Seoul - Genisis 1:1
Trip Start
Apr 14, 2006
1
3
Trip End
Apr 29, 2006
Seoul, Korea Rep.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
So, Korea. Well, even on the short journy to meet Chris, I noticed quite a few differences to China.
1. Korea? They speak Korean. China? They speak Chinese.
2. Korea? everything's so clean, organised and modern. China? Yeah, not so much.
3. Korea? No-one jaywalks. China? Jaywalk central. Me? Jaywalking like i'm in China and almost getting killed by fucking Koreans accelerating and trying to hit me.
It's incredible that only a short journey across the yellow sea from Beijing lies an incredibly modern country, sporting road rules, observing road rules, a surprising presence of the english language (apart from the fucken 25,000 US servicemen), an incredible subway system and a conglomerate of highrises that is matched by few cities that I have ever visited. Unfortunately, China and Korea share one rather disturbing aspect - the presence of God-damned, long hair, clarinet (or saxophone or whatever it is) playing dickheads. I have now concluded that the Kenny G saxophone music is an unstoppable force and is something that must be considered as dangerous a threat to global security and human health as bird flu. I now await a UN security council resolution, although it seems unlikely due to the inevitable exercies of China's power of veto. The world truly is in turmoil...
The sights in Seoul have been decent. Gyeongbokgung, the largest of the imperial palaces, is not the Forbidden City in Beijing. It's really quite impressive nonetheless, and given this, and giving the palace the respect it deserves, I will fall short of calling it a poor man's Forbidden City. But having experienced Seoul for only a few days, I'm already far more taken the city as a living entity rather than by any of its sights. Strolls down its broad avenues and narrow alleys are exciting for no particular reason; the parks around Yeouido - Seoul's answer to Manhattan and Perth in one; Manhattan for its highrises and island geography; Perth for it's resemblance to a ghost town after hours - are filled with early April bloom and relaxed quiet amongst floors and floors of important business.
So, anyway, having discussed Seoul generally, as I'm obliged to do, let's get to the important stuff - I've discovered something to add to the election platform (that's right - it's now my election platform, and I'm running for Premier when I return). Spongy pavement. What the fuck, you say? Ok - here's the deal. They look like bricks; they smell like bricks; they function like bricks; hell - they probably even taste like bricks - but they ain't no fuckin bricks! They feel like heaven on your feet... I don't know what they're made of and I don't really care, every step is like living the dream. Perth needs this stuff. So, the election platform now stands at:
1. A great big fuck off city wall; and
2. Spongy pavement everyhwere (except maybe Armadale because it would just be wasted there).
So where's the trouble? No trouble to speak of. Seriously...
So anyway, I've got to go now, load up Chris' DVD player and watch the penalty shootout from the Socceroos playoff game against Uruguay again (here's Aloisi for a place in the World Cup!) which may or may not be followed by another trip to the Korean Baths (that's right - living the dream). Before I do though, the Top 5. Well, I've decided that the first entry in any new country will feature a return to, as previously described in this blog, the spiritual home of the Top 5 - music. So, for the first Korean entry - Top 5 songs that describe my time so far in Korea:
5. Cherry Blossom Girl - Air.
Well, not so much Cherry Blossom Girl, but Cherry Blossoms everywhere and beautiful)
4. Evaporated - Ben Folds Five.
And in particular, the line 'woke up way too late feeling hungover and old'...
3. In the Navy - Village People.
Well, more like in the Army, but aren't US military the same anyway?
2. Killer Cars - Radiohead.
They actually accelerate to try and kill you. And even if they didn't, I fucken love this song...
1. Raindrops keep falling on my head - BJ Thomas.
'I did me some talking to the sun, and I said I didn't like the way he got things done... sleeping on the job...'
Travel umbrella coming in real handy - thanks Auntie Denise and Uncle Tiong...
More to come from Korea... Do it.
