I have yet to see a Korean bus driver ‘soil’s a stop the buses are only _just_ coming out as automatics.  This means drivers have to know manual transmissions.

Now, being a car enthusiast, I prefer them as they allow me to ‘become one with the machine’. There is a certain awareness that one can achieve when they have to be more conscious about what choices to make while driving.  I would say that people who can drive manual transmission cars are generally better drivers.  Generally.

When people do not take the extra effort to continuosly improve the efficiency at which they can shift gears, it become a sad state of affairs and one that is usually suffered by the passengers.  This was my experience tonight on a bus.

The driver slammed through the gears, practically popped the clutch every time and pumped the brakes when stopping.  There was absolutely zero smoothness or grace to this idiot driver.  I was actually starting to feel a little sick because of this fool.

Korea seriously needs that ‘how’s my driving? 1-800-….’ stickers.

Nearly 5lbs and 5000 calories!  Thank you CostCo!

http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/south-korea-must-release-activist-charged-over-kim-jong-il-tweet-2012-02-01

Today I was mildly annoyed be Koreans.  On my left was a chick studying/memorizing some English paragraph for some obvious test at school.  On my right was a lady talking in her phone.  Not very loud but it only added to the distraction while I was trying to read an article.

What is rather hypocritical of this culture is the complete lack of vocal response the Koreans do when its Korean youngsters who are talking loudly.  This is what gets me. So this is what I think of when people say things to us like “Shhh, big speak.” or simply yell in Korean with words I can’t make out.  Luckily no one has yelled at me, mostly because I am significantly bigger than them.  Between being a foreigner and larger,  I have some immunity to being rebuked.  Fine by me.

Korea has its share of beggars without a doubt.  You see them hanging around the subway stations waiting for handouts and really not much of them outside except around Seoul station. There seems to be a small colony strewn along one part of the street, obviously more noticeable during the warm weather.

So, like good little marketers, the beggars know where their ‘target audience’ is located.  The ideal audience is one that can’t run away.  The beggars have hit the subway trains themselves.

I have seen a singing blind guy.  I recorded it but not sure if I can find that file.  If I do, I’ll put it here.  It wasn’t that great and kinda creepy.  The bad 70′s middle-eastern film type of bad.

Found the file!  The Seoul Metro Singing Beggar – Line 1

Once I was waiting for a train and I saw this scruffy looking guy walk by carrying a styrofoam box lid that had some stuff in it.  He looked fine outside of his visual appearance.  I just marked it as odd.  I got on the train and about 10mins later I see him again.  This time he’s semi-crawling along the floor with an expression of pain and suffering on his face all the while pushing that dirty styrofoam lid in front if him.

Then there was the lazy beggar today.  There was something physically wrong with his eyes bit otherwise he was dressed and walked like anyone else.  What really made him special was his method.  All he did was walk up to someone, hold a piece of paper up (with obvious Korean writing on it) and when they ignored him he moved on.  Some might say he’s efficient but in reality he is just plain lazy.

http://www.disinfo.com/2012/01/anonymous-reveals-the-arcane-legal-trick-behind-acta/