A Joke ジョーク

I told Avram I didn't have a nice picture for my last blog entry. Then he said, "A picture is worth a thousand words, but a thousand well written words are worth more than a picture. Yours is like that."

He is good at making people happy.

We went walking as usual in the evening. He sometimes tells me jokes. American jokes have a different sense of humor from Japanese ones, so I usually don't get them.

Yesterday he told me this joke.

Two Indians went hunting and discovered a spirit. The spirit granted them each a wish. The first wished to be the smartest man in the world and his wish was granted. The second said he wanted to be smarter than the smartest man in the world. The spirit turned him into a woman.

I got it very easily because I see it between us:) 

I'm kidding.

「昨日のブログに使えそうな写真がなかったんだ。」とアブちゃんに言ったら、「『写真は千の言葉より価値があるけど、千のいい文章は写真よりも価値がある。』君のブログはそれと同じ。」

彼は人に自信を与えたり幸せにしたりすることが上手です。

夕べもいつものように散歩に出かけました。アブちゃんは時々ジョークを教えてくれますが、アメリカンジョークは日本のユーモアとはちょっと違うので私は時々理解できません。

昨日のはこういうのでした。

２人のインディアンが狩りに出かけ妖精を見つけました。妖精はそれぞれの願いを叶えてやることにしました。１番目の男の願いは世界で１番賢い男になること、そしてそれは叶いました。次の男は世界で１番賢い「男（man）」よりも賢い「人（man）」になること、そしてそれは叶えられました。その男は女になりました。

このジョークは簡単に理解できました。なぜって私たち２人みたいだから。

冗談です。

Our placement test （韓国語レベルテスト）

Avram and I had a placement test for our Korean class last night.  We know our level is really beginner's, but the office said we should take the test.

At the beginning of the test, one woman explained about the test and the schedule for the new semester in Korean.  We couldn't understand at all.  While she was talking, Avram was practicing "Hello" in Korean to me many times.  I was pretty sure it wouldn't be in the test.  I was right.

We can read Korean, but don't understand the meanings.  I tried to understand and solve the questions.  Avram was doing something next to me.  I saw him.  He was drawing a picture on the sheet.  I thought my husband is smart because he was answering the test for a long time, but he wasn't.  I mean he wasn't solving the question.

After we finished the test, I saw his paper.  I was shocked.  He was ordering the numbers to each questions.  For example, he answered 1 to Q.1.  A.2 is for Q.2.  Then he answered 25 to Question 25 even if we had only four alternative.

We want to learn basic Korean to understand it better, so he didn't try to do the test hard.  I think we don't have to worry we will go to the intermediate class because of our poor Korean, but I took the exam seriously.

Now Avram worries I have to go to the Intermediate class if my guessing worked and I got a good grade.  I am just worried that Avram and I get the same points even if he enjoyed drawing and I answered seriously.

When he gave his test sheets to the woman, she saw the picture and was surprised.  She opened her small eyes as big as she could and said good-bye to us.  Her face drawn with the shock.

Our class will start at seven in the evening next Monday.  I hope we'll be in the same room and Avram won't fall asleep after 8:30 pm.

昨夜は韓国語のレベルテストがありました。初心者だとわかってはいても、実力把握のために試験を受けるように言われ行ってきました。

試験について韓国語で説明がありましたが２人ともさっぱりわからず、顔を見合わせて笑うしかありませんでした。その間も、アブちゃんは「アニョハセヨ」を何度も私に向かって練習していました。私がそれはテストに出ないと言ってもそればかりもごもご唱えていました。

テストはチンプンカンプンでどうしようもありませんでしたが、とりあえず解きました。隣を見るとアブちゃんも何かしています。よく見ると解答用紙の裏に落書きをしていました。それはやがて４分の１の範囲に及ぶほどに大きなものになっていました。黙々と解いて賢い夫だと安心したのも束の間、試験中力が抜けてしまいました。

試験が終わり、彼の解答用紙を見てさらに衝撃が走りました。たくさん回答してあると思ったそれは、なんと順番よく数字をふってあるだけだったのです。たとえば、問題１の答えは１、問題２の答えは２、問題２５の答えは２５。たとえ選択肢が４までしかなくても、答えは２５らしいのです。

彼は初心者のクラスで２人で一緒に勉強したいからまじめに試験を受けなかったらしいですが、それは無用な心配だと思います。彼の心配は私だけが中級クラスにいかないかということ、私の心配は遊んでいた彼とまじめに解いた私の点数が同点になりはしないかということです。

問題と解答用紙を試験監督の女性に手渡すとき、彼女がアブちゃんの落書きを眼にして衝撃のあまりその細い瞳をできる限り見開いて驚いた表情をしていたことを私は見逃しませんでした。アブちゃんは完全に見逃していました。

来週の月曜日からクラスは始まりますが、２人同じクラスであることとアブちゃんが８時半になったら居眠りをしださないことだけを願ってやみません。

DVD Bang

I have mentioned before that the Korean word "Bang" means room. We have used computers in a PC Bang and slept on the heated floor of a Jjim Jil Bang. Today, was chilly and rainy, so we went to a DVD Bang. 

In the DVD Bang, you can choose a movie to watch and then go into your own private room to watch it. The room had a good sound system and a big projector video screen. The couches were comfortable. Next to the couch, I saw a control that said "Sound." I pushed some buttons on it, but it turned out to be a sonic massager deep in the couch. The bass massage on my back reminded me of riding around in my friends cool cars in high school when they took out the back seat to make room for their giant speakers. 

The room only cost about $7. It was cheaper and more enjoyable than the movie theater. It was more like watching a movie in your own comfortable living room, if you had a big TV.  And you don't have to clean up afterwards.

The Huge Mountain

One of the many things I like about Korea is the profusion of outdoor shops and local brands. There are plenty of Columbia, Patagonia, and The North Face stores in Busan. There are also lots of K2, OK Outdoors, and Kolon sports stores - Korean brands. 

They also don't seem so concerned with copyright laws here. We have seen fake Dunkin Donuts and fake Starbucks shops. 

The North Face is a particularly popular brand to wear, and to knock off. We have seen 'The Red Face' and 'The Black Face' brand jackets. Yesterday, we saw my favorite 'North Fake' - the jacket label said 'The Huge Mountain' and was complete with the three nested arcs that The North Face uses as its symbol.

The coolest little arcade in Korea

During our street wanderings on Saturday, we found the coolest little arcade in Korea.

Screaming from the kitchen

Last December I was so excited to be cooking at home after one month of hotel life.

One day I was looking forward to making white rice. I can't live without WHITE rice. One of my American friends gave me a rice cooker made in Japan because she couldn't read the directions. I was very happy to have it.

I was using it that day. I plugged in, then it made noise and sparked. I said, "Uh ooh" to myself. I remembered Avram told me we have to use a transformer for our electrical appliances. I couldn't give up about white rice, so I tried again with the transformer. This time the rice maker jumped, made louder noise, and smoked. I was surprised, so I jumped with it too. I smelled something burning. It was my beautiful rice maker.

When I told about it, Avram said "Lucky you. If it was a hair dryer, your head would get burnt." Oh, no! Then I would have a burned head like in a comedy show. I don't want to die with that hair style.

I make rice in pots now, but you know I can't succeed every time. I often smell something is burning.

Officially Avram and I don't have any secrets, but I did this week.

Last week I was going to get sour cream, but I bought cream cheese by mistake. Even if we ate it everyday, it was a lot for two of us. I decided to make a cheese cake which I don't need a oven because we can't use our American gas oven here. I used a pan. It worked for a while. It smelled good, but it was ugly when I opened the cap of the pan. It looked like vomit. I was sad to see it even if the taste was good, so I didn't tell we have the cheese cake to Avram.

Today we got hungry, but didn't have enough food at home. Finally I had to ask him if he wants the vomit. Of course, he said yes. I made him close his eyes and eat them. He liked it.
Yes, he is good at making me happy.

The other day, I heard a man was yelling or shouting outside even if I was on the 11th floor. Aman was there and a woman was bringing her knives from her place and asked him to sharpen them. We needed to do that too, so I brought him our knives. After he finished sharpening them, I asked "How much?"in Korean. I heard "$10.5, "but I was not sure if it was $15 or $10.5. I showed $15, then he took it and said thank you. Hmmm..., I was wrong. I should have asked how much it was again and again. I told it to my Korean friend. She said that was too expensive and gave me advice I should give $5 (cheaper money) first and leave there.

In Korea you often see shops that don't show or put prices on their stuff. Every time I go shopping, I learn how to shop in this country.

Avram sometimes hears my screaming from the kitchen when I make mistakes or get shocked. He sometimes calls me to ask if I am all right with the house work from his office. He's scared of my life as a home maker.

Don't we talk at home? 家で会話しないの？

Avram, thank you very much for telling people about me in your longest blog.  Probably they can wonder if we talk to each other at home.

Here's my quick response.

I don't know even the word "feminine wiles".  How did I do it to him then?  Avram can say I was charming to him at that time, hehehehe:)

When Avram saved my life at the beach on our first date, I was tired from surviving the rough waves.  He looked like a prince on a white horse. 

We have never argued or fought since we met.  Who imagined we do them in our blogs?  Technology sometimes messes up people's lives.

Avram, I'm still okay.  I will cook for you today.  Don't worry.

アブちゃん、あなたの１番長いブログの中でわたしのことを書いてくれてありがとう。多分、みんな私たちが家で会話してないんじゃないかときっと不思議に思っているはず。

アブちゃんのブログに対抗して

私はfeminine wilesという言葉すら知らないのに、どうやって彼に女性らしいモーションをかけられるでしょう？アブちゃんは正直に私が魅力的だったと言えばいいのに。

アブちゃんが初めてのデートで私の命を助けたとき、私は強い波から逃れるのに疲れ果てていたから、彼が白馬に乗った王子様に見えました。

私たちは出会ってから１度も言い争いや喧嘩をしたことがありません。誰が今頃になってそれをブログ内でするなんて想像したでしょう？技術の進歩というのは人の人生をもまた惑わせるものです。

アブちゃん、まだ大丈夫。今日はまだ料理してあげるつもりだから、今のところ心配しないで。

Point - Counterpoint

Okay, now Rie has opened up a whole new can of worms with her latest blog entry.

Remember to take everything she says with a grain of salt. English is not her first language, so please think of her blog entries more as writing exercises than as an accurate portrayal of real-world events.

First of all, strictly speaking, my bedtime is not 9 pm. It is about 8 hours before sunrise. I need 8 hours a night, and I wake up when the sun comes up, so it is not hard to figure out when to go to bed. Actually, since it is still winter, I have been staying up well past nine. It has been quite some time now since we went to bed closer to 9 pm than to 10 pm.

As for Valentine's Day - I am just trying to be culturally sensitive. In America, the retailers got together and invented a holiday during a slow period of the year so they could make some money. Now, we all buy stuff and exchange gifts. In Japan and Korea, they went one better and added an additional mandatory shopping day. Valentine's Day is when women give men chocolate or gifts. White Day (March 14th) is when men buy presents for women (usually a gift that is white in color). So, I appreciate what Rie did for me for Valentine's Day, and I am looking forward to reciprocating on White Day.

Rie also brought up our first date, so I might as well share that truth as well. When I started working in Japan, I was assigned to three different middle schools. I went to the first one, Kamoike, for three days. I noticed that many of the English teachers were attractive, young women. On the first Thursday of my new career, I went to TaniYamaKita middle school and met Rie. Even though two of the over-50 teachers really seemed to take a shine to me, I thought that Rie was the best at that school.

Rie and I started talking and I mentioned that I was going to the beach that weekend. Rie used all of her feminine wiles to get me to invite her. She stood too close to me and peered too deeply into my eyes. I was reluctant go on a date with Rie because I had not yet visited the third school. I valiantly resisted her brazen attempts to ensnare me and I succeeded for a day, but on Friday, my will to resist her Siren song was broken and I asked if she would like to join me on Sunday for a trip to the beach.

We had a wonderful time. We went to the beach, went for a swim, got pulled out by the rip tide, and struggled back to shore. As the stronger swimmer, I had to hold Rie's hand and help bring her back. Of course, once we were back in ankle deep water I probably could have let go.

The next week, I visited my third (and largest) school. Although they had plenty of nice female teachers at Wada, none of them compared to Rie. After a week at Wada, I went to a one-week training course and then a one-week vacation. By the time I got back, I had lost Rie's number and had to wait a few more weeks until I visited her school again. I apologized for not calling and wrote her number in a few different places so I wouldn't lose it again.

Finally, I would like to address Rie's assertion that she spoils me. Well, luckily for me, that part is true. :)

A fun Saturday

Last week, a friend of the wife of a co-worker asked for some help. She teaches English to children in their homes. She works for a school with lots of teachers who visit children's homes. A few times a year, they have big events for all of the students. Yesterday, they rented out a Tae Kwan Do school for a few hours of games and Market Day. They wanted a native English speaker to help liven up the day and I thought it would be a fun few hours.

Rie and I took the bus to a part of the city that we had not visited before and found the school. We had some tea and went over the lesson plans with the teachers. It was great, I did not have to do any thinking. They designed all of the games and practically gave me scripts to read. Too easy.


After a half-hour of games, all of the kids got $50 in fake money to buy snacks or things at the little store. I played shop keeper and sold a bunch of toothbrush holders. The Koreans seem very serious about learning English. I was told that Market Days are a very popular learning activity here. I even read about a fake town where schools visit and spend the whole day interacting in English.


After one round of games with the pre-school kids and one round with the elementary school kids, Rie and I went for a walk. Near the school, we found a river with a great path near it and decided to see where it led. The path was popular with elderly cyclists and walkers. Every kilometer or so, there was some exercise equipment and benches. We also passed a few roller blade courses and basketball courts. Next to the basketball courts, they had big hooks in the wall for hanging your jackets. I have never seen that before.

One little girl's bicycle broke. I felt sorry for her and spent nearly 15 seconds putting the chain back on. She thanked me in English.

The river led all the way to Pusan University. We found a good Indian restaurant and then explored the neighborhood. Rie found a bookstore with some Japanese books and bought a new book. After dark, we took the subway home and played some Settlers of Catan.

I spoiled him and it worked.

When we used to work at a middle school together in Japan, I was Avram's boss. Avram was my ALT, Assistant Language Teacher. I made teaching plans and his schedule.

I was a strict teacher at the school. I let(probably made) students and some teachers cry with talking, not yelling, hitting, or kicking. I let them think how they can think and do better for themselves and the future. I just talked to them calmly. Then they cried. They were moved by my talk and cried, so it's not my fault even if teachers cried. Anyway, that's why people were afraid when I called their names.

As I have already told you, I didn't know I was Avram's girlfriend until I heard him telling it to his friends. But even before then I made a flexible schedule for him and let him do what he wants to do at school as his boss. I spoiled him, but it worked. He thought I'm nice and fell in love, even though other women teachers brought more food for him.

I don't remember well about one thing. He says I let(or made) him ask for a date. On his first day at the school, he told me he's going to the ocean. At that time, I moved to the city a few months ago and didn't know any good beach. I'm an island girl, so I missed the ocean very very much. I just TOLD I like to see the ocean. He felt some pressure by himself then and asked if I'll come with him. Of course, I went because I wanted to see the beach.

For a month after that, I didn't know we were dating.

I still spoil him.
I let him wake up at 5:00 a.m. for running and feed him at seven. I sometimes make lunch when he needs. I prepare his 10:00a.m. and 3:00p.m. snack. We eat dinner at five and let him go to bed at nine as you know well.

He thanks me very much and buys some chocolates for me (and him). One of his coworker said "You think about each other well." Yes, we do.

Yesterday he bought two boxes of chocolate for me (and him). Thanks for the chocolate from the PX after Valentines sale!

Now he went running and had exercise this morning. I asked him if he will have breakfast after his shower. He says, "If I am STILL SPOILED, pleeease..." So I have to go to prepare his breakfast now.

Remember I'm a woman.

I belong to BIWA, Busan International Women's Association. They have some cool activities such as salsa classes, flower arrangement class, language classes, and so on. I enjoy some of them.

BIWA has coffee morning every Wednesday and has lunch together once a month. It was my first time to go to the lunch two weeks ago. I got some info about the lunch. According to a woman, people wear formal clothes for it. I threw my fine clothes away before I left for the U.S.. Who thinks I need nice clothes with Avram. He takes me to mountains, not to three star restaurants.

Anyway, I wore an ok sweater and skirt for the lunch. Then I realized I need a bag for it, so I went shopping to get a bag. I liked it. It was good price and fine looking.

I told Avram I bought the bag when he came home. He said, "You don't put make up and don't care about fashion for me, but look at you now. You do them for BIWA!" I don't understand why he complained to me. He should look at his closet. He has more clothes than I do. He can run a clothes shop now. We often went shopping for him last two years, but not for me (because I am not interested in brand and shopping). Anyway, I bought only "A" bag.

Everywhere I go and many people I meet, people usually ask me where I am from because of my looks. They think I'm not Japanese. One French woman said, "You really don't look like Japanese. Maybe it's because you don't put make up" though I did put make up that day. Oh, well.

That happens even in Japan, too. When I'm with Avram, people think we're foreigners. They talk to Avram in English or Japanese. Then I pretend I'm not Japanese because I am not good at talking. I also like being quiet. Avram is nice to talk with other people. That is his talent, so I enjoy watching him talking with Japanese people in Japanese.

I stopped putting make up, wearing nice clothes, going to Karaoke, and so on since I met him. Now my younger sister tells me, "Don't forget you are Japanese and a woman. I can't understand why Avram loves you at all." Then I tell her he loves me because I'm not like other women who care about fashion. It's much easier to live, but I sometimes worry I'm forgetting some etiquette, manners, and Japanese words to be polite to other people as Japanese.

Avram asks me if I will go out everyday. Otherwise I just stay home all day everyday because it's winter now. But he bought a nice winter jacket, gloves, and cap for me. I have enough winter clothes for OUTDOOR. He sometimes says I should carry a heavy backpack for training in case we go to Nepal for back packing.

I'm getting stronger. I need to be tough. I'm staying very far from Japanese woman now. But I love it better than being a girly woman.

I'm off to my training. I have my orange back pack and going to Mega Mart to get more stuff to make the back pack be full and heavy.

Don't Read Rie's Blog!!!

Just in case you think that I am too reticent about sharing embarrassing stories in my blog, don't worry. Rie has taken it upon herself to elaborate on my shortcomings and faux pases in her blog.

Camping with Avram

I start to think what I should write for my next blog after Avram falls asleep.  Many stories comes up because he makes them everyday just like he makes music when he passes gas.

Today I have to tell you how helpful Avram is to make me stronger.

We went camping to Shenandoah National Park two years ago.  I saw some cautions about bears.  Unfortunately we couldn't get any room at the campsite.  I didn't hope Avram says, "Let's camp in the mountain."  But he did.  I said to myself, "Oh, my...no god in my life."  

We walked and walked.  Finally we found a flat place for making our tent.  Then he said we should eat far from our tent and hang our food on a tree because of bears.

He said, "Don't worry about bears" when we started the hiking.  Then why do we need to do that?!

At that time, we'd just started to live together, so I obeyed him.  I had tried to be a JAPANESE wife like many people imagine.  At least for a few months.(I'm kidding.  I have never tried to be so.)

He went to bed around nine as usual that night.  I couldn't sleep at all.  

How could I sleep?  I heard a helicopter, small animals, and finally a big animal around our tent.

The big animal sounded like it was walking around the tent.  I heard the breath near us.  I kept being quiet and shook Avram to make him wake up. 

He said, "I'm sorry" and then turned over.  I made him wake up again.  He asked me, "Did I snore?"  Sigh.

I was very scared of the noise, not his snoring.  I said, "Something is outside."  Avram said, "Yes?" and went back to sleep.  He didn't wake up until the sun light, next to his poor wife.  

I couldn't sleep at all that night, but I had to walk up and down hills for a long time the next day.

Avram let me do many kinds of experiences, so I'm getting used to challenging new things or more tough things.  I'm more easy going than before.  Actually it's much more fun than my old life.  Thanks to him.

According to him, (he's correcting my story next to me while I'm typing this now) "You don't mention the good part which shows how nice I am.  It was supposed to be a two night camping trip. But I'm always nice to you, so I said we can go home one day early for you."

Yes, Avram is a very nice husband.  He's perfect for me.

Am I Kim?

Yesterday Avram asked me right after he came home, "Korean Lunch?"  He was right.  I had some Kimchee for lunch.

The other day, Avram said right after he opened the door when he came back from his work, "Our place smells like Kimichee."  Yes, I had some Kimchee that day.

As you know, sleeping is Avram's most important priority in his life.

Even so, the smell of Kimichee woke him up when I went to bed.  He was falling asleep after NINE o'clock.  It's very unusual he wakes up while he's sleeping, but Kimchee changes his life so easily!  

When I tell "My husband's bed time is nine" to my friends, they say "Even my children don't go to bed at nine.  Lucky you!  You have a lot of time for yourself after he sleeps."  Excuse me, but I have enough time for fun during day time and also at night from NINE p.m. to six a.m..  I have no idea what I can do for so much time:(

Anyway, he complains about my Kimchee breath and calls me "Kim" now.  Of course, Kim comes from Kimchee.  Many Koreans have the name Kim, but theirs are not from the Kimchee breath.

Theirs is very traditional and common name.  It means gold.

I just wonder which is better Kimchee breath one time in a week or often farting in a day in the bed.  But I just realized I should eat a lot of Kimchee to make him stay up at least until 10:00 p.m..

Welcome from Avram's Blog!

Welcome from Avram's Blog!

I read my blog through Google's translation, but I can't understand what I wrote at all. It is also wrong. If you read my Blog in English, it is not interesting. Even if it sounds not funny, my life with Avram has been great. I thank him very much for making money, giving me many opportunities for fun, and loving me a lot:)

Some people ask me if it's difficult to marry to a foreign man. I always say "No." Even if I married to Japanese and if I didn't communicate with him, I could never understand him. But Avram and I tell about each other every day, so we have been fine SO FAR.

In the beginning of our relationship, we sometimes misunderstood each other because of my English. For example, I didn't know I was his girlfriend for a month until I heard him telling it to his friends. I was surprised that I got a boyfriend without recognizing it. We sometimes waited for each other at different places because of misunderstandings. Anyway, I realized we should talk about each other through those experiences. It's very important to make sure of the relationship or to understand the situation. Otherwise, we couldn't get married.

But it's not Japanese culture to talk about ourselves to others. It's not so comfortable for me.

One day, Avram's mother said she read that Japanese don't say "I miss you "to people. She asked us if it's true. I think it's true.
We can translate it into Japanese, but actually we don't say "I miss you" even to our families and friends.

We grew up in almost the same society in all of Japan. We learn very similar etiquette, gestures, and attitudes. We share many common things, feelings, and cultures. It's possible to understand each other without words. We often understand other people with the silences and ellipses. It is like you read between the lines. You read other people with the silences.
If you don't or can't read other people's minds, people sometimes wonder why you don't understand it.

Even if we don't say "I miss you" we have already meant it in our conversation, so the other one read the meaning or feeling. We understand the other one in the situation.
If we want to tell "I miss you" to other people, we say "I want to see you " or "Come to see me."

I say "I miss you" to English speakers, but not to Japanese people. I think expressing myself is very important especially when I'm in English speaking countries or maybe in other countries, but it sometimes doesn't work in Japan.

I learned I need to express myself especially to my husband to understand each other, so I say "I miss you" to Avram even if he's in the bathroom.

A Day at the Beach

Yesterday was the 22nd Polar Bear Swim at Haeundae Beach. Naturally, I joined. The forecast called for temperatures in the low-40s on Sunday, but we got lucky. It was in the mid-50s. When the wind wasn't blowing, it wasn't too too cold. It cost about $16 to join. The entrance fee included a nice T-shirt, a swim cap, hot tea and soup, a bag of seaweed, free entry to a public bath house, and a very nice towel.



I joined the non-competitive event just before noon. In the picture below, you can see a bunch of dots in the water. Most of those are life guards. They wore wet suits and each had a small beach ball. When people made it out to their line, they threw out the balls and let people fight for them.

A few years ago, I joined a race across a bay in Japan. My team's color was florescent yellow. I wore that swim cap so that Rie could keep track of me from the beach. (She declined the invitation to participate - I am not sure why.)

Even though I knew it would be cold, I was not quite prepared for how cold the water actually was when I jumped in. It was a bit painful, but after a minute or so, my body went numb and I began to enjoy my first Korean swim. I made it out to the lifeguards, but did not collect a prize. On the way back in, I did some body surfing and spoke with a few of my fellow Polar Bears.


I spent about 15 minutes playing in the ocean before the line of lifeguards collapsed our swimming area. They tightened their line and herded all of the people out of the water.



Surprisingly, I was not too cold when I got out of the ocean. But, after about ten minutes, I was shaking and having a hard time using my chopsticks.


After the fun event, a big group of people started the serious competition. They made two laps around the buoys in their race. It was an interesting race to me not because they wore wet suits, but because they wore flippers and snorkels. The snorkels were swimming snorkels - instead of coming up the side of the head like recreational snorkels, they rose up in front of the head where they would not interfere with serious stroking.


After the swim, Rie took me to a Mexican place she found nearby. It was very small and very good.


After lunch, we saw a movie, relaxed at the public bath, ate dinner at an Oriental restaurant, had hot chocolate at an Italian cafe and took an evening stroll before heading home.

Anybody for a drink?

While wandering around the popular tourist beach of Haeundae, we came across this advertisement for a bar. I think the sign would go great on the front door of a Frat house.

Rie's Blog

Rie has seen how much fun I have writing my blog and how useful it can be for telling anybody who is interested what we are up to.

Rie has started her own blog here.

Of course, it is in Japanese, so it might be a bit hard for the average reader to enjoy.

Luckily, Google can automatically translate the page. The translation is not very good, but I think that anybody named Dalin will find it hysterical. Everybody else will just get a headache.

The Blanketed Baby Back-Pack All-Stars

It is winter here now and all the mothers want to keep their babies warm. I am impressed by the form that their combination baby-carrier / baby-blanket takes. Here are a few of the high-lights from the Full Moon Festival.

Happy Lunar New Year Full Moon

Last Monday was the first full moon of the new Lunar Year. Koreans celebrate by building big bonfires and tossing in their messages for the future. We went to the nearby Gwangali beach and hung out by the fire.


Some people dressed up and played their drums.


A little ways down from the beach, we came across a crowd of people watching some sort of ceremony. One of the female performers put a man on her back and danced around.


Then they picked up the pig and danced with that. People also put money in the pig's mouth.


We ended our evening stroll along the beach at the good gelato shop and then went home.

One, Second, Trice, Quad...

I am still making the effort to learn some Korean. Last week, I tried to learn how to tell time, but did not get far. You see, a long, long time ago, the Koreans came up with their own words for counting to ten. More recently, but still a long time ago, the Koreans borrowed many words from Chinese, including words for the numbers one through ten. Now, they mix the two sets of Korean vocabulary in a manner that almost seems designed to confuse the novice.

When telling time in Korean, you use the native Korean numbers for the hour. For the minutes, you use the borrowed Chinese numbers. So, in order to tell the time, I have to learn how to count to twelve - twice!

I asked some Korean co-workers why they use the two different systems. They said they never realized that they did. Of course, they could not come up with a good explanation.

The next day, I discovered that when counting days in Korean, you use the native vocabulary for one, four and five days. The Chinese originated numbers are used for counting two and three day periods. I pointed this out to the same Korean co-workers. Again, they said they never realized this and don't know why they do that. By this point, they thought I was making fun of Korean, but really, I was just enjoying the quirks of a new language.

Like many languages, Koreans don't use fancy names for their months. They just have 1-month, 2-month, 3-month etc.. I figured that a long time ago, they must have had special names for the months and that you could still come across them in poetry. I asked my co-workers about this. It turns out there were other names for the months, but nobody could remember more than one or two.

After my last round of questions, they all wondered why I don't ask normal questions like "How do you say 'This is a pen.'?" They declared me a genius, and stopped answering my questions.

I never got the chance to point out that in English, we also use numbers to keep track of our months, but only for the last four months. And, for our own historical reasons, they are mis-numbered. October is not the eighth month anymore. So, we number, but we can't count.

The Settlers of Catan

As you may remember, I played a game called The Settlers of Catan with some friends back when my blog was just a few months old. Last year, Rie and I bought the game and started playing again. The game is okay for two people, but a lot more fun with four. Rie and I had some co-workers over for a game in Virginia, but after the first one, Amy admitted she only accepted the invitation for game playing because it included dinner. After dinner, she was no longer interested in playing the game.

Last week, we invited two American English teachers from the local university over for some fun. I think we played about four games or five games. We even played one game right through dinner. It was great.

Saturday, Rie invited a Korean couple over for lunch and an afternoon of games. It was great, even if the man was surprised that a 37-year old man could be interested in playing board games.

叶恭子？

　昨日、定例の釜山国際女性の会BIWAの昼食会に行って来た。行く数日前から、日本人会の方が「ホテル自体が高級で、来ている人たちもフォーマルな感じでジーンズで来る人はいないから、服装は考えておいたほうがいいですよ。」と連絡をくださった。

　と、いうことで、久々に化粧をし、普段は着ることのないコートやヒールなどを身に着けて、行きかけに昼食会用のバッグなんて購入して出かけた。久しぶりにスカートを履いて足を出してみると、外の寒さが身にしみた。

　ホテルの会場では各国のアクセサリー、絨毯、小物などが売られ、その収益は施設などへ寄付される。食事もチャリティーの一環で、すべての活動が基本的にボランティアでなりたっている。
　
　そういう雰囲気からもわかるように、「各国の奥様方、韓国の奥様方はいわゆるセレブな方たちなのよ。時間や経済的にも余裕があって、それを奉仕したいという気持ちのある方たちなの。私たち日本人会の職種とはまた違うのよね。」と、日本人の奥様が教えてくださった。
　とは言え、彼女たちのご主人たちもまた政府の省庁に勤めていらっしゃったり、日本人学校に勤務なさっていらしゃったり、である。やはり、日本の中でも安定している職業には違いない。

　アブちゃんに「今日、かばん買ったんだ。」と報告したら、「BIWAのためにはお化粧しておしゃれをするね。僕のためにはしないのに。」と痛いつっこみをいれられた。でも、アブちゃんは化粧したり着飾ったりしないほうが好きである。おかげで今日も「あなた本当に日本人には見えないわ。多分、化粧をしていないせいね。」とフランス人のご夫人に言われた。『今日はとりあえず化粧はしてるんだけどな。』と心の中でつぶやいた。日本人の方々も「聞いていいものかわからなかったけれど、ご自身もハーフの方かと思いました。」と言われた。

　きっと世界中のどこへ行っても日本人には見られない宿命なのね。それはそれで面白いこともあるからいいかな。

　今朝はアブちゃんがひげをきれいに剃らずに５分程度に短くしていた。そして曰く、「いつも何かのスタートの日には真新しい気持ちでひげを剃って今日からの始まりを感じていけど、『変化しない』ってことの良さも君といると感じるんだよね。いつまでも今日みたいに幸せであれたらなと思うんだよ。」

　ってことは、質素だった私の風貌がBIWAのために少々お金を使いつつ叶恭子化していく日々もまた良しってこと？永遠に叶恭子でいるって、いろんな意味で肩こりそうだね。

　アブちゃんの言葉に幸せを噛みしめつつ、今日もBIWAのお花の教室へ行く：）

冬を克服

　アブちゃんはフロリダ育ち、私は南国の子。２人とも基本的に冬はだめだね。
　島なんて最低気温が１０度を下回ることなんてほとんどないんだよぉ。なのに、去年の冬はカンザスに、今年の冬は釜山に住むことになって、平均気温が3度からそれ以下って、私たちには地獄だね。


　でも、歩くの大好き、アウトドア大好きのアブちゃんには冬中ずっと室内でもそもそしてはいられない。私はまったりしていたいけれど、あの大きなうるうるした瞳で見つめられると「行くしかないか。」と防寒着を着込んでしまう。

　「今日は雨が降るらしいよ。」と言えば、「大丈夫。これはウォータープルーフの服だから。」と言い、「今日は吹雪らしいよ。」と言えば、「建物の中や間なら風も弱まるよ。この服、ウィンドプルーフだから。」と言う。どんな抵抗も無駄である。

　この時ほど、科学や技術の進歩が恨めしく思われることはないね。

　でもね、冬には冬の散歩のよさにも気づくんだよね。ウサギや鹿の足跡を見つけたり、木の芽がじっと冬を越すのを待っていたりってね。

初雪に足跡をつけるのも面白いしね。靴が濡れて汚れるけど。

　前は気温９度でも外出はご遠慮という感じだったけれど、今は完全防寒で気温５度以下でも毎日１時間は散歩にでかけるからね。自分でもたくましくなっていくなぁと思っちゃうよね。

　アブちゃんなんて、雪にダイブしたり、ランニングにでかけたりするからね。人間ってなんでも経験だねぇ。経験が自信と力をつけていくのかもねぇ。

　今日も北風ピープーの中、ウィンドーショッピングに行ってきたけれど、体が冷えたこんな日は夕食はあたたかい鍋にしょうかなぁ？いやいや、歩いて体力をつかったから残り物のカレーにしよう。

　

「仏壇がほしいね。」

　　
　この冬、島に帰った。実家に着くと、アブちゃんが「里帰りって気分だよねぇ。」と、しみじみ言った。確かにホッとするこの気持ちは「里帰り」って感じだけれど、アブちゃんが言うと、なんだかほほえましく聞こえる。それに、ちょっとひっかかったこともあってその意味を調べてみると、「結婚した女性または他家に奉公したものが実家に帰ることを里帰りという。」と辞書に書いてあった。
　『ああ、せっかくお気に入りの言葉を見つけたのに、それが使えない立場だと知ったら、またがっかりするんだろうなぁ。でも、言わなきゃなぁ。』と思っている。

　実家ではアブちゃんはそのお手伝いぶりとお茶目さに娘よりも高評価を得ている。かわいそうに、実家に着いたや否や「おかえり！おかえり！！」と喜んで迎えられたすぐ後から、年末の大掃除やら畑仕事やらが彼を待っていた。

「いいよねぇ。畑っていいよねぇ。いつか庭のある家に住むときには畑作ろうね。」と、また自然の中での勤労の喜びを味わっていた。


　大掃除もひと段落着いて2人で家の近所を散歩していると、アブちゃんが「仏壇がほしいねぇ。」と一言。「どうして？」と聞くと、「うちにも亡くなった君のおばあちゃんの写真が飾ってあるけど、その写真を飾るちゃんとした場所が必要だと思うんだよね。」と言う。
　
　「でも、アブちゃんの宗教とは違うよね。」と私が言うと、

　「うん、でもね、どの宗教でも神や仏や先祖に祈ることで自分の心と会話をしたり、どこかで自分を開放して未来への活力にかえたりできるなら、それはその人にとっていいことだし信仰は大切なことだと思うよ。僕は僕自身の家族の背景としてその事実を子どもたちに伝えていくことは大事だと思うけど、特に自分の宗教にもこだわってないし、仏壇を置くことはおばあちゃんや先祖を敬うっていう意味でもいいことだと思うよ。」とアブちゃんは答えた。
　
　その日から、2人で仏壇の広告に目を通し始めたけれど、果たして買った後どのように外国へ運び出そうか・・・。仏壇のダンボールってあるのかなぁ？原型のままもって歩いていて、街中や税関で呼び止められないかなぁ？だって、ニシムタで買ったホーム用「流しそうめんマシーン」ですら空港で空港職員に笑われたのにぃ。

　ま、運搬方法が決まってから仏壇は購入することにしようかな。
　ばあちゃんも喜ぶだろう。外国人の孫婿が仏壇を買ってくれたと思ったら。　
　
　家族思いの夫を持って、今年もいい年になりそうだねぇ：）

More traffic observations

I don't know why, but I sure seem to notice details about traffic a lot here. Maybe because I was a professional driver, or maybe because I have done a lot of bike riding, or maybe because I like walking.

In the U.S., you drive all the way up to the intersection and then make a U-turn. Here, they center line becomes dashed well before the intersection. That way, a bunch of people can make U-turns when safe without clogging up the intersection. The traffic pattern is designed to force these U-turns because left turns are often not allowed in the city.

People seem to park cars all over the place here. Sometimes, they block other people in. So, perhaps out of a sense of politeness, many people have a little sign in their front window with their cell phone number.

Back in Busan

Rie and I spent an enjoyable week up in Daegu. Daegu is about two hours north of Busan. I went up there for a class and Rie went up there to enjoy cable TV in the hotel room, although she did manage to explore the city a bit as well.

I had hoped to buy a computer and a car while up there, but things did not work out the way we had hoped. The computer I liked at the PX was sold out and there were no cars for sale in the commissary parking lot. Also, the wall where people usually post pictures of their used cars was under construction this week. I will head up there next month and try again.

Since we don't have a car yet, we take buses, trains and taxis around. Yesterday, and again today, the taxi driver got lost. When I tried to pay the fare indicated on the meter, he apologized, refused the full fare, and gave me change. That has never happened to me in any other country.

リンカーンと水前寺清子

　今朝、目が覚める時、「幸せは歩いてこない。だから歩いていくんだね。」というチーターの曲が頭の中で流れていました。「そうだねぇ、そうだよねぇ。前に進んで行った先にアブちゃんがいたんだね。」と思いました。みんなの歩いた先にもきっとさらに大きな幸せが待っていると思いますねぇ。

　そんなことより、みなさま、コメントをありがとうございます。私もコメントの欄にお返事を書きましたが現れてきません。また、挑戦してみます。
　
　さて、みなさまもご存知のとおり、我が家の就寝時間は９時です。いくら睡眠時間8時間の生活に慣れたとはいえ、時には眠れぬ夜もあります。

　そんな時は、まず、本を読みます。しかも、頭を使わない本です。日本の本が手に入りにくいこちらでは、韓国語の先生から借りたさくらももこ著「もものかんづめ」が最近の夜の友です。寝ているアブちゃんの横でヘッドランプをつけて『奇跡の水虫治療』や『乙女のバカ心』などを読んで、夜中、クスクス笑うというのは、傍から見れば少々薄気味悪い様子に映るだろうなと思います。

　そうしているうちに眠気がきて、すっと眠りにつくのですが、１時には目が覚め、そこからまた眠れぬ時間が続きます。なんせ、この時点で睡眠を４時間はとっているので、結構眠れたほうだと思いますけれど、翌朝6時までは静かにしないといけませんから、また眠る努力を始めます。

　さて、そうなると妄想に入るしかありません。

　まずは、草原の中でクラシックの流れている状況をイメージしてその癒しの中で眠ろうとしてみます。でも、それでは事足りず、やがて運動会の競争曲がなり始め、あの徒競走やクラス対抗リレーの悪夢がよみがえります。

　その悪夢をかき消すために次に思い浮かべるのが、知る人ぞ知る吉本新喜劇の辻本茂雄のシゲ爺やローテーショントークです。もしくは台詞を暗記するほど見たドランクドラゴンのコントを思い出し、脳みその浄化を試みます。そんな現実逃避の甲斐もむなしく、眠気は一向におそってきません。

　そこで仕方なく寝返りなどをうってみると、隣でリンカーンのような顔をしたアブちゃんが熟睡しています。アフリカ人のようにはるか彼方まで見えそうな大きな目を閉じ、呼吸しやすそうな高い鼻で息をし、リスのように口まで毛布にくるまって、すやすやと安らかにリンカーンは寝ています。

　まだ、アブちゃんの髪がふさふさで長かったころ、風貌がキリストに似ていると言って南米では道行く人に拝まれたこともあるうちのリンカーン。

　そんな彼の後頭部は少々光を跳ね返すようになり、やがてザビエルになりはしないかと心配しています。アブちゃん曰く、「もしも、ザビエル状態になったら、後ろ髪を伸ばしてポニーテール（志村けんスタイル）にするんだ。」とのこと。

　そんなことを考えていたらうとうとしてきて、いい感じに睡魔に襲われていたら、リンカーンの目覚ましが５時に鳴り、結局４時間妄想で夜を明かしてしまいました。

　ようは、疲れるほどの生活をしないと眠れないだなという幸せな悩みに気づき、少しは人並みに動いてみようと、アブちゃんの志村けん化を防ぐためわかめスープを作るべく、ベッドから抜け出た朝でした。