Saturday, August 31, 2002
Friday, August 30, 2002
Oliver Twist Memorable Quotes
- "The fact is, that there was considerable difficulty in inducing Oliver to take upon himself the office of respiration, -- a troublesome practice, but one which custom has rendered necessary to our easy existence." -page 1
- "But, none of these taunts producing the desired effect of making Oliver cry, Noah attempted to be more facetious still; and in this attempt, did what many small wits, with far greater reputations than Noah, sometimes do to this day, when they want to be funny. He got rather personal." -page 51
- "'Oh, you know, Mr. Bumble, he [Oliver] must be mad,' said Mrs. Sowerberry. 'No boy in half his senses could venture to speak so to you.'
'It's not Madness, ma'am,' replied Mr. Bumble, after a few moments of deep meditation. 'It's Meat.'
'What?' exclaimed Mrs. Sowerberry.
'Meat, ma'am, meat,' replied Bumble, with stern emphasis. 'You've over-fed him, ma'am. You've raised a artificial soul and spirit in him, ma'am, unbecoming a person of his condition: as the board, Mrs. Sowerberry, who are practical philosophers, will tell you. What have paupers to do with soul or spirit? It's quite enough that we let 'em have live bodies. If you had kept the boy on gruel, ma'am, this would never have happened.'
'Dear, dear!' ejaculated Mrs. Sowerberry, piously raising her eyes to the kitchen ceiling: 'this comes of being liberal!'
The liberality of Mrs. Sowerberry to Oliver, had consisted in a profuse bestowal upon him of all the dirty odds and ends which nobody else would eat; so there was a great deal of meekness and self-devotion in her voluntarily remaining under Mr. Bumble's heavy accusation. Of which, to do her justice, she was wholly innocent, in thought, word, or deed." -page 58 - "There is a drowsy state, between sleeping and waking, when you dream more in five minutes with your eyes half open, and yourself half conscious of everything that is passing around you, than you would in five nights with your eyes fast closed, and your senses wrapt in perfect unconsciousness. At such times, a mortal knows just enough of what his mind is doing, to form some glimmering conception of its might powers, its bounding from earth and spurning time and space, when freed from the restraint of its corporeal associate." -page 72
- "If he [Mr. Fang, a police magistrate] were really not in the habit of drinking rather more than was exactly good for him, he might have brought an action against his countenance for libel, and have recovered heavy damages." -page 88
- "Thus, to do a great right, you may do a little wrong; and you may take any means which the end to be attained will justify; the amount of the right, or the amount of the wrong, or indeed the distinction between the two, being left entirely to the philosopher concerrned, to be settled and determined by his clear, comprehensive, and impartial view of this own particular case." -page 103, written as a sarcastic commentary on the behavior of Jack Dawkins and Charley Bates.
- "The persons on whom I [Mr. Brownlow] have bestowed my dearest love, lie deep in their graves; but, although the happiness and delight of my life lie buried there too, I have not made a coffin of my heart, and sealed it up, for ever, on my best affection. Deep affliction has but strengthened and refined them." -page 119
- "There must always be two parties to a quarrel, says the old adage. Mr. Sikes, being desappointed of the dog's participation, at once transferred his hsare in the quarrel to the new-comer [Fagin]." -page 129
- "There is something about a roused woman: especially if she add to all her other strong passions, the fierce impulses and recklessness and despair: which few men like to provoke." -page 143
- "'He's [Bull's Eye, Bill Sikes' dog] an out-and-out Christian,' said Charley [Bates].
This was merely intended as a tribute to the animal's abilities, but it was an appropriate remark in another sense, if Master Bates had only known; for there are a good many ladies and gentlemen, claiming to be out-and-out Christians, between whom, and Mr. Sikes's dog, there exist strong and singular points of resemblance." -page 162 - "In short, the wily old Jew [Fagin] had the boy [Oliver] in his toils. Having prepared his mind, by solitude and gloom, to prefer any society to the companionship of his own sad thoughts in such a dreary place, he was now slowly intilling into his soul the poison which he hoped would blacken it, and change its hue for ever." -page 167
- "'That's it!" observed Mr. Sikes, approvingly; 'women can always put things in fewest words. --Except when it's blowing up' and then they lenghtens it out.'" -page 186
- "The younger lady was in the lovely bloom and springtime of womanhood; at that age, when, if ever angels be for God's good purposes entrhoned in mortal forms, they may be, without impiety, supposed to abide in such as hers." -speaking of Rose Maylie, page 260.
- "Thus, a strain of gentle music, or the rippling of water in a silent place, or the ordour of a flower, or the mention of a familiar word, will sometimes call up sudden dim remembrances of scenes that never were, in this life; which vanish like a breath; which some brief memory of a happier existence, long gone by, would seem to have awakened; which no voluntary exertion of the mind can ever recall." -page 264
- "Oh! if when we oppress and grind our fellow-creatures, we bestowed but one thought on the dark evidences of human error, which, like dense and heavy coulds, were rising, slowly it is true, but not less surely, to Heaven, to pour their after-vengeance on our heads; if we heard but one instant in imagination, the deep testimony of dead men's voices, which no power can stifle, and no pride shut out; where would the the inujry and injustice, the suffereing, misery, curelty, and wrong, that each day's life brings with it!" -page 268
- "We need to be careful how we deal wth those about us, when every death carries to some small circle of survivors, thoughts of so much omitted, and so little done - of so many things forgotten, and so many more which might have been repaired! There is no remorse so deep as that which is unavailing; if we would be spared its tortures, let us remember this, in time." -page 303
- "But, tears were not the things to find their way to Mr. Bumble's soul; his heart was waterproof. Like washable beaver hats that improve with rain, his nerves were rendered stouter and more vigorous, by showeres of tears, which, being tokens of weakness, and so far tacit admissions of his own power, pleased and exalted him." -page 331
- "He [Mr. Bumble] had a decided propensity for bullying; derived no inconsiderable pleasure from the exercise of petty cruelty; and, consequently, was (it is needless to say) a coward. This is by no means a disparagement to his character; for many official personages, who are held in hight respect and admiration, are the victims of similar infirmities. The remark is made, indeed, rather in his favour than otherwise, and with a view of impressing the reader with a just sense of his qualifications for office." -page 333
- "Mr Sikes [lacked] the niceties of discrimination, and [was] troubled with no more subtle misgivings than those which resolve themselves into a dogged roughness of behaviour towards everybody." -page 364
- "'When ladies as young, and good, and beautiful as you are,' replied the girl [Nancy] steadily, 'give away your hearts, love will carry you all lengths - even such as you, who have home, friends, other admirers, everything, to fill them. When such as I, who have no certain roof but the coffin-lid, and no friend in sickness or death but the hospital nurse, set our rotten hearts on any man, and let him fill the place that has been a blank through all our wretched lives, who can hope to cure us? Pity us, lady - pity us for having only one feeling of the woman left, and for having that turned, by heavy judgment, from a comfort and a pride, into a new means of violence and suffering.'" -spoken to Rose Maylie, page 376.
- "'Do not heed my friend, Miss Maylie,' said Mr. Brownlow; 'he [Mr. Grimwig] does not mean what he says.'
'Yes, he does,' growled Mr. Grimwig.
'No, he does not,' said Mr. Brownlow, obviously rising in wrath as he spoke.
'He'll eat his head, if he doesn't,' growled Mr. Grimwig.
'He would deserve to have it knocked off, if he does,' said Mr. Brownlow.
'And he'd uncommonly like to see any man offer to do it,' responded Mr. Grimwig, knocking his stick upon the floor.
Having gone thus far, the two old gentlemen severally took snuff, and afterwards shook hands, according to their invariable custom." -page 382 - "'Then what the devil is to be done?' said the impetuous doctor [Mr. Losberne], when they had rejoined the two ladies. 'Are we to pass a vote of thanks to all these vagabonds, male and female, and beg them to accept a hundred pounds, or so apiece, as a trifiling mark of our esteem, and some slight acknowledgement of their kindness to Oliver?'" -please don't miss the saracasm, page 385.
- "I [Mr. Brownlow] make this request with good reason, for I might otherwise excite hopes destined never teo be realised, and only increase difficulties and disappointments already quite numerous enough." -page 388
- "The heavy bell of St. Paul's tolled for the death of another day. Midnight had come upon the crowded city. The palace, the night-cellar, the jail, the madhouse: the chambers of birth and death, of health and sickness, the rigid face of the corpse and the calm sleep of the child: midnight was upon them all." -page 427
- "The sun - the bright sun, that brings back, not light alone, but new life, and hope, and freshness to man - burst upon the crowded city in clear and radiant glory. Through costly-coloured glass and paper-mended window, through cathedral dome and rotten crevice, it shed its equal ray." -page 445
- "It is a world of disappointment; often to the hopes we most cherish, and hopes that do our nature the greatest honour." -page 496
- "How the two orphans, tried by adversity, remembered its lessons in mercy to others, and mutual love, and fervent thanks to Him who had protected and preserved them - these are all matters which need not to be told. I [the narrator] have said that they were truly happy; and without strong affection and humanity of heart, and gratitude to that Being whose code is Mercy, and whose great attribute is Benevolence to all things that breathe, happiness can never be attained." -page 511
08.30.2002 | korea | day 178 | friday
Weight loss. What a great thing. The latest visit to the scale shows a loss of 2 kilos (4.4 lbs.) in just two weeks! I have expended considerable energy trying to understand just how did and does it continue to happen? I think it's the culmination of a hundred daily decisions, made consistently over a period of time. But specifically what about the areas people tend to focus on in the whole weight management equation?
Such as...
- Coke. I still drink it though only about a third of what I used to. (Koreans call it cola. If you ask for cola - more accurately pronounced "coh-la" - it's universally assumed you mean Coke, not Pepsi, even though Pepsi is nearly as available as Coke - to the chagrin of free thinking people everywhere.)
- Carbs. I eat much less bread than I used to. Most food markets almost treat bread as an afterthought when it comes to stocking a wide variety and it's rarely if ever served with meals. But any benefit from eating less bread seems in my mind outweighed by all the rice I eat.
- Fats like sweets, desserts, and butter. I eat much less of everything though I still often indulge when the urge, which is quite real, hits. (You know, like indulging in a nice stick of room temperature margarine, drizzled with hot fudge, for dessert.)
- Deep fried foods. Almost non-existent, though potato chips are still available, especially Pringles, and who can resist Pringles? Not me. Nor can I resist (no joke) deep-fried octopus tentacles. Tasty!
- Fruits. As if!
- Vegetables. Of course I eat truckloads more than I used to but it's not like Korean cooking is totally virtuous when it comes to serving veggies that aren't fried, sauteed, or swimming in some other evil substance.
- Multi-vitamins. I took them faithfully when I first got here but haven't bothered with them for about three months. (Doug, what do you call a multiple ingeston of multi-vitamins?)
- Exercise. One can't excuse the voluminous walking and biking I do though it's not anything to write home about (So, Richard wonders to himself, exactly what am I doing right now?). I'm not doing anything structured besides moving around from place to place, though that will soon change.
Since the usual suspects don't explain it, here's my revolutionary thought as to what might be one if not THE biggest variable contributing to my plummeting body mass and the ruination of my extensive Big & Tall wardrobe: milk.
Yes, milk. That wonderful milky fluid, milk. For as long as I can remember, wait, what was I talking about? Oh, yeah, my new physique. Actually I was talking about milk. For as long as I can remember, I've managed to guzzle 2-3 gallons of skim milk a week. Consistently.
Then I came to Korea where, unfortunately, it's not available in large containers and, though I've seen ads promoting civic responsibility in supporting Korea's two dairy farmers, I've managed to skate through the last six months (SIX MONTHS!) by drinking probably less than two gallons! This wasn't a conscious choice, just happenstance. I've always loved milk and I thought ,since I was drinking skim, that quantity wasn't an issue but now I wonder, because of all the variables I've considered, this represents perhaps the most dramatic departure from my previous habits.
Is it possible this radical drop in my dairy intake could be responsible for my dramatic weight loss?
Thursday, August 29, 2002
Oliver Twist Cast of Characters
- Oliver Twist, Work'us, Nolly, Ned, Tom White
- Mrs. Mann
- Mr. Bumble
- Mr. Limbkins
- Mr. Gamfield
- Mr. Sowerberry
- Charlotte, Mrs. Bolter
- Noah Claypole, Morris Bolter
- Trip
- Jack Dawkins, The Artful Dodger
- Dick
- Fagin, The Merry Old Gentleman
- Charley Bates
- Bet
- Nancy
- Mr. Losberne
- Mr. Brittles
- Mr. Giles
- Jack Ketch
- Mr. Monks, Edward Leeford
- Phil Barker
- Mr. Lively
- Old Sally Thingummy
- Mr. Grannett
- Mrs. Corney
- Mr. Toby Crackit
- Tom Chitling
- Bull's Eye
- Barney
- Mr. Grinwig
- Bill Sikes
- Mrs. Bedwin
- Mr. Brownlow
- Mr. Fang
- Rose Maylie
- Mrs. Maylie
- Harry Maylie
- Mr. Conkey Chickweed
- Jem Spyer
- Mr. Duff
- Mr. Blathers
- Kags
- Agnes Fleming
08.29.2002 | korea | day 177 | thursday
Some time ago I arranged to do a language exchange with a student at Kangwon University in town. His name is Yoon Hyun-sung but he goes by his family name of Yoon for short. A friend of an acquaintance works in the English Department on campus and she found Yoon for me based on his English language skills, which are superior, and his interest in improving them - he's studying to take the TOEFL test for the third time. This is an important English language benchmark test which is used, among other things, as a university placement tool in Korea. His scores have been excellent the previous two times he's taken it but he wants to take again to further improve his chances of transferring to a better school.
Now for a list of things we have in common - they're spooky. Like I did, Yoon is majoring in English, and based on his appreciation for Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott, he adopted, long before we met, the English name of Richard! Wow! That's the list. I never said it was a long list, just a spooky list. S P O O K Y !
Our plan is to meet twice a week for an hour at a time - one hour studying Korean and the other studying English. I'm thrilled at our fortuitous meeting as we share the common interest of English literature and it appears our alliance is already bearing fruit: today he helped me find and register for a beginning Korean language course which will be taught on the Kangwon University campus twice a week, for 1 hour and 40 minutes at a time, for twelve weeks, for 140,000 won (about $112). I'm full of optimism.
Wednesday, August 28, 2002
Tuesday, August 27, 2002
07.28.2002 | china | day three | sunday
Sunday morning and we were quickly ushered out of our room; too soon in spite of the extra hour Brian had pled for as we hadn't checked in until nearly midnight. Fortunately we had time for a warm shower first and then we made our way back to the foreign teacher's dorm to see if any rooms had opened up. This time a different attendant was on duty and, unlike the night before, this one trusted Brian enough to grant us a vacant room. Brian was upset for a few hours afterwards because he learned there had been a room available the night we arrived in town but the kid on duty chose not to give it to us. Brian's goal during his summer in China has been to live on $100 a week, or about 800 yuan, which by the end of the trip I learned was quite reasonable. Blowing 220 yuan unnecessarily on a pricey hotel room took a big chunk out of that 800 a week. We stowed our bags in our new room and left to eat a late breakfast in the school cafeteria. I ate a couple servings of a pita-type bread, one with hash browns, the other with Spam. Rather greasy but filling.
The steady rain that had fallen all morning didn't deter our plans to visit Tiananmen Square. We caught a bus which seemed to take forever but likely only took 30 minutes. Along the way we passed an endless procession of shops - old and modern, hundreds of bikers - many of them carrying passengers (mostly women precariously balanced side-saddle on the back equipment rack - in dresses no less!), dozens of Chinese food restaurants (oh, to dream of tasting authentic sweet and sour chicken - drool, drool), plenty of poverty mixed with prosperity, at least four McDonalds restaurants, and hundreds more cars than I ever expected - many foreign brands I didn't recognize but also recognizable labels like Volkswagen, General Motors, Audi, and BMW.
The closer we got to Tiananmen Square the more the scenery changed. Small shops and cafes gave way to modern malls, expensive restaurants, and massive office buildings. When I say massive office buildings, I'm not overstating the imposing nature of these modern structures. Whereas Korea has it's share of tall buildings, they tend to be tall and narrow; the large buildings in Beijing impressed me as being equally tall but much beefier in shape. The size and the surprising actual number of buildings put a facade on Beijing that it is prosperous, modern, and open. And sprinkled among the various high rises are the occasional ancient temples and royal palaces. Don¡¯t forget to add an endless parade of bicycle commuters on even the busiest of roads and you¡¯ll have a rough sketch of Beijing.
We paused for a tasty lunch of kung pao chicken in an obscure back alley restaurant and proceeded to walk the remaining distance to Tiananmen Square in a drizzle of rain. By my imperfect estimate, Tiananmen Square is a third of a mile wide by two thirds of a mile long. It¡¯s nothing much more remarkable than a flat plaza flanked on all sides by the most imposing of government, historical, and cultural buildings. A simple pillar forms a monument of some sort in the center and the south end is framed by two dramatic stone statues representing and dedicated to ¡°the people.¡± (Of course the plaza is infamous for the "Tiananman Square Massacre" which was a government quashed rebellion in 1989 and the lesser known "Tiananmen Square Incident," a pejorative term for a similar affair which took place some years earlier at the same site, though on a smaller scale.) I was able to take a handful of pictures but they are unremarkable as the day was overcast and we were still battered by inconsistent rain. After an hour of milling around the square with a few hundred other visitors, we caught a the subway to the next site on our agenda: an ancient functioning Lama Temple.
This was the first real touristy place I visited, crowded with buses and camera-toting sight seers, from such unexpected places like Sweden. The pricey admission charge and the crowds made me wonder how it could still function as a temple but I got a few clues as we entered and walked from building to building. At the entrance to each structure lay a supply in incense and a place to kneel, bow, and worship, which we say a few visitors doing. Pictures inside the temples, as in most places we visited, were not allowed so I was limited to taking shots of the buildings which wasn¡¯t a bad consolation prize though I regret I wasn¡¯t able to capture the increasingly larger statues and idols we encountered as we moved from building to building, apparently moving progressively deeper into the overall sanctuary.
At the time (and as I write, now that my trip is over) I regretted not being able to better identify the differences between the various religious strains common in Asia. Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Confucianism, et. al. ran together in a blur and though I knew the many temples we eventually visited did not all belong to the same traditions, to me, as I suppose to most Westerners, I couldn¡¯t help but glob them all together. Brian called this site a Lama Temple which, he said, is associated with the Dalai Lama, though only in name. The Dalai Lama used to be the state-recognized leader of the religion but at some point he neglected or refused to pay some sort of homage to the government leaders and he was banished from China. (Though religion is supposedly prohited under communism rule, some groups are allowed to function as long as they somehow acknowledge the supremecy of the state government.) And although he still maintains his title, party leaders placed another in his stead who now functions as the official leader of the religion in China. (PLEASE recognize that this is a crude and likely imperfect description of a religion that is alien to me. Hopefully though it is putting the sites I saw into some sort of context.)
The Lama Temple was beautiful and inspiring for it¡¯s size, history, mystery but I was relieved to get away and walk down a nearby quiet, undisturbed street overgrown with trees and moss. We found a similar tourist attraction - an ancient government examination compound - that charged considerably less to enter and had fewer than half a dozen tourists in addition to our party of two. The charm here was plentiful - quiet gardens, mostly decaying structures in the midst of a few restored buildings, wild trees with long limbs and vines, and a stone moat surrounding the primary exam building full of green, stagnant water. The rain had ceased but the air was still heavy and oppressive so Brian and I paused for a good hour to soak in the solitude in attempt to appreciate the history.
Dinner that night included a pile of strange but tasty potato strings at a nice restaurant off campus. A stroll back to our dorm room with a pause to buy a phone card and some water completed our day and we were in bed, exhausted from walking, by 10:30.
The steady rain that had fallen all morning didn't deter our plans to visit Tiananmen Square. We caught a bus which seemed to take forever but likely only took 30 minutes. Along the way we passed an endless procession of shops - old and modern, hundreds of bikers - many of them carrying passengers (mostly women precariously balanced side-saddle on the back equipment rack - in dresses no less!), dozens of Chinese food restaurants (oh, to dream of tasting authentic sweet and sour chicken - drool, drool), plenty of poverty mixed with prosperity, at least four McDonalds restaurants, and hundreds more cars than I ever expected - many foreign brands I didn't recognize but also recognizable labels like Volkswagen, General Motors, Audi, and BMW.
The closer we got to Tiananmen Square the more the scenery changed. Small shops and cafes gave way to modern malls, expensive restaurants, and massive office buildings. When I say massive office buildings, I'm not overstating the imposing nature of these modern structures. Whereas Korea has it's share of tall buildings, they tend to be tall and narrow; the large buildings in Beijing impressed me as being equally tall but much beefier in shape. The size and the surprising actual number of buildings put a facade on Beijing that it is prosperous, modern, and open. And sprinkled among the various high rises are the occasional ancient temples and royal palaces. Don¡¯t forget to add an endless parade of bicycle commuters on even the busiest of roads and you¡¯ll have a rough sketch of Beijing.
We paused for a tasty lunch of kung pao chicken in an obscure back alley restaurant and proceeded to walk the remaining distance to Tiananmen Square in a drizzle of rain. By my imperfect estimate, Tiananmen Square is a third of a mile wide by two thirds of a mile long. It¡¯s nothing much more remarkable than a flat plaza flanked on all sides by the most imposing of government, historical, and cultural buildings. A simple pillar forms a monument of some sort in the center and the south end is framed by two dramatic stone statues representing and dedicated to ¡°the people.¡± (Of course the plaza is infamous for the "Tiananman Square Massacre" which was a government quashed rebellion in 1989 and the lesser known "Tiananmen Square Incident," a pejorative term for a similar affair which took place some years earlier at the same site, though on a smaller scale.) I was able to take a handful of pictures but they are unremarkable as the day was overcast and we were still battered by inconsistent rain. After an hour of milling around the square with a few hundred other visitors, we caught a the subway to the next site on our agenda: an ancient functioning Lama Temple.
This was the first real touristy place I visited, crowded with buses and camera-toting sight seers, from such unexpected places like Sweden. The pricey admission charge and the crowds made me wonder how it could still function as a temple but I got a few clues as we entered and walked from building to building. At the entrance to each structure lay a supply in incense and a place to kneel, bow, and worship, which we say a few visitors doing. Pictures inside the temples, as in most places we visited, were not allowed so I was limited to taking shots of the buildings which wasn¡¯t a bad consolation prize though I regret I wasn¡¯t able to capture the increasingly larger statues and idols we encountered as we moved from building to building, apparently moving progressively deeper into the overall sanctuary.
At the time (and as I write, now that my trip is over) I regretted not being able to better identify the differences between the various religious strains common in Asia. Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Confucianism, et. al. ran together in a blur and though I knew the many temples we eventually visited did not all belong to the same traditions, to me, as I suppose to most Westerners, I couldn¡¯t help but glob them all together. Brian called this site a Lama Temple which, he said, is associated with the Dalai Lama, though only in name. The Dalai Lama used to be the state-recognized leader of the religion but at some point he neglected or refused to pay some sort of homage to the government leaders and he was banished from China. (Though religion is supposedly prohited under communism rule, some groups are allowed to function as long as they somehow acknowledge the supremecy of the state government.) And although he still maintains his title, party leaders placed another in his stead who now functions as the official leader of the religion in China. (PLEASE recognize that this is a crude and likely imperfect description of a religion that is alien to me. Hopefully though it is putting the sites I saw into some sort of context.)
The Lama Temple was beautiful and inspiring for it¡¯s size, history, mystery but I was relieved to get away and walk down a nearby quiet, undisturbed street overgrown with trees and moss. We found a similar tourist attraction - an ancient government examination compound - that charged considerably less to enter and had fewer than half a dozen tourists in addition to our party of two. The charm here was plentiful - quiet gardens, mostly decaying structures in the midst of a few restored buildings, wild trees with long limbs and vines, and a stone moat surrounding the primary exam building full of green, stagnant water. The rain had ceased but the air was still heavy and oppressive so Brian and I paused for a good hour to soak in the solitude in attempt to appreciate the history.
Dinner that night included a pile of strange but tasty potato strings at a nice restaurant off campus. A stroll back to our dorm room with a pause to buy a phone card and some water completed our day and we were in bed, exhausted from walking, by 10:30.
07.28.2002 | china | day three | sunday
Sunday morning and we were quickly ushered out of our room; too soon in spite of the extra hour Brian had pled for as we hadn't checked in until nearly midnight. Fortunately we had time for a warm shower first and then we made our way back to the foreign teacher's dorm to see if any rooms had opened up. This time a different attendant was on duty and, unlike the night before, this one trusted Brian enough to grant us a vacant room. Brian was upset for a few hours afterwards because he learned there had been a room available the night we arrived in town but the kid on duty chose not to give it to us. Brian's goal during his summer in China has been to live on $100 a week, or about 800 yuan, which by the end of the trip I learned was quite reasonable. Blowing 220 yuan unnecessarily on a pricey hotel room took a big chunk out of that 800 a week. We stowed our bags in our new room and left to eat a late breakfast in the school cafeteria. I ate a couple servings of a pita-type bread, one with hash browns, the other with Spam. Rather greasy but filling.
The steady rain that had fallen all morning didn't deter our plans to visit Tiananmen Square. We caught a bus which seemed to take forever but likely only took 30 minutes. Along the way we passed an endless procession of shops - old and modern, hundreds of bikers - many of them carrying passengers (mostly women precariously balanced side-saddle on the back equipment rack - in dresses no less!), dozens of Chinese food restaurants (oh, to dream of tasting authentic sweet and sour chicken - drool, drool), plenty of poverty mixed with prosperity, at least four McDonalds restaurants, and hundreds more cars than I ever expected - many foreign brands I didn't recognize but also recognizable labels like Volkswagen, General Motors, Audi, and BMW.
The closer we got to Tiananmen Square the more the scenery changed. Small shops and cafes gave way to modern malls, expensive restaurants, and massive office buildings. When I say massive office buildings, I'm not overstating the imposing nature of these modern structures. Whereas Korea has it's share of tall buildings, they tend to be tall and narrow; the large buildings in Beijing impressed me as being equally tall but much beefier in shape. The size and the surprising actual number of buildings put a facade on Beijing that it is prosperous, modern, and open. And sprinkled among the various high rises are the occasional ancient temples and royal palaces. Don¡¯t forget to add an endless parade of bicycle commuters on even the busiest of roads and you¡¯ll have a rough sketch of Beijing.
We paused for a tasty lunch of kung pao chicken in an obscure back alley restaurant and proceeded to walk the remaining distance to Tiananmen Square in a drizzle of rain. By my imperfect estimate, Tiananmen Square is a third of a mile wide by two thirds of a mile long. It¡¯s nothing much more remarkable than a flat plaza flanked on all sides by the most imposing of government, historical, and cultural buildings. A simple pillar forms a monument of some sort in the center and the south end is framed by two dramatic stone statues representing and dedicated to ¡°the people.¡± (Of course the plaza is infamous for the "Tiananman Square Massacre" which was a government quashed rebellion in 1989 and the lesser known "Tiananmen Square Incident," a pejorative term for a similar affair which took place some years earlier at the same site, though on a smaller scale.) I was able to take a handful of pictures but they are unremarkable as the day was overcast and we were still battered by inconsistent rain. After an hour of milling around the square with a few hundred other visitors, we caught a the subway to the next site on our agenda: an ancient functioning Lama Temple.
This was the first real touristy place I visited, crowded with buses and camera-toting sight seers, from such unexpected places like Sweden. The pricey admission charge and the crowds made me wonder how it could still function as a temple but I got a few clues as we entered and walked from building to building. At the entrance to each structure lay a supply in incense and a place to kneel, bow, and worship, which we say a few visitors doing. Pictures inside the temples, as in most places we visited, were not allowed so I was limited to taking shots of the buildings which wasn¡¯t a bad consolation prize though I regret I wasn¡¯t able to capture the increasingly larger statues and idols we encountered as we moved from building to building, apparently moving progressively deeper into the overall sanctuary.
At the time (and as I write, now that my trip is over) I regretted not being able to better identify the differences between the various religious strains common in Asia. Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Confucianism, et. al. ran together in a blur and though I knew the many temples we eventually visited did not all belong to the same traditions, to me, as I suppose to most Westerners, I couldn¡¯t help but glob them all together. Brian called this site a Lama Temple which, he said, is associated with the Dalai Lama, though only in name. The Dalai Lama used to be the state-recognized leader of the religion but at some point he neglected or refused to pay some sort of homage to the government leaders and he was banished from China. (Though religion is supposedly prohited under communism rule, some groups are allowed to function as long as they somehow acknowledge the supremecy of the state government.) And although he still maintains his title, party leaders placed another in his stead who now functions as the official leader of the religion in China. (PLEASE recognize that this is a crude and likely imperfect description of a religion that is alien to me. Hopefully though it is putting the sites I saw into some sort of context.)
The Lama Temple was beautiful and inspiring for it¡¯s size, history, mystery but I was relieved to get away and walk down a nearby quiet, undisturbed street overgrown with trees and moss. We found a similar tourist attraction - an ancient government examination compound - that charged considerably less to enter and had fewer than half a dozen tourists in addition to our party of two. The charm here was plentiful - quiet gardens, mostly decaying structures in the midst of a few restored buildings, wild trees with long limbs and vines, and a stone moat surrounding the primary exam building full of green, stagnant water. The rain had ceased but the air was still heavy and oppressive so Brian and I paused for a good hour to soak in the solitude in attempt to appreciate the history.
Dinner that night included a pile of strange but tasty potato strings at a nice restaurant off campus. A stroll back to our dorm room with a pause to buy a phone card and some water completed our day and we were in bed, exhausted from walking, by 10:30.
08.27.2002 | korea | day 175 | tuesday
Is there a place alongside a pursuit of spiritual goals for assertive, even aggressive pursuit of temporal goals? Must one sacrifice such trivial things as charity to compete with others who appear to hold no such standards? After recently receiving a tougue-lashing from a co-worker over some problems that could have been rationally discussed and easily resolved, I found myself succumbing to self-doubt and realized I was at a crossroads.
Should I grant a victory to the negative voices in my head, become immobile for fear of offending yet another poor, magnanimous soul, fade away, and acquiesce to those around me with harsher tongues and stronger wills? Or should I instead write such people off as jealous, self-centered hypocrites with nothing but destructive, ulterior motives?
I choose neither. They aren't in my nature, contrary to what some might think. To allow others such dominion over my behavior grates on my nerves and while I acknowledge it may indicate a need for greater humility, I can't see past standing up to gross mischaracterizations of my behavior or personality. Rather I must conclude I have no choice if I am to remain faithful to my own mores but to filter out the harsh language and its symptomatic self-doubt, review my behavior and make necessary changes in light of divine principles, re-examine my long-term objectives, renew my efforts to obtain them, and alternate distracting voices be damned!
Monday, August 26, 2002
07.27.2002 | china | day two | saturday
After a peaceful nights rest on the rolling ocean, I awoke and went on deck to view for the first time the vast, watery expanse. Though I knew the distance between China and Korea was great, it was a little unsettling to see nothing but water, stretching far to the horizon in every direction. The morning was a bit overcast and a haze in the air turned into a light fog as the day advanced and made our lone presence feel surreal.
Life aboard the ferry was somewhat mundane. With so many of us crowded into the econmy bunks and everyone stashig their luggage, bags, bulky boxes, and other miscellaneous items in every available corner of the room, I felt something akin to the faceless lower class passengers stowed away in the bottom decks of the Titanic. Though people were happy, chatty, and friendly, it almost would have been fitting if someone had started playing a sad, hardship song on a harmonica or banjo.
For breakfast I had kimbop and some Pringles, both of which I'd brought with me. Food was available, I believe, from the restaurant on board the ferry but I didn't want the hassle of communicating my order as as I wasn't very hungry anyway, it felt good to be frugal.
I passed the day sleeping watching the horizon on deck, writing a letter home, and reading a two-day old copy of the International Herald Tribune I'd brought with me. Occasionally we would pass a large freighter in the distance, otherwise we were alone. The novelty of taking the ferry began to wear thin, much like the way the thrill of taking a long bus ride or airplane flight starts to become dull as you grow impatient to arrive at your destination.
At length we finally did arrive, on time, at 7:00 PM. For an hour before we reached port, we passed dozens of various hulking frieghters, anchored at sea and dormant, I imagine, so as not to crowd the available docking spaces in Tianjin. An hour passed before we were allowed to disembark but after we did, and after a short bus ride to the customs terminal, I officially entered the country.
What a strange but unremarkable experience to finally walk the soil of a land with such a grand history and such a tempestuous present. Korea has been such a unique and enjoyable experience but the sheer size and depth was, for me, quite a leap in magnitude. On the other hand, the sights and sounds and smells were rather ordinary. Perhaps many people have a similar reaction the first time they set foot in a place that for them has figured so prominently in their own educational upbringing.
If I was eyed with suspicion checking through customs, it didn't register. It only took a few minutes. I exited the terminal and found Brian. We took a very long ride in a cramped, dirty red taxi into Tianjin. We bought tickets at the train terminal and as the next train wasn't scheduled to leave for an hour we walked down a side street to find some food. We settled on a small restaurant and ordered potstickers, a sort of dumpling - quite delicious.
The trip to Beijing took 90 minutes on a cramped, dirty train. Fortunately the weather was pleasant and some of the windows were open which allowed a strong breeze to flow through our car.
We arrived in Beijing around 10:45 PM. A short jaunt on the subway and another taxi brought us to the campus of the university where Brian taught for 12 months nearly four years ago. (It's official name is The University of Science and Technology Beijing.) It was quite late but we had hopes of finding a room in the foreign student's dorm. Unfortunately we were told no rooms were available so we had to settle on a room in the nearby convention center hotel at about three times the cost. (70 yuan or $8.75 for a dorm room versus 200 yuan or $25 for the hotel! Yuan is pronounced quickly and sounds like U.N.) But we were exhausted and couldn't afford to be picky so we paid for our room and finally went to sleep around midnight.
Life aboard the ferry was somewhat mundane. With so many of us crowded into the econmy bunks and everyone stashig their luggage, bags, bulky boxes, and other miscellaneous items in every available corner of the room, I felt something akin to the faceless lower class passengers stowed away in the bottom decks of the Titanic. Though people were happy, chatty, and friendly, it almost would have been fitting if someone had started playing a sad, hardship song on a harmonica or banjo.
For breakfast I had kimbop and some Pringles, both of which I'd brought with me. Food was available, I believe, from the restaurant on board the ferry but I didn't want the hassle of communicating my order as as I wasn't very hungry anyway, it felt good to be frugal.
I passed the day sleeping watching the horizon on deck, writing a letter home, and reading a two-day old copy of the International Herald Tribune I'd brought with me. Occasionally we would pass a large freighter in the distance, otherwise we were alone. The novelty of taking the ferry began to wear thin, much like the way the thrill of taking a long bus ride or airplane flight starts to become dull as you grow impatient to arrive at your destination.
At length we finally did arrive, on time, at 7:00 PM. For an hour before we reached port, we passed dozens of various hulking frieghters, anchored at sea and dormant, I imagine, so as not to crowd the available docking spaces in Tianjin. An hour passed before we were allowed to disembark but after we did, and after a short bus ride to the customs terminal, I officially entered the country.
What a strange but unremarkable experience to finally walk the soil of a land with such a grand history and such a tempestuous present. Korea has been such a unique and enjoyable experience but the sheer size and depth was, for me, quite a leap in magnitude. On the other hand, the sights and sounds and smells were rather ordinary. Perhaps many people have a similar reaction the first time they set foot in a place that for them has figured so prominently in their own educational upbringing.
If I was eyed with suspicion checking through customs, it didn't register. It only took a few minutes. I exited the terminal and found Brian. We took a very long ride in a cramped, dirty red taxi into Tianjin. We bought tickets at the train terminal and as the next train wasn't scheduled to leave for an hour we walked down a side street to find some food. We settled on a small restaurant and ordered potstickers, a sort of dumpling - quite delicious.
The trip to Beijing took 90 minutes on a cramped, dirty train. Fortunately the weather was pleasant and some of the windows were open which allowed a strong breeze to flow through our car.
We arrived in Beijing around 10:45 PM. A short jaunt on the subway and another taxi brought us to the campus of the university where Brian taught for 12 months nearly four years ago. (It's official name is The University of Science and Technology Beijing.) It was quite late but we had hopes of finding a room in the foreign student's dorm. Unfortunately we were told no rooms were available so we had to settle on a room in the nearby convention center hotel at about three times the cost. (70 yuan or $8.75 for a dorm room versus 200 yuan or $25 for the hotel! Yuan is pronounced quickly and sounds like U.N.) But we were exhausted and couldn't afford to be picky so we paid for our room and finally went to sleep around midnight.
07.27.2002 | china | day two | saturday
After a peaceful nights rest on the rolling ocean, I awoke and went on deck to view for the first time the vast, watery expanse. Though I knew the distance between China and Korea was great, it was a little unsettling to see nothing but water, stretching far to the horizon in every direction. The morning was a bit overcast and a haze in the air turned into a light fog as the day advanced and made our lone presence feel surreal.
Life aboard the ferry was somewhat mundane. With so many of us crowded into the econmy bunks and everyone stashig their luggage, bags, bulky boxes, and other miscellaneous items in every available corner of the room, I felt something akin to the faceless lower class passengers stowed away in the bottom decks of the Titanic. Though people were happy, chatty, and friendly, it almost would have been fitting if someone had started playing a sad, hardship song on a harmonica or banjo.
For breakfast I had kimbop and some Pringles, both of which I'd brought with me. Food was available, I believe, from the restaurant on board the ferry but I didn't want the hassle of communicating my order as as I wasn't very hungry anyway, it felt good to be frugal.
I passed the day sleeping watching the horizon on deck, writing a letter home, and reading a two-day old copy of the International Herald Tribune I'd brought with me. Occasionally we would pass a large freighter in the distance, otherwise we were alone. The novelty of taking the ferry began to wear thin, much like the way the thrill of taking a long bus ride or airplane flight starts to become dull as you grow impatient to arrive at your destination.
At length we finally did arrive, on time, at 7:00 PM. For an hour before we reached port, we passed dozens of various hulking frieghters, anchored at sea and dormant, I imagine, so as not to crowd the available docking spaces in Tianjin. An hour passed before we were allowed to disembark but after we did, and after a short bus ride to the customs terminal, I officially entered the country.
What a strange but unremarkable experience to finally walk the soil of a land with such a grand history and such a tempestuous present. Korea has been such a unique and enjoyable experience but the sheer size and depth was, for me, quite a leap in magnitude. On the other hand, the sights and sounds and smells were rather ordinary. Perhaps many people have a similar reaction the first time they set foot in a place that for them has figured so prominently in their own educational upbringing.
If I was eyed with suspicion checking through customs, it didn't register. It only took a few minutes. I exited the terminal and found Brian. We took a very long ride in a cramped, dirty red taxi into Tianjin. We bought tickets at the train terminal and as the next train wasn't scheduled to leave for an hour we walked down a side street to find some food. We settled on a small restaurant and ordered potstickers, a sort of dumpling - quite delicious.
The trip to Beijing took 90 minutes on a cramped, dirty train. Fortunately the weather was pleasant and some of the windows were open which allowed a strong breeze to flow through our car.
We arrived in Beijing around 10:45 PM. A short jaunt on the subway and another taxi brought us to the campus of the university where Brian taught for 12 months nearly four years ago. (It's official name is The University of Science and Technology Beijing.) It was quite late but we had hopes of finding a room in the foreign student's dorm. Unfortunately we were told no rooms were available so we had to settle on a room in the nearby convention center hotel at about three times the cost. (70 yuan or $8.75 for a dorm room versus 200 yuan or $25 for the hotel! Yuan is pronounced quickly and sounds like U.N.) But we were exhausted and couldn't afford to be picky so we paid for our room and finally went to sleep around midnight.
Sunday, August 25, 2002
07.26.2002 | china | day one | friday
As I lay in my assigned bed, the ship begins to tremble as we leave port and begin our 24-hour journey to Tianjin, China. The bed is one of many in a large room, built into the walls, stacked bunk-style with only a draw-curtain for privacy. A flourescent light in my 'bed chamber' allows me to read and write. My fellow passengers come and go. A young child with a raspy voice whines incessantly, disturbing my peace.
My day began at 6:00 AM. I woke before the alarm sounded, anxious to shower, dress, and pack, though my train for Seoul wouldn't leave until 9:00. Packing was easy, especially as I was excited to use my new backpack, purchased a few days ago from the underground shopping mall in Myungdong for 25,000 won ($20). "From London," the vendor said as I showed interest in the black Genova bag, thinking perhaps it would impress me to buy it. Plenty of pockets, rain protection built into the design, and a heavy-duty black carrying handle to use when you tire of carrying it on your back are the features that ultimately convinced me to buy it.
I walked out the door at 8:40 to make the walk to the Namchunchon Station. True to form for me, I had to return to my apartment because I'd forgotten something: my Teva sandals. Fortunately I only had to return that once.
I arrived in Seoul at 10:55 with three hours to blow until I had to meet Mi-kyoung. I went to a nearby Chohung Bank branch to exchange won for dollars. Much easier to do than I expected, and rewarding too: I love the look, smell, and feel of American currency. And who can deny feeling a bit of pride that the American Dollar is so universally respected?
The only PC room I could find afterward to check my email and read up on China was a dark, grimy joint several blocks away from Cheongyangni Station. The ick got to me after an hour so I left and returned to the train station complex to wash my hands and eat at a clean place I could trust - Burger King.
What started out an overcast day with a gentle breeze in Chunchon had now turned into a sunny, sweltering day in Seoul. I took a walk to look for a camera shop to buy an extra memory card for my camera. I'd been wondering if I'd exchanged enough money. I hate the idea of being vulnerable in a strange land, carrying around too much cash, but if I run out in that strange land, won't that be worse? I found another CHB branch and traded more won for some American Express Travelers Checks.
I returned for the last time to the train station to meet Mi-kyoung at our pre-arranged site in front of McDonalds. She is the younger sister of Yun-kyoung, Brian's friend in Seoul who has been so helpful getting my Chinese visa and my ferry ticket. She was out of town today so her sister came instead and after she arrived we sat and visited for about 45 minutes before I had to leave to make the journey to Incheon.
The subway ride took a little more than an hour. A short cab ride brought me to the International Terminal #2, port to the Jinchon Ferry, located in Incheon, just west of Seoul. (Incheon is famous for being General MacArthur's landing site when the American Forces helped turn the tide in the Korean War in September 1950. Back then it was a lot of swampy, unuseable real estate but now much of it has been reclaimed and it's home to the new and impressive Incheon Int'l Airport, my own arrival site to Korea almost five months ago.) Several long lines later and I boarded the bus that made the one mile drive to the ferry itself. I boarded at 6:30, found my bunk, explored the ship for 20 minutes, and we departed on time at 7:00 PM.
As I walked to Namchunchon Station this morning, a beautiful white crane with a long graceful neck skimmed and flew along the river that paralleled my path. Though I often see these birds along the river beds and at the lakes, I was touched by it's artful flight and felt it might possibly portend good things as I begin this exciting journey.
My day began at 6:00 AM. I woke before the alarm sounded, anxious to shower, dress, and pack, though my train for Seoul wouldn't leave until 9:00. Packing was easy, especially as I was excited to use my new backpack, purchased a few days ago from the underground shopping mall in Myungdong for 25,000 won ($20). "From London," the vendor said as I showed interest in the black Genova bag, thinking perhaps it would impress me to buy it. Plenty of pockets, rain protection built into the design, and a heavy-duty black carrying handle to use when you tire of carrying it on your back are the features that ultimately convinced me to buy it.
I walked out the door at 8:40 to make the walk to the Namchunchon Station. True to form for me, I had to return to my apartment because I'd forgotten something: my Teva sandals. Fortunately I only had to return that once.
I arrived in Seoul at 10:55 with three hours to blow until I had to meet Mi-kyoung. I went to a nearby Chohung Bank branch to exchange won for dollars. Much easier to do than I expected, and rewarding too: I love the look, smell, and feel of American currency. And who can deny feeling a bit of pride that the American Dollar is so universally respected?
The only PC room I could find afterward to check my email and read up on China was a dark, grimy joint several blocks away from Cheongyangni Station. The ick got to me after an hour so I left and returned to the train station complex to wash my hands and eat at a clean place I could trust - Burger King.
What started out an overcast day with a gentle breeze in Chunchon had now turned into a sunny, sweltering day in Seoul. I took a walk to look for a camera shop to buy an extra memory card for my camera. I'd been wondering if I'd exchanged enough money. I hate the idea of being vulnerable in a strange land, carrying around too much cash, but if I run out in that strange land, won't that be worse? I found another CHB branch and traded more won for some American Express Travelers Checks.
I returned for the last time to the train station to meet Mi-kyoung at our pre-arranged site in front of McDonalds. She is the younger sister of Yun-kyoung, Brian's friend in Seoul who has been so helpful getting my Chinese visa and my ferry ticket. She was out of town today so her sister came instead and after she arrived we sat and visited for about 45 minutes before I had to leave to make the journey to Incheon.
The subway ride took a little more than an hour. A short cab ride brought me to the International Terminal #2, port to the Jinchon Ferry, located in Incheon, just west of Seoul. (Incheon is famous for being General MacArthur's landing site when the American Forces helped turn the tide in the Korean War in September 1950. Back then it was a lot of swampy, unuseable real estate but now much of it has been reclaimed and it's home to the new and impressive Incheon Int'l Airport, my own arrival site to Korea almost five months ago.) Several long lines later and I boarded the bus that made the one mile drive to the ferry itself. I boarded at 6:30, found my bunk, explored the ship for 20 minutes, and we departed on time at 7:00 PM.
As I walked to Namchunchon Station this morning, a beautiful white crane with a long graceful neck skimmed and flew along the river that paralleled my path. Though I often see these birds along the river beds and at the lakes, I was touched by it's artful flight and felt it might possibly portend good things as I begin this exciting journey.
07.26.2002 | china | day one | friday
As I lay in my assigned bed, the ship begins to tremble as we leave port and begin our 24-hour journey to Tianjin, China. The bed is one of many in a large room, built into the walls, stacked bunk-style with only a draw-curtain for privacy. A flourescent light in my 'bed chamber' allows me to read and write. My fellow passengers come and go. A young child with a raspy voice whines incessantly, disturbing my peace.
My day began at 6:00 AM. I woke before the alarm sounded, anxious to shower, dress, and pack, though my train for Seoul wouldn't leave until 9:00. Packing was easy, especially as I was excited to use my new backpack, purchased a few days ago from the underground shopping mall in Myungdong for 25,000 won ($20). "From London," the vendor said as I showed interest in the black Genova bag, thinking perhaps it would impress me to buy it. Plenty of pockets, rain protection built into the design, and a heavy-duty black carrying handle to use when you tire of carrying it on your back are the features that ultimately convinced me to buy it.
I walked out the door at 8:40 to make the walk to the Namchunchon Station. True to form for me, I had to return to my apartment because I'd forgotten something: my Teva sandals. Fortunately I only had to return that once.
I arrived in Seoul at 10:55 with three hours to blow until I had to meet Mi-kyoung. I went to a nearby Chohung Bank branch to exchange won for dollars. Much easier to do than I expected, and rewarding too: I love the look, smell, and feel of American currency. And who can deny feeling a bit of pride that the American Dollar is so universally respected?
The only PC room I could find afterward to check my email and read up on China was a dark, grimy joint several blocks away from Cheongyangni Station. The ick got to me after an hour so I left and returned to the train station complex to wash my hands and eat at a clean place I could trust - Burger King.
What started out an overcast day with a gentle breeze in Chunchon had now turned into a sunny, sweltering day in Seoul. I took a walk to look for a camera shop to buy an extra memory card for my camera. I'd been wondering if I'd exchanged enough money. I hate the idea of being vulnerable in a strange land, carrying around too much cash, but if I run out in that strange land, won't that be worse? I found another CHB branch and traded more won for some American Express Travelers Checks.
I returned for the last time to the train station to meet Mi-kyoung at our pre-arranged site in front of McDonalds. She is the younger sister of Yun-kyoung, Brian's friend in Seoul who has been so helpful getting my Chinese visa and my ferry ticket. She was out of town today so her sister came instead and after she arrived we sat and visited for about 45 minutes before I had to leave to make the journey to Incheon.
The subway ride took a little more than an hour. A short cab ride brought me to the International Terminal #2, port to the Jinchon Ferry, located in Incheon, just west of Seoul. (Incheon is famous for being General MacArthur's landing site when the American Forces helped turn the tide in the Korean War in September 1950. Back then it was a lot of swampy, unuseable real estate but now much of it has been reclaimed and it's home to the new and impressive Incheon Int'l Airport, my own arrival site to Korea almost five months ago.) Several long lines later and I boarded the bus that made the one mile drive to the ferry itself. I boarded at 6:30, found my bunk, explored the ship for 20 minutes, and we departed on time at 7:00 PM.
As I walked to Namchunchon Station this morning, a beautiful white crane with a long graceful neck skimmed and flew along the river that paralleled my path. Though I often see these birds along the river beds and at the lakes, I was touched by it's artful flight and felt it might possibly portend good things as I begin this exciting journey.
08.25.2002 | korea | day 173 | sunday
What few entries I've written about my recent 12-day trip to China have been moved to a new blog at shylockchina. More posts to come soon, I promise.
What few entries I've written about my recent 12-day trip to China have been moved to a new blog at shylockchina. More posts to come soon, I promise.
Saturday, August 24, 2002
08.24.2002 | korea | day 172 | saturday
On August 16 I penned the following:
Let me take this opportunity to remind the Rupert-ian that it was a humble Provo boy, who only lives to serve others and bring happiness to the world, who was the David to his Backgammon Goliath and that said Provoan is still waiting, patiently, for his Championship t-shirt. :P
Allow me to step out from behind the mask and tip my hat to said Rupert-ian for his retort which also follows. (I include it here as the comments on this blog have a habit of disappearing.) I'm aware that most people won't appreciate the genius buried within the text. That's most peoples' loss.
The revised story of David and Goliath - as disillusionedly referred to by [Shylock], but truthfully penned by an Oremite with four kids:
And behold, David took one stone from his quiver, and placed it into the leather pouch on his sling, and slung the sling with great vigor and haste. And it came to pass that the strap on the sling did break, and the stone thereof did err in its trajectory, and did spin dizzily out of control, making contact with no less than three trees and a seagull, before falling limply on the exposed toe of the sleeping giant, causing a scratch.
And behold, the giant, unaware of his assailant until that point did rub his toe, and did wake up, and did put on a shoe, and his armour, and his helmet and shield and bow, and did face toward David, and did exclaim "Behold, I was not prepared for battle at the onset, now I will give thee a good, fair, fight.
But behold, his words did fall on the ears of nobody, for behold, David, giddy with pleasure, had already departed the area, boasting in his own strength, and proclaiming his victory loudly in the streets. And it came to pass that David did continually rebuff the desires of the giant to have great battle, for claimed he, "Behold I have already won avery battle I have had with thee. What need have I at a rematch, for behold my victories stand at 100%." The claim of 100% he also cried from the rooftops incessantly, until, from sheer tedium, the giant did cease tracking the shepherd boy, and pestering him for battle. For behold, the boy did quickly flee from place to place, making himself extremely elusive, and deceptive.
But, the giant did not lose hope and he did not easily moan his loss. For behold, he did know that in a coming day, he would once again cross paths with the fleeing David, and he knew that when that day happened, he would make swift work of the cowardly David. And in this way, he would put an end to the ceaseless complaints from David that he had not, as of yet, received raiment for the upper torso, proclaiming victory for the toe-stubbing that he did inflict upon Goliath.
Priceless.
Friday, August 23, 2002
Thursday, August 22, 2002
08.22.2002 | korea | day 170 | thursday
I made a crazy mad dash to Incheon this morning - no small feat - to meet Brian who was on his way home and return a duffel bag of extraneous items he didn't want to tote around the mainland for his last two weeks in the country. Generous guy that I am, I offered to do this to save him the hassle of yet another long train ride. What should have been a mere six hour round trip circuit on trains and subways grew to eight hours by the end because of a missed train in the morning and a wrong subway line taken from Seoul to Suwon instead of Incheon. Subsequently I missed two hours of class in the afternoon but the director was understanding and helpful enough to find a substitute and I returned in the nick of time to teach my remaining two hours.
In Incheon we had time for a Koreanized Chinese meal in Chinatown across the street from the subway station - bokum-bop, mandu, and chow mein. We then wound our way up the steep granite steps on the hillside to two stunning monuments. The first was the Korea USA Centennial Monument dedicated in 1982 to commorate 100 of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries. Six flying steeples, angled inward and encased in steel shingles, sheltered the square, and two enormous, bronze circular abstractions, looped together stood in the center. Built overlooking the Incheon harbor, they seemed a fitting complement to the better known monument ensconced further up the hill, about ten minutes by foot: the statue of General Douglas MacArthur.
After a bit of trouble we found the small park that serves as the grounds for this flattering monument. I failed to notice the dedication date of the site but the grounds were well kept and we encountered a small crowd of local old men under a small pavilion, likely engaged in a game of "badook" as they sought shelter from the steady rain that was pestering us with our one umbrella.
The simple 12 foot granite column upon which the simple bronze statue of MacArthur stood, dressed casually in a windbreaker and hat and sporting binoculars, belies the grand language in the plaque at the base in which is explained the reason for this tribute to America's five star general and Korean War hero. Words like "genius," "inspired," and "eternal gratitude" described the man and the invasion he led at Incheon which led to the eventual liberation of South Korea as well as the way Koreans feel or should feel about the role the United States and other UN forces played in defending their liberties. Phrases like "the malignant scourge of Communism" and "the eventual reunification of Korea" offer commentary on the still existing division and hoped for resolution of atrocities that senselessly divided this small peninsula. Quite an approbation to a leader and his country.
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