My First Taste Of Korea

It was in 1991 when I had my first real encounter with Koreans & their culture.

I was living at the boarding school at Point Park College in US. There were

many foreign students on my floor where the Japanese & Koreans out numbered

while I was the only Malaysian Chinese. The Koreans thought I was Japanese

because I shared room with a Japanese, so they kinda boycotted me.

We all became best friends eventually.

This college above has 2 tall buildings which is connected by a sky bridge.

I lived in Thayer Hall which was formerly a mental hospital as there is no elevator

stopping on the 6th floor of my dormitory. Rumor mongers reported that suicidal cases 

took place and it had been very haunted ever since. 

The one female ghost would walk through 

many rooms nightly and crossed the bridge to the 22 storeys Lawrence Hall.

Once she woke my Korean friend up and stood beside Seung Woo's bed.

He was frozen and shook in fear as the ghost spoke to him

before giving up as he could not understand her gibberish talk.

On many nights, I would be invited by the Koreans to visit

Kook Jin's room at Room # 1920 Lawrence Hall for Korean supper!

That was my first meals to eat hot Korean Steamboat with Soju, Kim Chi 

and Rice Cakes. It was Yums!

Yours truly standing above, went skiing for the first time 

with them at the Seven Springs Resort in Pennsylvania.

My eyes went big with shock as the Koreans could

ski so fast down the slopes without sticks!!!!

They always took me out for bowling but we

always ended up in snow fights instead!!

I moved out to live in a swanky suburbs at Shadyside and often played

hosts to cook and bake for my fellow Korean buddies!

Seated L to R: Park Yoo Seok, Lee Ho Shik, Lee Seung Woo 

and Chang Kook Jin.

Standing: Me

We had many wild parties of Soju booze and gambling almost every weekend!

Should I post all the wild photos later?

We all lost touch completely after I returned home.

Fate brought me to connect with Joon Sung after 20 years.

Click the link to see this Korean Flower Boy

who was pursued by Japanese Kawais at college.

The missing Korean drunkards reappeared somehow after a 

big search all over Seoul and Busan. 

Now we would talk daily in Kakao Talks! 

Happy again!

.......... 

FAST FORWARD TO JUNE 2015.

..........

It was heart warming to see how my drunkard buddy

has become a dotting daddy instead.

Last week, he drove his young son 

somewhere outside Seoul.

They headed to Youngjong Island 

to relax and have fun.

Here, the father and son were busy digging the mud

during low tides. What were they doing?

Oh My God!! They dug up so much clams.

The clams are fucking huge!!

That's for a week's free dinner.

Kook Jin went home happily and cooked Clams Soup

with Korean spicy vegetables. 

Yums!

Meet the handsome friend Kook Jin who's a Computer Science graduate

from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Now a dotting father,

Expert Chef and lives in Seoul.

I am looking forward to a reunion in Seoul** after my coming trips

to Tokyo and Mount Wutai in China.

**Subject to no MERS.

.......

Happy Father's Day

Last week, it marked the 100th Day of my late mother's death anniversary. It was like a dream to me when I attended the praying sessions conducted by the Thai monks. I sat down on the floor inside the Wat Chetawan Temple with clasped hands and looked at the portrait of my mother's smiling face. I briefly thought over the journey of her life with my father.

They both had a very blissful time being together while going through all the good & turbulent days. They married for over 50 years and never once, they ever quarreled as my father has zero temper. My father had a hard life growing up in Teluk Anson while my mum had a princess lifestyle growing up in Thailand. They made a good & balanced match to waltz their days in the ballroom halls until my mum's last years. 

I have promised her that I will always take care of dad 

while she takes a long rest in the Western Paradise.

.........

My Dad is the greatest influence in my life. 

On my darkest nights, he shone like my torchlight.

I often dozed off with the TV watching me,

He still carried me to sleep.

Dad was there always.

Dad, you have walked a long meaningful life!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY 

....

Enjoy My Own Salsa Sauce & Tortilla Chips

I am an addict for junk food when I watch movies or TV soap dramas! I learnt to eat these American habits while I was a student at the boarding school there. It was an eye opener for me to see how the Americans & foreign Asians from Japan and Korea enjoyed the food while I watched on like an alien from other planets. Soon I became hooked to eating celery dipped into tartar/mayonnaise or tortilla chips dipped into flaming hot salsa sauce!

Over here in our country, I could not afford to buy those imported salsa sauce often as they are too costly unless I could grab any clearance sales! Finally, I decided to try to make my own after hibernating for so long. My classmate once made his own salsa sauce dips during our pot luck dinner and I was so impressed.

I have made my own recently and I am extremely pleased until I must share this simple recipe. Men are Men and we hardly make records for the quantity, so just make your own estimates! I have googled hundreds of recipes and decided these ingredients on my own instincts.

My ingredients - Tomato Paste, Diced Tomatoes, Lemon, Big Onion, Garlic and Green Pepper.

I bought these brands as they are cheapest available. The whole ingredients are less than RM10 and I could easily make 3 big jars like the ones sold in the supermarket.

We are supposed to use fresh Mexican Jalapenos in the original salsa sauce but we don't have fresh ones here and the imported pickled ones are over priced. What the heck! I used our flaming hot chilly sauce instead of red chillies substitute. I prefer the bottled chilly sauce as they have added some vinegar, sugar, salt and whatever which are essential. Just keep pouring the chilly sauce until your lips are burnt with smoke coming out of your mouths!

 My wife who is a strict vegan and small eater could not stop munching all my tortilla chips. She swore that it was the best salsa sauce she had eaten after trying over 5 brands I have purchased. Ahem!

......

Fun Activities On Cruise

It was funny to hear some comments from bloggers who thought that going on cruise was boring besides getting seasick. This Star Cruise Libra may not be the world's largest but it has 10 levels and very wide body. I would be the first to get giddy and vomit but I felt good throughout without any seasick at all. I hardly felt the floor move at all and slept well like a baby with sweet dreams for 3 nights. They have lots & lots of activities for adults and kids to keep them busy but I avoided them all as my life has been hectic enough living in the city. I preferred the entertainments, dining, gymnasium and casino!

1. I had so much fun by just relaxing and dreaming nonsense. Even the aliens came to watch me jump & jump like a monkey! The whole track was suitable for jogging one big round and they have a bigger track & basket ball court on the level below specially for health & gym freaks like Yannie. 

2. I accompanied my wife and her aunt to join the open air dance exercise but there was this Thai Tom Yum cooking demo going on. I had to stop and smell the nice aroma before drinking a bowl of their delicious spicy Tom Yum soup! So shiok!

3. It was a fun exercise for young & old with loud music to keep the tempo going. My 60+ aunty had a blast and enjoyed stomping on the ship! She felt so rejuvenated and mentally good. Later that night she won over a thousand at the casino!

4. There is a small compact gymnasium complete with separate showers and sauna for male and females! We went there everyday as it was fun to be on the highest deck to view the miles of calm oceans while you burn the calories. Both pairs of pink and orange shoes are from Skechers.

5. Everyday I was still snoring in the oceans while my wife jogged many rounds around the ship before sunrise and did her Tai-Chi exercise before joining me for breakfasts at the 3 restaurants of our choice.  Later I dragged my lazy self to the gym for some workout. My wife ate little but vegetarian, so her weight did not increase at all...!!!! I know I was greedy but I was on a holiday, right!

6. Day 02 - The ship docked at Phuket and we had a full day ground tour visiting 3 factories and the beautiful Wat Chalong temple. I just went along to take the opportunity to look-see & learn something from the Bee Farm, Cashew Nuts Factory and Sea Shells Museum. It was quite a boring outing actually as Phuket is actually the world's most happening and crazy place along Patong Beach at night but I ended up buying nonsense from the Bee Farm & Cashew Nuts factory. That's not me! I felt being stung by the bees and tour company which I booked from. No wonder a number of people stayed behind on the ship as they knew what to expect.

7. That was the 2nd time I visited the cashew nut factory! I was smarter and went to eat all their sample bottles of every flavour of cashew nuts and Thai keropoks!!! I filled both my palms full and munched until I was so damn FOOL!!! Heh heh! I also bought the most cashew nuts and carried a big box up the bus!

8. This is a big and nice Thai temple in Phuket - Wat Chalong. The tour guide told us that many bodies of the Tsunami victims are still being kept there awaiting funerals. I went to pray for everyone & world's peace and made small donations.

9. It was my first trip to visit a Sea Shells Museum which is a very huge and educational place for a boring fella like me who could even spend hours gazing at sea shells or even antiques. The bus drove along the countryside and made a stop on the peak for the passengers to view the panoramic view.

10. We had our own dinner at a shopping centre in the town and the bus made its way back to the waiting ship. There were many small stalls lined outside the ship. We shopped for cheap souvenirs and ate some spicy food before jumping into the ship which slowly sailed off at 1:00am!!!

11. I bought some nice T-shirts and Singlets from this stall. The owner's cute sons played outside and waved at me. I dug my pocket and gave them all my loose changes! I was in a generous mood after a small win at the casino too. 

12. The cute boys were dumbfounded but very happy beyond belief. They clasped their "Wai' gesture to thank me. I told them to be good boys and study hard at school.

The next post will be my last for this cruise trip and covers the visit to Krabi.

......

A Visit To Hashima Island @ Nagasaki - Japan

The weather was cold & gloomy during our visit to Japan in Spring as it was under 10 degrees on most days. However, it was a perfect weather when we made our way to Nagasaki to catch a boat to tour the famous ghost island - Hashima Island. So many movies have been filmed there including the current Thai horror movie - "Project Hashima" and also the James Bond's.

 1. We took a 2 hour fast train from Fukuoka City in the morning and jumped onto a tram to reach this part of Nagasaki's town. This quaint town has been beautifully rebuilt from ashes and everyone here lives in a peace loving community.

2. We had to book our boat tickets online before leaving Kuala Lumpur and signed after reading their long list of "Do's & Don'ts" as they fully protect this heritage island which has a rich history. We walked to their sales counters to collect our actual tickets and paid 3,600 Yen each. This lovely harbour lies along the port of Nagasaki.

3. Our cruise boat arrived at last and so many local Japanese from other towns boarded too. 

4. The double decker boat sped off very fast and the cold wind was nice! Far behind are the luxury homes that line the rolling hills of Nagasaki with their windows overlooking the ocean.

 

5. My wifey posed confidently like a Royal Princess of Nagasaki at the East of China sea. There are 505 uninhabited islands in Nagasaki Prefecture alone!

6. Most of the visitors remained on the upper deck to enjoy the sea breeze and panoramic view. 

They looked like penguins as they could stand the extremes of cold wind!

We both humanoid mammals had to retire inside the cabin below as we were frozen like ice cubes.

7. They had 2 young hotties taking turns to explain the whole journey to the visitors in Japanese language. Mitsubishi bought this island in 1890 and started to conduct undersea mines at the surrounding areas for coal until the 1960s when petroleum overtook the coal industry.

8. This lady was bored to death and went to sleep.

9. We finally arrived the Hashima Island after 30 minutes across the blue seas.It is also called Gunkanjima (Battleship Island) due to its shape. This island's peak population reached a total of 5,259 people and they consisted of Japanese and forced labourers from China & Korea.

10. This very young guy with a hat is a friendly Japanese who kindly offered to take our photographs with our camera!

11. The boat lowered its ramp for us to walk around the ghost island.

 

12. They barricaded many areas off for the safety of tourists.

 

13. This crew gentleman was so kind and helpful to explain to us by pointing at the photos using sign languages. I really love the Japanese people as they have the best customer services in the world!

 

14. Their tour guides conducted several stops and briefings to share about the island's history.

There were apartment blocks, school, canteens, look out towers and even a swimming pool before the island was deserted. Everything started to fall apart on its own from the serious damages of typhoons and sea erosion.

15. I thought no dogs or pets were allowed to visit.

  

16. This is a friendly couple from United Kingdom who are both deaf & mute using sign languages & lip reading. When she "heard" that I am from Malaysia, she replied me with flying hands - "Oh that missing aeroplane!!!!!!" OMG!

17. It was an amazing sight to see how the nature's wind and water could inflict so much damages to rip the walls and pillars apart.

 

18. This lady was funny and took so many long zoom shots. 

She was sure she saw a UFO!

19. For the first time, I saw so many birds that looked like eagles or hawks hovering above.

 

20, You can see the thick concrete walls that were built to protect the buildings. Nothing can ever beat the powers of natures lashing storms and disasters. The buildings and its floors still dropped down mysteriously.

21. Now she claimed that Ultra Man flew past Hashima Island too!

22. There is a new light house that sits atop to guide passing ships at night.

23. We had a really great time to explore all the cracks and history of Nagasaki. It's truly a wonderful country with the most polite and gentle people on earth that makes their country even more beautiful.

24. Do you agree that it looks like a Battleship Island? Hope you enjoyed this simple post.

I am in the midst of preparing to blog the following:

1. Kumamoto Castle   2. Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum   

3. Samurai Hosogawa's Mansion   4. Ohori Park's Night Sakura

5. Tenjin's Underground City   6. Hakata Station

7. Hotel's Onsen Bath   8. Nagasaki Peace Park

9. Japanese Wedding   10. Temples in Gion

11. Japanese Doll Making & Folks Stage Play

12. Sofukuji Temple Nagasaki

13. Others

The Charms of Kumamoto Castle

We visited the beautiful Kumamoto Castle this morning by taking the JR fast train from Fukuoka to Kumamoto. I enjoyed the lovely walk across the neat and clean roads that were lined with pretty Sakura trees and Japanese landscapes.

The weather was cold and it was perfect to enjoy long walks in Spring. 

Even bridal couples love to visit this castle to have their wedding photographs taken. When we got married, we also wore traditional Japanese wedding costumes like them. I was told by few psychics that I lived in Japan during my past life. 

This is just a sneak preview and I will post many photos of this lovely castle when I return home to Malaysia. Japan has over 38 famous castles all over the country.

Kyushu Island in Spring 2014

Today is my 4th day in Japan and I have been touring around Kyushu Island which has famous cities and interesting towns like Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Kumamoto and many others. I am loving every minute here with its clean and neat surroundings. The culture of well mannered and polite Japanese certainly makes me happy and love this country too. 

To get the best value for our travels, we just need to be smart to google and ask around friends for the best tips on hotels, transportation and sight seeing spots. Here I am holding the JR Kyushu tickets that gave me unlimited fast train rides around Kyushu Island. It was superb and comfortable trains. 

This blog post will just be a sneak preview only for now. When I get home to Malaysia, I will go lengthy with funny and gory photos to share. The above direction signs at the Atomic Bomb's Museum in Nagasaki will be the topics I shall post in this blog later. Be sure to come back here again!

 It is Spring and there are plenty of Sakura trees in beautiful shades of pink and white everywhere. The feeling is great to admire and smell the freshness of Spring here in Japan.