Sunday Health Progress 3

This was not a healthy week for me, ladies and gents. On Tuesday (my birthday no less), the yellow dust (황사) arrived and settled in for the next three days. William at dollop of solipsism has a nice post from last year, explaining what yellow dust is. In short, it is an evil, sulfurous devil-cloud from the deserts of China and Mongolia that blows across East Asia with the heavy winds. A while back, it wasn't such a big deal and folks in Korea and Japan hardly noticed it. But thanks to China's raping of the environment rapid development over the last 20 years, many of the natural barriers that used to contain the sands on the mainland are gone, and have been replaced with concrete and steel towers of doom that spew forth pollutants at an alarming rate and attach themselves to the particles that now pelt Korea, Japan, and even sometimes affect the weather across the Pacific.

I tried to limit my exposure, even skipping taekwondo, knowing that my immune system had only recently recovered. Alas, the freezing rain on Thursday did me in, and I came down with a nasty sore throat, completely lost my voice (so I missed work Friday), and have been seriously congested for the last two days. I even had to cancel the birthday party Min Gi and I had planned to host today... darn.

As such, my best intentions health-wise were shot to heck, and I've been subsisting on sweetened crackers (고소미), ramyeon, and gallons of water. I feel better today, now that my body has been able to rest a bit, but I'm not even going to bother with weighing in because my system is screwy (and my salt intake so unusually high), so it won't mean much.

This week, therefore I will get back to my goals I set last week, hopefully with greater success. I have been able to devote more focus and time to my writing this week by stopping watching television shows I just don't care about anymore (there are a few, like Lost, that inspire me creatively and so I just don't want to give them up--yet).

I have also been ignoring things I don't really care about and spending more time on the things I know I do. This feels amazingly freeing. I am very inspired. More than I have been in a few months. Enough so that I might actually be excited about moving back to the U.S. in some ways.

Here's hoping this week is better!

Good Reads from the Blogging World This Week #1

I've been reading a lot of good stuff on blogs, so I thought I'd share some of my favorites from this week with you!

First up, Jason of Kimchi Icecream posted about Cultural Taboos and Native English Teachers in South Korean Public Schools, which is a must-read for teachers new to Korea. He summarizes many of the things I've had to learn "the hard way," such as why work parties are important and how it is best not to be so confrontational, and includes some humorous vignettes of his own mistakes.

Next, Ask a Korean! scores big for directing my attention to two different stories of great interest to me: a humorous article about the history of famous Asian Men-Western Women couplings from another blog, Yellow Fever! The Definitive History of Asian Men Dating Outside Their Race, and a Wall Street Journal article about a swing tribute band that played at Japanese internment camps during World War 2, A Tribute Band Like No Other Swings to Remember Life Behind Barbed Wire.

Dating in Korea's Grace lays the smack down on white male expats who feel the need to aggressively object to Western women dating Korean men in A rant on you, Mr. White Guy. Rock on! Reminds me of my own trouble with that demographic back when I was dating.

In non-Korea-related blogs, Everett Bogue who writes a minimalist living blog, Far Beyond the Stars, wrote some great advice about making money from blogging, The Simple Guide to Making Money Online. While I don't really intend to make money off Going Places, I am interested in using my blog as a platform for launching my writing career in other ways and his suggestions are quite useful for that purpose as well.

Share in the online love!

The Wedding Ceremony

Yes, I realize this is more than two months after the fact. Sorry.

Our swing dance club, Asurajang (아수라장--it means "messy place" in Korean), was the site of our ceremony and buffet. The lighting is just awful, but our friend Juno managed a few decent photos:


Of course, the photo session at the nearby Buddhist Temple during the day by our friend Julian turned out much better.

We had a 25-minute, completely bilingual/bicultural ceremony. Our Aussie friend Leah and Korean friend Hayoung serving as bilingual MCs. The ceremony consisted of a dance performance by my sister to Leona Lewis's "Bleeding Love", a speech from each of our younger brothers that left us a bit weepy, a bowing ceremony to my parents and Min Gi's mother and cousin (the oldest male relative), reading our vows (written by me, translated by Ju-ick) to each other in Korean and English, and then a dance performance from Min Gi and I to "I Love You More Today Than Yesterday," choreographed by our friend Gong-Bi.

After the Korean buffet dinner (which was cheaper catered at the club than a less yummy meal would have been at a wedding hall), there was a swing dance party on one floor, and drinking/toasting relatives on the buffet floor. Min Gi and I only lasted until about 10 p.m., but good times were had by all.

We got to share our day with so many friends and family members that although it seemed over so quickly (compared to the amount of time we spent planning), it remains forever in our memories and hearts. I cannot thank our guests, family, and friends enough--who all supported us in various ways, from assisting with the decorations to taking pictures, gratis, to showing my family around Daegu and Seoul. I'm still all misty and emotional just thinking about it.

Reflections on Genocide

Excavated mass graves at the Choeung Ek site. Each of the 29 graves contained remains of more than 100 bodies; the largest had almost 400.
Located 17 km outside of the capitol city, the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek have been preserved as a memorial to the genocide perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge against the Cambodian people between 1975 and 1979. Similar execution sites have been found throughout Cambodia containing the remains of more than 2 million people brutally executed by the Khmer Rouge. Min Gi and I visited in the early morning, just as the school children were biking to the nearby school.


The "Magic Tree" where Khmer Rouge soldiers would hang a radio to blast propaganda to drown out the cries and screams of the prisoners. There was also a "Killing Tree" where soldiers supposedly smashed infants' skulls against to save money on bullets.
A Buddhist stupa was constructed at the site to honor the dead. The stupa contains many of the remains found in the grave sites, including clothes and bones of the victims, preserved as a religious monument. There is also a small museum on the grounds which includes a small documentary movie theater and some of the weapons used for execution.


Clouds reflected in the tiered stupa
After spending about three hours walking around the grounds reflecting on the events that occurred at the site (we were the first ones there and there were very few tourists until just before we departed), we went into to town to see the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum. The museum is housed in the former Khmer Rouge prison, S21, that served as a holding and torture center for people later executed at the Choeung Ek fields.


Classrooms converted into tiny brick holding cells.
The prison was a former secondary school. It was eerie to see how starkly the cheery, yellow-tiled, institutional floors contrasted with the preserved cells and torture devices and other exhibits. Of the estimated 17,000 prisoners, only 12 were known to have survived, four of whom are still alive today. One documentary at the museum had a former Khmer Rouge soldier and a former prisoner touring the site again, together, describing the torture techniques that were used.


An individual torture room for the most "dangerous" prisoners.
Overall, the morning was sobering and a little depressing. I learned a lot about Cambodia's dark and recent history, and I hope to learn more in the future. What's so unimaginable is that the United Nations allowed the Khmer Rouge oppressors to represent Cambodia's interests until 1993. Western countries' role in the atrocities in Cambodia (and other parts of Asia for that matter) make me ashamed of my country.

The Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

Genocide is impossible for me to understand.

It took a long time for me to accept that reality. When I was young, I thought (naively) that I could figure everything out if I just thought about it long enough. I wanted to believe that we could study these mistakes and learn from our collective historical mistakes. I believed in the power of humanity to improve itself. That "world peace" was possible--and even could be achieved within a lifetime.

I remember reading everything I could about the Holocaust and Stalin's regime to try to understand how people could participate in mass murder. I very quickly realized that the perpetrators of the worst violence were not all psychopaths. It's too easy to simply label the soldiers "evil"--they were often relatively normal, somewhat idealistic young men and women. Even the leaders maintained a distance from the worst of the atrocities, making it less immediate. And after awhile, one stops feeling like there is a big difference between 2,000,000 and 2,000,001 people killed.

I still don't know how to reconcile the existence of such evil with my understanding of people, who I believe generally act in ways they believe are good and right. No one is the villain of their own story. But then, how do these things still happen? I don't know. I really don't...

Phnom Penh: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Min Gi finds a missing piece of a temple outside the National Museum.
If Cambodia is a country of extremes, then Phnom Penh is an appropriate capitol. PP has some amazing riverside restaurants and awesome cultural sites (though they kind of pale in comparison to the Angkor sites), but it's also a very dirty city, full of in-your-face poverty. While dining, we were constantly approached by children selling things and beggars missing limbs. I had read about this before I came--often these children and disabled persons are serving an abusive boss who takes most of what tourists give them in exchange for (substandard) group housing. But bighearted Min Gi found it too difficult to resist giving something to the people. I do not begrudge him this, although I warned him we weren't really helping out that much and reinforcing the exploitation of these vulnerable populations.


The Royal Palace dominates the center of Phnom Penh's cityscape.
After our day of touring the sites in the city, we tried to visit the Apsara Arts Association, a nonprofit organization that trains street children in traditional Cambodian dance. However, when our tuktuk driver, Maak, took us out to the theater, they were closed until March! We were a bit disappointed, but then Maak suggested that we visit an orphanage instead. He took us to buy a 50 kg bag of rice for a donation, and we went to the National Action Culture Association (NACA) Orphanage to spend an hour or two with the children.

They were so eager to see us and perform some of the dances they were learning. The girls just loved touching my hair and skin and holding onto every available part of me. The boys fought each other to play rock, paper, scissors with Min Gi. Although it was a little strange visiting the orphanage as a "tourist" site, we felt much better after spending some time entertaining these very eager children. I did not feel comfortable taking pictures, since we were only spending one day there and not actually volunteering, but I won't ever forget those kids.

I encourage you all to consider donating or sponsoring a Cambodian orphan through the CamKids, the Cambodian Children's Charity. If you are going to be in Cambodia and would like to volunteer with NACA, you can e-mail the director: naca.orphanage@gmail.com. They are also looking for corporate sponsorship and to be picked up by a larger NGO if you are associated with such and looking for a good project.


An advertisement for the Korean pop group, SHINEE, performing in PP.
We had learned in Siem Reap that Korean tourism to Cambodia has increased dramatically in recent years. Apparently, the "Korean Wave" is real, but it only exists in SE Asia. Last year, in Vietnam, I heard a lot of WonderGirls. This year, Min Gi and I saw a bunch of young people dancing the "Sorry Sorry" dance in the main park in central PP. (Coincidentally, Brian has brought some Korea-Cambodia issues to light in his blog recently.)

I have elected to save the Killing Fields and Toul Sleng Genocide Museum for their own post. Until then, enjoy the rest of our pictures from our last few days in Cambodia:

Phnom Penh

Floating Village near Siem Reap

The Floating Village moves with the tides.
One afternoon, our tuktuk driver, Tee, offered to take us a few kilometers out of town to see the floating village on Tonle Sap, the largest lake in Southeast Asia. Originally founded by immigrants fleeing Vietnam during the war who were unable to afford land in Cambodia, the village is completely self-contained, with a school, church, basketball court, and alligator farm.


Yes, that's right. An alligator farm.
Unfortunately, pollution in the lake threatens the livelihood of these already impoverished fishermen, and tourism (and the begging of tourists) has become one of the few sources of income needed to sustain their way of life. Perhaps my awakened interest in simple living recently was partially inspired by what I saw in Southeast Asia--people living lives with so few of the amenities that we believe are "necessary" these days.


Children paddling home from school.
On the boatride to and from the village, T and the boat driver spoke with us about the economic situation in Cambodia. The government is viewed as very corrupt by the people. One example of their corruption is that they don't allow independent tour boat operators; they will only allow certain companies (who probably bribe the government officials in return for huge kickbacks) to operate the boats and while they collect a huge fee from the tourists, the boat operators make a pittance.

To see the rest of the pictures along with some I took from around the town of Siem Reap, click here:

Floating Village Tour and Around Siem Reap

It would not be until we got to Phnom Penh that we would understand how recent and deep the wound the Khmer Rouge cut through the heart of this beautiful, once-supreme Khmer kingdom of Cambodia truly was. I wonder how long until she can recover and when my country, the U.S.A., will recognize its own horrific contributions to the nightmares that people living in Southeast Asia still remember...

Visiting Pohang with the In-Laws

Look at my snazzy new facebook and tweet buttons. Yay! Anyhow, on with my story...

On Sunday, the weather was cold and windy, but quite beautiful. Min Gi and I joined his family and went out to Pohang, a small seaside industrial town.


We ate giant crabs (대게). Expensive (what you see here was 150,000 won for the five of us), but very delicious.
Then we drove to the easternmost point on the Korean peninsula, Homigot (호미곶), where a giant hand sticks out of the sea and another out of the plaza near the lighthouse.


I will defeat you, giant sea-hand!

High-five!
Then, Min Gi and I went hiking on Waryong, a small mountain park behind our apartment building. (I also forgot my camera, so all of these were taken on his phone camera... ha!)


Enjoying the view.

Pohang

Yesterday was my birthday!

My birthday present to myself was to purchase a domain server for my blog. Please update your blogrolls/bookmarks/subscriptions to reflect the new address: http://www.going-places-blog.com/

I also got:

1) A check long owed me from the State of Maryland for unclaimed property.
2) A pretty earring/necklace set from Min Gi.
3) A pedometer (I had asked for one) from Min Gi.
4) Two pairs of stockings from Ms. Lim.
5) Vietnamese coffee filter from William.
6) Information about a possible job lead that would be very, very exciting for me.
7) A bajillion facebook "Happy Birthday" wishes (thanks guys).
8) A twitter account.

Thanks everyone!

Last Day of Angkor Temples

On day three of the honeymoon, we rode the tuktuk a bit out from the main temple sites to see Banteay Srei (the women's temple--so called for its superior, finely detailed artwork) and one other temple. We also stopped by the Cambodia Landmine Museum, founded by a man called Akira who was once a boy soldier for the Khmer Rouge but now spends his time assisting the Cambodian government in de-mining Cambodia. It was our first taste of the more tragic recent history of a country once so glorious as to produce these beautiful sites:

Angkor Wat: Outlying Temples and Landmine Museum

The Landmine Museum also runs an orphanage. We met a retired American couple who have been volunteering with Akira for the last two years. The man does outreach, education about mines, and fundraising, while his wife teaches English at the orphans' school. Their work and Akira's story were very sobering, but very inspiring. We ended up donating a bit to the museum's various de-mining and orphan assistance programs.

My True Loves (Sunday Health #2)

I've been a little unfocused this week. Lately, I've become obsessed with simple living and minimalist blogs (I will be doing a review post of my favorites soon). I think it's because I'm nervous as heck about the cost of living in the Washington, DC area coupled with school district budget cuts which slash my chances of finding a good job when I return home. Anyhow, they've convinced me to take the plunge and make some steps towards minimalism, which actually ties in nicely to my new focus on health.

One of the first things any and all minimalism practitioners will tell you is that you have to focus on the things you truly love, your passions, and then cut out everything else that is unnecessary. It sounds simple, but I'm a dabbler. Actually if I could cheat and say "Engaging in lots of different things," I would, but I know that's too vague for this activity. It took me the better part of an hour to pare down my many hobbies/interests to my five true loves (and it required me to make a list of 6-10 strong likes that I will allow myself to do if all of the first five areas in my life are completely fulfilled at that moment--or as part of fulfilling one of the five true passions). Here are my five:

1) Spending quality time with my loved ones (Min Gi, my family, certain friends who are practically family).
2) Maximizing my health (includes cooking, exercise, and proper rest).
3) Teaching (I love it, and it's my career that will support our family in the years to come).
4) Writing (I can't not write. I've tried--it makes me anxious. But more than that, I really want to write books one day and if I don't make this the priority it really should be in my life right now, I'll never do that).
5) Reading high-quality material (It's my go-to entertainment. I include here both books and online reading--though I am trimming the latter category significantly because some of what I read online is not really fulfilling).

That's it. Those are really my five true loves. My #6-10 cheating back-up "lusts" are:

6) Travel
7) Theater
8) Volunteering
9) Dance
10) Language study (especially Korean)

Here's the thing... I knew these before (everyone with a touch of self-awareness knows their passions without having to think too much about it), but it surprised me when I realized how much I really love exercising and cooking healthy meals. I thought it was just something I did because I was supposed to, but no... I really am happiest when I am being physically active and eating delicious vegetables. Currently, taekwondo is my favorite way to be active, but I also like other movement (most notably hiking, swimming, and dancing). This is kind of shocking for someone who never did any sports in middle or high school.

What's more... I realized that I absolutely do not prioritize my life around the things that make me happiest and most fulfilled. I mean, sure, I think about these things nonstop, but when it comes down to the daily grind of choices I make all the time, I often choose a mindless or pointless activity, such as watching TV, getting caught up in the politics/ridiculousness of a situation over which I have no control, or reading crappy things on the internet that piss me off rather than really interest me, instead of one of my favorite things. So both of my health goals/habits to change this week are rooted in pursuing simplicity and embracing minimalism. They are: 1) to spend as much time as possible pursuing the five passions and start cutting out everything else and 2) to clean, organize and trim my possessions down to less STUFF getting in the way. (And continuing with my previous goals, all of which are going very well, and have resulted in another 0.5kg/1lb loss as well as a peaceful, happy state of mind).

I think pursuing #1 is about little things--the choices we make every moment. For example, walking to the subway instead of taking the bus lets me get more exercise and read (reading on the bus is impossible, on the subway--it's easy); choosing to go to swing dance only when Min Gi or other good friends do because that means I'm spending time with him and exercising more; writing in my blog instead of watching a downloaded TV show.

Today I managed to do this very well. I spent the day with Min Gi's family in Pohang. When we got home, I was tired, but rather than get on my computer and watch Season 3 of Ugly Betty or read a blog I hate (yes, I do this), I suggested to my husband that we go for a hike on the mountain behind our house. We were both thrilled! And I was feeling tired before the hike and wanted to go out for dinner and blow the progress I'd been making on being healthy, but the mountain air re energized me (as did the good conversation,) and we decided instead to have an omurice cooking "contest" for dinner (each of us prepare an omurice, a Korean dish that wraps vegetable fried rice in an omelet, in our own styles and then enjoy the results together--teasing each other about who did a better job). It was wonderful (both the food and the company). And we may have developed a new Sunday ritual for us. Bonus!