Just found out the most exciting news I've heard since landing here in Korea.....you see if there's one thing I've been missing more than anything, its concerts. And no western bands ever come here. Well misfortune just took a 360 degree turn, as my co-worker just informed me that a certain band is coming to Seoul in February and well...they just happen to be my favorite band in the entire world!.......drum roll please... Oasis are playing their first ever show in KOREA!!!
I'm not the kid that follows his band around, rather i'm the kid that the band follows around. I head to England... they headline Glastonbury, it's my birthday...they're playing in Detroit! I head to Korea... they're headlining a Festival in Japan, I'm still in Korea... they're making their first ever appearance.
You know what else made an appearance this week, the weirdest gift ever placed in my hands. Yeah my girlfriend was on the phone the day before last, telling me she had the most incredible christmas gift for me and that I couldn't imagine how happy and surprised I would be. The latter was an understatement! The next day I met up with her, and she has this fair sized present in tow, I'm starting to feel a bit guilty and nervous (it being Christmas eve, my not having anything for her yet and her having some big amazing gift for me). Than the moment of truth comes and she opens up the bag and whips out...a small baby blue pillow, with the most feminine lace surrounding the outside (like lace couldn't possibly be feminine), and in the middle of the pillow is a cross-stitched picture of 'winnie the pooh' sleeping under the moon. Understand I am not good with fake emotion, but I gaver...until she announced the kicker...she wanted to get a picture right away with me holding it. It took a lot for me to refrain from asking her the purpose behind the cruel joke. In looking for any positive sentiments I could dig up, and understanding her passion for cross-stitching all I could muster was "how thoughtful". Immediately a light shone in my head, and I knew what I would hit her back with. So, yesterday I picked up a book from my room that I bought and read a few months back "Five People You Meet in Heaven", (short and rather simple english tale), opened the sleeve wrote 'Merry Christmas' and wrapped it in a black garbage bag. In reception, she offered no mask, flat out offended, and blurted "I can't read this" (to my defense her english is phenomenal and I had no idea), without missing a beat, I retorted "no problem, I'll read it to you". Sure.. "how low of you aaron", but in truth... she gave me a piece of her hobby, so I gave her a piece of my hobby in this country (reading). Make note, I'm not stating this story to de-value or make fun of my girl here, rather I lift the blame from her shoulders and squarely place it on the lack of a gay population in Korea. Lost?...well guys here are so comfortable with their sexuality, its not unfamiliar to regularly spot them holding hands, sitting on each others laps and feeding each other (I'm talking my age). So they don't even question the borders of going overboard! Perfect example, the other day my 'gf' was dead serious in bringing me some pink balloons and couldn't fathom why I refused to accept or hold them.
Christmas Eve here was something else, me and some Western friends went to the 'Outback Steakhouse' for dinner...damn delicious, than 3 of us walked into '7-11' right sober, bought 4 bottles of SOJU (wicked liquor here), pitched a tent in the corner of the store (which was surprisingly packed for CHRISTMAS EVE) and went to town (allowed here). 20 minutes of nonsense later, we walked out of 7-11 shit-faced...
right into "Bubi-Bubi" our favorite Korean nightclub for $10 all you can drink beer...and surprise, surprise the place was busier than any other day of the year. Yeah, I guess the custom in culture is not to spend Christmas with the family, rather with the bottle! We gaver in every respect until 5am.
Hopefully you all Gaverr too. Happy Holidays.
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