Koreans are way into festivals. Or maybe it is just that Adventure Korea Travel Club, the tour guide that caters to young ESL teachers and people of our ilk, believes the festivals showcase the best of Korea.
Earlier in the winter we hit up an ice festival in Hwacheon north near the DMZ that is visited by over one million people in its three weekend run. I also hear that there is a festival honoring a special mushroom that grows on pine trees coming up. This post is about the snow crab festival we checked out two weekends ago.
We woke up at 5:30 to catch a subway that would take us, after two transfers, to the meeting spot at Express Bus Terminal in the heart of Seoul at 7:00 a.m. I suppose this is as good a time as any to mention a few observations I have made regarding the Seoul Metropolitan Subway:
1) Forget ladies first. These people are all about elders first. They take the elderly section of the subway very seriously. Most young people will give up their seats without hesitation to someone who looks older, regardless of the section. The only exception to this is if the young person is pretending to sleep, which is a common and crafty move.
2) Observation #1 does not apply to entering or exiting the subway. If you are in the way, you will get rolled.
3) As a whitey, you will undoubtedly draw quick glances from all passengers. Most people will only look a fraction of a second and then return to staring straight ahead, or pretend to sleep. Older riders will most likely take a longer look because they just don't give a shit.
4) The seats are heated. Ballin'!
5) There is more, but maybe I should save it for another post down the road complete with pictures.
Overall, I can't really complain about the subway. It is a great system- efficient, inexpensive and easy to use. Pretty incredible when you realize that over 3 million people ride it each day.
Anyway, once we get to the bus terminal we make sure to muscle our way into one of the front pairs of seats. This isn't our first rodeo so we come prepared with earplugs, sleep masks and neck pillows.
Do I feel like a big nerd in the front of the bus being anti-social while the cool kids in the back whoop it up? Maybe a little. But I am of the opinion that 27 is a lot different than 22. Isolation may also play a factor into all of this. Think about it. Most of these people go the whole week speaking very little English. When they do have the opportunity to use it, all humor is lost on the subject, and they most likely will be required to repeat themselves half a dozen times. They are also living by themselves in tiny studios. I don't entirely blame them for letting loose. However, on this particular trip, the group was a little worse than usual.
With more people applying to teach in Korea, because of the economy or what-have-you, the government has started to become more selective in their hiring of foreign teachers. I think the days of bringing in kids right out of college without teaching degrees are over. However, this last wave of renegades remains, and as much as it pains me to say it, many of these "teachers" are not painting the best picture of American tact.
Case in point: On this trip, I hear one young American "teacher" boisterously complain that Korean women in general are lackluster and unenthusiastic during intimate moments, or to use his words, "They just lay there and fake cry."
Later on an Australian in our group would be caught urinating in public. Hmmm, do you think your typical Korean is going to be able to discern that the rogue peeer prefers Fosters to Bud? Didn't think so.
Coming in Part 2: eating silkworm pupa, a new Guiness World Record broken and a bumpy ride on the Sea of Japan
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