Monday, March 23, 2009

I spy with my little eye...

In order to register as an alien of Korea there a few hoops you have to jump through. One being the invasive medical check that requires a veil of blood (my arm still looks like I’m a IV user), a cup of urine, HIV test, drug screening, chest x-ray, color blind test, eye exam and a measurement of my bust line (not quite sure about this one). I picked up my results a few days later from the hospital and I was relieved to find I passed! I don’t what any of these tests have to do with my teaching abilities, seeing how they are almost exclusively required for foreign English teachers, it seems to be Korea’s safeguard against disabled drug using westerners teaching their children.
I had to take my medical report directly to the immigration office in order to apply for my residency so I can obtain important things like a cell phone and Internet service in my apartment. I’ve been in no rush to accomplish either of these things seeing how it is much cheaper to steal Internet from my neighbors and I am enjoying the flashback to life before cell phones. I can honestly count the times I have touched a phone in the past 9 weeks and I am coping quite well. It’s amazing when you actually have to pick a place and time to meet someone and then follow through! You can’t call and cancel or shoot a text that you’re running late; I think it is improving my character.
With all my recent travels to and from the hospital and immigration. I’ve had some time to do some quality people watching. I have been making some interesting and very general observations about my fellow Seoulites. I first have to mention the fashion, before I came I had no idea what to expect. Would it be like the funky style of Tokyo or would be an out-dated version of America?
I quickly learned Korean have a style all their own. It might just be the city thing but I never feel shame walking home wearing my clothes from the night before because everyone is else is dressed up too! The color palate is mostly mute tones and hair colors range from black to dark brown. There is either a serious eye sight epidemic or glasses are the newest fashion accessory because I say about 60% of people here wear glasses. They are mostly funky thick Ray Ban frames that may or may not have actual prescription lens in them. So here are some general ideas for those of you that are curious what is gonna on in the fashion realm over here:
Women: Black tights and super cute high heels are a must, along with a sport leather jacket. An expensive bag, preferably Gucci, Louis Vuitton or Coach, are essential. A clean classy look, oversized sweaters and blouses but still feminine. Think New York City minus the crazy funk.
Men: I find the men’s fashion way more fascinating. They defiantly take their clothes just as serious as the women, designer jeans and the latest tennies. Preppy sweaters under fitted blazers and a baseball hat (usually Yankee’s and I can’t tell if Koreans love NY or they have no clue what their wearing). But my favorite thing about the men has to be the man purse also referred to as a man bag. Since I am going through ladyboy withdrawals man bags are the closest thing I get to androgynous behavior. Man purses came in various shapes and styles and are carried by the young, old, student and professional. There is the over the shoulder bag, hang at the side bag, the clutch and it might be a women’s purse being carried by a man but the same designer rules apply to men as to women, so Gucci and Louis are the most desirable.
Okay that’s enough about clothes (that ones just for my fashion divas) another thing I’ve noticed about Koreans is that they are absolutely obsessed with their cell phones. I mean people in So-cal are too but this takes it to a new level. It is completely appropriate to pick up your cell phone at anytime, i.e. staff meetings, while your teaching, mid conversation and any other time it rings. If their not directly talking to someone, they are texting, and if their not texting, their checking their phone to make sure their not receiving any incoming messages. If communication isn’t possible then they have their headphones in, antenna up and are watching TV on their 2in cell phone screens, which is probably one of the reasons they are all wearing glasses. But what cracks me up the most is the cell phone jewelry. Every single phone no matter if you’re a grandma, serious CEO, or a fifteen year old boy you have shit hanging from your cell phone. I really can’t even tell you what it is, sometime their pointless key chains, mirrors, USB cards, good luck charms, screen cleaners or subway cards. As much as I would like to say I wont join this group of idiots with bedazzled phones. I think it is almost inevitable that I will. I am sure I will find some charm that I just cant live without it hanging from my phone.

2 comments:

  1. Maddy this cracked me up when i read it! im really confused by the man purses here too, at first maybe they were carrying them for their girlfriends but then i noticed that the girls all had purses. and where are these brown-haired people? i see lots and lots of black with glasses. i just though all asians had bad eyes so dont know about whether they lenses are real or not

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love this... it could be in a fashion mag. I totally see brown hair everywhere too. Is it dyed or natural, do you think? And man purses are amazing! I love how Koreans dress but it also makes me angry bc I feel frumpy every time I step out of my apartment.

    Still loving life without a phone after friday??

    ReplyDelete