Saturday, April 18, 2009

The Barefoot Path

Korea is a place with lots of interesting ideas. (However, perhaps that's an understatement. Hehe...) Anyway, I've noticed that several interesting ideas have to do with health. Health is of utmost concern, and I possess the theory that if you want to market a new product or idea, all you have to do is tell people that it's good for their health. Simplicity in advertising, you know...

Sometimes I am of the opinion that Koreans think about health too much. And Americans think about it too little. Perhaps if you combined an American and a Korean, you would have a balanced (and maybe even healthy!) person. Perhaps...

Health does bring about some fun inventions, though--like the barefoot path, for instance. The barefoot path is a path full of differently sized stones and gravel. The stones are meant to trigger the various nerve points in your feet--which I can testify that they actually do!--and improve blood circulation, etc.

So you slide off your shoes at the park and walk across this path on a sunny afternoon. Socks are optional. (Screaming is also optional.) It's really quite the experience. :)

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Black Day

A couple days ago it was Black Day. I had even forgotten it was Black Day until the day was almost half over. Too bad.

Black Day is the opposite of White Day. And White Day is the opposite of Valentine's Day...perhaps...hmmm....maybe I can explain. Maybe...

Valentine's Day is Valentine's Day, except that in Korea girls have to give chocolate to their boyfriends (or prospective boyfriends). Boys give girls nothing.

White Day is March 14, one month after Valentine's Day. White Day is when the girls get paid back for all their effort on Valentine's Day. Boys give their girlfriends (or prospective girlfriends) chocolate on this day. Or giant teddy bears. Or cheesy-looking gift baskets. The streets are littered with outdoor stands to sell these items, and salespeople prance around frequently wearing life-size animal costumes. Needless to say, one must use extreme caution when going outside on White Day. The commercialization even rivals that of Pepero Day!

Black Day occurs on April 14, one month after White Day and two months after Valentine's Day. Black Day is for single people. The commercialization of this day is more subtle. The holiday's primary purpose is to allow single people to sit around and mope—or celebrate, as the case may be—over a bowl of jajamyun (Chinese noodles with black bean sauce) and a bottle of soju (popular Korean alcohol). It is quite unique, and as far as I know, nothing else exists quite like it in the world.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Cherry Blossoms!

I visited Yeouido (an area of Seoul) yesterday morning to see the Cherry Blossom Festival. It was beautiful. Check it out: