Returning to Korea nearly a year after
leaving brought with it a real sense of coming home. Walking around my old
dong (the Korean equivalent to a small suburb or district) I've been
enjoying all those things I've been so nostalgic for since leaving. The scent
of dokpokki (rice cake in hot sauce) wafting through the air, K-pop
music blasting from every shop-front, building facades with every inch covered
in neon advertisments and signage... ahh, it's so good to be back.
I'm
writing this in a PC방 (PC bang - Internet Cafe) on the 5th
floor (of a 4 storey building?), sitting next to two people wearing idential
clothes who are engaging in acts of war...
It's actually a fairly normal situation to be in in Korea, but to an outsider it
might not make all that much sense. I'll elaborate through sharing just a few of the more
day-to-day things about Korea that wouldn't necessarily make it into the guide
books.
The gaming fixation: As I write this I'm
surrounded by dozens of Korean teenagers hurling commentary, hurried
instructions and light-hearted abuse around the room. It must be Starcraft
O'clock... Oh wait, I'm in Korea - It's always Starcraft O'clock.
Starcraft (along with a myriad of other multi-player, real-time games), is a Korean
obsession supported by 24-hour high-speed internet cafes (in which to play the
game), innumerable online chat rooms (to talk about the game) and a handful of
TV channels dedicated exclusively to gaming (to watch and get tips on the game).
There's even a professional competition circuit (Starleague) complete with
highly-paid, ultra-famous gamers and official sponsors such as SK Telecom, Hite
(a major Korean beer company) and, wait for it, the Korean Air Force. In
general, most players seem to have a reasonably harmless 'addiction' to these
types of games, however, as with any addiction, things can get out of control -
in 2005 a Korean man died from an excessive 50 hour gaming binge, during which
he barely slept, ate, drank or went to the toilet.
The
superstitions: The different Korean superstitions I've heard of during
my time here are mind boggling - in number and often in content. Many are rooted in tradition and others are just plain funny. Here are just a few of my favourites;
-
The number 4 sounds like the word for death and as a consequence (much like the
Western aversion to the 13th floor) many buildings do not have a 4th floor
(hence my 5th floor PC방 in a 4 storey building).
- Don't wash your hair on a
big exam day or your memory will be washed away.
- Don't give a boyfriend
or girlfriend shoes for a present or they will run away from you.
- Don't cut
your nails at night or ghosts will come and take your spirit away.
- Don't
write in red pen (red was traditionally used to convey insulting messages) and
never write names with red ink (red is symbolic of death).
- Sleeping with an
electric fan on can be fatal. It's called Fan Death. There are a number of bizarre
explanations for this one. Far too many to mention here.
The
love fixation: Korea is love crazy. If the advertising motto in the
west is 'Sex Sells', then surely Korea's motto would be 'Love Sells'.
Everything from cell phones, clothing, chocolate bars, cars and skincare
products are advertised under the banner of love and romance. There are 4
different versions of Valentines day here; Valentines day (Feb 14) - where girls
give boys chocolates, White day (March 14, also celebrated in Japan and Taiwan)
- where the boys give to the girls, Black day (April 14)- where the singles
get together and eat noodles with black-bean sauce and celebrate (or commiserate)
their singledom and, Pepero day (Nov 11th) - where couples exchange Pepero
(chocolate covered pretzel sticks) on the 11/11 as the written date resembles 4
Pepero sticks.
It is also popular for couples in Korea (and sometimes, entire families) to wear matching
clothes (usually referred to as 'couple tees', 'couple sets' or my personal
favourite, 'matchy-matchy'). Anything from T-shirts, hoodies, rings, phone
accessories and shoes to entire matching outfits. In a country where public
displays of affection are seriously frowned upon (hand holding is ok, kissing is
not), the couple set is seen as a sign of commitment between boyfriend and
girlfriend- and is quite possibly one of my favourite things in Korea...
or maybe even just one of my favourite things in general. For pictures, see my 'Korean Couple Sets' gallery.
