Sunday, January 16, 2011
malaysia you are delicious.
steamy tropical air, incense everywhere, curries, cakes, rota bread, fruits, tiger beer, real black tea, spice filled leaves...day one of amazing sensations.
Friday, January 14, 2011
tropical fever
too much cold, too much ice, too much gray and neon. These blue skies and sunshine keep leading me on while these icy winds slap me in the face--what'd I ever do to you? Korea, I love you, but I think we need to take a break.
I'm ready to overdose on green. The many shades, sounds, smells of the rainforest, the many of the beach. Malaysia here I come.
I'm ready to overdose on green. The many shades, sounds, smells of the rainforest, the many of the beach. Malaysia here I come.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
carets and kimchi and kkkkkkk
I lovingly call this a cartoony culture, but the overuse and abundance of expressions of our enjoyment just reinforce it. Emoticons are amazingly clever here, and quite addictive I might add. All of our text messages suddenly include little stars and hearts and funny-eyed smiley faces, full of carets ^^ (see those are some happy eyes right there). I can't seem to write an email or a facebook shout without making sure my meaning is caret-clear. Unfortunately I haven't yet discovered the sarcasmoticon. Maybe it's just a blank space. How's that work for you?
The textual embodiment of emotions even needs translation for laughter. Look on any message board, chatroom, bathroom stall or permanent-marker-graffitied-coffee-shop wall and you'll see ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ or kkkkkk. What the hell is that? Well laughter of course, because everyone knows kuh-kuh-kuh-kuh is the sound we make when we chuckle and giggle. In all fairness, lol and hahaha don't seem like that much more accurate transcriptions of laughter. It sure does make me laugh more though, thinking of all those k's in a row and trying to make the sound.
Enjoy, for example, this facebook message between nations:
But the absolute winner in the translated happiness award has to go to the kimchi. Not fermented cabbage kimchi (On a side note, such kimchi is amazing and worth many awards in its own right) but the Korean version of "say cheese" kimchi. "Say Kimchi!" Every time a photo op comes along (and there are TONS of them here; Koreans love hauling their tripods out to the park and getting their picture on), "kimchi" and peace signs are flyin like gang signs at sixth grade skating rink parties. Ok, not the best metaphor, but you get the idea. But the kimchi + peace/victory v sign combo seems like the only attack in the korean arsenal for the trigger-happy photographer. It isn't just little school girls that do it, either. EVERYONE on the continent falls back on this failsafe pose, guaranteed to make you look endearing in photo form. I don't know when it starts. I've seen everyone from old Adjumas picking up the recycling to politicians standing on the side of the streets. It clearly starts early. At the orphanage I visit I have seen toddlers and even infants already branded with the telltale signs of kimchi infection.
I know they like conformity, but please give us some new poses. I'm bored of it.
Actually, all of us waegooks would be lying to say we are bored of it. We love it. LOVE it. We have co-opted all these little rituals of generic self expression and become masters at it. We flash our Vs and caret our eyes and eat and scream kimchi with a fervor to match. It's fun. It's funny. KKKKKKKKK.
The textual embodiment of emotions even needs translation for laughter. Look on any message board, chatroom, bathroom stall or permanent-marker-graffitied-coffee-shop wall and you'll see ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ or kkkkkk. What the hell is that? Well laughter of course, because everyone knows kuh-kuh-kuh-kuh is the sound we make when we chuckle and giggle. In all fairness, lol and hahaha don't seem like that much more accurate transcriptions of laughter. It sure does make me laugh more though, thinking of all those k's in a row and trying to make the sound.
Enjoy, for example, this facebook message between nations:
Hyeongjin KKK Brother n sisterJune 19, 2010 at 4:50pm · ·
Caspar lol, maybe KKK means something different here.
July 14, 2010 at 8:31pm · ·
Adalet haha, only realised now, indeed i think it was supposed to be a giggle :P
July 14, 2010 at 9:06pm · ·
Caspar Oh, isn't unintentional racism fun, kids?
July 15, 2010 at 12:56pm · ·
But the absolute winner in the translated happiness award has to go to the kimchi. Not fermented cabbage kimchi (On a side note, such kimchi is amazing and worth many awards in its own right) but the Korean version of "say cheese" kimchi. "Say Kimchi!" Every time a photo op comes along (and there are TONS of them here; Koreans love hauling their tripods out to the park and getting their picture on), "kimchi" and peace signs are flyin like gang signs at sixth grade skating rink parties. Ok, not the best metaphor, but you get the idea. But the kimchi + peace/victory v sign combo seems like the only attack in the korean arsenal for the trigger-happy photographer. It isn't just little school girls that do it, either. EVERYONE on the continent falls back on this failsafe pose, guaranteed to make you look endearing in photo form. I don't know when it starts. I've seen everyone from old Adjumas picking up the recycling to politicians standing on the side of the streets. It clearly starts early. At the orphanage I visit I have seen toddlers and even infants already branded with the telltale signs of kimchi infection.
That last little girl in the crib actually flashed it for me when I held my camera up. This country sure does like to get em while they're young.
I know they like conformity, but please give us some new poses. I'm bored of it.
Actually, all of us waegooks would be lying to say we are bored of it. We love it. LOVE it. We have co-opted all these little rituals of generic self expression and become masters at it. We flash our Vs and caret our eyes and eat and scream kimchi with a fervor to match. It's fun. It's funny. KKKKKKKKK.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
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