In case you were wondering, The Simpsons movie gets to South Korea on July 27.
Archive for June, 2007
Meet The Simpsons
Wednesday, June 13th, 2007Don’t Mess
Tuesday, June 12th, 2007
The mall I went to also has a variety of American food. There are the US chains like McDonald’s, Sbarro, and Quizno’s, but there are also the locally (I believe) owned places that schlop out American fare. One such place called Home ^made Burger served me a delicious egg-salad sandwich (on wheat bread, I might add) and chili cheese fries. It was a popular counter at the food court and had Americans and Koreans alike eating from it. Walking around later, I noticed at least two other places selling chili cheese fries.
Now, I know that some McDonald’s restaurants in Texas serve up the smothered fries on their menus, and the artery-clogging appetizers are kind of considered a tex-mex type of food. So I think it’s pretty interesting they’re served in so many places here. My (completely unresearched) hypothesis is that the Seoul restaurants started dishing them out because there are many army families here, and lots of those families are either from Texas and grew up on them or they were trained at or based in Texas and came to love them just the same. I’ve got no real proof of this. But I have to think that there’s got to be a reason, right? Or maybe chili cheese fries are just that good.
WHOA(U)!
Sunday, June 10th, 2007I’ve officially been in South Korea for about 24 hours now. Today I went out on the sole mission of finding a foreign-language bookstore (succeeded) and seeing if I could find an ATM that accepts foreign cards (succeeded as well). Both were at a mall near where I’m staying in Seoul.
Walking around the mall, I was awestruck at how much American culture there was. Most striking was the American-owned clothing stores and beauty shops. I’ve realized I no longer need to worry about getting another pair of Reef sandals or body splash from The Body Shop. Most interesting, though, is the young Koreans’ fascination with the “California” look. It’s something the US experienced in the last decade or so with the growing popularity of Abercrombie and Hollister stores. And for some reason, it’s catching on HUGE here. Importing the SoCal life was something I’d seen a bit of in China, so I guess I wasn’t too floored when I saw Hollister clothes at the high-end department store.
But what I was surprised by was this Korean store. Who.A.U. is a Korean chain with locations throughout the country. Walking into the store, I felt like I’d just stepped off the Hollister porch. All the clothing is West Coast themed; women’s shirts say things like “Cali Girl” and “California Dreaming.” Clothes are in the pastel, sun-bleached colors, and cotton is king. But it’s not a California store. It’s Korean.
Really, you need to check out the website.
A Cool Cat
Sunday, June 10th, 2007
With a short day in Beijing before leaving China, I went to a part of the city I hadn’t been to before. The friendly girl I met on the airport shuttle bus recommended the area.
In one of the area’s many shopping malls, I came across this eatery. Although he’s no Mickey Mouse here, Garfield is still very popular. I’ve seen comic books here with the famous Garfield and Odie antics. When I saw this new place, I figured I should go check it out. A little disappointed that it was only a bakery, I quickly got over it and bought a donut…my first one since leaving the US. The chocolate-covered gooey goodness definitely hit the spot.
But I still can’t believe that a food place called “Garfield” doesn’t sell lasagna. Isn’t that the food everyone thinks of when they see that lovable fat cat?
Hoop it Up!
Thursday, June 7th, 2007
While exploring China, I’ve been surprised at how much the country has embraced basketball. It’s everywhere: parks, military academies, at tourist spots. I suppose I shouldn’t be so surprised, though; the sport is just about as old here as in the US. James Naismith birthed basketball in 1891, and later that decade American missionaries brought the sport to China. (Ah, nothing like using a little sport to bring people into your religion…) So, even though their professional league is much younger than the sport’s birth country’s, it appears that Chinese love basketball just as much…if not more. Evidence? Here’s some pictures I snapped across China…
Click on the thumbnails below to see the pictures full size:
Nike-sponsored courts in Beijing
You know the famous Mao Zedong portrait? This is what’s on the other side of that wall.
kids playing at People’s Park in Qinhuangdao
a court outside of a Qinhuangdao apartment building
basketball goals at the beach in Beidaihe
a ripped-down goal at an elementary school in Xi’an
courts inside a military training place in Jiuzhaigou
a lone goal on a parking lot inside Jiuzhaigou Valley
Gratuitous-Jayna-Was-Here Photo #3
Wednesday, June 6th, 2007
I’m thinking I should probably start choosing more flattering photos of myself for this blog. But, well, here’s a picture of me after walking more than 4 kilometers in the rain anyway.
Where Foreigners Are Few and Far Between
Wednesday, June 6th, 2007
Tired of seeing only man-made sites in China, I was excited to get to Jiuzhaigou, sometimes described as China’s Yosemite. In Beijing I’d heard one jaded American tourist pooh-pooh it complaining about the long lines, “Isn’t that where you have to stand in a queue just to see the water?” he scoffed rather snootily. The Hong Kong transplant nearby quickly defended the area. She told me it was busier now, but it’s still worth seeing.
Believing her recommendation, and wanting desperately to get a little closer to nature, I made the trek to the nature reserve. Even driving into the area, I was awed by the beauty of the place. Tall mountains crept up beside every bend of the road. And through my taxi’s headlights, I saw the outlines of spruce leaning toward the road.
While checking in to the hostel/hotel, I met two foreigners checking out. One was an older Kiwi woman, the other a young Aussie woman, and both were here with a significant other. Seeing these westerners, I was sure the place would be overrun with them.
How wrong I was. Walking around the grounds the next day, there was a massive number of tourists. Supposedly, the park caps entrance to 12,000 a day, and often times, it felt like all 12,000 were at the same part of the reserve I was. But although there were many, many visitors, there were very few westerners. In fact, on my two days in the park I saw less than 10 westerners (unless, of course, they’re incognito like me) and just one American.
Seeing all the tourists, I knew that a large part of the growth of tourism at this place also has to do with the country’s growing middle class. Now with some disposable income, leisure travel is much more feasible. As I look around the area, I’ve been thinking more and more about the American’s comments in Beijing and others I’d heard about the Jiuzhaigou getting ruined soon. Part of me can’t help but think of what their underlying message is. Do these people really think the place was so much more beautiful when only the vacationing westerners and a few domestic tourists could afford the time and money to see it? As one who avoids tourists as much as possible, I can only half-heartedly sympathize with their remarks. I mean, yes, the throngs of camera-carrying tourists blocking my beautiful view isn’t what I like to spend my days looking at. But I can’t help but think how depressing it would be to know that Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, or Sequoia National Park were just pictures in my school textbooks and not something that I had an opportunity to see myself…
For more pictures of the reserve, click on a thumbnail below:
Cookie Monster Says That the Takinas Are…
Tuesday, June 5th, 2007With just a 1 hour 5 minute flight from Xi’an to Jiuzhaigou, I knew I wouldn’t be served any meals on the plane (yes, the free meals are still common on Chinese airlines). Looking for the perfect snack to hold me over, I debated on cookies or prepackaged tofu. I opted for the peanut butter-stuffed cookies.
Now I just have to say that the Kraft-made cookies are quite possibly the best surprise I’ve found in China. The Takinas cookies greet eaters with different faces, but that’s hardly the awesome part of them. Biting into it, I was immediately awed by the familiar flavor. They were JUST like the Girl Scouts’ Do-Si-Dos. I wanted to run back and buy five more packages of these things and put them in a freezer somewhere.
Now, if I can only find Kraft’s version of the Thin Mint…
Keeping up With the Big News
Friday, June 1st, 2007While reading the news from Xinhua News Agency, China’s official (i.e. the voice of the Party) website, today I was updated on Paris Hilton’s days of freedom. Really, though, I have to say seeing it on the state-sponsored news website was pretty funny (I haven’t seen it on any of the other Chinese news sites). It doesn’t seem to be on any of the other language versions of Xinhua’s website, though. I guess English speakers are the only ones who care about whether or not she’ll have to have a cell mate.
I Miss You Most
Friday, June 1st, 2007
OK, I realize Mexican food is not American but, well, obviously Mexican. However, it is a large part of my American experiences. In my rural upbringing, the only authentically “ethnic” foods I ever had were Chinese and Mexican. Living in Southern California for the past four years, I had Mexican food probably four times a week, and while teaching in East L.A., I had it twice a day. Thus, now away from the U.S., I so much crave greasy Mexican food. I miss everything from fresh homemade guacamole to La Casa Grande enchiladas to Chano’s quesadillas.
On my last day in Beijing a couple of weeks ago, I found out there were actually a few Mexican restaurants in the city; an American invited me to join her and her friends at one of them for margaritas. Sadly, my phone died on the day’s hike, and I missed her call shortly before passing out from exhaustion. And after being told I likely wouldn’t find a Mexican restaurant in any of the cities left on my China list, I resigned myself to being sans pico de gallo for a while. Yesterday, though my pico de gallo slump ended.
After having some not-so-good experiences with the local food in Xi’an, I was excited to spot a pizza joint down below during my 14-kilometer walk around the top of the city wall. Stretching my legs as I skimmed the menu, I saw one little word of happiness on the fifth page of the menu: “quesadilla.”
When the small, stuffed double tortillas came, I didn’t care that the veggies in it were a bit of an odd mix or that the tomatoes in the pico de gallo were a little less fresh. With my quesadilla and “made in U.S.A.” Tabasco sauce, I was pretty darn happy.
