It's 1045. I am all packed and about to head off for six days in the Philippines. I have an overnight bus to Incheon and a 730 am flight to Manila. I am very excited to be heading out.
The Philippines is lucky country 13 for me after Canada, the U.S, England, Australia, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan... yup, lucky 13.
Anyway, I am sure it will be a blast with mountains, cities and beaches all with tropical weather (38 and humid I hear).
Next blogs will be about the trip.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
My First Peso's
Not Mexican though, these are Philippine peso's, and as with many Asian currencies they come in massive stacks. It is something I have just had to get used to. I have about $750 worth of peso's. Eight bills in Canada or the US.
But not so in peso's
To be fair that is not THAT unusual in a third world economy. I mean 100 peso's equal about $2.50 USD, yet a t-shirt is 100 peso's and a pint of beer is 30 peso's. I guess you need lots of bills for that. Also, $800 is what most Philippine families make in 2-3 months. I guess they never have stack of cash like us rich fat white guys.
Even Korea only has a $50 bill (50,000 won) so $800 is sixteen bills, and that was only introduced in 2010 (before that it was 80 bills). Japan and Singapore both have reasonable currency denominations but in the Philippines I guess it's wads of well hidden cash.
Anyway, I'm off tomorrow night :)
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Boy I am Busy
My school has started this month and between that, running and extra work I am beyond busy. So much so that I have neglected this blog to a considerable degree. Well here's why:
School. I am in grad school, averaging 15-20 hours a week reading and research. To be honest I have read a lot but not enough has stuck. I think my brain is a bit rusty. Despite that I do have a tentative idea for my first paper and some articles downloaded. Now to find the time to read them.
Work. My actual work is very easy, with test week under way I have a week (actually two) where all my middle school kids are doing tests. So what do i do? Hand them tests and sit down. this accounts for roughly half my classes per week and will until May 6th. However, I have been writing a few storybooks and biographies for future school textbooks. So far I don't know if they have been accepted. I have only submitted two, one a story that really isn't that amazing and a biography of Babe Ruth that I thought was okay. The experience itself was great but I would love it if at least one was accepted. It would be a real accomplishment (and a nice little pay bonus).
Running. My gym workouts have evolved in to more outdoor running as the weather is getting better. I still do some lifting at the gym but I am at the point where I need to be more fit before I can lift more. I have dropped about 12 pounds since my birthday so it is working, but it also eats up lots of time, not to mention it makes me tired.
Philippines. I leave for Manila in twelve days. I would like to be far enough ahead in schoolwork so that I don't have to bring much with me. I am sure I'll need a bit but hopefully no more than an afternoon's worth.
Well anyway that usually has me up at 9 and asleep by 1. It's actually great to be so productive, but it has left me with less time for other things. Those things do unfortunately include this blog. That being said, I'll try to post at least 2-3 times a week.
School. I am in grad school, averaging 15-20 hours a week reading and research. To be honest I have read a lot but not enough has stuck. I think my brain is a bit rusty. Despite that I do have a tentative idea for my first paper and some articles downloaded. Now to find the time to read them.
Work. My actual work is very easy, with test week under way I have a week (actually two) where all my middle school kids are doing tests. So what do i do? Hand them tests and sit down. this accounts for roughly half my classes per week and will until May 6th. However, I have been writing a few storybooks and biographies for future school textbooks. So far I don't know if they have been accepted. I have only submitted two, one a story that really isn't that amazing and a biography of Babe Ruth that I thought was okay. The experience itself was great but I would love it if at least one was accepted. It would be a real accomplishment (and a nice little pay bonus).
Running. My gym workouts have evolved in to more outdoor running as the weather is getting better. I still do some lifting at the gym but I am at the point where I need to be more fit before I can lift more. I have dropped about 12 pounds since my birthday so it is working, but it also eats up lots of time, not to mention it makes me tired.
Philippines. I leave for Manila in twelve days. I would like to be far enough ahead in schoolwork so that I don't have to bring much with me. I am sure I'll need a bit but hopefully no more than an afternoon's worth.
Well anyway that usually has me up at 9 and asleep by 1. It's actually great to be so productive, but it has left me with less time for other things. Those things do unfortunately include this blog. That being said, I'll try to post at least 2-3 times a week.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
More Random Mobile Pics
100 Philippine Peso's (around $2.50). A gift
from my coworker Diana.
Gumi from Geumosan
again
again
Good Aussie Beer
yup
Local Coffee Shop
Again
Cherry Blossoms
Local Park on a Warm Morning
again
Basketball Court With Dirt Ground..... Perfect
Rainy Seoul
Mokdong on a Rainy Morning
Crossing the Han River
Rainy Seoul
Mokdong in the Late Afternoon
Cool Bar Decorations
Instead of a Real Palm Tree....
Hongdae in the Morning
Garfield is Passed Out Again
Haengshin
Daegu on a Spring Afternoon
Again
Seoul Was Not a Front Line This Weekend
This weekend I headed up to Seoul to go to a meeting with my new MA program directors and visit friends, or as CNN would put it, I walked on to the front lines of a major global flash point. Funny, felt like a cool spring weekend in a big city.
Photo evidence of alleged North Korean attacks:
Photo evidence of alleged North Korean attacks:
I reality I took the KTX to Seoul at 8am and went west to Mokdong to meet Kris for a coffee. I then went to Hongkik University to meet Greg and, eventually, Mike to meet and get key info on our new program. It was informative and actually really useful.
Afterwards those boys were out for a big night but I wasn't so I went back to meet Kris, who was a great host. We explored his new neighbourhood around Mokdong, got some food and a few drinks and had a good time. The weather is still not as warm as i wish it was up there, but certainly much nicer than last time (over my birthday, which may have been the coldest weather I have ever experienced).
Anyway a few pics from my phone:
a foggy morning in Mokdong
Mokdong from Omokgyo Station.
Crossing the Han River
Mokdong
Mokdong
View from Bier Garten, a very Koreanized
German bar.
but cool decorations
keeps it cold
Hongdae area Sunday morning...... the threat
from the north seems imminent doesn't it?
(k, I'll stop beating that horse).
Kris in Hongdae
프로야구남 - He will save us from Kim III
It was a great nuclear bomb free weekend in Seoul. I feel ready to dig in to school and I got to the big city for a good weekend.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Headline: North Koreans Prepare for Total War (In 1953, 1956, 1961, 1964, 1972, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1994, 2002, 2009, 2010, 2013)
So yeah, here I am in Korean crisis 2013. The exciting follow up to 2009 and 2010 when the north did all the exact same stuff.
I have to admit, it feels a bit more intense this time, as Koreans are actually talking about it instead of Kpop and Korean dramas. But here's the thing, every time the South Koreans and the US have military drills this happens. Add to that the new president in the south, who is the daughter of former dictator Park Chung Hee and you have a recipe for trouble.
I wrote about the last set of troubles here and here.
Here's what is happening now.
Park Geun Hae, daughter of former president (re: ruthless military dictator) of South Korea has now been elected president. While far more moderate than her father she is still a hardliner with the north. Kim III is also the new king or the north and eager to show off. How Park handles this may well determine her presidency. The North Koreans know this.
War games are also on between the ROK and the United States, and this always prompts a reaction from Pyongyang. In 2010 they shelled an island in South Korea, and this seems like a similar reaction. They talk a big game but lets look at the situation realistically:
Lets say, god forbid, the north actually attacked. They can hit Seoul and cause serious damage, but they would have a hell of a time getting through US and ROK soldiers along the DMZ. their weapons are Brezhnev hand me downs while the US and ROK have modern weapons. They could do damage but the US/ROK response would be overwhelming and final. The US can shoot down their missiles and flatten Pyongyang using submarines stationed in Guam and Hawaii. Add to that the Japanese self defense force, which would be allowed to engage in this circumstance and you have the most one sided fight since the Red Sox/Rockies World Series. The North Koreans know this.
China has 60,000 students in the south now. South Korea is their 4th largest trading partner. They have a vested interest in the south. The north wants handouts and causes them headaches. If the north fired at Seoul they would undoubtedly hit some of these students, who's parents are well connected businessmen and military personnel. How do you think Beijing will react to that? Traditionally it's been with 200,000,000 Red Army soldiers. Heck the Chinese may welcome a united Korea free of US troops on it's border, even if that country is a staunch US ally. There are also 10,000 Russian here, you start killing them? Does Putin strike you as an old softy? The old allies no longer want the north's rhetoric when they can have Hyundai and Samsung. The North Koreans know this.
Of course CNN has us already is a post war rebuilding with Seoul, Tokyo and Pyongyang all in a haze of nuclear fallout, but that is for ratings. The story "North Koreans are at it again" just doesn't sound as good. But the truth is all it does is get America thinking North Korea and a country weary of foreign wars and gross expenditures it may get those Americans wanting a quick peace just to end the conflict. At least North Korea is taken seriously and may be able to haggle for more. The more noise it makes, the more CNN has us staving off WWIII. The North Koreans know this.
So what will happen? China or the US or even the South Koreans will offer them a deal to shut up. They'll take it and then break it and start up nuclear tests again and this will all read just as true in 2016. However the fact is that 90% of the globe is basically on the same page and these last holdouts like North Korea can't last forever. Seoul is a major centre in the global market and South Korea is a major link in the global economy.
So don't listen to CNN, they make money scaring you. Listen to common sense and follow the money trail.
I have to admit, it feels a bit more intense this time, as Koreans are actually talking about it instead of Kpop and Korean dramas. But here's the thing, every time the South Koreans and the US have military drills this happens. Add to that the new president in the south, who is the daughter of former dictator Park Chung Hee and you have a recipe for trouble.
I wrote about the last set of troubles here and here.
Here's what is happening now.
Park Geun Hae, daughter of former president (re: ruthless military dictator) of South Korea has now been elected president. While far more moderate than her father she is still a hardliner with the north. Kim III is also the new king or the north and eager to show off. How Park handles this may well determine her presidency. The North Koreans know this.
War games are also on between the ROK and the United States, and this always prompts a reaction from Pyongyang. In 2010 they shelled an island in South Korea, and this seems like a similar reaction. They talk a big game but lets look at the situation realistically:
Lets say, god forbid, the north actually attacked. They can hit Seoul and cause serious damage, but they would have a hell of a time getting through US and ROK soldiers along the DMZ. their weapons are Brezhnev hand me downs while the US and ROK have modern weapons. They could do damage but the US/ROK response would be overwhelming and final. The US can shoot down their missiles and flatten Pyongyang using submarines stationed in Guam and Hawaii. Add to that the Japanese self defense force, which would be allowed to engage in this circumstance and you have the most one sided fight since the Red Sox/Rockies World Series. The North Koreans know this.
China has 60,000 students in the south now. South Korea is their 4th largest trading partner. They have a vested interest in the south. The north wants handouts and causes them headaches. If the north fired at Seoul they would undoubtedly hit some of these students, who's parents are well connected businessmen and military personnel. How do you think Beijing will react to that? Traditionally it's been with 200,000,000 Red Army soldiers. Heck the Chinese may welcome a united Korea free of US troops on it's border, even if that country is a staunch US ally. There are also 10,000 Russian here, you start killing them? Does Putin strike you as an old softy? The old allies no longer want the north's rhetoric when they can have Hyundai and Samsung. The North Koreans know this.
Of course CNN has us already is a post war rebuilding with Seoul, Tokyo and Pyongyang all in a haze of nuclear fallout, but that is for ratings. The story "North Koreans are at it again" just doesn't sound as good. But the truth is all it does is get America thinking North Korea and a country weary of foreign wars and gross expenditures it may get those Americans wanting a quick peace just to end the conflict. At least North Korea is taken seriously and may be able to haggle for more. The more noise it makes, the more CNN has us staving off WWIII. The North Koreans know this.
So what will happen? China or the US or even the South Koreans will offer them a deal to shut up. They'll take it and then break it and start up nuclear tests again and this will all read just as true in 2016. However the fact is that 90% of the globe is basically on the same page and these last holdouts like North Korea can't last forever. Seoul is a major centre in the global market and South Korea is a major link in the global economy.
So don't listen to CNN, they make money scaring you. Listen to common sense and follow the money trail.
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