He's A Big Pig (Yup Yup) You Can Be A Big Pig Too. OI!!

That was a lot of freakin' pig.

But I'll get to that in a moment. First, I have been posting tons of blogs lately, so if you have too much time on your hands check some of the previous blogs. I got a big 6-month wrap up I'll have piping hot by Halloween. Second, I have big news for all of you. I have decided to post pictures here first, and then to MySpace/Facebook. That will ensure timely blogs, as well as giving my dear dear readers first glance at our misadventures. I know, I know... feel free to send thank you cards and notes of adoration.

So I am bothered. Our school has been doing a fairly major job of filming a new commercial. They've had film crews running around, bosses wagging fingers, the whole deal. They used one of our teachers in it, and then another. And today they pulled in the third. They got absolutely no warning. And it's pretty obvious that Jen and I are being left out of this on purpose.

Now, I hate to play the race card. Well, let's be honest. I love to play it. I think it's hilarious. But I hate to play it in a situation like this. But when they pull a teacher who has a history of saying offensive things to students (You will work at a 7-11. Do you understand? You. Will. Work...) and is clearly scrubbed out (jeans with holes, 3 day beard) rather than a well dressed very well liked teacher (Jen, not me. Don't be ridiculous.) then you have to start to wonder...

We've seen it several times out here. Anytime we do anything out in public (handing out flyers, a few other random things) Jen and I are always put to the side. Today it finally got to me.

To be fair, xenophobia runs pretty rampant out here as it is. Several of the other teachers have stories of pretty offensive run ins. One had a story of a mother who, upon seeing him in a major department store, actually screamed and clutched her children to her chest. And he was a six foot white Canadian. It's disappointing.

Mostly, though, on an individual level they're wonderful. I've made some wonderful Korean friends. The little old ladies who live in my apartment building always smile when I say hello, and sometimes they try to shake hands. Not much else to say about it.

Know what would make me happy again? Let's see those pigs again.

A friend of ours, Sean, organized this adventure. This is the second one he's done. He found a restaurant outside the city that provides all the fixins, and a beautiful facility, and all you do is pay and show up. The crowd was wonderful, the food was AMAZING, and all in all it was a wonderful time. Jen and I got another chance to see some folks we hadn't seen in a few months, and met some new people who live right around the corner. All in all, good times. I've got a few other shots to share.











This is Sean with Jen and I (he's the black guy in the middle). He really did a great job on the whole event. We had something around 75 people out there, all foreigners living in Korea. He's a popular guy. Problem was, there was suppose to be 97 people there. With about 25 people bailing out inside of 24 hours, Sean was left with some very nice Korean very seriously looking for another $250. Sean, sap that he is, was ready to foot the bill.




Did I mention I offered to help Sean out with this undertaking? I offered as soon as he told me about it, and I helped a little with some of the prep, and then went out to the site in the first van to make sure everything was clear at the facility while Sean waited back at the meeting spot. Ya'll woulda been proud of me too. I only offered to help. I kept my opinions all to myself. Until the matter of the $250.

See, I've organized an event or two. It SUCKS when folks bail last minute. It sucks bad. But not nearly as bad as having to eat their costs. First, I tried to convince Sean to give me their names and phone numbers so I could go collect the money. He didn't go for that idea. So, instead, I convinced him to let me take up a collection from the folks there.


I raised $350 in about 20 minutes. What can I say? I'm persuasive. And for those of you concerned about what I did with the leftovers, fear not. We just bought more drinks. $33 got us all the pig (and sides) we could eat, and enough beer, soda, and Soju to last us quite a while. Good times were had by all. Here's a few more quick pics.







They had a bunch of animals in cages for you to look at and harass unnecessarily. Here are some rabbits. Also out there were some deer, a chipmunk, and 2 cats on chains. No, I have no idea.




And here we have a Christmas tree, some guitars, a few speakers, and a sombrero all encased in glass. Why? To keep them from escaping! Duh!! Also, to preserve them for future generations. This stuff doesn't grow on trees. Wait...





Here's Jen out on the grounds. Beautiful, right? The grounds aren't bad either. (AHH! See what I did there?)



Elsewhere there were a couple picnic tables in a stream, covered by a tarp. Why the tarp? To keep them dry. Wow, not to swift today, are we?




Here's me in love with meat.


Sunday was also a good day. We toured a palace with Mike and Claire, and then we stumbled across an International Food Festival. Here's some more pictures.


Here's the tour guide. Her English was good, but that outfit looked awfully hot...




In the palace's private garden there was this pavilion, where the king would fish. Every time he caught a fish ceremonial music played. I'm trying to sell Jen on this idea, but she doesn't seem to think finishing a can of coke warrants music. I disagree.




This is a dramatic "East meets West" "Past and Present" picture. Contemplate how you personally destroyed culture all over the world, then scroll down to the pictures of food.





Believe it or not, this was not the American pavilion. There wasn't one, actually. There was a Costco pavilion, but they closed up shop before I could snap a pic. Sorry Dave. I actually can't remember which country this was, but they had fried eggs, french fries, and some kind of meat. They slapped it on toast and sold it for $5. I love this country. But I didn't get that.






I got this. This was at the Uzbekistan tent. And let me tell you, those Uzbekistanis know how to cook some lamb. It was amazing. They served it with onions and some surprisingly good yellow... stuff... Mmmmmmmmmm.....






Also, here's Claire eating nachos with chopsticks.


Ok, I'm spent. I've still got the six month post I'm trying to do. Someone had better be reading these damn things....


I'm not doing slideshows tonight. If you'd like to see more photos of the Pig Roast, click here.

For more pictures of the Palace tour, click here.

Much love folks. Jen and I think of you guys often. And by often, I mean always.

-Al