Saunas

Perhaps the single most relaxing thing I have ever done is Korea is to spend a couple of hours at the sauna. It's very very nice. There is one large area which is co-ed and has several dry saunas. I usually pop in and out of the saunas half a dozen times over an hour - with a lot of lying around in the common area watching TV. Then in the men's area (and I'm assuming in the women's area as well), there are more dry saunas and steam baths as well as hot, warm, and cold tubs for soaking. The hot baths are great, but the cold bath in the winter is really cold. I think there were little ice cubes floating around tonight. Two hours at the sauna leaves me limp as an overboiled spaghetti noodle.

The social aspect of saunas was for me a real eye-opener. Although I live in Korea and teach Koreans, I don't often see the happy, relaxed interaction of families, couples, and groups of friends that you see at the sauna. For many people, it is an all night or all day experience. People come into the large co-ed area, go into the sauna, laze around and watch TV, eat, sleep, go back into the sauna, chat, sleep, eat, and so on endlessly. Because no one seems to have anywhere to go or anything to do, they are all very relaxed. All the people are in their uniform t-shirt and shorts - often with a towel wrapped around their hair, so there is no concern over appearance. All in all - a very cool experience.

Cheonggyecheon

I have been to the retored Cheonggyecheon River (Stream?) several times since it opened in October last year. I really like it, but I'm always a little torn when trying to decide if the mayor of Seoul did a selfless thing to improve the lives of Seoulites or if he just did something high profile as a stepping stone to the Blue House. At any rate, he did good.

I have walked along parts of the stream several times, but I decided today to walk the whole length of the Cheonggyecheon (about 8.2km). It's still a bit crowded in the downtown area and didn't feel much different from a normal Seoul street; however, the second half of the stream is quieter. The water runs slower, and there are fewer people. I can see the downstream half of the stream supporting fish and fowl. I even saw several pairs of mallard ducks (male and female). They seemed to be scoping the area for nesting spots. That would be really cool, but I dread to think about what the average inhabitant of Seoul would do to nesting ducks (throwing stones and garbage just to see what the ducks do comes most readily to mind). However, I do hope that everyone learns to live together and that the stream brings back some of the nature that is missing from Seoul.







I'm really looking forward to seeing what the stream looks like in the spring when the trees and grasses have grown. I saw one fish jump. Perhaps more will come.

As for my plan to walk the entire stream, perhaps next time. I got about 6km along and decided to take a taxi home. Still, it was a very nice day - somewhat fresh air, a bit of exercise, a touch of nature, and very nice temperature (about 5C).

This post at Cathartidae comes at the right time for me. The entire post is here "Negativity."

"I’m an old-timer here in Korea and I’ve learned that a healthy amount of insouciance while navigating the mean streets of Seoul works wonders in keeping the stress level down. People will bump into you, people will spit, people will stop and talk in the most inconvenient places; what can you do? You can let it tear you up until you are a card-carrying member of the Dave’s ESL Cafe I Hate Korea club, or you can learn to let all the hassles of the day just slide right by you so you can arrive home with a smile on your face.

I just want to holler at these people to get some perspective. In the grand sceme of things, the problems foreigners face in Korea are pretty trivial."

As someone who has had more than a reasonable number of Sidewalk Rage incidents, I really need to lighten up. If you don't believe it, a year ago, I was walking hurriedly along a crowded sidewalk in Kangnam and came upon six people shoulder to shoulder walking slowly down the sidewalk. I went left and they drifted left; I went right and they drifted right; I went left and they drifted left, so I angrily darted around to the right, and, in a move that I couldn't do on purpose if I tried, my left leg came in contact with a concrete block in the middle of the sidewalk (intended to keep cars off the sidewalk) just as my left foot was planted firmly; my right leg pushed off to quickly get around them, and, in the blink of an eye, I was flat on my face on the sidewalk with blood pouring from a 1cm gash on my eyebrow.

In general, I'm not really in a hurry to get to places, and I'm really a slow stroller. I don't know why I get so upset. It really isn't good for me. The people who upset me with their blocking and bumping have no idea what has happened. It doesn't bother them. They don't get to work upset at what happened (since they don't think that anything happened). After being here for years, I have to accept that I will never understand how someone can "look" at me and step in my way and stop to light a cigarette - how someone can be standing in a doorway and see me approaching and not move. I have asked Koreans about what seems to me to be a lack of awareness, and they never know what the hell I'm talking about. This is the reality of Korea. I have often thought that I need to become like water (as I learned in many years of martial arts) and just flow around them. It has helped recently that I have often asked myself how the Dalai Lama would react. I have great respect for him, and I can't imagine him getting upset.

A new beginning

It has been another six months. I'm always a little torn about what to do with this blog. I'd like to write things that are personal and important, but I hesitate to be too open. Hmm. I'm not sure what to do about that.

As for life in Korea, it's not too bad, but not very exciting. School has finished until March 2. The Winter Session was interesting and not too stressful. When it ended, I felt very relaxed and happy. I turned in my grades, and, for the first time, I didn't worry too much about whether I was giving the correct grades. I did the best I could do.

Between this blog and the last one, I guess the only real news has been health related. I have always been active. I played basketball, baseball, and volleyball all through school. I practiced martial arts for quite awhile. I've lifted weights for years. I don't always eat the best, but I'm pretty good. I don't drink too much. And still...I have had problems with my heart for the last six years. It is very frustrating (and oddly embarrassing). The atrial flutter was first noticed in Dubai when I went into the hospital to get a navel hernia fixed (doing leg presses with 440kg was a little too much). Then two years later in Abu Dhabi, the same problem. And last summer (1 year after flutter #2), the atrial flutter cut my summer vacation in Vancouver short and I returned to Seoul to get my third cardio version. I have to say that I find it frustrating that I can't control my body. Then, this year, the flutter was back again (#4). So...I had a radiofrequency ablation done. It was a long and tiring procedure. The success rate for this procedure is about 90%, so I have my fingers crossed that I have been "cured." There may be no identifiable reason for the flutter, but there are three possible triggers that relate to me: alcohol, caffeine, and stress. I can easily control the first two and I have been doing meditation and stress reduction exercises for the third.

I feel a little strange. I have read many books and seen many movies where characters have life changing moments. The first time I had to have the cardioversion done, I was pretty scared. When it was successful, I walked out of the hospital and the sky seemed bluer, the air fresher, and life more precious...for a couple of weeks. I'm now on my third life changing experience and I have to say I feel like a bit of a dolt. Not many people get even one wake-up call. I have had four. My attitude towards life really needs an adjustment. I have read so many books about getting my life in order. I've been a nominal Buddhist and Taoist for years. And still, I worry too much about the future and agonize about the past. I know I shouldn't. I'm really lucky in my life. I have a good job and a good place to live. Many of my colleagues like and respect me for the job I do. I have loved and been loved. My health is good (at least for now). I should be happier.

Next week on Wednesday, I will be going to Ko Chang, Thailand for two weeks. My plan at this time is to do nothing special each day except read, meditate, write, swim, and exercise. I hope that I can at least get started on making some of the changes that I need to. Perhaps it will a time to finally get started on my novel (Where is my muse?).

When I come back, I will start studying Korean again a bit more seriously. I also want to learn to play the piano. I'm a little old for this perhaps, but I touch type quite well, so I have the ability to move my fingers without too much thought. If I get a keyboard and a computer program to teach me, it should help to keep me out of the bars.