In the immortal words of Peter Griffin " you know what really grinds my gears "

Well, I'm in a kinda pissy mood. No real reason, just woke up that way.....I'm sure you women can relate, at least my 2nd wife could. So let's run down the list for the things that set this in motion.

First, while watching UFC 121 this weekend. Now let me tell you, I am not a racist, however, just because I am white, automatically makes me one. As I was saying, UFC 121, Cain Velasquez vs. Brock Lesnar. Cain is from Mexico and has a big tattoo across his chest that says "Brown Pride." Anything wrong with that ? Well I didn't think so at first, but then as I looked at Brocks big tattoos, it got me thinking...."Danger Will Robinson, Danger ! " If Brock had the same tattoo but it said "White Pride," How would that be perceived ? Yep you guessed it, everyone would say he was a skin head racist bastard. If I had the same tattoo, everyone would say the same. Why is it OK though for a Mexican to have Brown Pride, or an African to have Black Pride ? But put White Pride on a Caucasian and all hell breaks loose.

For those of you who haven't seen the movie Clerks II, I highly recommend it for this particular reason. One character named Randall, decides that "porch monkey" isn't a derogatory racial slur and he is going to "take it back." It is actually quite hilarious.  Now, I am not going to go get a white pride tattoo done. Nor do I believe that whites are a superior race...Shit just take one look at my brother and you can easily realize that ! I am all for diversity, for cryin' in the sink, I am married to someone of which English is a second language !

Well all of this got me thinking more and more about Korean pride, their xenophobia and their racism. I even went so far as to dig up actual facts on this one ! Koreans truly pride themselves on being a "true-blood race." No idea why they love Harry Potter, he's white and a half-blood !  Ha ha. South Korea is 99% pure blood. In many news articles though, there is an alarming rate of mix-blood marriages happening. Mostly this is the rural farmers and fisherman who purchase brides from China,Vietnam, Cambodia etc. The resulting mixed race children has become concerning here. Of these children, 35% drop out of elementary school ! Yes elementary school ! In large part do to the racism, and bulling by other children, with the teachers not doing a thing.

Then a funny thing happened a few years back. Wide Receiver Hines Ward of the Pittsburgh Steelers, won the Superbowl MVP. Turns out that Hines is half Black and half Korean. When he was just a child, his mother was ostracized by everyone she knew for having a black child. Eventually she was forced to move to the US to try to give Hines a decent life. Well after he won the MVP, Koreans suddenly loved him and he became a national hero. While some welcome the diversity....There are many more that do not. Some legislation was passed and" mixed-blood people" was changed to "people of international marriages"  North Korea said, "South Korea is denying its national race and its 5,000-year history by professing to be a multiracial nation. Such moves will Americanize Korea, ruin its past history and weaken the power to combat dominative U.S. forces."

Gimme a frigging break man !

OK, Next on the list. In a country where approximately 95% of all Koreans were some type of corrective lenses. It is now popular to wear glass frames without the actual glasses ! They wear contacts, but "fashion eyeglass frames" to look cool....I'm gonna bitch slap those right off your face.

Mosquitoes, I remember back home, I mosquito bite isn't that bad, a little itchy for a few days and done. Korean mosquitoes.....When you get bit by them, they leave a hard knot as well as the itch ! I mean it feel like a BB is under your skin kinda hard ! And it itches forever !. Thailand Mosquitoes..no knot, but a bazillion of them there, and you are much more likely to catch Malaria, or Dengue fever there.

Another thing that is common in all of Asia, PICKING YOUR NOSE !  Now when  was the last time you were talking face to face with an adult and they all of sudden jam a finger up their nose and start rooting for gold ? Well I see this almost everyday. Talking to a pretty girl, blah blah blah and then there it is ! finger up the nose ! Then they take it out and inspect it like it might be some alien worm probe from Star Trek ! Yes, even the wife used to do this, and I emphasize used to ! We broke that habit lol.
Coughing and sneezing without covering your mouth is common also. And there are no "bless you's" here. Bless you is not an American thing either, many,many countries say something when you sneeze. Not over here.

Hurry up and wait...I used to think that this was strictly from my military life ! It is an Asian lifestyle. While I see plenty of it her in Korea, Hong Kong was the worst ! My god, just changing subways, people get off one train, push and shove and literally run of to the next platform where the train won't be arriving for another 5 minutes still. Train arrives and it's like the Roman Colosseum. Mortal combat as people try to get off the train and onto the train at the same time !

So to sum up: I am not racist. I hate mosquitoes. Don't pick your nose during a conversation and slow down and enjoy life.

Thailand.....Life in the village

I find it funny that my wife often ask about the village that I came from. I don't think we've had "villages" in the US for over 100 years. Even though Grants Pass Oregon only had around 13-14k people when I was growing up there, it was still a city or town.



Typical dirt road village



Now when I am at home in Chumphae Thailand ( the NE) we truly live in a village. There are about 700 people who live there and everyone knows everyone and everyone knows everyone else's business. Thai's aren't much in the way of keeping secrets. I know where each foreigner lives or has lived, how they met their partner, why they no longer live there etc. I even know that lady is the sister of the woman who was best friends of the woman who married that German guy. Huh ? Gossip is next to gold in Thailand. 

 Acceptance
Keep in mind that no two villages are alike. They all have their own sub cultures and rituals.
 I was once a visitor now I am a resident and treated as a village person. No more red carpet and no more allowances for western behavior, however I do get a few special perks from time to time.
Does that  mean I am accepted as a Thai ? Not even close ! Even if you have lived here 20 years, have Thai children, speak Thai and speak Lao you will always be a farang outsider.Oh yeah, They speak a mixed dialect of Thai and Lao here. So the majority of the language I have learned is not "true" Thai. You might consider Castillian Spanish and Mexican Spanish, or English from the US, England and Australia....Basics are the same, and you understand one another.There are just a few words here and there that throw you.


Isaan village food and drink
If it moves or grows they eat it. They eat very healthy food and always little and often. The children are beginning to lean towards fatty food and all have a sweet tooth. Western influence again.
All manner of meat (cow, buffalo, pig, duck, chicken, rat, snake, frog, dog, turtle, ants, lizards,  DON’T anyone tell me they do not eat dogs in Thailand. They do
All manner of vegetables and greens growing in the wild and leaves from numerous trees plus fruits

All manner of spices and herbs
Sticky rice and sticky rice and sticky rice
Their diet is superb and would almost fit into many alternative medicine theories. Meat in small portions, vegetables in abundance and of course copious amounts of sticky rice. Always followed by fruit.
Most of their food is boiled or steamed with occasional barbecuing. Sometime though the meat is raw and that takes some stomaching. I have been given raw heart, liver and intestines and it is supposed to be an aphrodisiac, after taking some "miniture" bites, unfortunately it did just the opposite to my sex drive ! Most women will not eat beef and turtle. In fact for a woman to watch a turtle cook will make her barren. Many old wives tales but I will cover that later.
Drink. Well as a rule most of the village drink water, Leo and soft drinks BUT many take the killer. The two most common causes of death here are motorbikes (no helmets of course) and drinking the killer. What’s the Killer?. In mild form it is bottled Isaan whiskey. In village brewing form it is a pot of fermenting rice which turns it into pure alcohol. This is washed down with Red Bull and honey.

Finally for this segment...lol

Village events and celebrations


To celebrate the New Year  and wishes for
 plenty of rain in the upcoming season

Celebrations are very important to the Thai villager. Time to let their hair down, get drunk and party. SongKran (Google it ) here lasts 7 days and nights. Local events are too numerous to mention. All involve a parade around the village with monks at the head and copious amounts of booze consumed. At one event I was in the crowd taking pics and the parade stopped. I was ushered over to the monk’s pickup and told to mount and sit with the monks, headman and police. Duly installed I ended up surrounded by junior monks who spoke English and wanted to learn. They, including the top monk smoked my cigarettes and I ended up throwing sweets to the kids. Monks in the villages are different to those in towns and cities At SongKran, I was told it was permissible for me to throw water on a monk. "Are you sure?" Yes! The head monk approached so I proceeded to douse a whole bucket of water over his head. The crowd were in hysterics the wife was fuming. I was the told it should have been a trickle down the left shoulder. Oops, my bad there ! So the next thing is an immediate high wai to the monk and said I was sorry. He was smiling at me came over put his hands on my shoulders and whispered in my ear “don’t worry, you are still learning my farang brother. Here is my mobile number but don’t tell anybody I speak English”

Cracked me up...wife still doesn't believe me to this day that is what he said !  LOL

Korea : Work hard, Play hard

Well, first off, I rag on Korea a lot, but let me give them some props. Public Transportation. Planes, trains, taxi's and subways. Korea does have a very good transportation system that is also pretty cheap. Of course I still have a few gripes about the system....1st is the lack of English ( although that is changing.) Many places only have signs in Korean and no one speaks English , or will admit that they do. As I mention previously, the Tourist Information booth that only spoke Korean. The 2nd problem is that so many cities have names that sound so similar, that if you don't say it just right, there is no telling where you will wind up. Jincheon, Incheon,Jaecheon and so on. I may have related before about the taxi drivers also...but if you can't say it exactly, they don't know where to go, if you say "E-Mart" they don't understand...you have to say it in Konglish (Korean-English together) and say E-Mart-uh..then they understand. Another big issue is that most places don't have street names. You can't say, "take me to 33rd and Washington." To get somewhere, you have to tell them a popular landmark and then direct them from there. For example I will tell them " Sinpo-dong...Post office" and when they get there, I direct them for another 2 blocks to my condo.
The Internet is another big shout out for Korea. I think it is the most up to date and wired country in the world. Work nice for me !

Now onto the main topic. This country works very hard, and they like to play even harder !!!!! This is actually ingrained into them starting in preschool....They will take their class in preschool, and then after that many of them attend extra classes after school at a Hagwon ( private academy) There they will take music, science,English, math etc. As they get older they spend more time in school and still keep up the Hagwons. By high school, they start around 8:30am until around 5pm, at which time the get a 1 or 2 hour break for dinner. Then they come back and continue until around 10 or 11pm. Still not enough yet, they will then go to another Hagwon for another 1 or 2 hours. Then they go home around midnight or so....do any homework or studying, play a bit and get up and do it again the next morning.
They also attend school every other  Saturday. When I first started here, it was every Saturday !
They then go to college and pretty much stay on the same track. They are smart people, but they are also raising a nation of social retards. They don't know how to interact with others and aren't very outgoing.
By the time they reach the workforce, not much has changed. Working 6 days a week, 10 hours a day. Last night some of my co-teachers were here at the school until 11pm to prepare for an evaluation...I was friggin pissed cuz they made me stay 10 minutes late !

Now one of their favorite pastimes is to work a long day, then go to dinner with co-workers and eat an assload of food and get totally shit-faced. Then they go to a Noraebang (Karaoke room) drink more,puke a few times and go home around 2 or 3 am.....on a Monday or Tuesday !  LOL I have had teachers come to work still hammered from the night before. This is something some of them do 2-4 times a week !
Another nice custom is that if you are invited to do something, the person who did the inviting is expected to pay. Also in Korea you do not tip. I have actually tried to tip before and had them refuse it !
OK, more on the Korean nightlife to be continued...I actually have to go teach one class today ! The class that is being evaluated by the Board of Education, that I took about 10 minutes to throw together :)

OK, the exciting subject of Toilets !

Yeah, I know, Toilets ? Why do we want to read about toilets ? Well over here, toilets are quite different from western styles. While most newer building have incorporated the western style of toilet, the most common is still the "squatter." HUH ? Squatter ? WTF is that ? Easier than explaining is showing.

Just as it sounds, you squat, not sit on it. Now this poses a problem for westerners such as myself. To squat straight down, flat footed, with only the walls to give you some sense of balance.. Also, flushing with toilet paper is highly discouraged, so there is usually a wastebasket full of , yup, you know it, well used TP. Therefore many bathrooms aren't the "freshest" smelling places. Now just the difficulty of trying to use this when you are sober is hard enough. When you are toasted and spinning around, it is damn near impossible to do.

This picture finely demonstrates the art of squatting !

Note that it is a normal toilet, yet they make special platforms so you can still squat. Maybe it's more hygienic. Your ass isn't touching a seat someone Else's ass has touched ! Either way, I have become like the Shit-brick in American Pie. No matter the discomfort, it's gotta wait til I get home !

Now squatters are the most common toilets not only in Korea, but in most of Asia. Whether you are going to China, Japan, Thailand or so on, be prepared to use these.

Now in Thailand, they use the same kind of squatters, however, most do not have a flushing system. You pour in water and let gravity take care of the rest.

In this picture, you can hold onto the water faucet and the ashtray for balance. Yeah, appealing thought there huh ! In my house in Thailand, upstairs off the master bedroom, I have a normal bathroom with a normal toilet and a bathtub. Downstairs though the main bathroom is a squatter. This is what most Thais in the country are the most comfortable using.

Now, in Thailand, whether you are right handed or left handed doesn't matter. Whenever you eat, you always use your right hand to eat with. The left hand is considered "unclean." Usually you will find no TP in these bathrooms. After you have assumed your best Kung Fu master stance and taken care of business, you actually use your bare left hand to wipe with. God's honest truth. Then you clean it as best you can under the faucet. So if you see someone chowing down with their left hand, DON'T EAT THAT FOOD !  This is why I always carry TP with me anywhere I go. It's stashed in my truck and under the seat of my motorcycle too.

The upside for men in Korea, is that you are pretty much free to urinate where ever you please in public. I see it ALL the time. The cops even walk past and don't say anything. So whether it's legal or they're just apathetic I don't know.

One other thing about public bathrooms in Asia, they are VERY public. Many being uni-sex. One time standing at a urinal here in Korea, This little hottie comes in behind me, and goes into the stall next to me...At first I am thinking, "Cool, Korean, sexy and not too shy !" Then she cuts loose like she has been on a steady diet of kimchi and Mexican water and Montezuma is a very pissed man. So I forgot all about her and was trying to finish as fast as I possible. The sound was grossing me out big time......Then the small hit, Jesus, Joseph and Mary ! I ended up getting out with a minor wet spot on the front of my jeans, from missing out on the proper amount of shakes.

Also, you will often be standing there and the cleaning woman will come in and start cleaning away. Sometimes she will even start talking with you !  And you know you've been here too long when you start talking back to her. I have one last pic to share with you. My favorite.

Ahhhh, being a couple. Overrated and overdone here !

Being a couple obviously has it's ups and downs. If you go out for a nice dinner date, or something of that nature , you might be considerate and wear some clothes that help compliment your partner. You would like to match, not clash. Case in point, back in America, you show up to pick up your date, she is all made up and  wearing a lovely little number with those hot pumps you love so much. You are wearing a grease stained t-shirt and Levi's with holes in them. Oh yeah, and a pair of your best flip-flops.<----I know guys, "what's wrong with that ?" However, she might feel a tad upset and feel the two of you clash.

Well in Asia, I have plenty of "matching couples." But not in any other country like Korea. If you're lucky, you just see them wearing the same shirts. But for many, that is not enough, they go full on with shirt, pants, shoes and even purses. Yep Korean men like to carry around purses ( man-bags, man-purses,murses,man-sack...whatever you call it, it's still a purse.)

Notice how nice and loud they are also---------------------->

Unfortunately they missed out on the shoes. A minor faux pau in the fact that while they are both wearing chinos, they are not the same.

Getting around in Thailand

Actually I want to talk about 4 movies I watched this weekend. Since this blog is "The Asian Way" I guess I should start with something relevant though.

So, the most common form of transportation in Thailand is the motorcycle. Now this is not a true motorcycle as we know it, it is more of a cross-breed between a motorcycle and a moped. You can do up to about 60mph on these give or take depending on what size the engine is. 

Family of 5 , not one helmet !



The main difference being that while in the US, these could hold two people, in Thailand they are used to hold families of up to 5. They also use them to carry huge amounts of cargo.

   

Well at least the man has a helmet !

 Some of this may account for the high accident rate involving motorcycles in Thailand...I could be wrong though. Maybe it's the mass amounts of Lao Lao (homemade whiskey - moonshine !) While I see these all the time in Thailand , and yes I think it's funny, I can't imagine life without them. I know Karma is gonna be on my ass for that one !  Laila even lost her brother in a motorcycle accident. And I still can't help but laugh. Turns out he was driving his cycle up the winding mountain roads, but he was a bit distracted. He was carrying a very uncooperative, live pig in his arms at the time. He went wide around a corner as the pig squirmed and he swerved right into an oncoming truck. I know, I'm sick.



The bus to Krabi

Anyways, you can always take the usually slow, often smelly train to get to places also. For long hauls, I usually fly. It is very cheap to fly within Thailand. On occasion I will take a V.I.P bus for a change of pace. They have nice wide seats that recline and have a foot rest that comes up..Kinda like a lazy boy. 

Oh yeah, If you live in Bangkok, you also have the Sky train and the subway around the city.

OH SHIT ! I forgot tuk tuks ! Man, these are an exciting, white knuckle, breathe in the exhaust fumes ride !  These are normally meant for two passengers or one fat guy like me. The pic above has six Thais in it ! Anything to save a satang or two !

Ok and finally, I watched 4 movies this weekend : She's out of my League, Machete, Knight and Day and Jonah Hex.  Outta my League was mildly entertaining, same old tired plot, However, there were a couple of scenes that had me laughing my ass off. Because of those scenes, and the fact that Alice Eve is spakin' hot. B-, Then I watched Machete A+ . Made like the old 70's style action flicks. A GREAT role for Danny Trejo. The movie also has other notables such as Cheech Marin, Robert De Niro, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez, Steven Seagal, and Don Johnson. I loved it in the same way as Raising Arizona. A lot of dark humor, and some slap-stick in the way of a machete. So I pressed my luck and watched Jonah Hex next. It was terrible ! The one bright spot, Megan Fox of course ! This one got a D-, would have been an F if Fox wasn't in it. Oh, one other thing, I find it amazing how much Josh and James Brolin look alike....Actually I think both their acting careers are in the shitter too.   Finally, I watched Knight and Day, figured it couldn't be worse than Jonah Hex and this did have Cameron Diaz in it ! And some other guy, Tom something or another. Anyways, this movie made Jonah Hex look good. How many times can we take watching Mission Impossible ? Oh, wait, it wasn't Mission Impossible, it was just another movie where Cruise plays a super spy. Sorry Cameron, even you couldn't save this tired ass movie F-. Waste of free download space !

CYA ! 

테리

Terry's checklist for women

This should be plain and simple and the opinions expressed herein are expressly those of the blogger (ME !! ) and if you don't like 'em piss off !

#1 Is she American ? If so, scratch her from the list. Doesn't matter if she is Asian American, African-American or any other ______-American, fill in the blank. She has been Americanized, Therefore deemed unworthy.One caveat, if you're American, and we know each other, you are excluded....Shirley, Renee and so on, haha !

#2 Dude, Asian chicks are hot. I will explain the varying degree of hotness within the Asian race to follow:

• Korean babes. While they are very sexy (Koreans are the tallest of Asians on average) if you hang around a Korean noodle slurper for just a very short time, she will inevitably snort her nose, clear the throat, and spit out a gross old lung cookie for ya. Who knows, maybe some of you dig on that, personally, it makes me want to whack her in the back of the head and say "show some manners babe !" Koreans are a enigma to me. They wear very mini-mini skirts or "daisy-dukes"with 4-6" heels showing off their nice sexy long legs quite well. At the same time, they make sure not to show any cleavage. Not that there are a ton of Asians with massive cleavage to show off.
• Thai babes.Wow, just WOW ! Of course I am obliged to say that as I married one. But damn, I would say it anyways. Truth be told, my first year in Korea, my boss suggested I travel to Thailand for vacation. I decided OK, but was less than thrilled with the idea. My exposure to Thailand prior to the trip was mainly through the Discovery Channel and National Geographic. You know, they always show the old,dirty working farmers and so on. So when I actually arrived in Bangkok, I was very pleasantly surprised ! Bangkok is definitely not the country ! I was surrounded everywhere by these small little beautiful women ! Now , while a Thai woman will give you 100% and take care of you like a king, you do have certain responsibilities that come along with the job. #1 you are expected to provide for her and her family. Mother and father, brothers and sisters and any children. This is a recurring theme throughout SE Asia, they are a 3rd world country after all. But taking care of them is pretty cheap, so don't sweat it.
• Japanese chicks. While the nips are very hot and forward thinking. Many tend to shy away from foreigners. And the ones that don't are great. The main problem with Japanese women is the Japanese men. Both Korean and Japanese men have perfected the term (and excuse the hell out of me if you have virgin ears) the term "cock-blocking." Now they have kind of the same thing going as Americans where as a woman who has a lot of sex is a slut and and man is a stud. They think the same thing and in addition to that they have made an addition. A woman who has sex with a foreigner is tainted goods. It's cool for the men to date foreign women and marry them even, but the reverse is a no-no. So back to the cock-blocking, I have seen American men talking with Korean or Japanese women and have a man (Korean or Japanese) come walking over and just grab the girl by the arm and take her away. I have found out that much of this stems from stereotyping. Most all Asians believe most all Americans are rich. The apparently all believe all American men are hung like John Holmes and that they, themselves are hung like a Virginia Slim- minus the filter. Therefore, after being with any American, they could never be satisfied by an Asian again......Wow, I just said all that and I am still going to blog it for the world to see !  HAHA ! As if you didn't already know !
• Chinese won tons. Well, Chinese chicks are hot also. And the women are receptive to foreign diplomacy even if their government is not. The biggest obstacle here is the language barrier. Finding the nice girl with the smokin' hot bod and speaking English is the tri-fecta. You can lay some money down on it, but just don't blow your whole wad. Many are now learning English and are eager to practice it. But there just isn't enough English speakers in a country with over 1.3 billion people.

Okay..got the basics, now just a few more rules of the road. If any Asian chick is coming on to you pretty strong.....time for a crotch check..Make sure it isn't a dude you've been kissing on all night.

Quick related story...I know a guy, fell in love with a Thai, they had been dating for 6 months....She would stay the night and they would do almost everything but intercourse. She was saving herself for marriage . (yeah right !) He met her family, they were all happy for them and he decided to ask her to marry him. He went to the local county clerk to get some papers and also decided to do a quick check on his soon to be wife. He slipped the clerk some extra cash and she said she couldn't find any records of her. So he gave her birthday and address. The clerk told him that there was someone at that address and with that birthday, but it was a guy, not a girl. So the short of it, He found out his wife to be was a guy and broke it off.

Be wary of cleanliness. Many Thais like my wife will often shower 3-5 times a day ! No shit ! Korean women on the other hand will shower 3-5 times a week. Also Koreans will often wear the same clothes 3-4 days in row !

And one more item that  is off topic... I finally figured out why many people refer to Asians as gooks ! It's the Korean's fault ! during the Korean war, Koreans would approach American and say Migook. Migookan means America and Migook means American. So the GI's  would hear a Korean saying "Migook ?" but what they thought they actually heard was them say " Me Gook" and they would say ok, so you're a Gook. Well the term stuck and carried on through the Vietnam war and now because of the Korean name for American, ALL Asians are often called Gooks ! There's your history lesson ! Now next time you try to racially slur an Asian, please reserve Gook for Koreans only !

Thailand Etiquette

 Well, I am bored, so I thought I would give a quick lesson on the does and do nots of Thailand.  Now this is mainly for the country, not the Bangkok. Bangkok is a little more progressive in their ways, however there a certainly some of these customs that still apply none the less.

Naturally ( for me ) we'll start off with sexuality. Thais' are much more conservative than Westerners. While holding hands is acceptable in public, everything else is pretty much not accepted. Kissing, no way, hugging is frowned on...I hugged Chalisa, my step-daughter, goodbye last time I left and she was in shock ! You wai ( palms together in the middle of your chest) to someone hello or goodbye. So in general, any physical intimacies  are looked down on. So if you were planning a little sex in public, forget it !



Yes it's a dude !




Speaking about sex, there are quite a few transvestites in Thailand. They are known as Katooeys or ladyboys. Many of them are more beautiful than some of the women ! It is rude to call a ladyboy a "him" or "it", they should always be considered a female and addressed as such. This tolerance to ladyboys comes from their Buddist beliefs (95% of Thailand are practicing Buddhist.)



Aerosmith must have came to Thailand to get
the inspiration for "dude looks like a lady"



Ladyboys are believed to be reincarnations of people who were not so good in their previous life. So their punishment is to be a woman trapped in a mans body.

Back to the wai, you should never wai to anyone younger than yourself, service people, like waitresses, clerks ,cashiers etc. You should only be giving wais to your elders, monks and royalty. Oh yeah, and the immigration guys ! Also as far as elders,monks or royalty go, you should NEVER stand over them. If you go to a temple and a monk is seated, when you approach him you should be bent over or lower than him. If you stand taller than these people it is showing superiority.

Another easy one to remember is not to touch a Thais' head. The head is the the most holy part of the body and contains the "Kwan" it's a Buddhist thing. In contrast, the feet are the lowest and dirtiest part of the body. Never point your feet at a Thai. It is very rude. If you were to point your foot at someones head, that would be the biggest insult there is ! You will see most Thais' sit with their feet under them. This way their feet are pointing behind them and not towards the person they are talking with. You also must take off your shoes when entering a temple or someones house.

Man reading back though this, it's pretty boring and dry. I've got a bunch more I could go on about...Like NEVER hang underwear  or bras up high and always eat with your right hand, but never lick your fingers. Blah blah blah.

I will just wait and see if you like this from the comments. If you don't, then it's a finished blog. If you want more of it, just let me know.

Sawadee Krup !

Well let's talk about parking here



No not a drunk driver, just an open space to park !



Now aside from the majority of most Asians being crazy drivers, Koreans have a few extra special qualities in connection with theirs cars. Keep in mind that the entire state of Oregon has about 4 million people and if every single man, woman and child had a car that would be 4 million cars..Duh ! Well Korea is less than half the size of Oregon yet has a population of around 50 million people ! As for cars, there are well over an estimated 20 million ! This creates a bit of havoc not to mention a lack of parking spaces. So Koreans view a sidewalk as an extra parking space. These pics are just a few of the examples on a good day.



There is ACTUALLY room for pedestrians to walk here !



Often times the sidewalk is much narrower and the the car takes up the entire sidewalk, so you are forced to walk in the street. I always wind up with some driver behind me honking because I am street walking ( yup I said it, I'm a streetwalker ! ) I just put my hand up behind my back and give them the finger. It's quite the universal sign ! They stop honking and I move in between 2 parked cars and they drive by.



Street corners and intersections are favorites !


Now one thing of note, that I have yet to see in any Asian country other than Korea, is that fact that in their windshields they put their cellphone numbers. The reason is so they can be called if they need to move their car. So, in America, would you be willing to post your personal cell phone # in your vehicle windshield ?? I think not !
Here and in Thailand, when you double park, you always lock your car, but you leave it in neutral with the E brake off. This way someone can push your car out of the way so they can get their car out. More so in Thailand than here.

Well I think I will try my best to make my next entry more of a rave than a rant ! Gonna be tough though. Maybe I will go find a pair of rose tinted glasses to wear for the day.

The exciting weekend

Well I was determined to get out of the apartment this weekend and do something. I decided to make my way towards Seoul to a place in Yoengdeundpo called Times Square. Believe me, it is nothing at all like the Big Apple ! It took me 1 hour on the subway to get there. And once I arrived, I immediately proceeded to get lost. Of course  being 100% man, I never truly get lost, I merely take the scenic route ! Well after an hour on the "scenic route," I decided I should ask someone. " AHA ! There is a tourist information booth !"  I stroll up to the counter and ask one of the ladies there " Do you know where Times Square is " and what a shocker, She replies" Me no speeky Englishee." I look at the other 3 ladies standing there and ask if ANYONE speak a little English. Of course the answer is no. I guess for a few minutes I was out of my head and forgot I was in Korea. I made the fatal assumption that a tourist information booth would speak some English. Although the sign was written in English, it is meant for Korean tourist....Pffft
I eventually found the place on my own. By now I was so tired, I just wanted to eat and go home. I at some really good Mexican food at On The Border. Then I went to Quiznos and got 2 foot long sandwiches to go (lunch and dinner for the next day ! ) And then I stopped in at Krispy Kreme for some definitely unneeded calories. Then I lugged my food with me back to the subway, which was no jam packed. I truly know how sardines feel. I had to stand there for another hour back and then a 20 minute walk back to the apartment. All told, I left at 2pm and got back at 7:30pm. 5 1/2 hours for lunch.
I think I need to buy a small notepad and pen and always take my camera with me when I go out. There are a lot of other things that happened, but I don't remember now.
I am trying this out in a bigger font, let me know if bigger is better !