they feel close to you. Not that there's anything wrong with that!

- Lots of Koreans have been to Thailand, Japan, and the Phillipines. If you ask a Korean what countries they've been to, those are your top answers. Not too many have been to the states.

- I met Kwon Sang Woo, Kim Tae Hee, and Shin Eun Kyeong. Not the real actors but people with the same names as them. And it was their real names too!

Korea - Day 10 Last Day!

After my late and drunken night, was still able to get it together to get out of my hotel by 11am. I had a lunch appointment at the COEX at 12 noon so I had to get ready in a jiffy. Checked out of my hotel, checked in my luggage at the Air Terminal, then went to meet my friend for lunch.

I've been trying to get a hold of this friend ever since I arrived in Korea but whenever I called, I kept getting her mom! I even went so far as to say "Hey! It's Myong opba from Hawaii! Remember me?" only to hear the mom say "Who?" "From where?" Uh yeah...I'll call back later. So I called a few days later and the mom answers again. So I ask if the number I called was still my friend's number and she said no, that she was using the number now. So I emailed my friend and gave her my # and she called me the next day and explained what happened. Ah...I see. So my last day in Korea was our only chance to meet so we had lunch at the COEX mall. Man, lots of people here on Saturday! She was actually there to attend a job fair so I helped her a little with her resume since the job fair was only for foreign companies and I tried to give her some hints as to what they may be looking for.

After lunch, caught the shuttle to the airport. Returned my rented cell phone and the total bill came out to only $70! And that's for 10 days! If you take out my international calls, it would have been only $54. How cheap is that? They only charge you a daily rental of $3 and then for outgoing calls. No fees for incoming calls. And they said that the next time I come, if I use the same #, they will give me half price on the daily rental rate. Awesome!

So that's basically my trip. It may not have sounded like much and I may not have done anything overly exciting or mindblowing (that I chose to reveal here) but I had a really good time. I can't wait to go back.

Korea - Day 9

In the morning, went to Gangnam Gyobomoongo Book Store to buy an English language study book for a friend. This is a really huge book store and they sell books, DVDs, CDs, stationary, and other accessories in a huge 2 floor retail space.
Then I joined my dad and his friend for a Japanese sushi lunch in a restaurant next to my hotel. I've eaten a lot of seafood here and I have to admit that the sashimi and sushi quality does not match Hawaii's. The locals here say its really good but I'd have to disagree. I wonder what they'll think when they eat really good seafood here. A few people I know said that they enjoyed the sushi at Todai so I'm thinking that they'll be blown away by the name places like Sasabune or even a place like Sushi King.

After lunch, was curious to check out the newly constructed Cheongyecheon. Blah. Not much to see here. Took some boring pics. After the nice entrance, it's pretty much the same thing all the way down the stream. I've noticed that as the days go by here I'm less and less inclined to take pics. Hmm....







Then at night, went to visit a friend in Apgujeong. He suggested seafood but I was already seafood'ed out so I said let's eat anything except meat or seafood. He admitted that that would limit choices by quite a bit. I felt like eating some noodles so we ended up eating at a Vietnamese pho place which was actually not bad.

After dinner, of course, soju. There were a bunch of celebrities at the table right next to hours, a few I recognized from the Phoenix celebrity basketball game a few years back. But they were all B-level celebs. The type of actors who play the guy who doesn't get the girl, provides the comic relief, the mean jealous girl, etc. The only name I remembered out of the bunch was Gong Hyun Joo.

After soju, finished off the night with some karaoke. And yeah, sorry to say that I did get pretty drunk on my last night. I tried to keep it together but the combo of beer (during dinner), soju, and then poktanju (literally translated as "bomb drink") did me in. Poktanju is what you get when you mix a shot of whiskey or other hard liquor with a glass of beer and then you usually 1 shot it. I think I had maybe oh.....7 or 8 of these? And that's after 2 beers and 2 bottles of soju. Yeah, I was pretty wiped. I ended up spending the last 30 minutes of karaoke lying down in someone's lap!

Korea - Day 8

Sorry....no pics today.

But I do have an interesting story. My dad wanted to introduce me to this girl here in Korea. She's the younger cousin of his friend's little sister. Confusing, huh? Well, so my dad, his friend, his little sister, the girl, her mom, and I all had lunch in Gangnam. After lunch, the elders went away and I went to go have tea with the girl. Yup, just like those Korea dramas you see all the time. It felt really weird cuz I've never done something like this before so of course it was a little awkward.

So how'd it go? First of all.....the girl is very pretty. I mean, really really pretty. And as I got to know her as we had tea, there weren't any awkward moments and the conversation went really well. Of course, being the light hearted and comfortable guy that I am, I told her not to feel awkward and let's just be casual. So I think it went pretty well and as we went our own ways, we exchanged numbers and we'll see where it goes from here. Too bad I met her so late in my trip! If only I had more time....wish me luck! ^^

At night, met a 형 (older brother) for dinner. I had wanted to meet this hyeong the most in Korea but because he was in another country till now, this was the soonest we could meet. We had dinner in Apgujeong and then some soju in Cheongdamdong. I'm really glad I was able to see him before I left.

Jeez....the time is going so fast! I only have a day and a half left. I wish I could stay longer...

Korea - Day 7

Had lunch near Insadong today at a place known for their bossam.

Had to try their "wang" mandoo! So ono!
Here's the 보쌈 (bossam - a kind of pork dish). The meat was very very tender and delicious.
After lunch, went cruzing around Insadong which is known for its cultural shops and art galleries. It's a very cool place to visit and one of the top tourist destinations in Seoul.

Korean souveneirs
Traditional masks...
More knickknacks...
A street vendor was selling 번데기 (beondaegi = silkworm). Yuck! Sorry, but I can't eat that stuff...
Lots of art galleries

Then met a 동생 (dongseng = little brother) for dinner. He took me to a seafood restaurant in Hongdae.

The appetizers were really fresh! See the octopus on the right? That thing was still moving and squirming around as we ate it!
More appetizers which included sea urchin, oysters, topshell, and shrimp. Everything was super fresh.
The main dish...the sashimi sampler. While not quite as good as Hawaii's standards, it was still very good.

Korea - Day 6

Started off today by getting a new pair of eyeglasses from my cousin's friend's place in Namdaemun. He gave me a good deal as the frame I got was supposed to cost $85 but he gave it to me for $65. Shoots!

After that, had lunch at this hole in the wall place in a town whose name I forget. But it's a really well known place called Myong Hwa Won and they're only open from 11am - 4pm every day except Sunday.

Always a line here...
This is the entire menu - Jjajangmyeon ($3.50), jjampong ($4), mandoo ($4), and tangsooyook ($14). Everything is so cheap!
The fried mandoo
The tangsooyook (sweet sour pork)
The jjajangmyeon
After lunch, took a walk around Namdaemun Market. I don't really like shopping but was looking for (cheap) gifts for friends.

Lots of places selling ginseng and other health products.
Busy streets....
Women's coats...
The food aisle...
Kimchee and panchan anyone?
Pig's feet...I gotta eat this once before I leave!
Kitchenware...
Men's suits...
So I ended up just buying a few hats for like $15 total. After about an hour of walking around, I was pooped so decided to head back.

Stopped by a bakery on the way back. Lotsa good choices!
Later on in the night, met a 형 (hyeong = older brother) for some drinks.

Soju and chicken gizzards!
This is actually a large "tent bar" in No Hyeon Dong where you can do booking

Korea - Day 5

Today was a rest day for me. After 4 days of constantly being on the move, eating, drinking, sightseeing, eating, and drinking, I needed a day to unwind and just cruz.

Started off by driving to Suwon to visit my aunt. I actually wanted to eat Suwon wang galbi which is what the city is famous for but my aunt insisted on making a home cooked meal.

Here's the spread. Amazing how many dishes she prepared!
After that, went back to the hotel to take a much needed nap.

At night, was supposed to meet a friend but he had to cancel on me at the last minute cuz he was still filming and would finish later than expected (he's a cameraman).

So feeling a little cooped up, I decided to check out Gangnam Yeok (Gangnam Station). The people who hang out here are really young, I mean like in their teens and early 20s. I'm 34 and don't consider myself to be old but I did feel old here.

Tons of these places in Gangnam. What is it? A plastic surgery center.
Many 포장마차 (tent bars) here.
Tons of restaurants and bars. I had a really good dinner here a few nights ago. We ate 우겹살 (woo gyeop sal) which is kind of like samgyeopsal but made of beef instead of pork. So ono!
Interesting club name...
Snack at Cafe Pascucci. A good place to just people watch and sometimes spot celebs.Then went back to my hotel area and had a few beers at a local bar before turning in.

Yeah...boring day but I needed it to rest.

P.S. - Cal Sucks!

Tabaso Man says that I have to pay some respect to his Bruins who beat Cal this past weekend so here it is.

I knew all along that Cal didn't deserve their high ranking of #2 a few weeks ago, despite their big wins against Tennessee and Oregon. You can just tell by watching them.

So congrats to the UCLA Bruins. We'll get ya next year!

Korea - Day 4

Despite the late night, had to get up early again to drive out to Dong Du Cheon. My dad wanted to go eat 떡갈비 (dduk kalbi) so away we went. We departed at around 10:30am cuz it was a far drive.

The restaurant. The sign says Song Wol Gwan Dduk Kal Bi
반찬 (side dishes)
The dduk kal bi. It's like they take kalbi meat and then chop and grind it real fine so it's almost like hamburger steak.
Was it good? Yeah, pretty good. That slab of meat you see above cost $20. I don't know if it's worth the drive out there though. An hour and a half to get there and 2 hours to get back. I pretty much spent my whole day in the car. What a waste of time. I don't think I'll ever take the trip out there again.

At night, I got invited to watch a musical starring Wax, the singer who appeared at our latest Korean Festival. It's called "Fixing My Makeup", the title of her most well known hit song. It was her first foray into acting and I was lucky enough to catch her premiere performance.

The musical was in DaeHakRo, a college town known for its many theaters. There are over 130 theaters in this small area and is a very cool place to check out.

Huh?
Poster for the musical
It was held at the Live Theater which seats about 200 people.
What did I think of the musical? It was really good! The story was similar to the movie "You've Got Mail" and the production was really well done. Wax was very natural in her first attempt at acting and her singing of course was amazing. The musical was written especially for her and features a number of her hit songs mixed into the story. When she sang "Fixing My Makeup", I literally got chicken skin. She's that good. The musical just started this week and will run until the end of February 2008. If you ever have the opportunity to come to Korea during that time, I highly recommend watching this musical. I thought it was 10 times better than the lame Lion King. But if you do go, be sure to go on a Sunday cuz that's the only day she performs. It would be weird to see another actress singing Wax's songs.

After the show, had dinner in the area with some of the cast and some friends.

Tried 막걸리(makgulli or rice wine) for the first time. It was really good! But my friends told me to drink it slowly or else otherwise you won't recognize your own parents in the morning. Warning well taken!