How long was I asleep?

I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of clapping hands, tacky Korean songs, and some dude yelling in a mike. It felt as if someone was slowly bolting a screw in my brain. I hate Korean elections because they are LOUD.

Lee Myung-Bak was recently elected Korean President, and it is now time for the National Assembly. In any Korean election, each party is assigned a number (you vote for number 4, you talk about number 3, you discuss number 6’s recent scandal, names don’t really matter), and stands representing the candidates are set all over the country.

The stands display big screens showing the candidate doing community work, reaching out to minorities, shaking hands with the elderly… you name it. Right in front of it there are between 5 and 10 people wearing the party’s colors, dancing and singing the theme song (usually a pop song they’ve adapted the lyrics to), their hands up in the air. It’s just loud and funny to watch.

Thus I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of loudspeakers yelling a candidate’s name and I was pissed. Friday night Bill and I had been to La Vie for a few drinks, and met with Amanda, Danila, Julia, Woody and Arielle at Baghdad Café just to share a few laughs until 2am.

In the intent of being ready for the Blue Agave’s 80s night, I had planned to stay home all Saturday. However, Bill and Amanda showed up for some banana pancakes I had made with (incredibly expensive) organic flour and eggs. As I was about to nap, Mr. Lee called to say he couldn’t find my scooter.

Indeed, as I was riding home Friday night, my tire blew up on the highway. Yes, a flat tire at 100km/hour is scary. Fortunately, my co-worker wasn’t too far behind and he gave me a ride home. The problem is that the highway we were on is brand new and not even on the map so I had to get a cab to meet up with Mr. Lee and show him the way. 2 hours that took. 2 hours!

By the time I got home, I had to get ready to go to Kendra’s potluck and quickly cook my infamous shrimp/kimchi/chives pancakes. The potluck was relatively boring, but the food was alright. We ended up going to La Vie to see Joey, Hugh and Minyoung’s performance – all very entertaining (Minyoung has an amazing voice, especially when she sings Rufus Wainwright’s “Halleluiah”)- mainly Hugh’s song “shitting in the woods”.

A lot of fun, a lot of lovin’! It’s insane to walk into a place and know everyone there, all the hundred-something foreigners on the island. Blue Agave was packed and I can’t really say it felt like the 80s – except maybe for the music Jeremy played (he's my favorite (and only!) French-Canadian on the island), and a few people totally looking swell hehe

As I went home around 6am after disgusting McDonald’s with Tim, Isaac, Jeff and Candice, I just passed out.

And then I woke up.

It was already sunset , and by the time I stepped outside, the night had fallen. I was amazed with the fresh smell of the air and the sight of a cherry blossom fully bloomed right next to my apartment building. How long had I been sleeping? How come I had never noticed it before?

I walked to Mr. Lee’s bike shop to pick up my scooter and drove to the ocean. It was windy, it smelled salty and fishy and I loved it. I took a walk along the beach for a while, and then headed to a flower shop where I bought beautiful plants… and roses for me!

After weeks of walking like a zombie, with my eyes closed all the time (figuratively speaking of course), I was finally awake. Everything started making sense again, I stopped worrying about what others think about me, I stopped trying to please everyone, I stopped pretending to be someone I’m not, and I started feeling incredibly peaceful.

I only have 5 months left on the island, and I’m so excited about summer – taking diving lessons with Paul and Amanda, snorkeling on the beach, having beers by the sea with my people, driving around Jeju, hiking, hell even sailing!

This morning I even took the shore road to work, wondering why I don’t ever do this. Maybe it’s because I save half an hour if I take the highway. But what’s half an hour, compared to driving by the ocean, catching a glimpse of some women diving, listening to the waves breaking on the shore, and the familiar smell of the sea – which recently brought back memories of summer vacations with my family.

Got a busy week, with simlabs starting again, a soccer game Wednesday night (Jeju vs. Busan), meditation on Thursday, and Sunny coming over from Seoul for the week-end. It’s also the Cherry Blossom festival this Saturday! I’m going to start going to Korean classes next Monday (7-9pm) and keep knitting with Julia every Tuesday. I’m thinking about doing rock climbing with Dan if the class is not too advanced… I’m fully prep, doing weights in my classroom ;)

On a final note, here are some of my students playing dodge ball and Scrabble on game day… notice the boy on the right… yes, it’s a perm! And that’s little Joe doing his work while everyone else is playing :( He’s so adorable, always smiling, yelling “Yes teacher I understand!”, bringing me food, giving me hugs, but unfortunately he is also a very slow learner (or he just doesn’t give a damn about English!)…

Getting high, sexually aroused, and more just by drinking water!

From DemocracyNow!

Totally freaks me out...

• Anti-epileptics were found in the drinking water of Southern California;
• a sex hormone was found in San Francisco’s water;
• three medications and an antibiotic were found in the water supply of Tuscon, Arizona;
• and a mood stabilizer was found in the water of New Jersey.

And that’s just to name a few. An exhaustive five-month investigation by Associated Press has found the drinking water in at least twenty-four major American cities across the country contains trace amounts of a wide array of pharmaceuticals. More info here.

7 months already!

And...another amazing sunset on my way back from Hallim!
It's been almost three weeks since I came back from Bali and things have been pretty much the same - except that I spend more time with friends, i'm learning knitting, attending a meditation class and planning to take diving lessons.


Last week was Ahsleigh's birthday party at La Vie (delicious BLT!), Friday night was Alicia and Kyle's housewarming potluck, Saturday was Jamie's birthday party (at a house he rented for the occasion!), and Monday was work dinner - which turned into a late night at a hof with Amanda, Bill, and newbies Arielle and Tim. A whole lot of fun!


I was also happy to see my lovely students and start a new semester! That's my ABC class trying to line up the alphabet with both big and small letters ;)

I spent Sunday afternoon enjoying the sight of the ocean on a (very) gray day and hiking this small hill at Hamdeok - where there are a few graves at the top, one of them locked in some barbel wire...

Upon my return on Jeju island, I thought the next 5 months (yes, only 5 months left!) would suck because my experience in Bali had opened my eyes (more than ever) to a "new" reality - one of freedom, open-mindness and discoveries - which I thought could not take place in my world, where I have to work and can barely find time to spare.

In a way, I had escaped my everyday routine by going on this trip, and it sure caught up very quickly as soon as I step foot on the island. Luckily, Lisa lent me this book called "The Four Agreements". It's written by Miguel Ruiz and it's got great insights on life and how to simply be happy. I thought I'd share them:

1. Be Impeccable With Your Word
   Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
   


2. Don't Take Anything Personally
   Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.
   


3. Don't Make Assumptions
   Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
   


4. Always Do Your Best
   Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.

Hindu New Year in Bali

As I am writing this last post about my trip to Indonesia, reality has already sucked me back into my Jeju life, and sharing those stories definitely helps keep the memories alive.

My bad luck turned as I was on a ferry back from Lombok – indeed the cheap alternative (12$ including hotel pick-up and 5-hour ferry ride) to the 40$ airplane (which didn’t even include airport taxes!)

I met a peculiar Philippino who got his diving license drunk, and who is also known as a dentist in San Diego. Juan is a hilarious guy, and he’d always get out of the van every time we were picking somebody up. So of course it had to happen: everyone forgot about him and half an hour later we saw him from afar, riding on some Balinese guy’s motorbike.

It’s also on that boat that I met the most atypical French – a guy and his wife who have a tepee hostel on a farm back in Europe. He was playing a two-string mandolin and smoking his pipe, a real character!


We got off the boat and headed to the love of my life, Ubud. For only 2$, I sat on the front seat of a van, between the driver and some guy, while the transmission stick kept hitting my thighs. It smelled like gas and sweat (thanks to thecountless people sitting in the back) and lasted for a good two hours.

The search for a hotel wasn’t easy, but we finally ended up on Kajeng road, at a lovely hotel called Puri Bebengan – 5$ a night, breakfast and swimming pool included! Nearby, the monsters were still being built and they looked awesome!


The preparation for Hindu New Year had been going on for a while, and everyone including kids wore the traditional Balinese costume. During the few days Patrick and I had spent together, we had seen gatherings at temples, and women carrying offerings.




One thing to know about Hinduism is the belief in good and evil spirits. The Balinese believe that in order to rid the island of evil spirits, they must make offerings every single day. Thus it is no surprise to find everywhere (sidewalks, statues, doorsteps, stairways, etc.) little baskets made out of banana leaves, filled with flowers, rice, fruit and such things. There also usually is incense burning – which explains why it always smells good on the streets of Bali.

Dogs are also an interesting part of Balinese culture – countless dogs are all over the streets, even sleeping in the middle of the road at night. They eat the offerings too. Yet no one does anything about it because the theory is:

Dogs are eating the offerings so maybe they are evil spirits . But maybe they’re not, and maybe they’re just your reincarnated grandfather. So people decide not to take the chance of ruining their karma and let the dogs be. As a result, hundreds of dogs are running around all over the island, many carrying diseases and almost causing car accidents.

Animals are just all over the place!

Women in Bali always carry stuff on their head – which is sometimes quite impressive considering the huge load of vegetables or anything else they carry. They believe that it is good for one’s posture, and most of them do it without even holding the basket with their hands. Their spinalcord is straight as can be!

Before Hindu New Year, I spent a lot of time with Christian (Papillon is his nickname) and Christine, the French couple, and Amandine and Arnaud, another couple from France.

We would often go to Balina Langoon, this exquisite restaurant by our hotel on Kajeng Road, where the food is delicious and cheap! For instance, fried rice with vegetables and an egg for 1.40$, and a tasty avocado salad for only a buck.

We also went a few times to Bali Buddha, a candle-lit lounge where they serve health tonics, vegetarian meals, and the oh-so-good Minessota pizza – sundried tomatoes, basil and goat cheese! Downstairs there’s a market that sells fresh organic fruit and vegetables, as well as other organic stuff. Bali Buddha is east of the center.

We also witness some scary little shadow play in prepration for Hindu New Year – it was at a temple, near Ubud Palace, and even if you don’t understand Balinese, you can tell by the voice that it’s like one of those kids’ plays to teach them a lesson about evil. Check it out:



I walked around quite a lot and enjoyed the endless rice fields that surround Ubud. I felt incredible inner peace as I was strolling along rice paddies, in the silence of nature. It was beautiful and so cute to see flocks of ducks dandling across the fields.




The only sad sight was that of the cows – which cannot run free in the rice fields. Thus they are locked and tied in some tiny bamboo habitat and basically don’t move around at all. Some people say cows are stupid but whatever, it broke my heart.

North of Kajeng Road the rice fields were kind of upper-class, with gigantic properties rented to famous Westerners. One of them, in particular, had a very interesting statue at the entrance.






Once again I was stunned by the sight of some woman carrying a huge load on her head… without even holding it with her hands!

The waterfalls running in the forest near the rice field were exquisite. Unfortunately, some random dogs saw me from afar and chased me out of their territory. That happened quite often in those fields, as the dogs get very territorial. The only thing is that I had never felt such rage in a dog’s bark and was simply terrified.

On the other hand, I did see beautiful creatures…


… and something incredibly sad. Two ducks were stuck in this crappy little tent (don’t know much about farming so I’ve got no clue why), and their pals were outside, “couacking” and seeming quite confused.

Back in my hotel room, I also discovered another creature which I have come to love because it apparently feeds off mosquitoes. Geckos are harmless, but they do look scary when they’re that huge!

And this outstanding spider that scared the hell out of me as I was putting lotion on by the swimming pool...
Kajeng Road is paved with personalized tiles from hotels, restaurants, and even tourists – so imagine my surprise when I stumbled across this one which reads “Vive le Quebec Libre!” (Long live free Quebec) In Indonesia…!? Wtf!

Then came Hindu New Year, a glorious celebration full of cheers, dancing and partying.

Every city on the island had built giant paper monsters. The Baliene believe that by parading them on the street, they raise awareness among the crowds that evil spirit can take many forms, while flattering the actual evil spirits looking down on the island.

That night, after the celebrations, they take them back to where they built them, and leave them there for a day. The next day is called “silence day” – yes, a day of SILENCE!

No cars, motorcycles or even people are allowed on the street. And believe me, the Balienese are very serious about that. People stay home, meditate and catch up on their sleep.

The reson for silence day is that the Balinese believe that on that very day, evil spirits will hover around the island. When they see the big paper monsters, they’ll think “oh, my buddy’s already here!” and when they see the deserted streets, they’ll believe there is no one, no human, to bother. So according to the Balinese, the evil spirits will go away and leave the island in peace for another year.

How cute is that!?

That's what the evil spirits looked like at the parade (notice the ONLY woman and how sluddy she looks... some evil impersonification of Western women...?):





The cutest part was to see EVERYONE take part in the parade! Everyone, including children! Building a big monster takes between 1 and 3 months, and it may seem childish to some Westerners, but the Balinese are very serious about it.

I made quite a few videos, and as you can see on this one, the spirit of the crowd was incredibly strong!



The next day (silence day), we played pool volley-ball, got tanned and ate our take-outs (all the stores are closed so we had to think ahead about lunch and dinner). We also hung out with some odd French-British couple and played “trou de cul” (asshol card game) for hours.



I had planned to leave early on Saturday and go to a beach before leaving, but I changed my mind and stayed in Ubud (to experience, among other things, a mind-blowing massage!). JAL wouldn’t let me change my plane ticket, so I flew back to Jeju that very day, after a 7-hour flight, 4-hour layover in Seoul, as well as 3 hours waiting in Tokyo (where one can find massage chairs for 5 bucks/10 minutes!)


Lisa picked me up at the airport and we went for sushi. That’s when I heard “Hello!! Hello!!” and I knew I was definitely back in Korea…