Korean Job Discussion Forums

[AbbeFaria]

Boss comes in today with a big jug of clear fluid and poors it in small sauce pot and then starts to distribute it from the sauce pot into smaller cups for all the teachers. Upon seeing it in the sauce pot I realize it's not exactly clear, more a bit cloudy, like it's got a bit of milk in it. I look at her strangely, as I usually do when she starts doing this weird Korean stuff, and my coworker explains that this is tree water, and points to the picture on the front that's got what looks a bit like a maple syrup tap sticking out of a tree. She says it's water drained from a tree, it tastes a bit sweet, and that it's very healthy for me.

I take this with a grain of salt and bring the offered glass to my nose to give it a snif. It smells strongly of fish, and I take a sip and it tastes like warm water from a tap tastes here. In other words, not that good, but not bad either. I don't trust it, and leave the glass sitting on my desk until the end of the day, when I discreetly dump it in the sink. (She told me it was very expensive and I didn't want to offend her.)

But, this just seems stupid to me. I avoided it because I have no idea what's in there, or what kind of intestinal distress it could put me in. Is there any evidence that this is anything besides water with an abundance of cellulose in it? Unless I hear otherwise I'm going to assume it's just another snake oil type thing that Koreans buy in to. Not unlike when the boss started wrapping thread around the thumbs of all the coworkers and then proceeded to *beep* the pad of their thumb and then the part at the base of the nail, claiming it helps the blood flow better. I don't mind a shot, but I wasn't letting her stick my thumb with a needle no matter how much it's supposed to help my blood and ESPECIALLY after she'd stuck all the other teachers with the same needle.

Anyway, slight digression on my part. What's the deal with the tree water, anyone know?

��S��

[VanIslander]

[ajuma]

I had "tree water" last week for the first time. My friend told me that they "cut the tree and take the water out." I think it's probably maple sap before it's been boiled down to make syrup. Why the OP's tasted like fish is beyond me!