Indonesian Idol show comes to Seoul

I copied this article from (Korea Joongang Daily) on Wed. March, 14, 2012 as written by Kwon Sang-soo.

"Galaxy Superstar," the most popular audition show in Indonesia, will send its final-round contestants to Seoul to compete and also learn how Korean pop stars area made. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said that the final 11 Indonesian contestants to qualify in the preliminary stages and producers of the program will arrive in Seoul on Friday (that is today) and start shooting the show next week. The city government will cooperate with the show in various ways, including by helping to find well-known sites to use as backdrops for shooting. "Galaxy Superstar" is projected to foster potential Asian pop stars that can compete with Korean popular idol groups such as Girls' Generation, Super Junior or KARA. The city government said that the 11 finalists will stay in Seoul for the next six months and perform in famous places such as Myeong-dong, Cheonggye Stream, Gyeongbok Palace, Dongdaemun and Mount Namsan. We've decided to support the program because it is a good opportunity to introduce the city's attractions to potential program fans, " Choi Jeong-hye, an official at the Department of Culture and Tour Design for the city government told the Korean JoongAng Daily. "They will experience the city that created K-Pop over the next six months."
He added that the contestants will have diverse cultural experiences while they are staying in the city such as learning Korean and experiencing jjimjilbang (Korean-style public bath-houses). In addition, the contestants will also experience Korea's K-Pop star training system in a Korean entertainment agency and will receive vocal and dance lessons from professional, Korean trainers.
"Galaxy Superstar" has been airing in Indonesia and many Southeast Asian countries, including Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei since February, and it's been a big hit in those countries.
"We expect to attract Southeast Asian tourists through the show as it is projected to be aired in several Southeast Asian countries," Choi said.

점을 본다 'Fortune Telling'

Although I have to admit that I find this kind of things being interesting.....somehow I have yet to make sure that I do not believe in such things as psychic or any palmistry reading.....^^
Ok...I'm not going to blurt something out about the stuffs. I just want to say that from what I learned from my today's class discussion, I learn that there are lots of Korean people who still find this kind of divine specialties being important in their daily life. I think it makes sense..in a way that mudang or a spiritual sort of healer does exist even in the modern day Korea. Some people do indeed seek advice from someone deemed to possess such power to tell as to whether a certain date or day is good or appropriate enough to do business, to meet a client, to open a store, to have a trip, to get engaged, to get married, to find a job, and the list goes on.....
When I learned about this, I recollect my experiences of being raised in Indonesia where this kind of belief also (Indeed it does) persists.
Some Indonesians believe in dukun (Indonesian word for mudang)
Out of the discussion, I came to a preliminary conclusion that these two cultures share a relatively similar  tendencies of being a spiritual culture--especially in the sense of mudang or dukun's presence in the society.
What I did not find in Indonesia is the fact that.....some people with no previous experiences or learning whatsoever...could suddenly become mudang after he or she got suddenly sick or terribly ill. Some doctors or any modern-day diagnosis would call this person as having a psychological disorder. He or she might have nothing wrong whatsoever with his/her body. It's just....apparently they are okey but they are suffering. Some say...the only solution to cure this kind of illness is for them to succumb or surrender themselves or to accept themselves as the newly appointed mudang. It's a very very interesting remark in Korea's mudang existence.
I also learned that there were artists or singers who later on became mudang after being suffering from this kind of sickness...which to not-everyone's surprise...the only way for them to be cured is by being a mudang. Hmmm...I think this is quite an interesting fact.
Oh..one more thing....there are also numerous kinds of mudang to begin with. Even there is this so-called a child-mudang. Not that the mudang is a child, instead....it was a grown up woman (usually) who is possessed by a child's spirit which later on urge or makes her speak like a child and chant or cast a spell or give a blessing to those who are seeking a future-reading on their fortune.
I think..this one, too, is a very challenging thing to see more.

Bingo??

First, I thought they were doing some kind of Bingo.^^ I was wrong. I was so oblivious that they were actually doing a tracking practice.They were drawing the lines over the dots that once they do so, a series of numbers would appear. A good practice for kids to learn the numbers and how to write them.
So...I thought it was Bingo.
It was almost 11 pm and they insisted on doing this until they finished up to number 60. Eyra and Freya were busy doing this while I had to make sure that they were on time to go to bed afterwards.
One of the good things of being in Korea is that my children can learn both English and Korean at the same time. It was amazing to see how the kids could grasp both languages at the same time. They are now able to count in Indonesian, Javanese, English, and of course....in Korean language. Kids do have a mind of their own in learning new languages. ^^

Today's Discussion Class

Well, I cannot come up with any good idea of how to put the term 기부입학 (gibuibhak) is in English. Anyway...this was just a term or a topic that I did in my class this morning. Every Thursday, we have a discussion class where we had to talk about a certain topic. Today, the topic was about this gibuibhak. It was a difficult topic to deal with. But I think our class seemed to do it quite well..considering the facts that we were not that exposed to the topic--let alone about this issue in Korea.
So, I learned that this topic has steered a lot of heating debates across Korea in the past two years or so. Despite the fact that it is legally prohibited in Korea, it is still obscure as to whether there are (were) universities practicing this. Anyway, we did a lot of great stuffs to talk about.

I love Thursdays because --despite its being difficult for me, for we need to talk in Korean.
Let me see what I remembered from the class today. It was so tough that we needed to use new terms to describe our ideas on the issue. It's a relief that our sonsaengnim did a good job of 'insisting'+ pushing+demanding+encouraging us to use all possible ways and ideas to express our ideas.
To give an idea of what we did in the class, here is the picture of how our ideas were transformed and expressed as seen on the whiteboard^^

White Day in Korea

Now...what?
Ok Ok Ok....there are so many this day and that day in Korea. wait...I do not mean any other day that most countries in the world would celebrate.....but....just like.....the one I wrote about PEPERO DAY. Then....of course there was the Valentine's Day. Then....now...today..we *need* to celebrate this so-called WHITE DAY. Now...what^^
ok...to get start with...
Girls are supposed to give chocolate to their male friends or boyfriends on Valentine's Day. Then...as an answer day or reply day....for any male to give back to the girls who have given them chocolate...in turn...they need to wait for one month e.g. today March 14, ......to give them white chocolate as an exchange of attention or love (if there is) ^^. Although apparently most of the gifts are candies...instead of chocolate, the day is still called "White Day"
I learn that this Day is celebrated across Korea, Japan (the origin of White Day), Taiwan, and some parts of China.

But for Korea...this White Day has transcended into the realms and minds of young people and children (oh no..^^) who thought of having to prepare some candies for their friends. So, the shops and most of convenience stores are preparing themselves with racks and sacks of colorful candies imaginable.
Ok...These are the pictures of the candies that I bought simply out of our curiosity^^
Hmmm....White Day.
--Now...what comes next ....one month later....on April 14 would be more challenging and tantalizing....^^
it is....Black Day " a special day for those who are singled-out....who neither received chocolate on Valentine's Day nor white chocolate or candies on today's White Day.
What an endless array of simultaneous days to commemorate the young at hearts who are in joys of having their own terms of endearment^^
OK..this is --I guess-- one of the excitements of living in Korea...to simply experience it. ^^

"집으로" "Going (to) Home" Movie...

Yes...it's been a few years ago since I watched this movie. This movie had left me with an impressive feeling of wanting to go back home and embrace the warmth of my grandma.
oh..one more thing...this is the very movie that introduced me to the sweetness of Choco Pie^^ (Korean snack that has delved into the realm of every child (including me) who watched the movie.
First thing first, this movie has no famous star starring in it. No one. The director (Ms. Lee Jeong Hyang) -- I think-- had a different purpose of doing this. Well, it turned out that the movie was such a great and moving story about two unlikely couple (a grandmother and his grandson ----wait for it-----whom he never taken care of before).

Ok.....
The movie starts with a mere and simple plot actually. It all comes down to the point of what would an 8-year old grandson-- brought up and raised in a city-- do when he has to live for 2 months with his grandmother in a remote village out of nowhere. The common expectation would be....would they be able to stand and bear to live with each other?
The movie's simplicity turns out to be the strength of the movie itself. I love it sooo much. I kept guessing of what would the boy do next or what would the 77-year old grandmother do to please her grandson who seems to have no manner whatsoever.

Although the tone of the movie is sometimes a bit long overdrawn into monotonous portrayal of a serene village life, it is the monotonous depiction that also makes the movie gain its strength. and I think the director did well on this.
Oh, did I mention that.....the grandmother is played by a real grandmother who lives in a village...she never played on any movie before....even I guess...she'd never been to Seoul herself (maybe). So,....the coming of her grandson (Sangu) really turns her life upside down. She never manages to comprehend what her grandson says or does. He brings along with him....robot, toys, and a kind of video game that really preoccupies most of his time---disregarding what his grandmother says and asks him to do.
Poor the old woman...for her grandson seems to ignore her most of the time.
But...this is the central point of the movie itself.
I feel pity for the grandmother...but on the other hand....what can I expect for a city boy who never knows or simply indifferent or unaware of the consequences of what he wants or does.

I remember interesting moments from the movie:
first: the time when Sangu has to go to hwajangsil or byeonsil. Well, of course in the village (back then..I guess)..there are no such things as hwajangsil like the one that city people have. Those in the remote village where he is now.....is far apart from the house. So, he has no other choice but to go outside whenever he wants to go to the byeonsil ^^. To make matter worse, it is dark outside. So,.....no other choice......but........to have his natural call.....in the house...!! THank God...his understanding grandmother provides a kind of small bowl. Oh...NOooo...what a sight! But. ...it was so funny.

Then...
second: the time when Sangu wants to eat chicken..fried chicken like the one he has back home in the city.....^^ like that in KFC! Instead of asking her mother to cook or prepare him takgoki (Korean word for chicken), he uses an English word "chicken" in Korean pronunciation "chikin". So, there starts a series of misunderstanding ..one after another...until finally....her grandmother prepares him a kind of whole chicken boiled in a stew like soup. ^^
Funnily entertaining.
This really portrays the generation gap of Korean society back then.
I wonder if this situation still could persist in Korea. ( I doubt it).
But...back to the movie....
The series of unfortunate messes...one after another...during the whole movie....really got me.
I was so deeply touched by how a simple and ordinary life being portrayed in the movie imbued by the power of love and devotion as shown by a simple grandmother has finally been able to change and melt away the stubborn boy who at first ......ignores and disrespect his grandmother.
The communication gap and the possible misfortunes that may arise between the two people.....are solved through the power of love...a simple one.
Gosh....I want to go back and hug my grandmother and mom...when I see the movie.
I was crying at the end of the movie. Happy and a kind of mixed feeling of .....being involved in the journey to the home where heart is......

Is this Korean movie worth-watching, then? DEFINITELY:) ^^

John Carter 존카터 @Lotte Cinema

Finally I made it. I came. I saw. I was glee-ed^^ by John Carter. Being a movie-freak, I used to watch movie a.k.a. going to movies twice or at least once a week back home in Jogjakarta. But now, since I am living in Korea--where the price of movie ticket is 8 times more expensive than that of Indonesia's-- I have to admit it...that I am no longer a movie freak in cinema. ^^
I rarely go to the cinemas.
Well, the price of movie ticket is 8,000 Won. But, since the emergence and the lucrative market for the highly hype 3D movies set into the minds of movie's marketing world.....more and more 3D movies are released.....along with it pricey ticket.....which...in term of Korea: it is 13,000 Won. Well, of course....for the Korean standard...it is still inexpensive. But, still...for a movie-freak (oh noooooo)...it is not cheap. ^^.....^^......:)
So, I have to make sure that I choose what I see.

Last month, I saw Mission Impossible.
This month, ( what I mean by two days ago.....^^) I just watched John Carter 족 카터  in 3D.
LOTTE Cinema is one of the places where I mostly watch movies. I'm glad that it just takes about 15 minutes or so from home to reach this place at Cheongnyangni. I think Lotte Cinema provides one of the best one-stop entertainment services in the areas. By having this in my vicinity, it is not necessary for me to go as far as downtown Chongno or Gangnam to see movies. Good.
It saves time and money, too.
Oh...by having Lotte card membership, one can also get a point and keep our points increased in order to redeem them in the form of any services available.
Well, the experiences of watching movies in Seoul, like the one I usually have right here in Cheongnyangni's Lotte Cinema is worth-pondering and worth-citing about.

Oh, one more thing...this particular movie that I saw....is worth-watching. Despite the mixed reviews which tend to vaguely discern the movie, I myself portrayed the movie as the perfect escapism to Mars or Basoom(?) as Martian call it.

Robocar Poli

My daughters have been crazy head over heels about Korea-made characters e.g. Tayo ( the talking bus); Pororo (the cute penguin); and now...they like  the Robocar Poli & her friends in the world of the talking vehicle, ambulance, fire trucks and helicopter)...Since they like them so much, it is at times....a bit hard from them to get themselves get away from TV or internet......simply to do something else. So, I might as well make sure that they learn something out of it. One thing for sure, they are now learning Korean and are getting used to listening Korean  language. Good., then.

Apart from that, now they started to make their own version of the characters out of the  play doh. It was another good advantage of  their so-called 'infatuation' to the characters. I think Eyra's   preoccupation with them has --to some extent-- extended her imagination and creativity. It's a good thing, then.

Well, then...it is a bit of view of what Poli looks like^^

Korean Rice

 Korea Rice or 우리나라의 쌀 or 한국의 밥 or 한국인의 밥... well....it depends on how Korean people describe their own staple food....which is no other than rice itself.
Now...I would like to share my story about what we've been eating for the past 4 months or so.
Since we come from Southeast Asia, we were used to having our kind of rice. So, it was a good thing that we end up finding Thailand rice right here in Seoul.
So, we've been consuming the kind of rice that we used to have back home.
It was a good thing at first.
But...as things went by.....we are so accustomed to having and eating Southeast Asian rice...THAT...(wait for it)......whenever we dine out and eat Korean rice...we feel the kind of different feeling of excitement and fulfillment^^. We felt like..we found something more tempting and palatable.
Upon finding ourselves got hooked up with Korean rice, we ...afterwards...decided that as soon as we finished cooking or using up all of the S.E. rice that we stocked, we would buy Korean rice. After all, we all live in Seoul right now.

So, yesterday was the first time ever that we bought Korean rice. Oh, gosh...Korean rice is expensive. But, we got a great deal yesterday at Jillo Mart 진로마트 near our residence.So, we rushed ourselves there and bought a 20-kg pack of Korean rice. 청원쌀^^
It cost only 27,900 Won /sack. Well, the average price of a 20-kg sack of rice is around 40,000 Won. so, I thought it was a great deal, which was too good to resist.
So,.....upon buying it, Wawan's wife and my wife were busy sharing the rice we just bought.
And today...I tasted the first ever....home-made Korean rice.
^^
행복해.

Dinner with friends @하늘과 산

하늘과 산 .....gosh..I hope I spelled it right...or wait...I hope I wrote the name of the restaurant correctly.
I've been here several times...but the irresistible taste of the food itself...has hindered me from remembering the name. Weird, eh? But, that's true.

So....this time.....Ms. Cha Heeran (my colleague) who was having a volunteer career at my hometown-Jogjakarta--had invited me to celebrate my B'day...^^ and my daughter's being a student right here in Korea.
So, me and my family, Ms. Cha..of course, Min Seonhee, and Wawan & his wife....were having a dinner together today.
We had this delicacies that this restaurant is famous for. It was....영양 돌솥비빔밥 or mixed rice full of nutrition. What a name! But..that's what it's called.
Since I happen to be a vegetarian, this meal was a sumptuous treat for me, especially.
The quick service and the warm ondol floor helped us settle down and enjoy the warmth of the restaurant......(it was terribly so cold again today....and the wind was blowing so fast).
The one-hour dinner went well with all of us feeling so fully happy.

The great thing about being together like this..was that.....Korean '정' was there the moment we seized and had it. My friends' warmth in the midst of the cool early spring has somewhat warmed up the sense of being taken care of in a foreign country....which has become not a foreign no more.
This evening, it has proven me that friends are what we have become.
The more we value our friendship, the better we live.....
Thank you for all of my dearest friends who share my happiness in this life.