Big Sugar

I just watched a documentary called "Big Sugar", and while its basic message that 'too much sugar causes obesity' is not surprising, it is worth watching. I found it at www.freeonlinedocumentary.com

A Visit to the Jinju Fortress (Jinjuseong)

Today dawned bright and sunny, so, as I had been thinking about for a few days, I caught a bus over to Jinju to visit the fortress there (some signs say "castle" but, while it is military fotification, it certainly isn't a castle).

According to the tourist pamphlet I was handed with a ticket in exchange for my 1,000 won entrance fee (less than $1), the fortress was "constructed to protect the region from foreign invaders" and was given an upgrade in 1379 when the mud walls were replaced with stone ones.

In 1592 a Korean General (Kim Si-min) won a victory there against a 30,000 strong Japanese army with his 3,800 men. Not too long after, stung by the defeat and disgrace, the Japanese returned with 100,000 men and laid waste to the place, killing more than 70,000 soldiers, officials, and civilians. The parts of the fortress that weren't destroyed then were finished off during the Japanese occupation and the Korean war.

The fortress was restored in 1972.

It is a nice place to stroll around for a few hours, especially on a cool sunny day.

The pic of the rocky area (find guy jumping) between the fortress wall and the river is where, during the Japanese invasion, a Korean female entertainer threw herself into the river--along with a Japanese General--thereby earning herself a memorable place in Korean history. The spot's name was changed from 'dangerous rock' to 'righteous rock'.

The Gender Problem Problem

This is absolutely amazing to me, funny in a very sad way. The Korea Herald reported today (Mar. 6th, 2009) that, "Despite Korea's dismal ratings by international organizations on gender equality, only one in four people believe it to be a problem here . . ."

Only one in four? 25 %? And that is perceived as good?

You know there is a problem when a 25% disapproval rating is perceived as good.

Get a clue, Korea Herald.

Those Teenage Years

I have a class at my academy that previously consisted of mostly 6th grade boys and girls, 4 or 5 of each, who segregate themselves in the classroom and, as gender groups, are quite distinct. The boys are quieter (in this one class) and don't play with English as much, while the girls are quite into pop culture and chatting.

What has really interested me is that both groups just moved into middle school (or 7th grade), and their lives are forever changed. The outward markings of this change are that they now wear uniforms to school; I have had, this week--the first week of the new school year in Korea--a few short discussions with the girls about their uniforms: Do they like them? Whose uniforms are better? (Some of them go to different schools and so have different uniforms.)

Also, there is a current Korean drama, called "Boys Before Flowers", that many students (and people in general) are infatuated with, and it has become a topic of interest in several classes. In the drama there are four main teenage male actors, and the popularity of the show has led them to be referred to as "F4".

A younger elementary student in another class gave me a picture of one of the actors, and when I showed the pic to my newly minted middle school girls one of them appropriated it and said, "I am his [the teenage actor's] wife."

Ah, those teenage years.

Cool Pics

Some pictures from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the Burj Dubai--the world's tallest human-engineered structure--is scheduled to be completed this year.

Hand Shadows Video

Can you make hand shadows? I used to be able to do a rabbit, but this guy in the video is truly amazing . . .

Change

Spring is coming, and with the seasons it seems that I, too, will change. Change jobs, that is, though perhaps a lifestyle also.

When I first came to South Korea I was adamant about the fact that I did not want to live in Seoul or any other large city. I have so far chosen to live in smaller cities on the east coast of Korea, next to the clean ocean air, near beaches. And I have enjoyed, for the most part, the time that I have spent in these places.

However, I have decided that I want more options for myself as far as things to do, and I want to live closer to friends, so, come May, I will make the big move (for me) to the Seoul metropolitan area.

This weekend I interviewed for, was offered, and accepted a hagwon teaching job in the Seoul area. I am quite excited about the increased opportunities that will be available, even if they are a subway ride or two away; Seoul is, after all, the 8th largest city in the world.

Details to be worked out, things to move, all of that will come soon enough (and I will undoubtedly complain about it), but, for now, an evening between the 'what will be' and the 'what is' (work tomorrow), time to contemplate the possibilities of the future . . .