Daejeon Music Festival

This weekend I was getting pretty antsy to leave Seoul and do something new and fun for the weekend. Friday afternoon Barry and I were researching things to do, we came across a couple of ideas but when we read a piece about "The 1st Daejeon music festival" (specifically catered toward expats), we knew that would be the plan for the weekend.

This is the information we read via an expat magazine: "The 1st Daejeon Rock Festival is coming up on Ocotber 16th, marking the first event of its kind for central Korea. Its unofficial moniker ‘Rocktoberfest’ took hold as a result of a unique combination of high-octane live music and the inclusion of more than 300 vendors from around the world selling international foods, wines and, perhaps most importantly… beer!"

"The show was conceived as part of the Korean government’s plan to give money to the Chungcheong region as a way of promoting central Korea. The aim of the organizers and the funding was to help attract foreigners and young Koreans to the area, if only for a single night. And if things go as well as they have in the initial promotional stages, Daejeon’s upcoming event could be October’s answer to nearby Boryeong’s ‘Mud Festival’ as rumors of ex-pats planning buses from all over the country are already taking root."

So, on Saturday afternoon Barry and I hopped on the bus to Daejeon, the bus ticket was 7,000 won and took around 1 hour and 45 minutes.



It took a little bit of time to actually find the venue, but once we did, it was completely worth it. We walked around a lot, deciding on what food type of food to eat. The choices included lots of Korean, Spanish, Japanese, Turkish, Indian and Mexican. We decided on Indian which we hadn't had since leaving the states, it was delicious! We sat down and started chatting with the many foreigners present at the concert.

We danced, we laughed, we drank and at 12:00am (the music was supposed to go on till 5am) there was an announcement that the police were called and had too many noise complaints that they had to shut down. We were surprised since It was a pretty big festival and many people were there. Guess we're not in America anymore...

Here are a couple pictures from the concert:







So, after the unexpected twist of events, Barry and I ran (literally) to the exit to get a taxi. We got one no problem and went back to the bus station. It was too late to get a bus, so we decided to take camp in a "love motel." Love motels are all over Korea, they are just basically motels, but I am pretty sure they are called love motels for unmarried couples that want time "away." Because in Korea if you're not married, you live with your parents.

Anyway, we found one straight off the bat and for 30,000 won, it was well worth the price. The best part of it was not only was there a computer in the room, but the computer hooked up to the huge flat screen TV. We stayed up most of the night watching lots of TV and fully appreciating watching English TV on something other than our laptops. Of course I snapped a picture of the room:



My mom comes on Friday for two weeks, I am so excited I can' wait! Our trip includes visiting my school for Show and Tell and the Halloween party, many visits to the Jinjibang (spa), frequenting vegetarian Buddhists restaurants in Seoul, temples and parks and a weekend in Busan!!!

They said what?

When asked to use the word "once" in a sentence
"Once my mom and dad made me"
-Sina, 7

When asked to name olympic sports
"blocks"
-Ruby, 4

When asked their favorite way to get around
"I like to get around using a row boat"
-Joseph, 5

When chatting about NY and the statue of liberty
"I went to New York and I saw a lot of fat people"
-Yoobin, 6

You know you're in Asia when.....

I walked into a Dunkin Donuts to get a coffee and this was the donut selection....

A delicacy in Korea

Spam is everywhere in Korea. It is really popular, especially as an accompaniment to rice. You will find spam in a lot of gim bap (sushi). Spam is also a popular gift to give to people around the holidays or if you’re eating dinner at someone’s house.

The reason for the abundance of Spam in Korea is because during the Korean war due to the scarcity of fish, spam was substituted into Koreans gim bap. Spam was also used in Korea by US military as a trade item.

I am quoting wikipedia here but, “Spam is considered a delicacy and can be seen in store windows alongside imported European luxury goods such as wine and Swiss chocolates. Although the contents are the same processed pork product that is sold in the North American market, the packaging is more decorative. Spam is also remarkably popular to a majority of the population, and outranks Coca-Cola and KFC in status as a foodstuff. “

The People of Korea (through my eyes)

I have been living in Korea for around 6 weeks now and I have never given any insight into my impressions of Korea thus far. On the way back from Seoraksan National Park, I made a list and divided it into 4 categories: food, living, culture, and people. Here are a few notes I have written down about the people of Korea.

I was surprised when I arrived in Korea, many people do not speak English and obviously, I don’t speak Korean. The hardest times so far have had when trying to navigate my way are through a menu. If there is not pictures, good luck, everything is in Korean! We hit gold when we go into a restaurant and there are pictures on the wall. I do have a sign that says “I don’t like fish” which I flash around at restaurants.

All the women wear high heels and are dressed perfectly, everyday. My friend Janine said when she was in Busan, she even saw women going to the beach in high heels (along with umbrellas as to not change the shade of their face.) Korean women and men both are very concerned keeping their face pale and as white as possible. This is because if you have darker skin you are considered working class or even poor because you were forced to work outside in the fields. I actually bought some new makeup called BeBe cream, which Janine swears by. After looking at the package not only does it have SPF 50, it has whitening cream and bleach too!

Korea has such a big population for how tiny the country actually is. Therefore, it’s crowded everywhere, for example this past Saturday I was in a shopping area called Myeong Dong, and every store I went into I was pushed, shoved and knocked over. Public transportation is extremely crowded as well but an unwritten rule on public transportation is you’re not allowed to talk. I have been given stares for raising my voice unbeknownst to me. When I get on the bus, I even turn my cell phone to vibrate. I have seen Koreans yell at people for talking too loud on the subway.



(subway stop in Seoul)

I realize that these are just a few insights into the lives of Korean people. Many people have been really friendly and enjoy practicing their English with us. Last Wednesday in Seoul, I was out with Janine and Barry and an older man started chatting with us with his son. He was so happy and proud that we were in Korea teaching English to the next generation of Koreans, he bought all of our drinks, and that’s the Korean hospitality for you.