*1 April 2011*

Last weekend I was invited to a Korean baby’s “100 day old” celebration.   I had no idea what it was or what to expect, so I did some investigating of my own.  This, along with some on-the-way-to-school chats with my co-teacher, painted yet another picture of how unique and special Korean culture actually is.  This is written from what my co-teacher explained to me, so I hope this is accurate and that I don’t mess this up with “lost in translation” mistakes!

Years ago, when Korea was still a poor and developing country, the mortality rate of babies under the age of 3 months was very high.  If a baby survived this difficult period (the first 100 days), the family believed that it was a sign that the baby would live a long and healthy life.  To this day, this is still celebrated.

Koreans believe that there is a “great grandmother who gives the babies to the women”.  She’s called the samshin halmoni.   Korean and Mongolian babies are the only babies in the world who are often born with blue bruise-like marks on their buttocks.  Koreans believe the following:  “When the baby does not want to exit the womb, the samshin halmoni slaps the baby’s bottom and the baby is then born. That is where the blue marks come from.”  No matter what your religious beliefs are, I think this is the sweetest thing I’ve heard in a while!

On the 100th day, the family prepare a small feast.  This, however, does not occur when if the baby is sick at that time, as it is considered bad luck for the child.  The samshin halmoni is honored with offerings of rice and soup, to say thank you for caring for the mother and baby.  Rice cakes are also very prominent at these celebrations.  It is believed that if the family shares the rice cakes with a lot of people, the baby will also have a long and prosperous life.

The child also symbolically foretells his or her future during this celebration.  The child is dressed in traditional clothes.  A table with a variety of food and gifts are displayed and the child picks up any object from the table.  They believe that the first object selected will foretell the future, for example, if the child picks up thread, he will have a long live.  A notebook means that the child will be a good student and rice means that the child will be very wealthy.

Even though the celebration I attended wasn’t overly traditional, I learned something new – something truly Korean.  I also got to spend a few hours with most adorable baby girl ever, with the cutest cheeks in the world!

<3

*Taken from my previous blog:  Posted May 4th, 2011*

I used to hate fire drills at school. Some idiot always decided to have a fire drill on the hottest day in summer. We spent an hour standing in the sun, making sure all of us were there and safe. I remember a girl passing out because of the heat. I’m sure the “flaming school” was safer for her… but anyways…

Today, I should’ve known better. I should have remembered that I was in Korea and that everything is different here. The day started with the downloading of 40 minute evacuation plan videos. By 9:30 we had the radio on in the teacher’s room (sounded serious) and people running around like disturbed ants.

At around 11:00 I found that I was one of three teachers in the teacher’s room. My High School co-teacher came to me:

C-t: “Marhee, veecause ofuh asscake out-uh-break-uh we hab to goh.”

Me: “The what?!”

C-t: “Ass-uh-cake outbreak. We must go now to the outside.”

Me: “The wh… uhm.. okay.”

Seriously, I was not going to try to figure out ASSCAKE. So we left. We stood at the entrance of the school and looked at the students, also walking like ants… Each one found “their spot” and stood there quietly while some other big ant spoke on a megaphone. And then I realized… to them, he is the idiot who decided to do an earthquake evacuation plan on this hot day.

Everyone was standing there, except for me and the co-teacher – who were still frozen just outside the door – and the other teacher who was probably still shopping on Gmarket in the teacher’s office. We stood there for 2 minutes. He then turned around and said: “Let’s go back to classroom.”

Seriously? Why did I go out there in the first place? At least now I know, how not to evacuate in case of an asscake.

Oh my word… TOTAL RANT ALERT!!!

Kom nou net van die supermarket af… kyk hier ne, eks nou vies oor n pakkie bacon.  BACON.  Dis Vrydag, en eks kwaad oor bacon.  Wel nie die bacon nie…die tannie by die bacon!

Ek gaan die naweek vir die eerste keer in meer as 2 jaar n hoender ontbeen… iets wat ek in elk geval nog net een of twee keer in my lewe gedoen het.  Dis nie so insane soos dit klink nie.  Ek dink daar is vyf stappe.  Maar ja, dit is so klein bietjie soos n WWE match tussen jou, n vrek skerp mes en n hoender karkas.

As die hoendertjie nou mooi sy gat van 4 kante af gesien het, sit jy met n perfekte reghoek van pure hoendervleis.. ja die soort op jou arm ook, want jy kan nie glo jy het nog al jou vingers nie.  Dan is dit die fun deel.  Stuffing the chicken.  Dit begin gewoonlik met bacon. n Laag bacon en DAN net wat jou hart begeer.  Ek het die keer besluit op my ou favourite… Bacon, feta en peppadews.  Kyk ek is al klaar versigtig met my peppadews wat ek elke keer van die Spaza shop af bestel, want dis so skaars soos hoendertanne. (Sorry ek moes!) Maar ek het besluit op my gunstelling en dis waarby ek bly.

Ek sou nie supermark toe gegaan het nie, maar boyfriend kom iewers vanaand net voor die son opkom by my aan en dan is die man dors.  Hy is freakin altyd dors!  Die het toe gevra dat ek asseblief gaan Coke Zero koop.  Gelukkig vir hom stop my Vrydag bus van die skool af reg voor die supermark.  Boyfriend gaan ook n hoender maak, so ek besluit toe maar om nog n pakkie bacon te koop toe ek sien hulle het in voorraad… want dit is ook nogals n luck en eks nul lus om more E-Mart toe te stap in hierdie somerweer wat lyk my NOOIT gaan verander nie.

Ek is nie n moeilike mens nie.  Regtig nie.  In fact, ek het baie meer geduld as dit kom by shopping in hierdie oorbevolkde land.  Boyfriend is nou weer anders om.  In die week looove hy sy “elementary kiddies”.  In die naweek is hulle vir hom die satan self.  En moenie dink sy gesig wys dit nie.   Maar as daar een ding is wat ek nie kan verdra nie, en ja miskien is dit die kultuur, is dit die adjummas (ou getroude tannies… of die wat oud genoeg is dat hulle al getroud moes wees!) wat dink hulle own die plek.  Soos ek se.. geduld.  Gee my n ou tannie wat die beste perskes uitsoek in Pick n Pay en ek sal 5 minute vir haar staan en wag – no problem.  Maar die adjummas….

Kyk eers spot jy hulle al so 50 meter weg… want daai shocking silky blommetjies broek wat PERFEK pas by die neon pienk hiking baadjie… en dan die mooi ou-tannie-kousies by die blou plastic plakkies.. hot!!  Dis fine.  Ek het dit aanvaar en hulle is vir my eie aan Korea.  Maar dan gebeur wat vandag met my gebeur het…. en elke donnerse dag met ten minste een waygook gebeur.

Ek staan nie n meter weg van die bacon en strek asof ek regmaak vir die olympics nie.  Ek staan VOOR die bacon.  Kophoogte.  Tannie Adjumma staan so 3 tree links van my, VOOR die crab sticks. Maar Korea se verpakkingvermoe het nie plek gemaak vir die waygook vs. ajumma shopping spree nie.  Want Adjumma soek nou die crab sticks wat voor my is… net onder die bacon.  Kyk hier dis nie asof ek staan en kyk vir die mooi bacon stukkies nie.  Ek weet hulle is skaars, maar dis warm en ek wil klaar shop voor ek chocolates koop.  Maar wragtag.  Sal nie 10 sekondes wag dat ek my pakkie bacon vat vir my WWE Hoender Wrestle nie.  Nee.  Look! A flying waygook!  Sy het my nie uit die pad gestamp nie, nee.  Sy het haar mandjie so onder my sy ingeWURM.. Kom ons SKROEF die waygook uit die pad!  En daar staan sy.  En kyk na die blerrie mooi pienk krap koekies!

Eers probeer ek so semi sarkastiese beweging.  Staan asof my voete gesement is in daai plastic vloer, want tannie jy is mos nou net blerrie onbeskof!  Maar nee.  Die mandjie los seker al bloedmerke en my ribbes wil wil ingee.  So toe probeer ek die ander tegniek.  Vat n helse tree regs en staan en staar vir haar…  Maar nie eers body language kan vertaal word vir n adjumma nie.  En dis toe wat ek besef… Sy gaan dit nooit verstaan nie.  So toe speel ek maar liewer haar speletjie.  Strek toe maar regtig vir die olympics bo oor haar, haar mandjie en haar prized krap en vat my flippen bacon.  Loop toe maar weg met n “Dis nou flippen vertraag!”.   Sy het my nie verstaan nie, maar ek ignoreer daai feit.

Mag ek as ek in Suid Afrika is, onthou dat die ou tannies en ooms freaking awesome is!

EDIT:   11/10/2011   Wow, that must have been a bad-mood day! LOL!  But I can’t help thinking “only in Korea” when it comes to shopping.  When I was back home in September, I felt like everybody thought I had some disease.  Soooo much space in Pick n Pay!  In Korea, shopping = bumber car(t)s.  I honestly shouldn’t shop when I’m feeling moody.. I might leave without a boyfriend… but this is really how I feel sometimes – (See attached pic)    My goal is to buy Mayo.  Only Mayo.  The pink dots are all the times I have to stop to avoid a collision.  Those are also the times where I want to scccrreeeaaaammmm.   The red part is where I decided “F&ck the Mayo.”