I'm Back

For reasons I don't wish to disclose, I had to cut my trip short. However, below I have posted some pictures I took on the airplane.

Clouds 1

Clouds 1
Originally uploaded by LouiseL.

On the aeroplane on the way to Jejudo Island, I could not resist taking some photos of the clouds through the window.

So tranquil compared with the hustle and bustle below me. I love flying, it's like entering another world.

You can click on any of the photos to enlarge them. Do so, it's worth it.

Clouds 2

Clouds 2
Originally uploaded by LouiseL.

Further along was this magnificent cloud formation.

Clouds 3

Clouds 3
Originally uploaded by LouiseL.

A little closer...

Clouds 4

Clouds 4
Originally uploaded by LouiseL.

Simply beautiful

I'm off

You know that blob floating in the sea off Korea's South Coast?

That's where I will be spending the next few days (until Sunday). I just thought that I would spend my holiday as far away from the hagwon as possible, without actually leaving the country.

I probably will not update this website until next week, so don't expect anything exciting.

Jejudo awaits...

Atom Adventure

Last Sunday was hot...super super hot. Jiwang and I kicked back to some tunes, Korean and English/American, and drove to the countryside. The music (mostly heavy-metal) blasted out the open windows along the motorway, as we sang, moshed, and admired the scenery.

"Let's find a forest somewhere and get lost in it." I said to Jiwang, the evening before.
"Ok" he says, " I really want to do that. I know where there are some. I'll plan it".
"I don't believe you" I said. " I bet my bottom dollar you will turn up tomorrow and not have a clue where we are going".
"No, no." he insisted. "I'll plan it".

When he picked me up the next morning, he looked around him and said
"어디로?"/"where to?"
I covered my face with my hands. " I don't know, its not my country" I replied, a litte exhasperated. "Anywhere".

So off we went, in the direction of Jiwang's choosing, treating South Korea to the wonders of Heavy Metal music. On the way to God-Knows-Where we stopped off to view the beach, which Jiwang insisted was fantastic, but in my opinion looked nothing more than a mudslide. After some convincing, I had a photo taken of myself with the mudslide in the background, and vice versa. On the cliff overlooking the er...beach, were some bushes of what Jiwang insisted is Korea's national flower. I didn't believe him; afterall, he is the biggest 뻥쟁이/Joker on the planet, so these days I have difficulty believing anything that comes out of his mouth. After some jostling and squabbling, I was given free reign of MY camera to take some pictures of the flowers.

After more driving, I noticed some tour buses parked on the road. Jiwang pulled over, and we both got out to find out what was there. As soon as we got out of the car we were accosted by some nosey Koreans, who were asking if we were a couple, and if we were from America. As Jiwang wandered off to the information desk, I informed them:
아니요. 전 영국에서 왔어요. 그리고 그 남자가 한국 사람 이에요.
No. I am from England. And that man is Korean.

(Surely Jiwang's facial features and Korean language ability gives him away?). Just for extra spice, I added (within earshot of Jiwang):
그래요. 이 남자가 재 남자 진구 이에요.
Yes, this man is my boyfriend. (A complete lie).

Eyes popped out and jaws hit the floor. They simply could not comprehend it. Afterall, how often do you come across a Korean man and a foreign woman as a couple? Never. (Maybe occassionally in Seoul). It just doesn't fit right into the confucious society of the hermit kingdom. A Korean man will not go anywhere near a foreign woman to make her a serious girlfriend, even if he was hopelessly in love with her.

Oh, the amusement.

The man who was questioning me gave Jiwang a knowing wink and a smile, then looked at me and said: "beautiful".

Having established that

there is a temple, and couple of waterfalls 2 hours away, we walked back to the car, leaving them staring after us. We drove further down the road, closer to the waterfalls, so we would not have to walk as far.

The walk, despite being flat all the way, was strenous in the full glare of the mid-afternoon sun. The sweat dripped off me, despite shade from the trees. On the way to the waterfall there was a picturesque lake and Koreans nearby willing to take photos of the two of us. Meanwhile Jiwang could not resist posing for a photo hero-style. What a man.

Futher along we came across a viewing point over looking the river and a smaller lake. I collapsed in a heap on the steps, and reached for my water bottle. Jiwang used this valuable opportunity to get snappy-happy with my camera. He took a couple of me too, resting on the step, but unfortunately they came out blurred. However, you can just about make out the grumpy expression at the prospect have having my picture taken while resembling a pig swealtering in the heat. The middle photo shows the main waterfall in the distance, while the smaller ones are of the smaller waterfall.

Walking along the trail through the trees was noisy. A chorous of birds, frogs and insects sang happily as they went on their day-to-day business, more or less how I would image a jungle to sound like (minus the odd roar of a tiger or hiss of snake). I noticed a gap in the trees, that made a fork in the trail.

"This is the path to the main waterfall" I stated, matter-of-factly.

"How do you know?" Jiwang asked."There's no sign".

"I just do". I said simply. "We should follow the river".

Sure enough the short scramble lead us upstream towards the waterfall, where other enthusiastic climbers where eating lunch and playing in the pool. The thing about Koreans is that they must have the latest fashion in everything. This disease has even spread to the hill-walkers. However, they had no qualms about getting their latest sportswear completely wet-through as they took a much needed bathe in the pool. I joined them, in a hurry to clean my stinky feet and splash myself all over with cold water. Many a water-fight erupted, and unfortunately I got caught in the cross-fire. Unfazed, I joined in with the splashing and the squeeling, eager to seek revenge. Jiwang however did not fancy getting wet, and so stayed by the edge of the pool.

After eating our kimbap, we made our way back to the car. I was hoping that my clothes would dry by the time I got there. Unfortunately they did not, and I sat in the car soaking wet all the way back to Kunsan.

This week I have been quite poorly. Jiwang thinks that it is related to playing in the pool; I'm not so sure. I had headache and a blocked nose, and took some cold medicine. Tuesday night I couldn't sleep because of the pain in my ears. Wednesday The Boss took me to the hopital where it was established that I do indeed have an ear infection, and I should have an injection in my 공동이/derriere and take the following course of medicine for 2 days. By friday, the medicine was doing nothing for me. I was in a fair amount of pain throughout my working day, ears, jaw, neck and back; the Boss saw my miserable expression and said "Cheer up, OK?!", while I thought "Shut up!" behind a fake smile that fell short of a grimace.

While I was with the 15 year olds, towards the end of the lesson I felt this 'pop!' in my right ear, and fluid slowly trickle down my ear cannal. When the class finished, I walked downstairs to the office and told them what had happened. The Boss had left the building, his Mrs couldn't be bothered, so one of my colleagues held my hand all the way to the hospital, as I had some difficulty walking straight. When we got there, he turned me away saying that there was nothing more he can do, that he will prescribe me some painkillers, and that I should have another needle shoved in my precious 공동이. He then suggested that I should visit a ENT doctor in the morning.

Hence this morning, at the reasonable hour of 11am, I gave The Boss a call on his mobile. He answered, grunting something about a hangover, and he will be at my apartment in 15 minutes.
True to his word, he was there 15 minutes later, and accompanied me to the hospital. There I had various intruments shoved, twizzled and sucked in my ears. Again, it was established that I have ear infection, and that I should take another, stronger course of medicine. I am to go back on Monday.

Thus the weekend will probably be spent sprawled on my bed, knocked unconcious by drugs.

Gangnam Bus Terminal

Gangnam Bus Terminal
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Last weekend a group of took a trip to Seoul. Here we are posing at the main bus terminal, From left to right: Jordan, Mark (both from the Phillipenes), Sleepy-head, and Dana.

I needed to buy another MP3 player from Yongsan as I lost my first one when I went to visit the Gomdo dojan. "Louise...many children...in out, in out...Louise...Pabo!" said Kim Sa Bom. Unfortunately his English has improved far too much; to make things worse he wanted the translation for Pabo: Idiot.

Old train station

Old train station
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

The old train station building, the architecture of which reminds me a little of the Leicester and Nottingham train stations. Given the style of the architecture, and the overcast sky, this photo could easily pass for England.

It's South Korea, honest!

Seoul Scene

Seoul Scene
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

A general photo of Seoul, just to give you an impression of the atmosphere. Big TV screens, tall-ish builings...but not nearly as crowded as London.

Namdaemoon Market Enterance

Namdaemoon Market Enterance
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Here it is: Nandaemoon Shijang, the sign proudly bearing the title of this nationally-famous market. Though to be honest, it seemed just like any other market in Korea.

Nandaemoon Market Scene

Nandaemoon Market Scene
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Looks spacious? Don't be deceived. As you go further along it becomes more narrow, with barely enough room to walk single file. T-shirts, bags, dried squid, fruit, vegetables, skirts...you name it, they had it. The smell of the fruit was amazing...not so sure about the dried squid.

Nandaemoon Market Scene 2

Nandaemoon Market Scene 2
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Mark and Jordan leading the way along the crowed streets of Nandaemoon market.

Pricing T-Shirts

Pricing T-Shirts
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Here the fellas are pricing "I love Korea" etc T-shirts. Mmm..too expensive... I also bought one, but at a different stall. I plan to wear it on Fridays, for the benefit of my 15 year olds.

Nandaemoon 1

Nandaemoon 1
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

An interestig mix of the old with the new, this is another photo of Nandaemoon gate, National Treasure No 1. Previously I had taken a photo of this at night. The market, named after the gate, is on the opposite side of the road, behind me.

I love the animals that form a procession along the roof...typical of old Korean architecture.

The sky is overcast and is threatening rain, typical of the current rainy season.

Nandaemoon 2

Nandaemoon 2
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Nandaemoon, side angle.

On the Subway

On the Subway
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

After a long day, two of the fellas took a nap on the subway while I read my book. Mark somehow was able to sleep leaning forward and supporting his chin with the flat of his palm.

Blasts in Britain

A few days ago I read about the bomb blasts in London the BBC website. The bombs exploded on Thursday 7th July during rush-hour at several locations, causing shock, carnage and destruction at 3 underground stations, and a bus (see map). The first blast occured on an underground train near Liverpool St station, the second and third near Kings Cross and at Edgware Road, and the fourth on a double decker bus. Seemingly timed with the Earth Summit meeting, these blasts killed around 50 people, and injured at least 700 others. People emerged from the underground, some able to walk but injured, some with broken bones, and many more were screaming and crying with shock and fury. By mid-morning the hospitals were flooded with the shocked and the injured, as Tony Blair flew back from the summit to London.

Tony Blair's comments from Gleneagles were:

The purpose of terrorism is not only to kill and maim the
innocent, it is to put despair and anger in people's hearts...It is by its
savagery designed to cover all conventional politics in darkness, to overwhelm
the dignity of democracy and proper process with the impact of bloodshed and of
terror...There is no hope in terrorism, nor any future in it worth living. And
it is hope that is the alternative to this hatred...The politics we represent
will win and will triumph over terrorism...These people who kill the innocent
and cause such bloodshed, they are responsible and they are solely
responsible...

While Tony Blair insists that the sole responsiblity of the bombing lies with the terrorists behind it, many point the finger directly at Blair. While acknowledging that primarily the responsibility lies with the terrorists, Galloway made his controversial opinion known at the House of Commons that day, deaf to jeers and haggles from fellow MPs.

Silence would be complicity. I am not prepared to be
complicit when people in Iraq and London are paying a blood price for Blair's
bizarre special relationship with Bush...rotten government with a rotten foreign
policy...If you go on bombing other people they will go on bombing us...(Blair
should) cease its obscene special relationship with the worst US president
ever...I don't believe Mr Blair or Mr Bush are capable of solving this problem -
I believe they are the cause of this problem...We will threaten the safety of
our citizens and our interests unless we change political course.

(Taken from BBC website)

When I read the news about the blasts I felt angry and powerless. I could not imagine the terror those people must have felt when the bomb went off, it broke my heart that so many were injred, some fatally. Moreover, this is my country; when I leave Korea, this is what I have to come back to. My generation in England has never experienced the horrors of war or terrorism first hand, yet it is my generation that has to clean up the mess that my parents' generation has created. Of course, this has always been true from one generation to the next, but in the advent of swift communication, clever technology and frighteningly destructive weaponary, we have a bigger challenge ahead of us than has ever been recorded in world history. Soon there will be no one alive to put pen to paper.

I remember when I turned on the TV on 9/11, and watched the first showing of the footage of the of the first World Trade Center building collapsing, I said immediately:

"This is US governments' punishment for its international policies. They cannot expect to swing its arrogant weight around and not get any form of backlash".

While I feel for the victims of all terrorist incidents (and their families), I cannot help but agree with Galloway. In a city were I am the only person from England, my sense of patrionism is sharpened. I jokingly applaude my students for wearing clothes displaying the British flag, and am impressed by Jiwang dutifully wearing his trousers that stretch the flag right across his buttocks. However when questioned upon my opinion of the British government, my answer to Koreans, Canadians, and Americans is always the same:

"I am deeply embarassed by my Prime Minister. I feel almost ashamed to be British".

I was shocked and dismayed when I heard the news in Korea that Blair won his small majority; I had kept my fingers crossed that he would not come to power again. It is not, in my opinion, what I call responsible voting. Perhaps 51% of the British public are satisfacted with his national policies, but the vast majority are deeply unhappy with his international ones. We have long feared blasts in London, but hoped that it would never happen. Now we are faced with the harrowing reality of the consequences of Blair's courtship of the American government, and it is the innocent who suffer. Perhaps next time, those who voted will think a little harder before slotting the ballot paper into the box. These photographs are caused not only by the terrorists, not only Tony Blair, but those who voted pro-Blair.

When I saw In-ja's baby for the first time, I felt sorry that she had to be brought into a world as terrible as this.

13/07/05

My mother sent me an email informing me that someone I know was permanently injured by one of the bombs. I am so unbelievably angry.

Baby 1

Baby 2
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Last week my Gomdo masters' wife, In-ja gave birth to a healthy baby girl. She is so cute!

Baby 2

Baby 1
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Somehow she was able to ignore Big Sister's disturbances and slept on, dwelling the land that only Babies know of.

YeReem July

YeReem July
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Ye-Reem, 6 months older than the last photo, but her favourite colour is still pink.

With Big Sister

Big and Little sisters
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Ye-reem automatically lay down and posed for this photo without me having to ask her...maybe she has become accustomed to this pose. Anyway, it is a wonderful photo of big sister and little sister together.

Jaehom

jaehom
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

This is Jaehom, an English student at Gunsan University. Here he is taking great interest in his MP3 player, as means of ignoring the camera. He would not look directly at the camera, so I took several. He is one of many good-looking (Korean) male friends.

Jaehom

Jaehom 2
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Jaehom

Jaehom
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Jiwang

Jiwang
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

This is Jiwang, who goes by the name of Atom, a Japanese anime character. He is quite camera-shy, though it is hard to see why. I am sure you would agree with me, he really is quite good-looking.

Me and my friends-blurred

Me and my friends-blurred
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

This was taken by manager of the "Hospital" bar, whom we all call the Doctor. This is the least blurred out of the 5 photos that he took. That's me in the middle (obviously), Mark on the left (from the Phillipenes) and Dana on the right (from Romania).

BFP

BFP
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Yes... it really does exist.

Tom and Frank

Tom and Frank
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

Mmmm...delicious Kalbi.

Me, Frank, Sonyoung

Me, Frank, Sonyoung
Originally uploaded by Eleruen.

A couple of weeks ago I met up with Jooyoung (Frank), 'Tom' Jiwant (Atom) and Sonyoung. We feasted on Kalbi, with the usual selection of dishes. Afterwards we went to a Board Game Bang, and played Pop-up Pirate (can you believe it?) and a couple of other Korean card games.

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