Christmas lights - a love/hate relationship

I love Christmas lights, especially the small colored lights, or the pretty bright white stars.  I even like some styles of icicle lights, when hung tastefully.  I decided not to have a Christmas tree this year since my son and I will be out of town visiting family, but I still wanted the lights.  So I braved the chilly weather and dark night to trek to the shop and dig through the huge plastic totes of decorations to find two strands of lights.

Remembering mistakes of the not so distant past I was careful to quickly check both strands to make sure they worked.  My plan was to double one strand and run it across the white mantle.  Using clear packing tape I put the strand on the top edge.  The strand turned out to be much longer than I realized so I ran it along the window sill on my big living room wndow, again doubled.  As I taped it to the sill was careful to ensure that none of the sticky side of the tape was accidentally exposed.  I have 3 cats and only one window sill in the entire house so its common to find at least one sitting on the sill at any given time.  I knew that at some point I'd come home to find tape stuck to someone's butt and Christmas lights strewn all over the house.

After carefully taping all of the lights I gleefully plugged them in.  Only half the strand was lit.  Crap.  I checked the other strand again and confirmed they all worked.  So I began pulling off the tape and coiling up the non-functioning lights.  After removing half the lights they suddenly turned back on.  Crap - again.  I checked for loose bulbs or a loose connection but the lights stayed on.  The aforementioned cats were of course "helping" me during this entire process.

Success!  The lights are up, they're all lit, and only one cat is walking around with tape stuck to his butt.  Apparently someone wanted to play with the wad of tape I'd thrown into the trash from the first go-around with the lights.  No one admitted to raiding the trash and the cat with the tape only knocked a few things over running in circles to catch the tape.  I rescued him.

So you're probably wondering why I believe that Christmas lights will ruin more homes and marriages than any other cause, in the U.S.  Think about it.  Every Christmas for 22 years I watched my dad put up the tree, string the lights, then discover they wouldn't work.  He'd spend an hour or more just trying to get them to work.  My mom would watch, while I danced around so excited to put the first ornaments up.  

I spent the next 25 years arguing with my husband over the merits of trying out the lights first, then his desire to spend hours trying to fix the strand.  Many years we'd go buy another set because I refused to wait days for the lights.  The Christmas after the divorce I found a box with more than 10 strands of broken lights, packets of replacement bulbs of many different styles, and the light bulb testers he bought every couple of years.  I donated the entire box to charity.  Now that I think about it, that probably wasn't a very charitable thing to do; right now there is a family somewhere in this city with a couple arguing over the merits of repairing a strand of lights.

All over the country couples are fighting over lights.  Save yourself, and your relationship.  Throw out those damn lights and buy a new box.  

Happy holidays!

The Best and the Worst?

I've been home for a week now... I think.  Apparently Jack hasn't forgiven me completely yet - I'm still finding all of the bathroom tissue on the floor.  I've been back at work for a couple of days, and other than the usual "How was your trip?" greeting, everyone is asking what the best thing was about the trip to Korea.

Unfortunately, I have no answer for them!  There were so many things that were awesome.  I think the top 3 on a personal level were the people, the food, and the history.  Eun Hee, Esther, and Sul Hee were so nice, and so tolerant of this fat ol' lady who walked so slow.  They were also a lot of fun!  It's strange for me to have people I consider fairly close friends who live so far away, whom I know I won't see in person for what could be years.  Their friendship is something I will never take for granted.

The food, as I may have mentioned once or twice, was incredible.  I've spent every night since I got back searching for recipes that I can make myself that might taste a little bit like what I ate there.  I've been to the local Asian market & deli, but so much of it either isn't in English, or isn't a brand/packaging that I recognize.  It's going to take a lot of research to find the correct ingredients.  The most convenient thing of course is to simply buy the prepared and canned side dishes, sauces, and pickles - but to find the right items I'll probably have to buy and taste one of everything in the store!  Maybe I can figure out how to get a Korean care package sent to me?  LOL!

The history - I saw items in the National Museum that were literally over a thousand years old.  That's something that is very hard to grasp for an American.  My country is only a couple hundred years old.  The Korean culture, like the items in the museum, is thousands of years old.  Traditions are still very much a part of the modern, Western-like Republic of Korea.  While having dinner with my friend and her family, I noticed her husband turned away from when taking a drink.  I remembered that this is a sign of respect shown to an elder or honored guest or boss.  My first thought was "how nice", quickly followed by "crap - I'm an elder!".  Understanding the culture requires understanding the history, even if it is only a passing acquaintance, as it is for me.

Inevitably someone asks what I liked the least about the trip.  The obvious of course it the actual travel to and from.  I refuse to consider myself old, but staying up for 28 hours straight is not an easy thing!  What did I dislike about Korea?  They drink out of fricking Dixie cups!  I don't know how they do it, it's like being in a country of (beautiful) camels!  I was constantly thirsty.  I stocked up at the mini-market around the corner every night, and still ended up with a bit of gout on the way home.  Gout?  I thought that died out in the 1950's.  It's almost gone, but it made for a very painful flight home.  Next time, no shyness for me - I'm carrying a bottle of water everywhere I go!

Honestly, I thought my biggest dislike would be the walking, but as my friend also mentioned, I liked it.  Now that I'm home I resent having to drive all over town to do my shopping.  I want a corner market where I can grab a few things on the way home.  I really didn't mind the walking, most of the time.  The uneven ground and steep hills were a problem because I'm still recuperating from my injury, and even though my arm got very sore from the cane, I felt good.  Now that I'm home, eating my usual food and driving to the store, I feel fat and "bleh" again.

My current mission is to find a local butcher where I can buy decent meat in smaller quantities.  My kingdom for Korean bacon!!!

My Final Note From the Future

It's nearly midnight on Monday, my last night in Korea.  Oh, how I shall miss her!  I plan to blog more after my return, but for now I'd like to do a short summary of my stay in Seoul.  Well, as short as I normally am.

I'm going to miss the good friends I have here, including 2 new friends that I hope to stay in touch with.  It's been such a joy to get to know Esther better, and to spend time with both her and Eun Hee away from the office, just to talk and laugh, and discover many things we have in common.  Sul Hee, who has a last name that I can't pronounce correctly so I won't even try, I met through work.  She's such a sweet, fun, amazing young lady, and I feel so blessed to have gotten to know her.  My other new friend is Kim Tae Sook, the volunteer who spent the day with me in Daegu.  She's an English teacher and such a nice person, also a lot of fun.  I hope we'll also be able to stay in touch.

As I'm sure you already know, I'm going to miss the food.  I already have a shopping list for my local Asian store, and for my trip to Portland's bigger store in June.  I had mandoo with Esther this evening, tried a little street food, then finished with 2 kinds of patbingsu, the dessert I mentioned.  As much as we wandered around she didn't find the fried silk worms she was looking for - thank goodness.  LOL

I will not miss the bathrooms!  Even the restroom at the mall today attacked me as I was going out the door.  The door closed very fast, catching my leg and twisting my knee a little.  I'm telling you, I don't know what I did to piss them off, but all of the bathrooms in Korea hate me!

The other thing I won't miss is the water shortage.  No, there isn't a drought or anything like that.  Every restaurant, cafe, and tea house in Korea serves water in 5 ounce Dixie cups!  Sometimes the cups are metal, sometimes plastic or glass, but ALWAYS tiny.  Microscopic.  Seriously small.  While I believe that the U.S.'s trend to "super size" everything is totally out of control, I'd have killed - figuratively - for a Big Gulp!  Come on, people, your beautiful country is surrounded by water, would it kill you to serve it in bigger glasses?

What I liked most about work related activities was to spend an afternoon with Dr. Cho, visit sites from Holt's history of work in Korea, and to learn more about the changes in Korean law and how it's being applied.  I have so many things to discuss with my team when I return, so many things that I want to implement and/or improve upon.  I've spent most evenings making notes of our discussions, and will continue to as I remember them in the coming weeks.

I've seen so many things this trip, things that I want to show my son and my sister, if I can talk them into coming back with me one day.  I can't wait to return to see the other 4 great palaces, to travel to Jeju Island, to see Seoul from the top of Namsan Tower, and to find awesome new things to eat.  If I start saving now, maybe I can return in 2 years?  I'm certainly going to try.  If work wants to send me to one of our other countries, I know I'll get just as much out of meeting with our partners there as I have on my visits to Korea.  But I plan to come back just for fun, and to see my friends.

Well, it's late here, and I have to check out tomorrow and make my way to the airport on my own.  And I might have one last pastry for the road...for the plane.  Whatever.  Talk to you all soon!

Please, no more!

Food, that is.  I don't think I've eaten this much in ages, other than a few depression inspired junk food binges.  My friend's son asked me what my favorite Korean food is.  In fact, all my friends keep asking me what I want to eat.  I don't know - I'm open to trying it all!  Well, as long as it's cooked and doesn't have tentacles or used to slither.

Other than the kimchi, which is not only too hot for me, cabbage doesn't go down well and most kimchi here is made with a shrimp brine.  I'm allergic to shellfish so I just pass on the kimchi.  I had a fish ball in sauce on one of the tours and it nearly came back up, so I think it may have had shellfish mixed in or was cooked in the shrimp based liquids they often use.

What I remember best about my previous trip here was 삼겹살, or pork BBQ, cooked on a super hot grill in the middle of your table.  The slightly better restaurants use a quality pork steak, and the neighborhood food spots use a very thick Korean bacon that is out of this world.  All meals are served with side dishes that you can eat separately or with your meat, soup, or whatever your main dish is.  Every restaurant has their own side dishes, and serve a small bowl of clear soup near the end of the meal.  Koreans are very big on pickled veggies, especially cucumbers and radish.  I hate radishes,  but they use the huge white variety and put it in so many things, and I love it.

My next favorite may be chimtak.  I haven't found it in Hangul yet so my English spelling may be a bit off.  It's chicken and veggies in a huge bowl of savory soy sauce gravy kind of liquid - but 100 times better than it sounds.  Melt in your mouth goodness.

Then there is patbingsu, which is shaved ice with condensed milk topped with sweet red been puree.  Tastes MUCH better than even I thought it would, and I like weird textures and foods.  Can't wait to find a recipe for home.

I've also discovered the joys of the Korean pastry shop next to the hotel.  It has a French name, but the pastries aren't as sweet as home, and more of a flaky pastry than a typical fried donut.  In fact, most of the sweets here aren't as sweet, so they aren't upsetting my stomach or system.  Today's new food was a type of 'bubble tea'; matcha red bean smoothie with jelly.  The jelly is actually little balls of a gelatinous, tapioca type substance.  They come in every flavor and style imaginable.

Rice cakes here are not what we think of in the U.S.  The typical rice cake at home tastes like, well, like styrofoam.  Rice cakes here come in every size, shape, color, and filling.  Many are soft with a texture like raw bread dough, but with flavor.  Some are crunchy and similar to the styrofoam from home, but again - with flavor.  Apparently I'm an odd Westerner because I like rice cakes, like the texture, and love patbingsu, complete with red bean topping.

The chicken ginseng soup was tasty, and I don't normally like boiled chicken or anything ginseng flavored, but this was good.  Fresh ingredients make a huge difference.  I had a beef rib soup one night at a slightly westernized place across the street.  I also had bulgogi in a hot pot, which is tender beef slices in a flavorful soup with veggies.  I actually had it in 2 different places that were both excellent.

I do have to admit that the one thing I've stuck to from home is Starbucks.  There's one on the way to the office, as well as all over the city, and nothing compares to the caramel frappuccino from home.  With it I can prepare for the day and be epicuriously adventurous!

I can certainly understand why many Westerners don't do well with the food in Korea, especially if they don't like textures they aren't used to.  While I don't do well with any food that is still alive, slithers, or has tentacles, I can handle most everything else.  

Koreans also share their food with each other, reaching across their table mates to grab something, taking bits of side dishes or soup from any bowl on the table.  Table manners like this would have gotten me slapped at home, but here it's perfectly acceptable.  Everyone shares, no one goes hungry, and you can have all the refills of the side dishes that you want.  I wouldn't want to be the dishwasher at a restaurant that serves 10 side dishes in separate bowls, with 2-3 sets per table!

So if you come to Korea, don't be afraid to try the food, you will be pleasantly surprised!  I'm definitely going to miss it when I get home.

Woman versus Commode

The last time I was in Korea I believe I focused on Korean drivers.  This trip my focus seems to be devoted to the commode...  Not that I'm obsessed with toilets, mind you, but they seem to have it out for me this week.  Toilets of every size and shape, and they all hate me.

The toilet in my hotel room is a combo toilet/bidet, which I've discovered is quite popular here now.  My first night I decided to indulge and try it out.  After pushing one button and experiencing the refreshing spray I sat waiting for it to end.  And waited.  And waited.  So I pushed another button - big mistake.  The seat started to get hot, so I pushed another button.  Now the water was getting hot, very hot.  So I started pushing a lot of buttons.  I tried everything; I bailed off the seat, closed the lid, pushed more buttons, threw towels down on the floor, and started to swear.  Obviously I was able to shut it off, but not without a bit of dampness and a slightly sore bum.

Most of the stalls are ridiculously small, requiring one to straddle the toilet to open and close the door.  The controls of each toilet is different, from push buttons to levers, to dual control twist-push contraptions.  Some of them sit for a moment before flushing, while others suck down so hard I fear for my wellbeing.

Today I was waiting for the tour bus and needed the restroom in the very fancy hotel lounge where we congregated.  The ridiculously small stall again had a toilet/bidet combo but with English buttons.  Halleleuah!  It didn't work.  Figures.  Apparently I was in the stall too long while messing with the controls because the little shriveled lady attendant nearly pulled me out of the stall to clean it.  Knowing the bus ride would be very long, I dashed into the restroom right before departure, choosing a different stall.  Hey, this one worked!  I'm sure I left the stall looking like a woman possessed - the temperature for both seat and water were set at boiling.  I don't think I like these combo toilets so well.

During the tour we stopped at a gift shop and were told to use the restrooms as the drive back to Seoul would be non-stop.  Thinking I'd outsmart the stall situation I headed for the handicapped facility, which was nice and big with a relatively normal toilet and hand rails.  Too bad I didn't check out the handrail better before I sat down and began my business.  As I tend to do, I grabbed the rail at the important moment and leaned to one side.  Sheer panic at the thought of riding back to Seoul wet and smelling like...well, you get the point.

I've been here a week and although I do miss my son and my cats, I think at this moment I may miss my toilet most of all.

I Know I'm in Korea Because...

I've been in cars and vans that have driven around a line of traffic via the shoulder of the road, driven over the orange plastic dividers you see along the highway, and driven the wrong way on a one way alley as a "short cut".

Only some of the restaurants deliver, but all of the McDonalds, KFC, Burger King, and Pizza Hut deliver.

I can watch a British movie dubbed in Japanese with Korean subtitltes.

The elevators will announce your floor then immediately say "going down", which actually means "get your ass out of the way the doors are closing NOW".

You can see women at the mall or on the beach in 4" heels, wearing a micro mini skirt with a turtleneck blouse in 40 degree weather.

The train attendant, taxi driver, garbage man, fast food cook, and the greeter at the Home Plus are all neat, tidy, clean, and every hair is in place; exactly like the businessmen in $400 suits and gold watches.

I've seen aat least 20 different toilet styles, sizes, and controls.  And had some serious arguments with a few of them, including my hotel toilet.  I won, eventually, and put it in it's place!

The chopsticks are flat, not round.  As evidenced by all of my shirts.  One pair of jeans.  And several restaurant floors.

More to come.....

Incredible Food, Great Friends

Yes, the food is as good as I remember.  Last evening, after I dozed off watching TV, my friend Esther called and asked me out to dinner.  She showed me 2 good places to eat, being a Westerner, one specializes in beef and the other chicken stew-like dishes.  One is only 2 buildings down from the hotel, the other is across the street and 2 buildings down.  We had the beef rib soup, which was very good.  She showed me a few other "safe" dishes to try.  I had a wonderful time talking and laughing with her.

Today I spent a couple of hours talking with Eun Hee (now Director Seol) and reviewed 3 files typical to 3 different decades.  Time very well spent, learning a lot for my job and changes we need to make to improve our services.  Then the whole department took me out to lunch at an Italian restaurant in the mall nearby.  Actually, according to Esther, they love pizza but it's expensive in Korea, so they are very happy to take guests out for pizza.  It was very different from what I'm used to, but not bad.  I've noticed the tomato juice and pizza sauce are thinner and bit more "red".  Not sure how to explain it, it could be that they are less processed than your typical V-8.

In the afternoon we visited an orphanage here in Seoul which has been open for a very long time.  I thought I was just to see the outside, take pictures, wander around it.  Instead, Molly Holt came with Esther, Seol Hee, and I to the orphanage where we met with the current director, and the past director.  He told stories and talked about the orphanage's history; he'd been director since 1962.  The building was completely rebuilt, from the ground up, just a few years ago.  I took a few pictures of the outside, then several with Molly and the director.  They were old friends, he called her his older sister because she's a month older than he is - 78.  I wish I had half his energy now!

We didn't have time to see the old baby hospital, so they dropped me at the hotel asking if I wanted to have dinner with Esther and Seol Hee.  They went back to work while I wrote up my notes.  I met them downstairs after they got off work and we walked to a very close restaurant.  I wish I could remember the name of the chicken dish because it was amazing!  It came in a big dish with a variety of side dishes.  It was rich, full of potatoes, carrots, and delicious onions; and a lot of chicken.  Koreans like their meat, so I'm very happy.  It's Seol Hee's favorite dish.

After dinner they took me to a park on the other side of the river where we walked around under the blooming cherry trees.  Seol Hee loves my camera and had a blast taking night photos.  They are also big on taking photos of each other, which you all know I hate having my picture taken.  But they were so much fun that I couldn't help but join it.  It was a lovely evening.  We headed back to the hotel where they showed me the nearest convenience store and taught me how to ask for a receipt.  Taxi's and some stores don't always give it to you automatically.

I was so touched by their concern and friendship.  I'm still worried that I'm imposing, I know they all work very hard, but really appreciated their help.  Eun Hee wants to take me to the national museum on Sunday with her son, who is now almost 8 (American age) and growing so fast!  It'll be nice to hang out with her and her son.  Apparently he's learning English in school but doesn't think he speaks it very well.

I found out tonight that Dr. Cho, who was Holt's pediatrician for decades and is now retired and living at Ilsan, wants to take me to see the baby home personally.  Dr. Cho is 82, sharp as a tack, has far more energy than I, and remembers nearly every child she ever cared for through Holt.  She's amazing, I am honored beyond words for this opportunity.  She remembers everything about the work at the baby home.  The building is now a children's library, but the photos I'll get and the history she'll relay will be invaluable.  If I'm still on my feet after that, I hope to take the night bus tour of Seoul and it's historic bridges.

I have a feeling that taking extra days off after my return home was probably a very smart move!