Podcast # 3 – enjoy the rambling!

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Neon backdrop:

Spotted amongst the crowded buildings and throngs of neon-hued people were JJ and John, showing everyone in Korea just how to do things “Minnesota Nice” and “NoDak” style. *(Not pictured: Diana and David Shea, who were kind enough to let the intrepid father/daughter-in-law share a moment of Samsung Plaza bliss)

Spring, it has Sprung!

Ah yes, the magnolias and cherry blossoms are in FULL bloom, here in Seoul’s spring! This is a shot of the trees outside JJ’s window. It is absolutely gorgeous around here with all the lovely flowering and whatnot. And let me tell you, those whatnot’s are something special. Anyway, spring is quite possibly the finest time here in Korea, and it’s not hard to see why. Especially when summer rears it’s extremely heated head in just a few months. Ugh – sweaty!

When you just gotta have that “bump”:

Seoul, the fifth largest city in the world, proudly present an option for anyone who is craving a quick, fast, on-the-go “hit”. Presenting the Take-Out Cocktail! Bomber’s Take-Out Cocktail: when you just absolutely, positively, gotta have that “bump”! Why put up with all the fancy-pants bars and restaurants? Enjoy hard liquor on the go! Thanks, Seoul!

Kevin Y.: AIR-GUITAR ROCK GOD!

Yes, it’s true – Kevin Y. is in my class. And yes, it’s also true – he’s a ROCK GOD! Look out, all you Guitar Hero players – Kevin Y.’s on the loose, and he’s going to bring the Power of Rock to YOU! Rooooooooooooooooooooock!

The Bacon Experience:

If there’s a greater food out there than bacon, man, I haven’t heard of or discovered it. Mmmm. BACON!

The Gaijin Experience:

For those of you who don’t know, “gaijin” is the Japanese word for “foreigner”. I’ve known about the definition since my youth, growing up reading Wolverine and X-Men comics; whenever Logan (Wolverine) was over in Japan, usually fighting off legions of ninja and the like, he was commonly referred to as a “gaijin dog”. Excluding the “dog” part, I have to admit, it was a life-long dream of mine to be referred to as a “gaijin”, for that meant that I was actually in Japan, traveling the world. And now that JJ and I have been there, I can finally say that I’ve achieved another checkmark off the Life List! We did indeed hear the term “gaijin” whispered indiscriminently (sp?) as we meandered the alleyways of Osaka, usually by younger adults or children. I’m pleased to say that there was no mention of the word “dog” anywhere. In a nutshell, our trip to Japan was extremely short (three nights and two days), but oh so worth it. Sorry for the wait on this post – let’s begin recanting the tale of JJ’s and my sojourn to smaller-sized but beautiful cities of Osaka and Japan, shall we?

It all started Wednesday evening in Osaka. Our flight from Seoul was fantastically short, only one hour and 40 minutes. Considering that our last three flights were ALL 10 1/2 hours in length, we felt that this time, we barely became situated from the takeoff before it was time to land – glorious! Anyway, we landed, retrieved our luggage, and quickly ascertained the layout of the subway system – God bless mass transit. We trained it to our hotel, which happened to be literally across the street from a subway stop. After checking into our Lilliputian hotel room (one only had to fall out of the bed to practically land in the hallway), we quickly gathered the necessary equipment (Lonlely Planet travel guide), and headed back to the hopping downtown area of Dotombori in Osaka. There, we enjoyed a cold, but enjoyable neon-filled night of walking around, gazing at beautiful river walk-ways not unlike St. Anthony in Minneapolis (except for the giant ferris wheel in our background), and neon signs. We first hit an English pub of all things, the Pig and Whistle, for dinner and drinks. The dinner was flat-out disgusting: way too greasy chicken. But the Kilkenny’s was fantastic. Then we hit the Ebisu-baski bridge, which is reminiscent of the scene from “Blade Runner”, due to it’s surrounding of majesticly high neon signs (we’re talking stories tall on buildings, folks). We then walked through an area called Amerika-mura, which was filled with tons of American stores and name-brands – it was like walking in Chicago. We ended the night just traipsing through open and lit alleyways and streets, stopping a pub once in awhile to enjoy a brew and the scenery. A very fun night, but Jen was feeling tired, so we went back to the shoebox for an early night. On Thursday, we headed out via train once again, and hit up the Osaka Aquarium, home to the world’s largest aquarium, and its star attraction – a real, live, WHALE SHARK!!! Holy hannah, was I in oceanic Heaven! It was glorious. Now, don’t be confused – a whale shark isn’t a whale, it’s still a shark, and therefore a fish – but it’s the world’s largest fish, and largest shark. It can grow up to 50 to 60 feet, rivaling the size of actual whales! This one was probably around 18 feet or so, and simply stunning. We also saw the largest deep-sea manta ray we’ve ever seen, easily 10-feet wide at the pectoral fins. Jen also really enjoyed the ocean sunfish, which are truly odd creatures – they appear as if they are truncated fish, with a normal head, but then appear to have their “body” missing – right behind their gills is the “end tail” – so they’re really short fish, and look like they are simply head and tail! Very funny. After the aquarium, we headed next-door to the (can you see where this is going?) world’s largest ferris wheel! Even larger than the one in London, which I was on, and that sucker’s big, so obviously this one was monstrous. It was very fun to ride up and receive a great view of Osaka harbor. Next, we headed close to the downtown area again, where we hit a neighborhood that “time had forgot”, called Sinsekai. It was filled with lots of pachinko slots, shops, and stores, but the buildings all looked rundown, and out of the 70′s. Then we headed to Jen’s favorite area (ha ha!), a placed called “Den Den Town”, which takes its moniker from the Japanese word “dentaki” (I think) which means “technology”. Essentially, it was another version of the Korean flea market that I love so much, and Jen truly does NOT. Loathe would be an aptly used verb, but regardless, she put up with it for me – such is love! There, I discovered a “dream shop” of sort, which contained massive amounts of old console systems and games, many of them only released in Japan. Ah, to have disposable wealth, no? After that, we headed back to the Dotombori downtown area, where we supped and dined upon some of the finest food and drink – at an Irish bar named Murphy’s! Yes, yes, we hadn’t dove into Japanese cuisine yet. But Murphy’s was stellar, and it warmed us something fierce, as it had begun to rain outside, and we needed a cozy pub to warm us good. We called it a night shortly thereafter. The next day, Friday, saw us preparing for our day-trip to Kyoto, and which began in a manner only befitting the John Hughes’ comedy classic, “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles”. Essentially, we needed to take the subway one stop (thank goodness!) away, and then transfer to the Japan Railway system, of which we were already holding a ticket voucher from our travel agent. Well, we went to the first line that said “JR” tickets. After waiting in line, we were informed it was the wrong one, because of our vouchers, and to go upstairs. We did, got in line – and that was incorrect, too. So we went to our THIRD line, and I joked to Jen that it’d probably be the line next to us that we’d end up needing. Only – I was correct. During the wait of our FOURTH line, I began reading the fine-print on our voucher, whereupon I discovered that we needed our passports present to prove these vouchers were valid, an item we of course did not have. So, back to the hotel for Davey, where he retrieved both passports, then BACK to the station, wait in line AGAIN, then finally on the train – only to arrive at the main train/bus terminal in Kyoto at a whopping 1pm in the afternoo, a far cry from my estimated 10:30-ish am! However, clouds and silver-linings – we ran into a fellow named Chad, a young man that had approached us the day before at the aquarium, looking for work in Japan. Well, there he was again, and since our paths crossed twice, Jen invited him along to share the day’s adventures with us, and the three of us had a grand ol’ time exploring the beautiful, quiet, serene, relaxed, artistic temples and streets of Kyoto. Kyoto is considered by many to represent the “Westerner’s ideal vision” of Zen-like Japanese simplicity and beauty in architecture and landscaping, and it did not disappoint. We visited two temples, and they were literally out of the dream worlds of Japanese serenity and beauty – they were true haiku inspirations for Basho and others, I’ve no doubt. After the temples, we actually walked down the very street of Ponto Cho, as well as the bridge across the nearby river, both of which were mentioned in the famous bestseller, Memoirs of a Geisha. While we didn’t see a geisha on Ponto Cho, it was cool nonetheless to say we walked down that street, which is famous for being a geisha area. It was really quiet, quaint, and sublime. Afterwards, we were quite hungry, so, thanks to the guidebook, we walked right into a tiiiiiiiiiiny, fantastic, hole-in-the-wall bar called “Ichiban” (it was damn near the size of a mini-van), where Chad, JJ and I sat upon our stools, and feasted like kings and queens on fine Japanese nectar and ambrosia. We ate BBQ rice balls, tempura, soybeans, tofu, chicken, and drank warm socki, and it was all that I could have hoped for and more. The evening saw wonderful conversation and story-swapping between the three of us over fantastic food and drink, all being prepared right in front of us by the chefs, while outside, the cold, dark night passed on. It was utterly perfect. Afterwards, we decided to head over to a more happening area to attempt and find a nice bar where we could all enjoy a nice after-dinner drink, but we weren’t having much luck. It was cold out, and nothing seemed appealing. However, our luck soon changed, as we turned a corner, and what did we witness walking directly towards us, straight out of ancient history? That’s correct – a bona fid geisha! We’ll never forget that; she was walking as straight as a steel rod, her onyx hair as perfect and immovavle as a diamond, resting upon a porcelain face. She wore a red and white kimono, walked upon the traditional wooden shoes, and stared straigh ahead, as we stared on in wonder. It was fascinating to see, and marked a highlight of the trip, to be sure! Jen loved it, as did I. After that, we three finally decided upon a bar called A Bar (perfect), where we ate noodles and had some bre

wski’s. We cabbed it back to the train station w/Chad, and called it a night, as we drearily found our way back to our train, and went back to our hotel room in Osaka. It was a long, frightfully cold, but fruitful day, and one that we’ll always remember in our travels. The next morning, we unfortunately didn’t have any time to visit a castle nearby that I wanted to see, but that was ok. We leisurely trained it back to the airport, where we had a nice, soft, cushy hour and a half before our flight departed. So, we thought, we haven’t done any shopping – it’s time for duty free! Jen bought some Starbucks, I bought some Jack Daniel’s, and all was right with the world. We were very near our gate, # 14, so I said, let’s do a little more shopping, and use up some of our yen. I bought a socki set, Jen a little wooden Japanese girl, and we were about set. After Jen had graciously stood in line and exchanged our money, she wanted to leave and head to our gate. “Nah”, I said, we still have a whole TEN minutes! Let me just use up a few of these coins here, on some stupid little trinket! Ok, she said, but she was heading to the gate. I said cool, I’ll be along in a minute. Less than that time, I was walking towards our gate, when JJ came RUNNING back towards me, only to inform yours truly, The Idiot, that we WEREN’T near our gate – we had to take a tram to another area of the airport!!! AAUUUGGHHH! We RAN down to the tram area, got on the train, where it appeared to go agonizingly slow towards its destination of our actual gate. Upon exiting the tram, we heard over the loud speaker, “Shea, Jen, Shea, David, please head to gate # 14 – this is the final boarding call”. As we rushed through the door, flashing our seat stubs, we realized that, yep, we were the last people to board the plane. As soon as we took our sits, that sucker was backing up, and flight attendants were preparing for departure. We were off, and in the air, in roughly two minutes from us sitting down. Let me tell you something, folks – that is one fine way to end a short trip to Japan – NOT! Needless to say, it was a nice event to cap off a great trip, but only when viewed through the lense of time; at the moment, JJ was ready to tie me to the landing gear. Thankfully, she was restrained by her seatbelt. Anyway, we made it safely home, and overall, we had a wonderful time in Japan. And I took home an unexpected door-prize: a lesson learned in last-minute shopping no-no’s. Wait, did I just hear the words “gaijin” and “dog” escape underneath JJ’s breath? Hmmm….

Japan!

Greetings, fellow travellers! Thanks for your patience – it’s been a far cry since I’ve posted, I know! My apologies all around. At any rate, I’m about to post the derring-do’s of our recent sojourn to Japan, but I need to run to school – so in the meantime, enjoy all of our Japan pics in the Photo Galleries section to the right, and as soon as I can, I shall provide thee with an update. Sayonara!

Bacon. Salt. BACONSALT!!!

A new product named BaconSalt, with the theme “Everything Should Taste Like Bacon” is introduced recently to the market. The product, a fat-free, calorie-free, vegetarian-free (for our animal lovers), Kosher-certified (for our Orthodox Jewish friends) salt (only 6% sodium!!!) and herb mixed concoction, remarkably tastes exactly like Original, Peppered, or Hickory-smoked bacon. Dave receives said product in the mail thanks to his now solidified-forever-in-lucite-status “Bestest Bacon Friend” Gregg Hedlund. His heart stops – and then beats to the beat of bacon. BACOOONNNNN!!!! (www.baconsalt.com)

Chlorophyll-challenged Foliage Descend to Accumulate in Assemblages of Polychromatic Embankments – So Beauteous.

It’s hard to think of new descriptors that haven’t yet been applied to the annual autumn foliage, now that the end of October is nigh, and we’ve entered into the peak of color. Ideas like “a second spring in each dying leaf”, or “bursting rainbows” are beautiful and certainly accurate, yet simultaneously seem clichéd and tired. Perhaps, as my title suggests, it’s time for a different approach – a description a bit less poetic, to be sure, but scientifically and structurally sound. (Although it may take awhile for it to catch-on, no doubt.)

Regardless, what a beautiful time of year it is! My favorite, in fact. Walking to work is always a pleasure, but these days, there’s an extra dollop of “special” churning in the mix, as JJ and I watch with awe and inspiration the leaves on the trees perform their annual kaleidoscope dance of colors seemingly in real-time before our eyes. Our journey to school isn’t a lengthy one, and it essentially resides within the concrete jungle of Seoul (even though we’re at an outpost closer to nature than, say, downtown), but even still, it’s nice to have our wide roads stitched together with row upon row of trees that share their turning leaves of color.

Just what is it about this natural phenomenon that sparks such majestic feelings in poets and plumbers alike? Perhaps the answer is married to the concept that, like the other singularities of the seasons, it’s the sharp distinction and uniqueness that is found in those “first time” moments embedded in our sojourn around our Sun. There is only one time when the first smack of bursting autumn colors are upon us; there is only one time when the first crystalline snowfall blankets the world in whitened slumber; there is only one time when the first buds of Spring share an area of air so fresh outside, you’d swear it was newly minted just for you. And there is only one time when that first Summer heat wave bounces back off the pavement to mix and twist with the smell of fresh-cut lawn, and barbequing meat on a hidden backyard grill. These are the quintessential moments of the seasons, and as archetype moments of nature in the collective consciousness go, they’ll do just fine.

So we find ourselves currently nestled within our favorite one: the cascading colors of autumn. However brief it may be, this time of low golden sunlight mixed with breezes whipped directly from the imminent frozen tundra, there’s a miracle of color and history in each fallen husk. It is a venerable moment of time that at its peak, in its purest form, seems timeless, resonate, and in a phrase – polychromatic perfect.

I urge you all to enjoy your time outside as much as you possibly can – for winter’s inevitable creep of elongated shadow is coming, and the days of descending are ending.