It's A Dong Life!

I'm not exactly sure why or how Marc knew this word, but he's always called the little village behind our house the "dong". Yoonsuh told us that's not quite right. A dong is more like a town and the village behind us is, well, a village. It's teeny tiny. There are only houses, no shops. When I look up the meaning of 'dong' I don't see any mention of 'town', but she said that's what it means, so we're sticking with it. And even though the village isn't actually a dong, we're still sticking with it. We like to go on family "dong walks" in the evening after dinner when it cools down. That's when the huge spiders spin their webs. And it's when we see a lot of our neighbors out resting after a long day of working in their fields. It's usually elderly women squatting and chatting or elderly men squatting and smoking. They smile and say all sorts of things to the boys. We just smile back and wave and nod our heads. A few ladies taught us how to say doggy and spider, but, sadly, I can't remember either. I wish we could really get to know them.
Every few days, usually early in the morning, different trucks will drive around with a loud speaker mounted on the roof that goes ding ding ding! and then a voice not unlike the adults from Charlie Brown will proceed to speak for several seconds. "Wah-Waah-Wa-Waah-Waaaa." At least that's what is sounds like to my foreign ear. At first I thought it was some kind of public announcement, but the drivers are actually selling things. I've seen what looks like large tins of fuel as well as a cage with dogs for sale. They drive around the streets and then move on to another dong, er, village. There is another type of truck that drives around but this one blasts heavy clouds of smoke that supposedly kills mosquitoes. We haven't yet confirmed exactly what it is, but have a feeling its chemicals and not just smoke. I've seen one of my neighbors head out for a walk only to sprint for cover when the smoke truck came rumbling up the road. It's actually pretty funny in a crazy, only-in-Korea kind of way.

Look out!

Cough...cough...wheez...gag

Now that the smoke and chemicals have settled, let's take a walk...

This house has a really old facade, but if you walk through the door you'll see a modern house behind it. I guess they just wanted to leave a remnant of the past. Older women use baby strollers, like this one, to collect veggies and walk them back home.

You can almost always find a toilet or a sink just when you need one! They really think of everything. Now how do you turn the water on?

One of those "this-would-never-be-allowed-in-the-US" road structures. These concrete squares are placed on the narrow ledge over a deep water way for irrigation. Cars and trucks have to drive over these because the road is so narrow!

The local compost heap.

The farmer in the dong, the farmer in the dong, hi-ho the dairy-o, the farmer in the dong!

Probably a storage shed.

This one has seen better days.

Laundry hanging in a courtyard.

Random poster of Jesus with German writing leaning against a wall.

What used to be an outhouse with a urinal.

Tractor Parking Only

One of the prettier yards.

Its difficult to get rid of big trash around here, so many yards are full of stuff. 1-800-GOT-JUNK could make a killing here! Oooh-business idea!!

We see very elderly men chopping up scrap wood for winter fires.

Looking back at our Truman-show neighborhood looming over the dong.

Someone's fancy gate leading into a courtyard.

What's a dong without a stray cat? Or 37.

Every dong needs an outdoor gym to keep the locals fit and trim.

Taking a breather between sets.

And of course the pagoda for gatherings and resting.

I like these.

The streets are very narrow.

A neighbor's plot of land.

One of the dogs. Chained up, of course.

Row after row of chili peppers.

Part of the irrigation system.

View towards the dong. You can see our neighborhood in the distance.

On our loop walk through the dong, across the street and into the rice fields.

The land beyond the dong. The air is THICK.

This is a grave that I've heard is referred to as a "happy mound" but that may just be what Americans call them. Usually there are 3 or 4, all from the same family, set along a hillside.

Irrigation

More irrigation. Rice paddies need lots of water!

A small river

The two white specks are egrets (I think). They're all over the rice paddies but won't let anyone get closer than about 75 yards. It is so beautiful when several of them with their huge white wings take flight against the green fields. It's a very Asian-Nat-Geo scene.

The vines have claimed the tractor!

A ball floating in a bucket of rain water. If you look closely, there is a plant growing out of the ball.

And we're back. Sometimes our house seems like a fortress or castle casting a shadow over the humble hamlet of a dong.

I wonder what the locals think of these, by their standards, mansions, and whose homes and fields used to be where our neighborhood now stands. I hope whoever it is got a whole lot of money!

A Weekend With Yoonsuh

Our friend, Yoonsuh, took the train down from Seoul on Friday evening to spend the weekend hanging out with us. She grew up in Seoul and had never been to Pyeongtaek before. Well, of course not. Why would anyone come here? But hopefully, for her, it was a nice little country getaway from the bustling city. She brought with her a book about learning Hangul and a Korean cookbook in English.

We met her at the train on Friday and spent the whole evening asking her dozens of questions about Korean culture, language, things we've noticed, etc. She has an interesting perspective because she lived in DC for 6 years, so she knows a lot about both of our cultures.
On Saturday we went for a *shweaty* walk on some trails in a city park, then on to a Korean market to buy the stuff we needed to make dinner. Finally! Someone to tell us what we're looking at! We learned a lot just from walking around the store with her.

OHH, so that's what that liquid blob is! So educational.

Step one of the kimchi pancake. Girl don't need no recipe!

Step two of the kimchi pancake.

And the liquid blob is...acorn! At least I think that's what she told me this is. Somehow the acorn juice (??) is jellified. I'm cutting it into noodles for a salad.

The tedious task of removing the tail from the bean sprouts.

Blanching the bean sprouts.

Showin' us how its done!

Bean sprouts, garlic, parsley, soy sauce and seasonings. So easy!

Jellified acorn "noodles" with fried egg, seaweed, bean sprouts and seasonings. It tastes better than it sounds!

Kimchi stew

The spread

The food was totally delicious and now I have even more respect for Korean restaurants because everything takes a looong time to prepare. We didn't end up doing a lesson in Hangul like we planned, but we still learned a lot from Yoonsuh. She answered so many questions! I thought I was pretty good at language learning, but this is unlike anything I've ever attempted. She would teach me how to say something and I would completely forget the whole thing a minute later. Hopefully Yoonsuh can come down many more times to help us learn more Hangul and just to hang out. Thanks, Yoonsuh!

Saying goodbye at the train station. The boys really like her!

What's the Story, Korea?

Since I can't read Hangul (yet), my eyes naturally drift toward anything I see in English. I keep looking at all the English signs around here, tilt my head to the left and wonder...whyyyy? Why did they not consult me or any other native English speaker first? You know there are a lot of us here!

Koreans like to use English words for various things - store names, prints on t-shirts, phrases in store windows, etc. The English is almost always totally wrong or at least a little off. I definitely don't want to sound like I'm teasing them for their sometimes poor English. This is Korea, after all. And heaven knows, I can say all of two words in Hangul, probably incorrectly, and I'm living in their country, hoping, and sometimes expecting them to speak my language. But they go as far as putting something in PRINT (expensive billboard ads, magazine ads, professionally made banners, etc) and its just plain wrong. I don't understand why they print stuff in English anyway. Not very many people can speak or read English well enough to understand what it's supposed to say, so why write it English, AND (holding up index finger) FURTHERMORE! a lot of what we see printed in English in magazines is, obviously, meant for speakers of English, so why not get it right? Why not simply ask a native English speaker if their motto or store name or phrase in an advertisement makes any sense before they spend the money? It could be that they feel embarrassed to have to ask, but isn't it more embarrassing to have a permanent sign that doesn't make sense? There. I've said my piece.

Now, we are guilty of the same thing in America. Correct or incorrect, words printed in French just look better somehow even though most of us don't know what they say or if it makes sense. I'm thinking of printed baby clothes, home decor, vintage framed prints, garden signs and plant markers, kitchen decor...all with pretty French script is cuter, nicer and fancier. It just is. Which restaurant sounds nicer? Aux Deux Canards or Two Ducks? Yeah. I have a feeling its the same way here but with super-fancy English.

I've put examples of cute/funny/crazy signs that don't make sense into previous blog posts and I could show dozens more. See Coex Mall for some real doozies. Here's another one:

This was taken literally one block from the entrance to the Army base. Ask anyone going in or coming out, is this correct? Not quite.

Here is a collection of a curious theme I've noticed...

The Story of Best Coffee

Story Way (convenience store)

Glass Story (for eyeglasses, not windows)

Gag Story (another convenience store)

Story of cell phone covers?

Trash Story (Photo: courtesy of Marc)

Rice Story Cafe

Funny Design Story. I'm sure it's hilarious.

Natural Story from Korea (skin care shop)

Story Shoe. There is probably a Shoe Story somewhere, too.

...and finally, The Story. Of what, I really can't say.

I'd love to know how this "Story" thing started! Any guesses? 

Attention Koreans! I will help you with syntax and semantics prior to printing***FREE OF CHARGE!***
I have to admit, the "incorrectness" of it all is sweet, endearing, and, let's face it, pretty darn entertaining.

You're cute, Korea.

8 Great Things About Being Back In Korea

(Please excuse the weird spacing and font size. The format is messed up and I can't figure out how to fix it.)

We survived another long trip! It was better than anticipated because

I set my expectations very, very low. We all got at least some sleep this time, the little guy

was easier to handle, and we were coming back to a familiar home.

After a rental car, shuttle, two planes, a bus and a taxi, we finally walked in 

the door and got a big surprise. Our friend JD, who 
had been watering our plants, left all kinds of goodies for us in the fridge. I 
was not looking forward to piling into yet another mode of transportation to 
buy food at the grocery store, and she saved us from that! She made hummus with 
veggies, falafel, French toast, mac & cheese, a watermelon, beer, milk and eggs. 
What a terrific surprise and such a relief! Preparing food for someone in need 
is probably one of the best gifts you can give, in my opinion. I won't forget all the people 
who brought us meals after Jonah was born and I won't forget this! 

Equally surprising, but far, far less pleasant was the amount of dead insects in the 
house. You would not believe how many dead fleas were all over the floor and 
around the windowsills. If I collected them all together I would have at least 
two hands full. Plus all the other unidentified mutant bug carcasses on the 
floor. And the spiders! Oh yuck, the spiders. Fortunately, they seem to like being 
outside, but they are huge and they're EVER-Y-WHERE. Its like the bugs here are supersized. 

The copious dragonflies are the size of hummingbirds and insects that might otherwise not look 

scary ARE scary because they're so large. 

Anyway, the food was terrific. Thanks J!

Here is my list of great things about being back in Korea:
1. My bed
2. My pillows
3. My covers
4. Not living out of a suitcase
5. This soup

I have been craving this soup for weeks! This is cold buckwheat noodle soup with shaved ginger, cucumber, sesame seeds and half of a hard boiled egg. The chunky stuff on the sides is crushed ice. Its amazingly good.

6. Seeing the change in the landscape. It was so bleak in winter and now the land is bursting with vegetation, mainly food crops. Like I said before, some kind of food is growing on every available patch of soil.

Planting had just started when we left and now its tall and bushy.

I wish my pictures were better. There is every shade of green as far as you can see.

Here is the view from our backyard in January.

Here it is in July.

7. The incredibly generous and kind people of Korea.

On our first morning back we went out for a walk. As soon as this lady saw us she immediately took handfuls of beans from her bag and then went to this bush to pick peppers. She's working so hard and gave us so much. This kind of generosity and kindness is something we've experienced over and over.

She filled Jonah's trunk!

This is her bike.

8. Finally, it feels great to be back in Korea after a long, rejuvenating trip back home. I'm glad the boys were able to reconnect with friends, cousins, grands, and great-grands and can now get back to a familiar, comfortable routine and sleep in their own beds. I realize again how lucky I am to be from one of the most beautiful cities in the world (SAN DIEGO!) and to have so many people all over the US and world who I love and who love me. We went so many places and visited as many loved ones as we could squeeze in. There are many more who I wish we could have seen and who I would have liked to spend more time with. Next time! And now I feel very grateful for the opportunity to make even more friends in a very beautiful country in yet another corner of the earth.

That said, the spiders alone could put me back on a plane tomorrow! Ghheesh!

This little fella has a lot of big, big brothers.

Marc gets credit for the photos!