Tokyo Bound

Some of you may know, others may not, but Im taking a brief vacation in Tokyo beginning tomorrow morning. Ill be spending 4 days there over my Lunar New Year break and will be back in Seoul come Tuesday evening. Stay tuned for stories and pictures.

Enjoy your weekend and be safe.

The Life of a Korean TV Star

For those of yall with satellite TV, check your programming guide for a station called KBS, its the public broadcasting network of Korea and yours truly will be gracing their show called English 911 in a matter of weeks. If you dont have satellite or cant located KBS, call your cable provider and demand that they offer the show via pay-per-view or something because I put on a performance to rival Scorsese.

Heres the story: I work with a girl who's Korean boyfriend is a pretty successful commodities trader and was selected to be the topic of an episode of English 911, an educational program that deals with English in business settings. The producers wanted to film him speaking English in a relaxed setting so they asked him to bring some foreign friends to a bar so they could film him interacting with some native speakers. Naturally, he thought of me, whether it was before or after his girlfriend is debatable, but regardless we all met last night to begin shooting (as its called in the business). So we spent about 30-45 minutes filming in this bar, just trying to act natural, after which we are told they will probably edit the footage down to 1 or 2 usable minutes. Not exactly the fast track to an Emmy, but at least I got my foot in the door.

Oh, and for the guys, the host of the show was a former Miss Korea, but I didnt find that out until her and the producers left - so I missed my chance at a date with a model, but at least I will get my 2 minutes of fame.

Hopefully I will be able to get a copy of the show to upload, but until then, just look for me in People or something.

Also, I uploaded more pictures, if youre not bored of them yet, click the link to the right as usual.

What is there to drink?

Ok, even though none of you have asked, Im sure there must be a few of you that are wondering what there is to drink over here. To be honest, theres not much difference except for one local specialty, but heres a run down of what Im drinking in Korea.

Up first is Korea's specialty: Soju. Some people call this the devil's nectar and it is dangerous for two reasons: first, it is extremely strong; second, it is only one dollar a bottle. This makes it both appealing and deadly but it is a must try when visiting or living in Korea. It tastes like a mix of cheap vodka and gasoline, but be forewarned, it may taste delicious, but Soju makes you do stupid stuff, like fall down your stairs.

Next, drinks in a bucket. There is a bar called Monkey Beach in Seoul that prides itself on pouring a 10 shot drink in a children's sand bucket for the low price of twelve dollars. On top of that, they also have nightly competitions to win more alcohol, including beating their mascot in rock-paper-scissors and shooting baskets for bottles of liquor. I have only been their twice, but both times a member of our group has won one of the bottles which is exciting at the time, but stupid in retrospect since you have been drinking buckets of liquor all night. Still, its a great bar and Ive had a blast both times Ive been there.

Now, for the randoms. First up is a can filled with a mixture of vodka and lemon called KGB. Ive only had one sip of this drink since Ive been here but that was plenty (too sweet), even though I work with some people that love them.
Next is a vodka from a place Im certain none of you have visited: Kazakhstan. Before this vodka, the only thing I knew from Kazakhstan was Holly's sister, but I have to say they do make a tasty beverage. I got to try this thanks to a Korean friend, but I have no idea where he found it since I havent seen it in any of the liquor stores here, but if you happen to come across it, I suggest you try it.

Finally, my bread and butter: beer. Korea brews 3 beers in mass quantity: Cass, Hite and OB. Im partial to Cass, but all three are served in sizes ranging from single cans to kegs. However, the stores sell one size unknown to all of you in the states: the 1.6 liter (thats just over 54oz to those not in the know). This is the biggest quantity sold for personal consumption and comes in bottles about as tall as your shoe.

And, thankfully, there is always the King of Beers, Budweiser. This is sold at most bars for the same price as Cass and Hite and you rest assured that I buy American when given the choice (yes, I know Anheuser Busch is owned by InBev now, but its still American to me).

Heres to having fun and drinking responsibly.

And the winner is: My sister, Meredith!

It wasnt exactly a photo finish, but after 3 days of waiting, I finally received a text message. Thank you, Meredith, for waking me at some unknown hour of the night to a message that read "Hi did it work???" Yes, it worked, now you can enjoy your 15 minutes of fame, which may be much shorter since the majority of people reading this probably already know you. Thanks sis, I love and miss you.

Also, 2nd place goes to my friend Kate Stice. You all may remember Kate from when I introduced her and her blog, "World Wide Kate" a few months ago. Anyway, Kate swears that she texted me, and I believe her, but I fear it was either sent when I didnt have any money on my phone or perhaps she doesnt have international texting capabilities because I never got it. But thanks Kate, I believe you tried and if it had gone through, you would have been the first.

I am certain the number posted below is correct since two people have successfully contacted me on it, so dont hesitate to try even though the contest is over.

Also, I added almost 200 new pictures the other day, click the link to the right as usual.

So here it is, finally: My phone number

Its taken 5 months of intense research and trial and error, but I have finally figured out the correct sequence of numbers so you can call me from the states. Before I tell you what they are, let me issue a challenge: the first person to call or text me will become as famous as my blog can make them. Thats right, you will be mentioned and have a photo posted (assuming I have one) on my blog, The Life of a Waygookin.

So here is it, dial or text these numbers:

011 82 10 7214 0829

And thanks to Heather Randell and Adam Kopley, who helped me determine and test these numbers.