The Internet Ramblings of the QiRanger

One of the more interesting things I’ve come across here in Korea is the use of English by emerging speakers. The one that often makes me chortle is the use of the word funny.

Often in conversations, I’ll hear something along the lines of, “That movie was very funny,” or, “That book is very funny.” While this may be appropriate if one was speaking about a comedy, but this is often used to describe an action movie or drama. What I’ve surmised is that the use funny to mean good stems from how English is taught in Korean Public Schools.

More often than not, an English word is only given with its Korean definition. Only in advanced studies are English Words paired with English definitions. So since people tend to associate good things with things that are also funny, the relationship sticks. Therefore, students only learning English in their youth may develop an improper use of the word. You’ll also hear people describe something as funny-good as a result. It’s something that I’m trying to correct by insisting in my classes that only English-English dictionaries be used and all vocabulary lists I provide will only definitions in English.

It’s finally done… the Inwangsan video!

The past two days have been very different. Friday saw most of the usual, withe me going to the gym and continuing to work out as I normally do in each day (I’m also contemplating on running in the Nike 10k this September). Then off to school for the last day of my work week. As with most days at work, it passes slowly until the last few minutes of class. during that 9.50-10pm section of class, I decided to reward my class by showing them one of my travel videos from the US.

The experience was something unique for them, since they had spent so much time reading about the US, but never really seeing it. I think the fact that I was appearing in large HD was also a factor. But none-the-less, it proved to be a great way to end the class, since they had several questions about Wupatki National Monument.

Following school, I went home to drop off the computer and head out to the Rose Cafe to see Kim See In perform. Now you may remember a little story about me sitting out in the quad using the Internet one morning with a man came up to me and gave me a ton of free food. Well, I finally made it to see him play. It wasn’t quite what I was expecting, but I still had a lot of fun. You see, he plays in a Hostess Club. This is a bar that employs young women to flirt and spend time with male patrons in an effort to get them to drink a lot. As a result, these young ladies get a percentage of the sales. Sometimes the evenings lead to sex and since there’s a Love Motel above the bar, easy enough to arrange.  What Kim See In does at the bar is run the Karaoke Machine and play the piano. While I was there, I had the opportunity to sing a ton of songs and meet some really interesting characters. They welcomed me into their groups and allowed me to sample their food and drink… for free.

It was a late night and resulted me in getting a slow start today. As a result, I didn’t have a lot of time to talk with Jo via Skype before she headed home and I headed out to explore. Even though our time was short, it was a much needed shot in the arm, as I relish each time I get to see and speak to her.

The Main Gate

Then, after a good 90 minutes of traveling, I found myself at Inwangsan. It’s a small mountain located near the northern edge of Seoul (in close proximity to Gyeongbok and Changdok palaces. On this mountain are a collection of Buddhist and Shamanistic temples that have coexisted for hundreds of years.

The largest of the Buddhist temples is Bongwonsa. While it was closed during my visit, I was fortunate to see several ritual rites being performed in a smaller temple nearby. The other main attraction is Guksadang. This small Shamanistic Temple was originally built on Namsan, but when the Japanese destroyed it in 1925, it was rebuilt here. I felt very honored to go inside and see the interior.

Interior of Guksadang

I was really moved by the way that the people here paid respect to their elders and their faith. It really made me with more would do so throughout the world. For more sights of the trek, check out the album.

I enjoy getting older. The amount of wisdom I’ve gained over the years has helped in more ways than I could ever relay through text or video. But one thing I don’t relish about getting older is the passing of icons from my youth. This week three prominent figures from my youth passed away.

The first was Ed McMahon. I’ve never been one to stay up until the wee hours of the night. In fact, I usually try to hit the sack before 10.30pm. so I never really watched The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. From time to time, I would catch the opening and would also see the skits on Carson Comedy Classics. In later years, I also saw him with Dick Clark hawking various products. When I last saw McMahon in an interview with his neck brace, I really felt for him, since I’ve experienced severe neck pain before and could relate. I hope his family is doing well and coming together in this time of loss.

Then the first thing that came actress my desk this morning was the death Farrah Fawcett. I look back to my youth and remember what a sex symbol she was. How the masses in America were mesmerized by her beauty. In fact, I think my favorite role of hers has to be the one she portrayed in 1981’s Cannonball Run (Pamela Glover). It was just perfect for her. In recent years, she changed her image and took on more dramatic and powerful roles that really challenged her. Fawcett’s battle with cancer showed her true inner beauty and strength. While we all knew this was coming, it still weighs heavy on many hearts and my condolences go out to her friends and family.

Finally we arrive at the big entertainment news story of the day: Michael Jackson. I’ve never been a fan of him or his music, but acknowledge that he was a very talented and influential member of the music community. It really saddens me that his life became fodder over the years. Regardless of how things played out, 50 is too young to die. Probably the greatest tragety in his life now, is that his young chrildren will only hear about their father through the skewed eyes of the media. I wish the Jackson family comfort in their time of grief.

Central Park

It’s no secret that one of my passions is to grab my camera and head outdoors and show people around. There is so much to see and do in the world, that I feel by showing you where I live does a little to make the world a smaller and cozier place. I hope it also brings us together as a whole.

It’s also true that over time YouTube has become a great medium for people to record videos and share a little about where they live and think. When YouTube first came on the scene, we were relegated to a short video of 10 minutes and not more than 100mb. Now we can upload videos in full HD and up to 20gb in size.

But not everyone has a fancy camera or feels they have the skill to make a fancy video. This often leads to people not fully participating in the experience.

I aim to change that.

You see, what I enjoy most about making videos is sharing a little about where I live. I want to see where you live, because we all have memories about where we live: our houses, playgrounds, schools, trees where we first kissed, etc. and I want to see them! But i don’t want to see them in some special video, I want to see them in a little slideshow. Furthermore, I want to see them as a slide show made up of pictures from your cell phone.

So go out and make a slide show showcasing where you live. Just make sure it doesn’t go longer than 2 minutes. Upload it to YouTube and post it as a video response to this video. The deadline for initial entries is July 5th at 9pm Eastern US time. I’ll then review the submissions and then choose what I think are the top five and showcase them on my channel. Then we’ll have the finals, with votes open to the public. I make the final decision on which video I think is the best and award a special prize.

A prize you say?

Yes a prize!

The winner be awarded a bag-o-swag from Korea. That’s right. I’m going to go out and get a box and fill it up with some very unique Korean items and ship it out to you! I’ve already started collecting the items and think the stuff is pretty cool! I might have to order some of the things for myself!

So let’s see those videos!

In May, I had the opportunity to stop by and visit with Jolene Sugarbaker, The Trailer Park Queen! We shot a cooking video and I loved it!!!!

The audio is a bit miffed in the last minute (due to a processing error), but it still gives you an idea about a park where I live.

The War Memorial of Korea

Originally this weekend I had planned on hiking Inwangsan, but a steady downpour on Saturday lead me to change my plans (because I hate being muddy!). I’m glad my plans did change, as I had the opportunity to visit the War Memorial of Korea. It’s an amazing exhibit hall, that’s dedicated to providing an educational and emotional experience to visitors.

The Lonely Planet guide book recommends spending at least 3 hours there… something I think is a bit light. You see, there is so much to see and learn there, that one can easily spend a full day taking in the over 13,000 items on display.

The Memorial opened in 1994 and has a steady flow of visitors. When you first arrive (I recommend by subway, since parking is quite limited), you are greeted by an amazing display of military hardware ranging from the small (rocket launchers) to the large (a B-52).

Military Hardware

Outside the main hall are also six distinct areas that pay tribute to armed conflict that are worth seeing. The Korean War Monument, The Two Brothers, The Clock of Hope, and the Monument to those killed in action being the most moving in my opinion. Walking the grounds (which is free) can easily take a few hours to accomplish. Then you can enter the massive three-story museum structure.

Inside you’ll seen the history of war in Korea dating back to the its settlement days. I really wish I had more time to view these items, but time was running short on my day. It’s something I’ll have to go back and see again.

For the most part, the museum area focuses on the Korean War. There are several movies available to watch (Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese languages available), as well as a guided audio tour. When I return, I’ll have to spend more time watching the films, as they are well made, but I simply didn’t have the time to wait my turn for the English version of the movies.

You can see more photos from my visit here as well as my video on YouTube.

Steve and Michael

One of the more interesting things about the concept of “social media and networking” is the notion that you can meet someone on-line, converse with them, and develop a real friendship without ever meeting that person face-to-face. While I have never taken advantage of many of the aspects of MySpace or FaceBook, I have been been quite involved with the YouTube community for a number of years.

My taste in videos ranges quite broadly, but I have “met” some really interesting people through that medium. When I attended the San Francisco YouTube Gathering in 2008 and finally met OhCurt, NutCheese, Reynaldo, Zipster, Sign345, Pipistrello, etc. it wasn’t like I was meeting them for the first time, but rather catching up with old friends. This was because we had conversed so many times over the previous months and we were just continuing those conversations. The odd thing was that we were now doing that face-to-face.

When I first arrived in Korea, I quickly started looking for other YouTubers here. It wasn’t long before I found Michael Arnold. He’s an artist (actor/producer, etc.) that had been living in Korea for a number of years and would take us around on his day shooting what ever interested him. It was great to see Korea through the eyes of another foreigner. Over the past year, we’ve had the opportunity to converse through YouTube, but never go the chance to meet in person.

That issue was corrected last night, as I was finally able to attend Michael’s “going away” party. While he is slated to depart Korea in a couple of weeks, I know he’ll return. But when we first met, each of us had the same feeling. Because we’ve shared our experiences in Korea online and have had the opportunity to chat, there was a sense of familiarity and it was like we had already met.

After meeting Michael, I truly appreciated the time he took to make his videos even more. Throughout the evening, he took pictures and video and I can’t wait to see the result of that endeavor.