Rinnai Cooking Class

Friday was the day of cooking and food. The morning started off by attending class at the Rinnai Cooking School and ended with my first experience of the show Nanta. 

Sponsored through the Seoul Global Center, this month's cooking class menu included 보쌈 (Bo-ssam) and 쟁반국수 (Jaengban Guksu). Our group met at 10:15am outside of Hongik University Station (Green Line 2) exit 4 and walked together over to class (it is the tall building behind you as you come out of the subway exit). To add to the excitement, the cost for the class is a mere 5,000 W! 

You will find the cooking school on the 3rd floor of the building. From here, you will pick up your apron and find a station to work at where the ingredients and utensils have already been laid out for you.

The class is conducted in Korean, but do not let this stop you. Our lovely guide from the Seoul Global Center was there to translate for us. Before class begins, you are also given a recipe sheet (in both Korean and English), so you can easily follow along. Additionally, as you can see in the video, there are three screens where you can watch the teacher prepare and follow along with each step of the recipe.

보쌈 (Bo-ssam) meat is finished!

Completed 쟁반국수 (Jaengban Guksu)

Afterwards, you have the chance to sit and eat what you have so diligently and tastefully prepared, followed by a time of cleaning up and washing dishes. The class finished eating and cleaning by around 1pm.

***In addition, as a side note, I was also interviewed during this cooking class (as well as many of the other participants) for a radio program airing tonight (Monday) on Arirang Radio.  We were interviewed about a variety of questions relating to Korean food and cooking....two of my favorite things!***

만수야 커피 먹자!~~"It's Mansu! Let's drink coffee!"

Another thing I have had to say "see you later" to in Gumi is my favorite coffee shop, Timber Coffee. This coffee shop needs an entire blog post of its own, so when I gather together some more of my pictures from it, I will feature it in an upcoming post.

But the story does not end with Timber Coffee...the Lord, knowing my unparalleled addiction to the beauty and taste and atmosphere and overall feeling derived from this simple bean, has brought me to yet another jewel. *^.^*

On Thursday I got up early and hopped on a subway over to Incheon for the day to help out my friend, Simon, with packing before he moved into his new place the following day. Knowing my addiction to coffee and desire for the "real-thing," he made sure to make a stop by his friend's coffee shop before diving into our work. 

Let me tell you........

I.HAVE.NEVER.TASTED.COFFEE.SO.GOOD.AND.RICH.AND.FULL.AND.DYNAMIC.AND.

FLAVORFUL.AND.OVERALL.SO.COMPLETELY.FANTASTIC.IN.MY.ENTIRE.LIFE.  

......that is.......until I came here.

Located in the Songnae area of Incheon off of Line 1 and a quick bus ride into town, this coffee shop is full of character and has a relaxing, chill atmosphere. 만수야 커피 먹자 (Mansoo-ya Keo-pi Meok-ja..."It's Mansoo! Let's drink coffee!"), as it is named, is owned and run by a brother and sister duo. Originally opened in 2011, this coffee shop boasts some of the best hand-drip coffee made from beans roasted right in the shop and a variety of delicious espresso-based drinks, as well as many other drink choices to suit any style and taste. The baked goods, all handmade and exquisitely crafted by the sister in this duo, are an absolute must when stopping in, and one cannot leave without sampling one of the scrumptious goodies. 

In addition to fabulous coffee and mouth-watering pastries, 만수야 also offers barista classes and language exchange classes. 

So...

Whether you live in Seoul or Incheon or anywhere in between, this is definitely one place that tourist books won't tell you about but that you definitely do not want to miss. 

See you at Mansu!

Kpop Song Class

So I decided to start the journey right and enjoy these two weeks of vacation. Although I can't go back to the States right now or spend the money to travel to some other exotic land nearby, I still have two weeks to explore a few things here and there around Seoul.

Tuesday started off busy with my usual Skype tutoring class, then Skyped with my mom, then my first breakfast with the fam (really, my first time eating a BREAKFAST in awhile), then an interview with another Skype tutoring opportunity, then flute practice, then meeting with my new boss, then heading to Myeongdong for some lesson planning time and finally off to my first Kpop song class.

The Kpop Song Class is sponsored by the Seoul Culture and Tourism Center and is FREE for anyone interested. You just need to register, which you can do by emailing seoulcenter@seoulwelcome.com. (Kpop Song classes are Tuesdays 4:00-5:30pm, and Kpop Dance classes are Wednesdays 4:00-5:30pm.)

This week's song was not really a "Kpop" song but actually a very famous "trot" song called 무조건 (Mujogeon). In the class, we read are given sheets with the words in Korean and romanization (so don't worry if you cannot read hangeul yet), as well as the sheet music. Together, with the teacher, we read each line and check for meaning. From there, we practice the song line-by-line as the teacher plays along on the piano. Finally, once we have practiced everything, we sing it karaoke-style with the lyrics and video up on a big projection screen while we pass around the microphone. Some of us were new this time, so we felt a little shy singing solo, but by the end of the class, we had all warmed up to each other and were belting it out, having a great time. I'm looking forward to next week as well, where we will learn 여수밤바다 (Yeosu-bam-bada) by Busker Busker (a now really famous indie band from Korea...woo!).

무조건 [박상철]

the Seoul-filled journey begins

So, much has happened between my last post and now. Rather than fill in all the details, I want to start new...

For those who don't know, I just moved back to Seoul this past Monday. It was hard leaving knowing that I wouldn't be seeing my friends as often as I used to, but it is comforting knowing that it isn't goodbye yet.....we are only a 3 hour ride away from each other. To all my Gumi/Daegu friends~~~I love you dearly, and I miss you so much already. 

Let's see....my arrival into Seoul was reminiscent and deja-vu of my first day in Korea: a rainy, dreary day (at least this time I had an umbrella!), coming alone. My new home stay Korean dad picked me up from the bus terminal and brought me to what I will now call home. I feel so safe and relaxed here. Honestly, I realized that I had forgotten what a "good night's sleep" felt like until I came here. I've never slept so soundly or so well in what seems like a very, very long time. Blessings for that.

And yes, as I mentioned, I decided to do a home stay rather than living alone or in a boarding house. I chose this for many reasons. One reason being that I missed living with a family (Evelyn and Clara, I miss you guys!). I missed having a family to come home to and cook with and hang out with and just plain having someone else in the house while I am home. It's just really a nice feeling. Also, I wanted to experience the culture first-hand (as if LIVING in Korea wasn't first-hand enough!) and practice the language. At this point, I know some of you are wondering whether my family speaks English, and the answer is well, no. I am getting to practice speaking in Korean everyday without fail. It is hard sometimes, but it is well worth it. I live with a mom and dad. They also have a son and daughter, but they are both in the USA now (small world--their son is studying music at one of my dream schools with some of my college friends!). My Korean mom is so cool and unlike anyone I've met. She also loves learning some new English words and phrases, so we are going to practice together each day. We have a lot of fun together. (Again, it's a small world. She has, shh shh, secretly learned all kinds of Latin and ballroom dancing! When her husband walked in and I asked if they danced together, she said it was our little secret. lol Guess who's going to be playing some Latin music and dancing in the house? This girl and her new momma! lol)

And so.....as the adventure continues, I want to document it. Because I know how easy it will be once school starts to just get in the habit of school and work and study and school and work and study, etc etc.....I've made it my goal/determination to explore one new area of Seoul each week. Needless to say, I have already begun exploring and creating a list of places I want to go and see. Stay tuned!

Just some news on Korea. Yesterday we had our first nationwide taxi strike. Sources quote that over 200,000 taxi drivers were on strike. Definitely an interesting experience to witness. Check out this article from the Korea Herald to read more on the strike.

Taxi drivers strike, demanding lower fuel prices, higher fares

• 2012-06-20 19:46
• 
•   Text

• Korea to export TA-50 jets to Philippines
• Cracks emerge between Ahn Cheol-soo, DUP
• Jeju residents meet to clean beach
• World Refugee Day marked in Seoul
• Shantytown cleanup by expat volunteers
• Marathon effort for education
• Musicians in tune for CLASH charity event
• OB seeks to cement No. 1 status with new CEO
• Taxi drivers strike, demanding lower fuel prices, higher fares
• New Nonghyup Financial chief faces union opposition

About 200,000 taxi drivers staged their first one-day nationwide strike on Wednesday, demanding that the government cut taxi fuel prices and hike fares, officials said.

The Transportation Ministry said the government extended public transportation schedules in the day to minimize the impact from the strike.

News reports said the strike of taxi drivers ended up causing little confusion to daily commuters in Korea, the world’s third most densely populated country.

Striking taxi drivers demand lower fuel prices and higher fares during a protest at Seoul Plaza on Wednesday. (Yonhap News)

In Seoul, tens of thousands of drivers gathered for a protest rally at Seoul City plaza to press the government to accept their demands. 

The protesters called for the government to diversify fuel for taxis and cut the fuel price, which takes up over 30 percent of the total expense. Currently taxis are restricted to run on LPG only.

LPG has been used as an alternative fuel for most taxis in Korea. Retail prices of LPG jumped more than 50 percent over the past three years, the union of drivers said.

Unless the government meets its demands, the union said it would hold a large-scale protest in October and another nationwide strike in December.

The government extended the bus and subway schedules for Wednesday by one hour, with an extra 998 bus and 255 subway shifts in Seoul. In Busan, the bus system increased runs by 204 and the subway by 128 to minimize commuters’ inconvenience, said officials at the Transportation Ministry.

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldm.com)

Why People in N.Korea's 'Rice Bowl' Are Starving

This article is taken from the Chosun Ilbo, one of the main English newspapers here in Korea. You can read the story online here.

 

Why People in N.Korea's 'Rice Bowl' Are Starving

Thousands of people are starving to death in North Korea's South Hwanghae Province even though it is the country's rice bowl, according to a defector.

"Villages in remote mountains can resort to slash-and-burn farming to survive, but in lowland areas where there are only cooperative farms, 30 to 40 people in each village starve to death every year," said Choi Myong-chol (not his real name), who used to handle crop harvests in Haeju, South Hwanghae Province. "The reason is that their entire harvest is confiscated," he told the activist website NK Reform.

The Tokyo Shimbun reported in April that 20,000 North Koreans starved to death in South Hwanghae Province after Kim Jong-il's death. "The reality there is that farmers have no choice but to hide rice during the harvest to survive," Choi said. This has happened every year. "This year, authorities appear to have taken extra measures to seek out rice the farmers had hidden," he added.

Choi said the reason for the starvation is the unrealistic crop output goals set by the regime every spring. Cooperative farms in South Hwanghae Province are ordered to produce six tons of rice per 10,000 sq. m, of which the farmers are promised two tons. But the actual amount that is harvested is only two to four tons, which leaves nothing for the farmers.

Harvested rice is distributed first to elite security and intelligence forces and then to ordinary soldiers. Farmers steal rice even under close watch because they would starve otherwise. They apparently steal between 1.5 to 2 tons per 10,000 sq. m of farmland, or about half of the crop. The regime is aware of the practice and sniffs out and confiscates around 30 percent of the stolen rice, leaving some 5,000-7,000 people to starve to death every year in the region.

englishnews@chosun.com / Jun. 19, 2012 11:24 KST

North Korea waives visa requirements

Here is an article posted by the Korea Herald which addresses a recent decision by NK to waive the visa requirement at the new economic zone.

06-07-2012 22:02     NK waives visa requirement at new economic zone

By Kim Young-jin North Korea will provide foreigners visa-free access to a new economic zone on its border with China, Pyongyang’s state media announced Thursday. The two countries broke ground on the zone, located on two islands in the estuary of the Amnok (Yalu) River, last year. Foreigners with their vehicles are allowed to enter the zone along a designated route without a visa after presenting their passport or equivalent document," the official Korean Central News Agency said. Pyongyang in recent years has been seeking to attract foreign investment, including though economic zones to bout its struggling economy. The sides opened the Hwanggumphyong-Wihwado Economic Zone after a trip to China by late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Special considerations on tariffs and taxes will be given to foreign investors under a special investment law and there will be no customs duties on materials brought into the zone, KCNA said. Recent visitors to the North is rapidly developing infrastructure around its special economic zone at Rason in the northeast, which China and Russia are expected to utilize to ship materials through. The opening of the new zone was seen as part of Beijing’s efforts to urge the North to follow its path of reform. One of the steps it has taken — though it remains to be seen how effectively these will be implemented — has been to amend a series of investment laws and laws regarding special economic zones. New leader Kim Jong-un, who was handed power after the death of Kim Jong-il, his father, is working to improve and economy struggling to feed its population of 24 million, despite the introduction of a fledgling market system. Profit sources exist with hybrid enterprises run by party or military figures with monopolies on trade and natural resources, but traditional state enterprises have long been stuck in the mud. Some observers say Pyongyang may be wary of opening its economy too quickly as the increased information flow could pose a threat to its reclusive system.

leeth@koreatimes.co.kr