Caf-fiend!

This post is short on words, long on pictures ... of coffee shops.

Though nearly impossible to find the coffee bean for home grinding, coffee's popularity is nonetheless high. In every subway station and at major public places there is a coffee machine that will dispense to you a coffee-jolt for 30-60 cents. My own theory is that the tremendous energy of Korean industry and commerce is fueled by ubiquitous and cheap caffeine delivery systems. 

Coffee shops are everywhere. They are a major cultural force here, as coffee is a veritable social lubricant. But it is expensive. Most brewed coffee in shops starts at $3.00 to 4.00 for a regular cuppa Joe. I have read that one stereotype of young Koreans is that they will eat Ramen (cheap noodles) all day in order to have the coffee shop money for evening socializing. 

So, brew a cup, and enjoy:

Reportedly owned/operated by The Unification Church

They're everywhere!

Now, hope you caffiends out there enjoyed that.

Marc

Seoul of the City at Chu-Sok

First of all, Chu-sok, which is this weekend, is bigger than the American Thanksgiving. Perhaps 60% of the peninsula's population of 50 million brave rail and road to parents', grandparents' and ancestral homes. The picture above is Google-Korea's logo for the day.

Second, this post records a 13-mile urban hike today. I wanted to see, on this most-family-of-Korean-holidays, how much this cultural expectation of "family" was being played out ... or not. I was curious.

I began 2.5 hours before my church home had its 11:00 worship, and traveled my inner map of the city I first wrote back in 1979-1981 when I lived in Korea and drove a lot in Seoul. 

East to Seoul Train Station, South past the USO to Samgakji (Three cornered intersection), then East past Yongsan Army Base, through Itaewon (big shopping area for foreigners), to the church. 

Here are some of the scenes from that portion of the walk: 

First, good to know it was a good day for outdoor activities! Air quality seems much better than when I was here in 2006.

Around Ewha is a large section of stores devoted to weddings and special celebration clothes, for both genders, though women's fashions dominate. 

 I have omitted - as in "did not take" - pictures of the heavy military figures I walked past. A HUGE War Memorial has been built across from the Yongsan Military Base. But as I got towards Itaewon, I found this fanciful sign.

I don't do "Konglish" pictures that much. They are funny because they essentially make fun, and to turn the tables (Koreans in the USA making fun of our attempts to render Korean) puts things into perspective. I did find the sign below strange, because it is on a footbridge over a major road that, in a moderate wind, DOES sway. (The bridge, not the road). The sign below assures its users of the bridge's fundamental safety ... right?

After the church services, I walked back to the Train Station but continued North instead of West to Ewha, to take in more public areas of downtown. 

First, a memorial, politically motivated by conservatives interested in yet more public awareness of national security.  

This being the Chusok holiday, when "family" is front and center, I noticed lots of that...

And there were folks alone. This guy wore a helmet with the Korean vowels printed on it. I noticed him coming quietly, observing the crowds, and leaving the same way.

Don't like to show homeless men and women, but I did notice them on this day. An obscure walkway in Seoul Train Station was one haven. I was going to show two pictures, but thought better. Chu-Sok is not universally celebrated.

I did more walking this day, but that's another post.

Almanac: 
Temperature; 75 degrees
Podcast Playlist while walking: NPR's "Science Friday," "Most E-mailed Stories," "On Being," 
Number of Steps recorded by iPod's Fitness Feature: 31,160
Number of Calories this Feature says I burned: 1,442

Try walking your city; hope you have as much fun as I did. Just add some curiosity to your routine.

Marc

The NEXT Unification Church??? Invasion of the Church-Snatchers

In this post I will ask you to view two videos. The first is a holdover from last post, about things I see everyday at Ewha. It is a Youtube video (Click here) shot by a former resident. Be sure especially to look at the Ewha Campus Center at 0:48". The video gives you a walk-to, to the very building in which I live.

Now, to the new religious movement here: Shinchonji, (신천지) or in Chinese, Shin (新) New, Chon (天) Heaven, Ji (地) Earth.

Shinchonji is perhaps poised to become a household name in America, to become what the recently deceased Rev. Moon and his Unification Church meant. Shinchonji is headed by an 81 year old LEE, Man-Hee. He's used some verses from Revelation to announce, like Rev. Moon, that he is either the fulfillment of the book of Revelation, or is the new John of Patmos, and sees/understands the entire final book of the Bible. Here's his picture, the only one on this blog I did not take.

 He spoke this past summer in a Times Square church, and in the Crystal Cathedral in California.

Methodology: Shinchonji members infiltrate churches, suggesting/insinuating to the impressionable that their church either (1) does not or cannot teach salvation, or (2) the church leadership is unable or unqualified to teach true salvation. Shinchonji can, and is here to "save the day." Eventually, Shinchonji teachings and members take over the church. All under the guise of "Correct Understanding of the Bible."

It's an amazing, biological model. Invasion of the Church-Snatchers. Think conversion by vampires.

Sunday, Shinchonji held its every-four-year National Olympiad, complete with 100,000 member card-performance team, that makes "The Wave" look like nursery school play. 

See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YUWddjIGyQ I uploaded.

The rally had all the feeling, to this observer, of a cult: long hours doing rehearsed moves and actions, amped-up exercises, songs, and minutely synchronized group actions. I was reminded of heavy Unification Church (a.k.a. “Moonies”) activity in the States during the 1980s. There's the look and feel of legitimacy, but something in the back of the brain kept sending out sirens. My “group-think” herd mentality triggers were firing, but obviously, there was “something” that was feeding these thousands.

Folks from all over Korea were there, as were many international folks, especially, it seemed, from India/Bangladesh. The stadium was packed to the top, with brightly colored sections of folks all wearing the same uniform (UNIFORM is the key word here). Down on the track, occasional footraces were run, bringing roars from the crowd; there was also a football/soccer game in progress on the field. Very, very weird. 

EVERYONE here knows about it. Now you know. Homework: Go to Google, type in Shinchonji and click on "images".

In fascination,

Marc

What I See Everyday

Two weeks of classes down. The undergraduate class (Missions Theology) has settled into a class of 12, the graduate class in History of Heresies remains at 3. 

Thought I'd give a peek into some everyday scenes. So this is mostly a picture post.

But first, The Almanac:

• Reading: Kate Chopin, The Awakening; Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.
• T-shirts observed (a hobby I have in Korea): "Corrupt with Violence, Materialism, Lookism, and so on" (really!); "Follow Marc"; "Dates Say Used Compass"; "No Respect for Reality"
• Price for a large round container of Quaker Oats Oatmeal: $19.50
• Primary language on the floor where I live: German
• Number of times I have visited the Immigration Office for a Permanent Resident Card: 2, with at least 2 more
• Time spent waiting, and getting Immigration affairs in order: 10 hours
• Most surprising encounter: On the subway, a conversation with an older man, atheist, with whom I found myself "correcting" unethical evangelistic theology he had heard. So I guess you could say I was "witnessing"!
• Am I wearing bow ties? Absolutely!

The Pictures!

I see these guys every day. 

They were here before I was, and will outlast me.

Chapel is required for students; 

professors who choose to go MUST sit on the stage.

From the Ewha Campus Student Center, 

advertising by groups looking for new members.

From the board in my latest Missions Theology class. 

"FROM Advertising/Propaganda TO Missions". It was a lesson in Rhetoric. Fun!

Whenever it rains, this is what my residence hallway looks like.

That's all for now. Look forward to your communications.

Marc

First Classes in Korea!

l;

One is officially "here" when your name shows up on the roster of the Humanities Building at Ewha! (If it's too small, use <CTRL and +> at the same time.)

On Labor Day I met my first class in Missions Theology, an undergrad group of a dozen women (1 Canadian; 1 American) meets M/W. The second class (Graduate class of three non-Korean women) on History of Heresies meets once a week, on Tuesday.

I began each class with a personal introduction, via (1) a book of pictures about Asheville given me by my faith congregation; & (2) three Youtubes that depict (a) the Asheville Friday Night Drum Circle (b) the Bailey Mountain Cloggers from Mars Hill College, and (c) a bicycle spin class. :) 

After showing where Asheville and Mars Hill College on GoogleEarth, I  handed them the computer, and they showed us their hometown, or their high school, or a place where they grew up.

After each person was finished, there was polite applause!

The graduate class was pretty amazing. Three women, each at least 30 years old or older; one from Bangladesh, one from India, and one from The Philippines. Each is involved in women's leadership here and back home. I asked them something they had been asked before: to integrate the subject matter (heresies) into their own existing ways of thinking and contexts, and see how it actually works in or affects one's personal environments. Three cheers for Connected Learning!

Impressions: (1) I find the students pretty eager to study. Of course, some angle for connections for a succe$$ful life; however, the Confucian legacy of learning for its own sake is reward enough. Virtue based ethic lives! (2) Their reading life does not seem that rich. Asked about the three books that have changed the way they think, Rick Warren and Max Lucado came up often. One undergrad mentioned Walter Wink!!! Nice going!

The Almanac:
Reading: Fire in the Mind, by George Johnson, which is kicking my mind's butt. It's an exploration of science and faith myths about ways we have conceived the order(s) of the universe. Stunning, but my most difficult read in years. Thanks for the headache, Glenn Graves!

Listening: KEXP Song(s) of the Day (great new music free, on iTunes). http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/kexp-song-of-the-day/id121393815

What everyone else in Korea and the world is listening to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0 has 99 million hits as I write. Forty-eight hours ago it had only 72M. Gang-Nam is a region south of the Han River (3 miles or so from here) known for money "style".

Watching: Yale's online course Phil181 on iTunes U: Philosophy and Science of Human Nature, with Dr. Tamar Gendler.

Pictures posted: (1) https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.571751314677.2035918.105600820&type=1&notif_t=like & (2) 

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.571432952677.2035862.105600820&type=1

Surprise experience so far: I was at the Seoul Train station Saturday when a group of Christians appeared with a loudspeaker, circled the whole area Jericho-style, testifying. The signs at the front and back (and on everyone's red jacket) were their message. The front one reads "Jesus Heaven" and the rear one (in red/white) says, "Unbelief Hell".

Will write again in less than a week! What questions have you?

Marc

ARRIVAL!

It is a great thing to see these stone tigers on every trip in and out of my place at Ewha.

Wednesday: Where did it go? It was eaten up by the International Date Line, and I didn't realize until Friday, that it was ... Friday. How DOES the IDL do that? I love time travel and all that, but this is weird.

Spent some time with former-family members. The best part was when I could share "The Killers" band with my ex-niece and -nephew (What DO you call such folks? The "ex" seems too close to "X" and its negatives.) 

I taught them the shorthand TXT abbreviations, such as LOL, OMG and IDK. They taught me their text short-cuts, in turn. Ready?

ㅇㄷㅇwhere are you = 어디야?

 Get it?

ㅂㅇ = 바이 = bye!

ㅇㅇ = 응 = okay   

ㅠㅠ nun-mul or tears (I love this. The top line are eyes, and the downstrokes are tears.)

ㅡㅡ uncomfortable angry eye motion (again, think eyes almost shut in a negative way)

=_= dark circles under eyes = tired or bored. I was told I'd get this a lot in exam times.

^_^ = ㅎ_ㅎ= 하하 or Ha Ha. The ^ = eye.

Tech-Geek Paragraph: In Korea you can have your internet wireless router in a shirt pocket. I was given this to borrow while in Korea:

Battery operated, it translates 4G phone signals into your own secure WiFi, anywhere there is a phone signal. Neat.

Non-Geeks, it is safe to read now. 

Ewha campus is stunning. There seems to be a great investment in surroundings. Three pix of the same place.

 

Inside this double five story structure are classrooms, offices, top-notch fitness center, Starbucks, & movie theater.

Summary since last post:

Books I am reading: Finished Gilead and almost finished with Death of Adam, both by my new writing heroine, Marilynne Robinson. (If you like Annie Dillard, you'll probably enjoy Robinson.)

New favorite food: Kim-chi. It went from inside the Top Ten, to #1.

Hours of sleep in past four nights: 4, 4, 3, 12.

Biggest shocks: No Netflix (copyright issues); Big box of oatmeal was $17.50.

Lance Armstrong story: Shrewd move on his part. If guilty, his "leaving in a huff" convinces the undecided he IS the victim of a witch-hunt. As he leaves he sows *reasonable doubts.* That is ballsy, for one without them. Since he did have 7 wins will mean - always, in my view - he's inserted into the court of public opinion a HUGE asterisk beside those names who take the podium ex post facto. Shrewd.

Neatest translation of English: (on a coupon): Coupon is available for Koreans & Foreigans. (My all-time new word from a Korean: Strangerous.)

Your strangerous foreigan, 

Marc

PS: Typhoon coming Tuesday!