samsung galaxy s2

I visited a place recently that is known for what is called "Live Cafes". I can't think of a single word or phrase to describe this in English. The one I visited was like a large restaurant with all the tables arranged to have a good view of the stage, where singers performed. My impression is that these places are where the older singers perform. I wanted to say "past their prime", but I don't think that would be fair. The singers I saw, and others that I hear about who play at these locales, are still excellent singers. This place is called Mi-Sa-Ri, and I think there were at least a dozen or more of these Live Cafes along the main street. Who knows how many more smaller ones there might me. The first act was a group whose name translates to "Treble Clef". The main singer was quite the performer. His manner and moves were so funny. If I had seen him on a silent film, I would have thought "this guy is only an actor, surely he can't sing", but in fact, he has an amazing voice. I really enjoyed that group, and while they performed some slow ballad songs very well, they excelled at the up-tempo songs.



The "main" act of the evening was 민혜경, or Min Hae Kyung. At first, she came onto the stage and sang two slow ballad songs. Her expression was a little odd, to me it looked like she was very tired. But, far from it. Suddenly the remaining songs showed that she was very full of energy, and was surprisingly fit and active for a singer who is probably a little older than the Stumbler. Her voice was very good, and I really enjoyed her performance. I think after seeing her for the whole show, I conclude that she naturally has a pretty serious expression on her face, and that is why I thought she was tired at the beginning of the show. A great singer with a lot of spunk still in her.

I suffered through another 10 days in Hawaii. I say suffer because this time was particularly hard on my sleep schedule. Sometimes my working schedule in Hawaii may be terrible for the locals, but works great for me having come from Korea. Well, this time that was not the case. I think this was the worst possible schedule as far as my jet lag went. I had envisioned lots of free time working on my Korean language studies and doing some odd work-related projects, but instead I spent most of my free time sleeping or feeling very groggy.

Here are the obligatory palm tree and food photos. The side dish with the Salmon steak is something I learned here in Korea, 야채볶음, literally "fried vegetables", but I would describe it roughly as stir-fried vegetables.






Here I am arriving at Incheon Internation Airport in Seoul

I took a short excursion to the Paju English Language Village on the weekend (can't remember if it was Saturday or Sunday). I heard this place is a pretend city where only English is spoken.

Indeed this is a re-construction of an American (or I should say Western) town. At first it seems to be kind of like a small amusement park, but quickly that notion is dispelled. Actually it is a working English language teaching venue. From what I could observe in the short 1-1/2 hours I was there, they have both day tours of student groups and also longer-term groups (I saw some student dormitories). They must offer English language “camps”. It all seems targeted to the elementary or middle-school students, and as a result it was not to interesting for adults. Basically all I did was walk around a short time, eat an over-priced lunch at an “English Pub”, and then leave. Although it was a little heavy on my stomach all afternoon, I must say that I haven’t enjoyed fish 'n chips with malt vinegar in a long time.




Now the wild part…. Apparently these kids have an “assignment” to accost every westerner they see and ask for autographs and photos! I could hardly walk 1 block without kids running up to me and shouting “hey mister, sign please”, or “can I take a photograph with you?” It was mildly amusing the first time, but after 10 or more times, it got downright annoying. You hate to be rude to these young eager kids, but I couldn’t stay all day and sign autographs either. The last time I was stopped, I took three photos with some of the kids, then I was thankfully rescued when another westerner walked by. Suddenly the group of kids took off after this poor guy, shouting to him “hey cheeseburger, can you sign please?” As I was walking away, I heard him protest "why are you calling me a cheeseburger?" I just chuckled and kept on going.



Since the purpose of the village is to teach English by total immersion I suppose, recently here on the news there was some scandal involving this place. Apparently sometimes the workers in the English village would (gasp) speak Korean to the visitors! I must say that I heard this happen a few times, but for the most part the workers I saw only used English.