With a Little Help

Posted byrandy@letters-to-rachel.memorialPosted inAlong the Way, Retail Therapy, Updates From the Abandoned PlanetTags:, , , , ,

Dearest Rachel –

Well, here we are. It’s wild to realize we’re still only about halfway through our trip around Japan at this point. But for the moment, we aren’t in Japan, which is likely to be more of a challenge for us than you’d think.

As I explained earlier, we can neither read, speak nor otherwise understand a lick of Korean. We have no won to spend on this or that (although we’re trusting that our credit cards will suffice, if it comes to that). We are entirely without resources at the moment. And yet, we’re about to get off the ship, hop on the shuttle bus to the Nampodong district of Busan, and wander around, innocent (and ignorant) as newborn babes.

So, you might ask, why are we doing this? Well, when else are we going to get the chance? We’re here, we ought to make our way around. We’d be wasting our time to just sit around the ship (which, thanks to its small size, we know virtually every customer-facing inch of already) when there’s an entire city out there to take in. Sure, it’s bigger than Chicago in terms of both size and population – and thus, there’s no way we’d be able to take it all in, even if we did understand the language – but we figure we ought to try to take in what we can.

Besides, we’re not completely unarmed as we go out there. This morning, as we prepared to head out, I asked ChatGPT for various hangul and Korean phrases that we could use today. Stuff like ‘hello,’ ‘good morning,’ ‘thank you’ and so forth, along with the various combinations of characters that would let us know what sort of food is on offer here or there. It provided words and phrases for us to use, but also spoke of using translator apps, and recommended a few for us to take a look at. I download several, just to be on the safe side. If I’m going to be using cellular service today, I’m going to get my money’s worth by learning what’s being said on a storefront or a menu, so with a little help from technology, we won’t be completely helpless.

***

There’s some confusion in the parking lot, as two shuttle buses fill up in rapid succession. We’re directed to the second bus, but the driver tells us that we should go to the original buses, and walks us back there, only to be immediately shut down by the driver of the first bus, informing him emphatically that his bus is full.

This is looking to be quite the day, with this auspicious start.

After a few minutes ride, we find ourselves dropped off by the Stanford Hotel, but otherwise, we really don’t have much to go on with regard to how to get back to where we need to be eventually.

Unlike Japan, Korea doesn’t use a lot of Roman characters, and when they do, they can be a little, ah… peculiar.

We circle the block upon disembarking, and find ourselves in front of a cafe, with a sign that seems to be advertising the types of tea. Time to pull out the translation app, and see what it can do:

Our first attempt doesn’t work so well, as we have the received and target languages mixed up. Eventually, we sort it out, and… well, some of it is clear, and others, not so much. It’s better than nothing, but it’s got some kinks to work out of its system.
Speaking of kinks, you may or may not want to know what this curiously-named business turned out to be when we ran it through. Let’s just say it was a more discreet (hence the name) version of a similar shop we saw in Miami, and we somewhat surprised at how open they were.
Daniel comments on the unpleasant smell of the area. When we make our way around the corner we find out why – and why they’re called ‘wet markets.’ One unfortunate catch of the day is trying to jump from its tank to the one next to it, as if that would make any difference.
We resolve to head out in a hurry, and find an entrance to an underground shopping mall. We’re momentarily flummoxed by the bollard in front of the escalator, suggesting that we shouldn’t move forward onto it, but when some locals walk around it and get on, we follow suit.
The halls down here seem to go on forever.

We find ourselves wondering why they would have so much in the way of shopping down here, underground, especially considering how nice the weather is up on the surface.  I suspect some of it might have to do with concerns about Little Rocket Man to the north. And indeed, on later examination, it turns out that on a similar escalator entrance, there is a sign designating the area as a shelter.

There’s also the fact that there’s a certain repetition in what’s being offered for sale; mostly men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, suitcases, and the like.  It may just be that no matter which station you, enter, you get to pick out from the same side of wares.  However, this also means that wherever you are at looks very much the same.  How do you know where to surface?

The prices may seem intimidating, but on further inspection, it turns out that $10 will get you some 13,200 won, so they’re not nearly as scary as they look.  Indeed, most things available for sale appear to be positive bargains. I find myself wondering if the Japanese head over here on any regular basis to go bargain shopping. Then again, maybe that would be considered utterly déclassé in trendy Tokyo; your status might rest as much on where you got something (like Asakasa or the Ginza) as much as what it’s worth.

And then there’s the fact that I and Daniel are representative of the Big and Tall sizes, respectively – especially compared to the average Korean – so we’re not really sure if anything here would fit us, and therefore would be worth buying. I even check out a XXL jersey with an asking price of some ₩15,000, but I’m still not sure if it would fit, and I put it back on the rack.

This is not the jersey in question, although I took this picture to see how long it took you to see what was wrong with it. Engrish at its finest.

After quite a bit of browsing (and aimless walking in general), Daniel manages to find our exit, despite the lack of clear landmarks down here, and the next thing we know, we’re in front of the Stanford hotel again.

So we start wandering around on the surface; including a street dedicated to the international film festival, complete with handprint plaques (a la the Graumann Chinese Theatre) of attendees.

To be sure, we don’t have time for films, nor could we understand them, most likely.  But hey, I’m always up for a good festival. The only problem is, we don’t have any cash. And I had the same problem at an ATM as I did in Aomori. However, after a second failed attempt, we were assisted by a helpful 7-Eleven clerk, who understood just enough English to let us know to press the button for foreign cards, at which point it worked an absolute treat.  I withdraw ₩50,000 (which comes to approximately $40, not including the bank fees), which we now absolutely have to spend before we get on the bus.  As a roundabout means of saying thanks, we do buy a couple of beverages and a snack from him there.

One of the snacks being offered are chicken on a skewer; the proprietor heats the grilled meat with a blowtorch.
We get ourselves both kinds of skewers on offer, and despite the blowtorching, the deep fried chicken was much hotter, temperature-wise. Neither of them was hot, spice-wise, but not for lack of trying on the proprietor’s part; she asked several times. But we know how spicy Korean food tends to be at home; we could only guess how much more it might be where the locals are used to it.
Daniel also expressed interest in the dumplings, which were served with cabbage in a spicy sauce (we’re pretty sure it wasn’t kimchi, because the cabbage was crisp and fresh). Between this and the skewers, this was not chicken and dumplings as we think of them, that’s for sure.
We also got what was touted as a ‘cheese dog’ – actually a stick of mozzarella heavily battered and deep fried. Daniel compared it to the Kong Dog place at home; he spoke of having found its origin. However, he refused to actually compare them, saying that each has its appeal – the Kong Dog has more toppings, but this one has more flavor. Personally, I suspect the atmosphere has something to do with the added flavor.
And for dessert, we had waffles slathered with whipped cream and what I guess to be honey? There’s certainly been a fair amount of the stuff on sale; it seems to be a particular specialty of the region, so why not?

After all this, it turns out that I overestimated how much cash we would need. While that’s generally preferable to being caught short, it’s still a bit of a problem, as it’s not like we can use any of it at any of our other ports of call. I find a baseball cap to use to keep out the rain at subsequent stops, if it proves necessary (although buying it is probably the surest way to guarantee we won’t see a drop of the stuff from here on out), and get a sode for Daniel, as he finished his earlier drink before even getting to the cabbage with its spicy sauce. With all that said and done, we’re left with a ₩5,000 bill and a handful of essentially useless hundred-won coins.

But hey, we had a good time, and we ate pretty well.  Kind of a contrast with yesterday, where we got a lot of culture, but not much to eat.  Sometimes, this is just what one needs.

Anyway, that was our day; I’ll keep in touch as things continue to unfold. Until then, keep an eye on us, and wish us luck. We’re going to need it.

Published by randy@letters-to-rachel.memorial

I am Rachel's husband. Was. I'm still trying to deal with it. I probably always will be.

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  1. Pingback: But Why Repeat Myself? – Letters to Rachel

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