Dog Soup and Chicken Poo House

So... I ate dog.

It was actually quite nice. Far better than I'd expected at least. The flavour was a little like lamb, but with a much softer texture, like that of corned beef. It's served as a soup, with spring onions and spices.

I don't feel bad about eating dog, meat is meat after all , and if you chose to be a meat eater I believe you should be willing to eat any type of meat. You can't be morally opposed to eating dog and then happily eat a cow; they're both animals that feel pain. 

That said, I won't go out of my way to eat one again.

Korean dog soup.

After our dog dinner we decided to get all the weird Korean foods out of the way in one evening and headed for a chicken restaurant for dessert. Korean menus have something that translates literally as "chicken poo house" (닭 (chicken) 똥 (poo) 집 (house)). For the most part I think this is an unfortunate translation of the word "gizzard", although when you're eating it with the term "poo house" in mind, you can't help but wonder. 

It does look like bumholes...

The poo house was not to my liking, very chewy, and the name put me off! 

Something not even Ric likes to eat!!

Hopefully that's it for exotic dinners now, and I can serve the rest of my time in Korea eating pizza and McDonalds!!

Should you wish to try the dog soup, or the chicken butt...
Dog Restaurant: Go to Doojeongdong Lotte Mart, find the corner with Lotteria inside and go out onto the street. Cross the major road directly in front of Lotte mart and continue straight away from Lotte Mart. Take the first street on the left. The restaurant is on the right.
Chicken butt: most chicken restaurants have this on offer, we went to Chicken Boy in Doojeongdong, opposite the Hanjeon, close to the traditional medicine hospital and McDonalds.

The Stophers Come to Korea: Suwon

Ric's mum and dad, Ali and Alan, arrived here on April 18th, after taking the indirect route to Korea via London, Belgium, Germany, Poland, and Russia! They put our adventures to shame and took the trans-Siberian express through Russia, taking a leisurely three weeks to get here.

They stayed with us for three weeks, during which Ric's brother, Jeremy, also joined the party. 

Jeremy, Ali, Korean character, Ric and Alan

Unfortunately we had to work throughout the weeks they were here, but we did manage to fit in some fun weekend excursions. 

Suwon Hwaseong Fortress
Although Ric and I have visited the fortress before, neither of us had completed the full 6km walk along its walls, so it seemed like a good place for Ali and Alan to stretch their legs after three weeks of sitting on numerous trains in the middle of Siberia. We picked a beautiful spring day for it too, with the flowers blossoming and sun shining warm and bright.

The walls provide a great views of Suwon. Below is a huge Roman-Catholic church that looks rather out of place next to the fortress and the low level traditional housing.

It took us about two hours to walk the entire walls, stopping occasionally to eat ice cream, take photos and get harassed by Korean youths who were excited to see a two generations of western people hanging out together. 

One Big Head Ache

For the past month I've had a tension head ache that just won't go away. I've had them before but never quite this bad.  Whilst terrible and depressing, it has lead to some interesting Korea experiences and has offered me a perspective on private healthcare compared with the public healthcare service (the NHS) that we have in England.

First of all I went to the doctors alone, without my token Korean translator/chaperone. At the doctors here you can go without an appointment and usually get seen pretty quickly. All doctors know at least some English, as many of their textbooks are written in English. I went to Samsung Seoul Clinic in Doojeong-dong, the doctor there is the uncle of one of my students! He was very kind but he didn't cure my head ache. As health care is private here you pay a fee for seeing the doctor, whereas in England doctors appointments are free. It only cost £5 and was really easy to get seen, unlike in England where it's near-impossible to get an appointment, especially if you work during the day.

At the chemist, the pharmacist only had 6 of the 7 pills I was prescribed. To compensate for this terrible inconvenience, he gave me a whole packet of prescription-only tramadol, for FREE! It's a shame there's no black market here for prescription-only opiates! That's certainly something that would NEVER happen at home. At the chemist in Korea each drug has it's own price, whereas at home we pay at standard fee for any prescription, regardless of what drug we need.

Next in my search for head ache relief I went to see a neurologist. Now this really impressed me. Back in England, on our public health service, you have to wait months to see a specialist such as a neurologist. Here in Korea I turned up at a neurology clinic, with no appointment, was seen within 5 minutes, had a consultation with the neurologist who spoke to me in English, and walked out with a prescription 10 minutes later! All for the price of £7. Now I don't wish for the privatisation of the NHS at home, but I do wish it was as cheap and easy to go private as it is here. If it were, I think a lot of people would see a private doctor (for £7 it's affordable), and that would cut the waiting lists on the NHS.

As usual I was given a mystery bag of strange pills. Here, pills don't come with any information as they do in England; no details about side effects, when or how to take them, how they work... not even in Korea! Luckily I was able to read the name of the drugs in Korean on the prescription and google what they were.

Mystery blue pills.

Having your boyfriend as your colleague has many benefits, one of them is that he kindly offers to take care of all your students when you're sick, giving you the day off to relax and get better. My wonderful Ric took my classes and got them to make me get well cards to cheer me up (because I really was bloody miserable). The cards certainly did cheer me up, the messages from my kinder students were sweet, funny, and touching. They had me in tears. 

Here are some of my favourites:

 "To: Steph teacher, Steph teacher get well soon and I'am sad because you are sick. I love you so~~~~ much." -Danny, 6 years old

  "To: Steph teacher, Hello Steph teacher. I like you we are doing fine with Ric teacher get well soon"

 - Cherie, 6 years old

 "Get well soon. I like you. Sick is writing your mail Steph teacher. I love you steph teacher"

-Sophia, 6 years old

 "To: Steph teacher. Steph techer get well soon. Today snack is strawberry"

-Alvin, 6 years old

 Annie, 6 years old, thought getting the day off deserved some congratulating. She also spelled her name wrong (Ainne). 

"To: Steph I love Steph fast finish and come get well soon!"

-Daniel, 6 years old

 Ian, 6 years old, drew me some robots.

 Ashley thinks I'm a princess.

 "I love you. I think you are pretty but fast come to Wonberland."

-Olivia, 6 years old

Olivia's card.

Right now I'm feeling much better. The head ache hasn't gone yet, but it's manageable with the medication I got from the neurologist. Hopefully I'll be fully head ache free soon, but in the meantime it's nice to know that I can easily go and see a specialist if I need to. 

House of Sharing

On Sunday I visited the House of Sharing with Ric and Sydney. It was perhaps the most moving and emotional experience I've had in Korea and I would like to share with you what I learned.

House of Sharing

The House of Sharing is a residence and museum for the survivors of the Japanese military's sex slavery during the Asia-Pacific war. 

Between 1931 and 1945 approximately 300,000 girls and women from across Asia were kidnapped, sold, or tricked by the Japanese military and sent to army bases to work as "comfort women". These women were habitually raped up to 40 times a day by the soldiers. They were beaten, starved and tortured. They were treated like animals and considered nothing more than a military provision; there to boost moral and reward good performance on the battle field.

Approximately 50-80% of the sex slaves were taken from Korea, which was under Japanese colonial rule. Girls as young as 12 were taken from their homes to as far as Burma, where they stayed until they died of starvation, torture or execution.

When the war ended in 1945, thousands of these "comfort women" were massacred. The rest were left for dead in a foreign country where they didn't speak the language and had no means of returning home. 

The survivors lived in silence for almost 50 years, too afraid and ashamed to tell their stories. Then in 1991, one lady spoke out and demanded the Japanese government formally apologise for the atrocities it committed. Since then over 100 women have come forward and given their testimonies.

The House of Sharing is located in the countryside of Gwangju, south-east Seoul. It is home to 8 women who survived slavery and made it home to Korea to tell their horrific stories. We were guided around the museum by two English-speaking volunteer guides who were inspiringly passionate about helping the survivors and well informed on the history of what happened. 

During the tour we heard testimonies from the women; they spoke of how they came to be sex slaves, the brutality they were subjected to and the conditions they were made to live in. Whilst listening to their stories I felt so many different emotions: I wanted to cry for the women; I felt sickened by what had happened to them; I was angry that humans can treat other humans so terribly; I also felt despair - that this is what the human race is capable of.

The current Japanese government denies that women were taken and kept as sex slaves during the war. It claims that the women were working at the "comfort stations" as prostitutes, voluntarily. During the museum tour we were shown numerous documents that prove otherwise, yet the Japanese government denies them.

Monument to survivors who have passed away.

Every Wednesday a group of people, including the residents from the House of Sharing, protests outside the Japanese embassy in Seoul. They have been demonstrating since January 1992, demanding the Japanese embassy take the following actions:

1. Admit responsibility for the drafting of sex slaves during the Asia-Pacific war.
2. Make an official apology.
3. Reveal the truth about what happened.
4. Erect memorials and a museum for the victims.
5. Pay reparations to the victims or their families.
6. Record what happened in textbooks that teach about the war.
7. Punish those responsible.

There seems to be little to no international pressure on Japan to acknowledge what happened. With Japan being such as major player in the global economy no country wants to rock the boat.

Sculpture donated by an artist. 

At the end of the museum tour we were able to meet the survivors who live at House of Sharing. They are women in their 80's and 90's, who have no families, who have endured more suffering than I am able to imagine. In spite of the sombre and upsetting nature of the museum I was able to draw inspiration from the bravery and courage of the women at House of Sharing. For women of their generation, living in conservative Korea, to have the courage to come forward and speak about what happened to them, in spite of the stigma associated with "comfort women", is incredible. They are such strong, brave women. In spite of their age and their ailing health they still go to the Wednesday demonstrations in Seoul, they are still fighting for what they deserve: an apology from Japan. 

It was a very powerful experience for me. I strongly urge anybody who comes to Korea to go there, to learn about this dark, disturbing part of history and to feel the strength and resolve of the survivors. 

Photos from the museum tour and the Q&A meeting with the survivors.
(Taken from House of Sharing's facebook page)

Tour Information
English language tours are held once a month, you can book onto a tour by emailing the outreach team at nanum365@empal.com

The Korean Hair Cut!

After three years of avoiding the hairdressers I decided to take the plunge and chop off all my wispy, split ended, wavy locks.

I toyed with the idea of doing it myself, but when I realised I could get a professional to do it for me for £5, there wasn't really any reason to risk ruining my weekend!

Before....

After...

I was really expecting some problems; LANGUAGE BARRIER, plus Korean hair is really thick, coarse and straight, whereas mine is thin and wavy, but the stylist was amazing. I took in a picture, she nodded, hacked away and 30 minutes later I walked out of there a new woman.

If you're in Cheonan and interested in going... the salon is in Doojeongdong, a block away from McDonalds.

My Birthday With My Best Friends

Cake for breakfast.

I got to turn 25 in Korea. That's pretty cool. Turning 25 for me means: a more liberal approach to body hair (thanks Korea); the acceptance that I'm never going to have a "career"; and the pressure of knowing that all my friends at home are all moving in, getting mortgages, getting married and having babies, whist I'm pratting about on the other side of the globe with less responsibility than when I was 18. 

The day before my birthday Stacey and Jenny landed in Korea. Having them here was the best present I could ever have dreamed of. After 9 months without them I was in desperate need for a good chat, a large dose of head-size related banter and some girl time.

They took to Korea like naturals: eating all the gross spicy pickled food; eating without plates or knives and forks; and getting shouted at in Korean by old people in the street.

♥ Aren't they adorable? ♥

They brought with them cards and presents from my friends and family back home, making the actual day of my birthday really special; it was just like being at home! 

We went for some sight seeing in Seoul and watched the sunset from the top of Namsam Tower, before meeting up with some friends from Cheonan and pigging out on Western food and imported wine at VIPS. 

Seoul sunset

Namsam Tower

It was a really great night out in Hongdae and [naturally] it ended in 노래방 (karaoke) until the early hours.

Dinner at VIPS

Second birthday cake of the day (thanks Sydney!)

Embracing karaoke Korean style.

 Thank you to:
♥Stacey and Jenny for coming so far to see me. It was amazing having you here.
♥Kirsty, Lauren, Gaz, Amy, Jake and Mum and Dad for sending me lovely things. Especially the Vimto!!!
♥Ric for living in a small corner while the rest of the apartment was overrun with women! And also for being really lovely and keeping me sane in Korea.

It was emotional...

♥Sydney and Aaron for the very personal present, for a great night out in Seoul and for being really awesome friends (Sydney, mainly). 
♥Alex, for the offensive presents and awkward serenade at the 노래방, it was hilarious.
♥And everyone whose photo's I have stolen from the week because you all have better cameras than me!

 Enough about me, here are some more pictures of Stacey's and Jenny's Korean adventure....

Visiting Big Buddha

Another cracking sunset

Cocktails....

...More cocktails

Cheonan

Snowboarding

Stacey (going right)

Oops we went up the wrong ski lift and now have to go down a 'blue' slope
(two levels steeper and scarier than the previous slope....)

Luckily Jen knew what she was doing!

 Thanks for coming girls! Love yoooou!! 

Happy 발렌타인 데이

It really pays to be a teacher on Valentines Day in Korea!

...and that's only the stuff I didn't scoff on the spot!

Lots of love from Korea to everybody reading <3

Snowboarding At Jisan Forest Resort

One of the intermediate slopes at Jisan.

It was AWESOME!

I've never been snowboarding before, or skiing. I've never been to a ski resort either, I'm far too working class for anything so fancy. So you can imagine how excited (and utterly petrified) I felt about going snowboarding [at a real resort!] in Korea [where I have no medical insurance].

We chose Jisan Forest Resort because it's easy to get to and is one of the less busy resorts in Korea. It's about a 2 hour bus ride north of Cheonan, close to Incheon, and the bus there and back was free!

Ric and I went with Claire, our colleague, friend and instructor for the day. We got picked up at 7.30am and arrived at the resort just before 9.30, when the slopes opened.

Claire teacher.

By the time we'd paid, rented, and changed it was 10.30 and we were ready, looking the part in our poorly fitting rental gear.

Fetching.

Once we'd mastered clipping in our boots and gliding around on the flat surface we went straight for the ski lift to the baby slope, where we spent a long time falling down and being unable to get back up again.

Ski lift, lots of fun!

My main concern was crashing into other people. Everyone on the small slope was a beginner, which meant that people were whizzing around not knowing how to stop, scaring the life out of me. Any body watching would have thought I was falling over loads, when in fact, falling over was the only thing I could do to stop! Going too fast! Fall down. Approaching another person! Fall down. About to fall off the side of the mountain! Fall down.

But at least I wasn't the only one...

Face plant!

Eventually we conquered two more slopes, each one higher and longer than the last. Amazingly, by the end of the day, I was able to go all the way down the hillside, like, actually snowboarding! I was so impressed, especially as we'd had no formal tuition and I generally have the balance and coordination of Bambi on ice. 

Worth it for the view alone really.

Ric and I at the top of the slope.

By the end of the day we were exhausted, cold and aching all over. It was a great day. I can't wait to go again.

Claire and I having a snack break at the bottom of the slopes.

Ric and Claire waiting for the ski lift.

Costs:

Transport to and from the resort : free

Full day lift pass : 65,000w (£37)

Full day board rental : 20,000w (£11.50)

Pants rental : 10,000w (£5.50)

Goggles rental : rental : 10,000w (£5.50)

Jacket rental : 15,000w (£8)

Total: 120,000w (£70)

Transport:

The resort runs free shuttle buses to many towns and cities, book on by calling the number on the website.