More shimmering shrubbery from the Kyobo bookstore. At first the display may not look very impressive, but look to the left of the photo and notice Richard (who stands 6 feet tall) and realize how towering the bushes are and consequently how dramatic the effect.
Another fabulous job by the giant light-puking Christmas fairy!
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Biscotti. Wow! We're under the 10 day mark! With 9 days to go, I optimistically still have fingers and toes crossed for a white Christmas. The temperatures have been right, and there has even been some flurries, but I'm still itching for a good heaping of it, even if it's a last-minute-evening-of-the-24th arrival. So it may not be gingerbread, and it may be using some colours that I don't generally deem traditional, but it's a Christmas cookie none-the-less! One of our local bakeries has quite the selection, including stockings, snowmen and houses! At $4.00 a pop, I could have easily broken the bank indulging my Christmas cookie craving, but instead I'm off to Jen and Jeff's tomorrow for a cookie bake and swap! I'll be wearing elasticized pants for the next couple of weeks... I hope one day I can have four Christmas trees so that I can replicate this display. Even better, a whole driveway lined with Christmas trees so I can alternate the pattern all the way up to my house and keep them up year round much to the annoyance of my family, friends and neighbours. I started to put up lights in my apartment last night and the effect is magical. Am going to finish decorating this weekend, so expect pictures come Monday. Yesterday, while getting ready for school, I stopped for a minute and thought about what I was wearing. Not that I don't think about what I'm wearing most days, but just bear with me for a minute...
This metal work is currently on display along the Cheonggyecheon Stream in downtown Seoul. Some sections stand 3 stories high, and it continues for blocks. Almost every inch of metal work is covered in lights. When I recently walked past during the day, I was amazed. This Wednesday, I am going for an evening walk to take in the full effect. I am stupid excited. On Wednesday, December 19th, South Korean citizens will take to the polls for a presidential election. The election has proven a great discussion topic for my Teacher's Classes as we discuss political platforms (most importantly being a promise to strengthen the economy), a move from a liberal to conservative government preference in the voting community, the candidates' personalities, and most recently the resignation of candidate #5 who opted out to campaign for #2 (the candidates aren't referred to by name, but by their number out of 12). My favorite thing to discuss though, with both my teachers and friends, are the campaign tactics employed by each party to persuade and secure voters. I have seen metro-station "cheerleaders" who stand in formation at entrances and greet hordes of people with a campaign slogan. I have seen supporters march up and down the trains singing and waving all while sporting their candidates sash, as if competing in a pageant. By far though, the most "interesting" tactic has been the use of mobile campaign centers like the one in the picture above. The trucks have been converted to a speech area with large screens and heavy duty sounds systems to project candidate images set to music. But wait a minute, back that picture up a bit and look at the background... That's Sara's apartment building. This particular campaign truck has been sitting in front of Sara's apartment building for the last 10 DAYS!! It starts blasting music at 8:00am on the weekends, 6:00am on weekdays, and doesn't quit until late in the night. Apparently, other candidates thought this was an effective way to reach a large population, and this week, a competing candidate's truck has parked themselves across the street facing Sara's apartment. The music is so loud, Sara likens it to having two televisions on in her apartment. I live one building down on the opposite side of the street, but can still make out every note, bass beat and word coming out of the speakers. I like my quiet time, and these last couple of weeks have been really trying on both Sara's and my patience. Even the ensuing dance-offs held to the competing music by hired campaign girls have lost their ability to impress and amuse me. So, I have started some campaigning of my own. I am encouraging my teachers not to vote for these two candidates as they show a complete disregard for their voters personal space! Can't they just stick to inspiring speeches by supporting celebrities like a normal candidate?!? |
Recently Updated...03.25 - Two posts! About Me...Out and about in the world, teaching others and educating myself. Stuff I Like...Traveling. Cuddling a cat. New toothbrushes. Friends. Socks of the Joanne Younes variety. The smell of sun-dried laundry. Baking. Archives
March 2008
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