LUDELVR
05-25-2005, 09:58 PM
Okay, I've been here for almost a year now and I just need to express myself through non violent means!! ;)
Some things to note about Korea:
1. Couple Wear.
This entails couples dressing the same. At first, I thought it was just a coincidence that a couple I noticed were wearing the same shirts! Kinda funny, then that same day, I say another couple wearing the same shirts, and another and another! After that, I saw couples wearing the same hat, wearing the same jackets, the same pants and sure enough...the entire outfit I saw on a few couples were the same!
2. Small dogs as accessories
As it stands, I have seen countless dogs and all but maybe one of them have been the size of a football! The majority of Koreans live in apartments so they must be quiet and many of their dogs have their voice boxes cut out...although not all of them. Many of these dogs can be seen being carried in a woman's purse having its head peak out for the occasional breath of air. For those dogs that are brave enough to walk, they are usually sporting some sort of attire. Whether it be an addidas jacket or an lv collar, these dogs are ready for the runway! I've even seen many dogs sporting shoes!! Fuckin shoes!!! The women who own these dogs parade them around as if it were an lv bag. I've even seen many dogs with multicolored fur! Orange and pink seem to be the trend!!
3. Women's fashion
With regards to fashion, the women of Korea appear to live out of a catalouge! I'm not sure if it's an asian female thing, but Koreans MUST sport what the latest fashion is! When I first arrived, it was ugs in the winter. It must be to keep themselves warm...but that doesn't explain the flailing skirts! Wearing high heels always seems to be a trend that will never go out of style...even if it's freezing outside or playing sports and wearing a track suit, heels are always acceptable! On a hiking trip, I saw many koreans wearing heels!! Women dawning lv bags is also the hit here! Whether it be fake or real, it's in style! It's nice in away because you don't have to hear pretentious people complain about whether it's real or fake! Finally, scarves are also the trend in winter for both men and women! As long as you have your scarf in the winter, you will be eternally warm...even when wearing a mini skirt, high heels and a tiny jacket, that scarf will keep you warm!!
4. Men's fashion
For men, they too are fashion victims! Unlike many other countries, being effeminate constitutes manliness here! Many men will have hair shoulder length, colored and styled as to look as if they have just awoken from a slumber from a hard night of drinking. The clashing suits of stripes and bright colors shouts out "hey, look at me...I'm a man's man" can only be classified as sexy! It works here in Korea because the women flock to these men. It is also not unusual to see these same men sporting the color pink. Whoever said that men should not wear pink was wrong...dead wrong. These men of Korea pull it off with such flare, it makes them almost flame!! These flamers with their semi rock and roll based outfits flood the streets of popular posh areas where they may be seen and put on their own personal runways for everyone's acclaim.
5. Men smoking and spitting everywhere!!
In some countries, gum is banned as to not pollute the clean streets that encompass it. But not here, oh no sir ee! Gum, along with cigarette buts and the mucas of almost every male cover the streets of Korea. It seems customary for males to "hock up a big loogy" on the street. Some men will spend several seconds perfecting the ultimate Hock and release it upon society! At one point, I walked out and looked on the ground and thought to myself that it was raining, only to discover that it was merely saliva and mucas...what a wonderful mixture. As for the smoking, it starts at a young age and carries on through the years. They will smoke anywhere they can...even under the "non smoking area" signs. It's okay however because even the police will smoke in these areas...but the police is an entire different story which doesn't really bother me.
6. Koreans can't drive for shit!
Many people have stated that Asians can't drive, but I beg to differ...Koreans can't drive. Every car here has a scratch, bump, crack or some other form of collision on it. Even the newest cars have some form of mollestation. I've witnessed numerous accidents while being here and it's almost too many to mention! Sidewalks become paths for motorbikers and scooter delivery people and pedestrians become pilons. Walking in Korea is the norm but is a very hazardous endeavour!! One may find one's self struggling for one's life when attempting to cross a busy intersection...even when one has the walk sign!!!
7. Promise rings after 100 days
Okay, now this is simply rediculous. After dating for 100 days, it's customary to give eachother (or rather go shopping for ) couple rings. As if the matching clothing wasn't enough to say "hey, look at us, we're together" a matching ring sported on both your ring fingers ties it up all nice and neat. Some people (mostly the men) are reluctant to do this but are soon subdued by their counterparts. I'm not sure about many of you, but in Canada, I'm still debating if I like you after 3 months of dating!!
8. Affection towards friends.
If you have been reading the above, it has been noted that many men are quite effeminate here. Their overall appearance may lead you to think "rainbows" but other than that, they are quite manly. It is these manly men that hug eachother on the subway, hold hands as well as touch eachother in a manner that may have a councilor asking "show me on the doll where the bad man touched you". The women too are quite affectionate towards eachother (which I don't mind at all) and one may see them walking down the street, holding hands with interlooked fingers wearing their high heels and sporting their fake or real LV bags. On the subway, I was able to see young men, about 5 of them, riding together...and that word I use literally because one of the boys was sitting in the other's lap with his arms wrapped snuggly around the other and holding hands with interlocked fingers. Now, my question is, how does one determine among friends who gets to hold who's hand? Do the other boys get jealous? Would one not feel ostrisized if in a group of 5, there were two couples and one was left out? :dunno: I know that there are no homosexual connotations here, but nonetheless....WTF!!!
9. Korean discipline in schools
This is an ongoing issue even with the residents of Korea. Many students are forced to have certain hair cuts and if their hair exceeds a specified length, half their head is shaved and they are pretty much forced to go to a barber. Also, it is not uncommon for me to walk into the the middle school I am teaching with students with their hands raised above their heads and kneeling with their heads faced towards the ground! It appears that much of the discipline revolves around humiliation, escpecially when the students have to hold a piece of paper that reads along the lines of "I'm a stupid student". On top of this, each teacher carries a stick. Some sticks are larger than others. The gym teachers carry sticks that rival the biggest everwoods while some of the other teachers can pack a stick the size of a hockey stick. The bad students are then acquainted with the sticks followed by the patented hands in the air stance. But don't dispair, the sticks aren't only used for hitting the students, they are often used as a gavel as the teachers repeated bang on the desks with them to get the students' attention! I find it often amusing to see some of the tactics that they use to create discipline but at the same time, wish that some of these were implemented in Canada because of the lack of respect that some students have for teachers!
10. Fucking Lunar calender!!
Finally, the fucking Lunar calendar!! Can Asians please, please get off this fucking calender!! While working in Korea, I get all the major holidays off which is about 12 days. But, this year, many of the holidays have fallen on a weekend and guess what...I don't work weekends, so I have been screwed out of these holidays!!! Man does that piss me off! Really though, that's about all I have to complain about with the Lunar calender...that and having to calculate when my students' birthdays are!
These are simply things I have noted here in Korea and by no means is it a cut to the Korean country or the people. I love Korea and some aspects of it, but at the same time, I can't stand other things! It's interesting exploring other cultures and by living here it just leads me to ask...WTF are some cultures thinking! Like anything (even my homeland) I have issues with certain things but still have a cultural tolerance and the understanding that it's not my culture and it's not my place to change it. But still, this has been one hell of a move for me! :rofl:
Some things to note about Korea:
1. Couple Wear.
This entails couples dressing the same. At first, I thought it was just a coincidence that a couple I noticed were wearing the same shirts! Kinda funny, then that same day, I say another couple wearing the same shirts, and another and another! After that, I saw couples wearing the same hat, wearing the same jackets, the same pants and sure enough...the entire outfit I saw on a few couples were the same!
2. Small dogs as accessories
As it stands, I have seen countless dogs and all but maybe one of them have been the size of a football! The majority of Koreans live in apartments so they must be quiet and many of their dogs have their voice boxes cut out...although not all of them. Many of these dogs can be seen being carried in a woman's purse having its head peak out for the occasional breath of air. For those dogs that are brave enough to walk, they are usually sporting some sort of attire. Whether it be an addidas jacket or an lv collar, these dogs are ready for the runway! I've even seen many dogs sporting shoes!! Fuckin shoes!!! The women who own these dogs parade them around as if it were an lv bag. I've even seen many dogs with multicolored fur! Orange and pink seem to be the trend!!
3. Women's fashion
With regards to fashion, the women of Korea appear to live out of a catalouge! I'm not sure if it's an asian female thing, but Koreans MUST sport what the latest fashion is! When I first arrived, it was ugs in the winter. It must be to keep themselves warm...but that doesn't explain the flailing skirts! Wearing high heels always seems to be a trend that will never go out of style...even if it's freezing outside or playing sports and wearing a track suit, heels are always acceptable! On a hiking trip, I saw many koreans wearing heels!! Women dawning lv bags is also the hit here! Whether it be fake or real, it's in style! It's nice in away because you don't have to hear pretentious people complain about whether it's real or fake! Finally, scarves are also the trend in winter for both men and women! As long as you have your scarf in the winter, you will be eternally warm...even when wearing a mini skirt, high heels and a tiny jacket, that scarf will keep you warm!!
4. Men's fashion
For men, they too are fashion victims! Unlike many other countries, being effeminate constitutes manliness here! Many men will have hair shoulder length, colored and styled as to look as if they have just awoken from a slumber from a hard night of drinking. The clashing suits of stripes and bright colors shouts out "hey, look at me...I'm a man's man" can only be classified as sexy! It works here in Korea because the women flock to these men. It is also not unusual to see these same men sporting the color pink. Whoever said that men should not wear pink was wrong...dead wrong. These men of Korea pull it off with such flare, it makes them almost flame!! These flamers with their semi rock and roll based outfits flood the streets of popular posh areas where they may be seen and put on their own personal runways for everyone's acclaim.
5. Men smoking and spitting everywhere!!
In some countries, gum is banned as to not pollute the clean streets that encompass it. But not here, oh no sir ee! Gum, along with cigarette buts and the mucas of almost every male cover the streets of Korea. It seems customary for males to "hock up a big loogy" on the street. Some men will spend several seconds perfecting the ultimate Hock and release it upon society! At one point, I walked out and looked on the ground and thought to myself that it was raining, only to discover that it was merely saliva and mucas...what a wonderful mixture. As for the smoking, it starts at a young age and carries on through the years. They will smoke anywhere they can...even under the "non smoking area" signs. It's okay however because even the police will smoke in these areas...but the police is an entire different story which doesn't really bother me.
6. Koreans can't drive for shit!
Many people have stated that Asians can't drive, but I beg to differ...Koreans can't drive. Every car here has a scratch, bump, crack or some other form of collision on it. Even the newest cars have some form of mollestation. I've witnessed numerous accidents while being here and it's almost too many to mention! Sidewalks become paths for motorbikers and scooter delivery people and pedestrians become pilons. Walking in Korea is the norm but is a very hazardous endeavour!! One may find one's self struggling for one's life when attempting to cross a busy intersection...even when one has the walk sign!!!
7. Promise rings after 100 days
Okay, now this is simply rediculous. After dating for 100 days, it's customary to give eachother (or rather go shopping for ) couple rings. As if the matching clothing wasn't enough to say "hey, look at us, we're together" a matching ring sported on both your ring fingers ties it up all nice and neat. Some people (mostly the men) are reluctant to do this but are soon subdued by their counterparts. I'm not sure about many of you, but in Canada, I'm still debating if I like you after 3 months of dating!!
8. Affection towards friends.
If you have been reading the above, it has been noted that many men are quite effeminate here. Their overall appearance may lead you to think "rainbows" but other than that, they are quite manly. It is these manly men that hug eachother on the subway, hold hands as well as touch eachother in a manner that may have a councilor asking "show me on the doll where the bad man touched you". The women too are quite affectionate towards eachother (which I don't mind at all) and one may see them walking down the street, holding hands with interlooked fingers wearing their high heels and sporting their fake or real LV bags. On the subway, I was able to see young men, about 5 of them, riding together...and that word I use literally because one of the boys was sitting in the other's lap with his arms wrapped snuggly around the other and holding hands with interlocked fingers. Now, my question is, how does one determine among friends who gets to hold who's hand? Do the other boys get jealous? Would one not feel ostrisized if in a group of 5, there were two couples and one was left out? :dunno: I know that there are no homosexual connotations here, but nonetheless....WTF!!!
9. Korean discipline in schools
This is an ongoing issue even with the residents of Korea. Many students are forced to have certain hair cuts and if their hair exceeds a specified length, half their head is shaved and they are pretty much forced to go to a barber. Also, it is not uncommon for me to walk into the the middle school I am teaching with students with their hands raised above their heads and kneeling with their heads faced towards the ground! It appears that much of the discipline revolves around humiliation, escpecially when the students have to hold a piece of paper that reads along the lines of "I'm a stupid student". On top of this, each teacher carries a stick. Some sticks are larger than others. The gym teachers carry sticks that rival the biggest everwoods while some of the other teachers can pack a stick the size of a hockey stick. The bad students are then acquainted with the sticks followed by the patented hands in the air stance. But don't dispair, the sticks aren't only used for hitting the students, they are often used as a gavel as the teachers repeated bang on the desks with them to get the students' attention! I find it often amusing to see some of the tactics that they use to create discipline but at the same time, wish that some of these were implemented in Canada because of the lack of respect that some students have for teachers!
10. Fucking Lunar calender!!
Finally, the fucking Lunar calendar!! Can Asians please, please get off this fucking calender!! While working in Korea, I get all the major holidays off which is about 12 days. But, this year, many of the holidays have fallen on a weekend and guess what...I don't work weekends, so I have been screwed out of these holidays!!! Man does that piss me off! Really though, that's about all I have to complain about with the Lunar calender...that and having to calculate when my students' birthdays are!
These are simply things I have noted here in Korea and by no means is it a cut to the Korean country or the people. I love Korea and some aspects of it, but at the same time, I can't stand other things! It's interesting exploring other cultures and by living here it just leads me to ask...WTF are some cultures thinking! Like anything (even my homeland) I have issues with certain things but still have a cultural tolerance and the understanding that it's not my culture and it's not my place to change it. But still, this has been one hell of a move for me! :rofl: