Happy New Year

Happy 2012 (for Lulu)

Sunrise festival in Sokcho

It's the year of the Dragon

Crowds of people heading to the beach to see the sunrise 

Me on a frozen lake infront of a frozen waterfall

Korean New Years celebrations are far more moderate and conservative compared to the wild ways of the West. Traditionally, Koreans just go to the beach and watch the first sunrise of the year. Fortunately, because I'm such a lucky person, a cloud covered 2012's sunrise but I can assure you, the sun still looks the same. 

I much prefer the sunrise to a night of partying hard. 

Kimchi

Kimchi 

Soju 

The same way that people don't understand how I eat tripe, I don't understand how Koreans eat kimchi. The dish is made of fermented cabbage with a spicy paste and a sour taste. October/November are the kimchi making months. Families drive to food markets and buy up bushels (bundles or whatever the collective term of cabbages is), then they wash it and coat it with the paste and let it 'rest' otherwise known as ferment. 
The quality of the kimchi depends on how long it's been allowed to ferment and your own tastes bud, fresh kimchi could be 'rested' for a week and old kimchi can be fermented for years! 
I've tasted kimchi, not sure how old it was but it isn't for me. Bless the Koreans, they have stronger stomaches than me and this isn't only with regards to their food, the national drink also takes a lot out of you. 


Soju. The Russians have vodka, the Koreans have Soju. I'm not sure if it's because both these countries happen to be fully embraced by winters' kiss (they're really cold), that they felt the need to consume so much alcohol but vodka has nothing on soju. The amount of alcohol in soju must be the maximum limit allowed for human consumption. We have it at every school dinner and as a sign of respect you take a shot with the boss(es). 


Life can be tough for the foreign stomach. 

Winter Wonderland pt 1

Winter Wonderland

My Church

Work

We are all the same

  My school- Wontong Chodo Hakyo (Elementary School)

I had to write a message in my schools year book. This is what I wrote:

We are all one.

"Everyone smiles in the same language." - Author Unknown

Nearly a year ago, I got on to a plane and flew over 12 300 kilometers and arrived in a school where my brother and sister seemed to have visited before. The boys loved soccer, computer games and WWE, just like my brother. The girls loved music, boy bands and chatting, just like my sister.

As puzzling as it was, it became clear that all of us are really just the same, especially when we are in school.

During my first few weeks here, my family kept asking me what the students were like and I kept say they’re the same as the students in South Africa. You have the good students that do the work, ask great questions and really want to learn and on the other side you have the other kind that don’t care or make an effort, which always makes sad.  But then I remembered the mistakes you make when you are in elementary school, all the lessons you should have paid attention in and all the teachers who could have shown you the world, if you only gave them a chance.

Now that the year is nearly over and I have to sit and write this message, I’d like to share what I’ve learnt. We are all the same; we laugh, smile and interact in the same language. We learn in the same way, we teach in the same way.

Wontong is very different from Johannesburg. For one we have over 3 million people in the city and Wontong has a lot less than that. But if you look closely and after getting over the different languages, the different appearances and the different continents, you’ll find or see that the people and mostly the students have the same dreams and the same goals. We are all human; we are capable of treating each with respect and love.

Thank you Wontong Elementary School for welcoming me into your world, its felt just like home and it has shown me that the world is a very small place, especially because we are all the same. We are one. 

WInter is here

"Today, you will see real snow"

Winter has arrived. I never understood how people carry on with life when the weather is so miserable, cold and snowing but now I understand.
You have no other option.

Winter is Coming

Wontong-Ri

The main road through the town

The view outside my window

Rice

Winter is coming and I don't think I'll be ready. This morning, the water puddles had frozen, not to mention the snow covered mountain tops. It's November, it snows until March! 
So before winter comes and the snow covers everything, I'd like to tell you about my little town.


Wontong-Ri is in Gangwon province, 40 minutes from North Korea. It's a rural area but there are a lot of military bases here so the town is full of soldiers (sad boys that have to enlist for 2 years) and nothing else. We have 'town', a bus terminal that gets you out of the town but most precious of all, we have RICE. The Koreans love of rice has no equivalent in South Africa. They have rice everything - cake, noodles, sweets. 


Life here is very different overall. There's no space in Korea so people live in apartment blocks, a drive through Seoul will really shock you and they're still building some more. People park on the streets, there's no crime in my town so on the odd occasion they'll forget to close the windows. I walk home at 9pm from my piano lessons and have no worries that someone is hiding in the bush somewhere, my piano teacher doesn't even lock the class room at night. (I'm going to miss this)


There's so many good things about Korea but at times I think it comes at a price. Korea has one of the highest suicide rates in the world, the kids just do school for most of their childhood, then there's the military conscription for men, then there's the pressure to make money, get married and have children. They're pressured to conform to society, being different is not encouraged, this includes your hairstyle, the way you dress and sexual orientation ("there aren't any gay people in Korea"). 


I'm glad to be South African. I miss home. 

You won't believe the things I've seen

The people and places

Half way through my time in Korea and it's time for a little retrospective.

I planned to have a gap year since grade 10 and now that I'm half way through it, I feel so blessed that I had the opportunity. I never thought I'd end up in Korea but I'm glad I did.

Surfing

Surfing

Echo beach, Bali. A surfer's paradise, or as one tour guide said, "It's like Hawaii".

Bali

Ubud is the rural part of Bali and apparently it's where they shot some of Eat, Pray Love. It was a very pleasant city, not so many tourists. It was peaceful but busy and there's a monkey forest/ Temple at the edge of the city.

Bali

The Streets of Bali

Louis Vuitton helmet (not sure if it's real)

The easiest mode of transport in Bali are bikes, I'm not sure if it's because of the traffic caused by the tourists or they're cheaper than cars but most people have them and they use them as family cars or delivery cars. One other reason could be that the roads are so small and narrow, bikes are easier to maneuver and get around town with.

Bali

First impressions of paradise

My first impressions of Bali from the taxi ride to my hotel. Very busy city for an island. I started in Kuta which is full of tourists, high prices and a bit dirty, but it showed life in Bali; people on bikes, traffic and construction sites.

Malaysia

Malaysia (truly Asia)

The only two things I knew about Malaysia prior to the 18 hours lay over was that Formula 1 had a race here and they have the iconic Petronas Towers, which were once the worlds tallest buildings. Since I wouldn't be able to go the Formula 1, the Petronas Towers were the only things left to see.

Verdict: really beautiful city, especially with the lights on.

Highlights:

Since I was only there, alone, for 18 hours and I slept for 7 of them, I had a very limited experience of Kuala Lumpur but it was a very eye opening experience. The city reminds me of South Africa, complete with Nandos and crazy taxi drivers, not to mention the accent.

Malaysia is a Muslim country but it's full of diverse people, Chinese, Indians, all with their own religions and cultures; it really reminded me of home. All the good parts of Joburg, Cape Town and Durban put together.

But this was all in the city centre, I didn't get to see the surrounding, non tourist areas but on the train ride to the city, I got a glimpse of it. Like all cities, you get the glamorous, industrial, busy CBD and then you get were everyone else lives- lots of tall apartment blocks, some dirty some clean and people living on the side of the railway.

There's always a bit of reality behind the images of glamour.