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jajdude
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
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Posted: Sun Mar 21, 2004 8:04 am Post subject: Seoul is freaky |
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Seoul is freaky but I like it. Actually now I am living out of Seoul, in Yongin, about 40 minutes on bus away. Yongin is a bit freaky too. Hell, Korea is freaky. But whenever I go into Seoul, like most weekends, it never fails to hit me, what a strange country I am in. The crowds alone make it weird. The language is weird. I have been in korea about 5 years. It is still weird pretty much every day. People were holding their demonstrations about something near City Hall. People still think a white guy looks strange, even in downtown Seoul, in the world's 12th biggest economy. Methinks the economy is outpacing the people's ability to catch it! And you go into bookstores and see the interest in English. It's pretty weird. Because when you go back to the classroom it's more of "there is an apple on my desk".... understandably so in this place. Hell 48 million people. But such a small piece of land for that many people. Well weird is the word for other places too, everywhere perhaps! All in perspective? Not exactly. Korea is weird! |
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Paddycakes
Joined: 05 May 2003 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Sun Mar 21, 2004 1:30 pm Post subject: |
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You're not in Kansas anymore, son. C'mon, it's a foreign country... what are you expecting! |
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Mr. Pink

Joined: 21 Oct 2003 Location: China
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Posted: Sun Mar 21, 2004 2:03 pm Post subject: |
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To the OP:
Are you from a smalltown by chance? (I dont mean yongin either...)
You sound like a hick. |
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djsmnc

Joined: 20 Jan 2003 Location: Dave's ESL Cafe
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Posted: Sun Mar 21, 2004 6:40 pm Post subject: |
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America is weird too...So much space, but everyone seems to gravitate toward large cities. If you try to settle in a country area, you may be shot or have a cross burned on your lawn by the locals, or have your house bought for a new 6-lane highway. There are people that look like beached whales. Lots of loud bass thuds coming from cars. The buildings are old and oversized. Parking lots for 1 story shopping buildings are enormous and never full. There's young people smoking weed and crack on the streets in some places. I see people eat friend chicken, burritos and pizza with extra fries and a diet coke...which they refill over and over....what's with all the young girls with tattoos on their a-s-s bone? How about those hockey hair cut yahoos with too much body hair and beer guts? Why do people get so emotional and over-explanatory about small trifles?
Wait a minute...life is weird...my country is normal though...no wait, I'm American... |
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Jensen

Joined: 30 Mar 2003 Location: hippie hell
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Posted: Sun Mar 21, 2004 9:47 pm Post subject: |
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The whole fucking world is stuffed to the gills with insanity... |
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jajdude
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 8:07 am Post subject: |
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Mr. Pink wrote: |
To the OP:
Are you from a smalltown by chance? (I dont mean yongin either...)
You sound like a hick. |
Yep I'm a hick. From a small town in Newfoundland. I lived in Seoul over two years before and it wasn't always so weird in my psychologically challenged mentality. Perhaps it was just my head on this particular day. I'm not the sanest cat on the block anyway Ya'd think I'd be used to all the weirdness after x number of years, but nope, it generally remains weird quite often for poor old too long sheltered me. |
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jajdude
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 9:47 am Post subject: |
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Paddycakes wrote: |
You're not in Kansas anymore, son. C'mon, it's a foreign country... what are you expecting! |
I've never been to Kansas!
Anyway you may have actually read my post? I am saying that even after 5 years (my first time in Seoul was actually in 1997) the city and country can still seem freaky. Hell I went back to Canada after years over on this side of the globe, and it seemed freaky too. Mainly due to lack of crowdedness. What I figure is that such a change of environment in a hick like me can lead to an inescapable sense of freakiness no matter wherever I go. But whatever, I am not very sane anyway.
Peace  |
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Mr. Pink

Joined: 21 Oct 2003 Location: China
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 2:21 pm Post subject: |
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jajdude wrote: |
Mr. Pink wrote: |
To the OP:
Are you from a smalltown by chance? (I dont mean yongin either...)
You sound like a hick. |
Yep I'm a hick. From a small town in Newfoundland. I lived in Seoul over two years before and it wasn't always so weird in my psychologically challenged mentality. Perhaps it was just my head on this particular day. I'm not the sanest cat on the block anyway Ya'd think I'd be used to all the weirdness after x number of years, but nope, it generally remains weird quite often for poor old too long sheltered me. |
Generally speaking, people from smalltowns find big cities to be full of freaks. Seoul is a BIG city. IMO Toronto has way more freaks than Seoul. |
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Wishmaster
Joined: 06 Feb 2003
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 8:46 pm Post subject: |
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I don't care. I would still rather live in an overly spacious country than a compressed one. Korea is compressed and you feel the crunch at all times. I'm from a place where there are open spaces and I prefer it to the murderous clog that is Korea. |
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Swiss James

Joined: 26 Nov 2003 Location: Shanghai
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 9:01 pm Post subject: |
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I look at wide open spaces and just think of all the good stuff you could build there. Which is why I'm happy here in Seoul |
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Mashimaro

Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Location: location, location
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 9:35 pm Post subject: |
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Swiss James wrote: |
Which is why I'm happy here in Seoul |
That.... and the fact you aren't teaching  |
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Swiss James

Joined: 26 Nov 2003 Location: Shanghai
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 10:30 pm Post subject: |
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Mashimaro wrote: |
That.... and the fact you aren't teaching |
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Mashimaro

Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Location: location, location
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 11:31 pm Post subject: |
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Swiss James wrote: |
Mashimaro wrote: |
That.... and the fact you aren't teaching |
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Cheers mate! I'm not teaching either.. feels good doesn't it!
(if anyone was wondering, that is not me in the pic... my beard is longer and I have more tatts  |
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Swiss James

Joined: 26 Nov 2003 Location: Shanghai
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Posted: Mon Mar 22, 2004 11:47 pm Post subject: |
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I don't think it's the teaching that gets people down so much as the Hagwons, but I'm happy with my situation. |
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Toby

Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Location: Wedded Bliss
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Posted: Tue Mar 23, 2004 5:49 pm Post subject: |
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Seoul is now weirder, infact, much less weird than any other city or built up area.
At least there are no evident inbreds - they all get lost in the crowds. |
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