Bullfighting

Sometimes the weekends in Korea get a bit repetitive. I try to spicen it up by going on new adventures. I heard about a bullfight in Cheongdo (an hour out of Busan) and thought it would be a nice change. The train ride to get there was only 5,000 won. The entrance fee was supposed to be free if you were born in the year of the ox, which I am so, I was super psyched to save all that money! When I got to the ticket counter to make sure, there was a big sign, "If you were born in year of the OX, you STILL have to pay!" Darn. I forked out the 5,000 equivalent to $5.

Bulls were already in the ring when we walked in and hurried to find seats enough for all the foreigners who came along with Wil and I. I posted the event on Meetup.com and 20 other foreigners whom I had never met responded with a "Yes".

We decided to place bets on which bulls we thought would win. Usually I have beginners luck, but this time I lost....every time. Wil was getting too excited winning 1000 won at a time. After another hour or so, the bulls had a break and we went out to see the other festivities going on.

There was lots of food, crafts, antiques, activities and singing to see. First I ran to get some chicken on a stick. Then meandered past the Buddhist antiques displayed on a blanket. Next in line were the middle aged men with long hair and hats drawing people for money. I studied their technique for awhile. Wil was rushing me a long because all he could think about was eating lunch. We made our way to a restaurant nearby the baby bulls where kids were throwing hay in their faces.

All I wanted was kimbap but the place we went to only had soup similar to dwenjung chigae, pancake and kimchi tofu. We order a combination of the three and a bottle of soju. The soup was nothing like dwenjung (fermented soybean soup) but head soup...head of a cow soup! I saw some white prickly things on the meat and didnt look like anything from a cow to me. I took a sip of the broth which tasted like dirty water. The pancake was alright. It is not the same as pancakes in America. It had squid, green onion and other veggies in it. You dip it in soy sauce. The kimchi tofu dish was alright. Each thing was 8000 each. Thats pretty expensive for lunch in Korea, but we were at a big event, so the prices were expected. Actually I am pretty sure this is the only event in which lots of foreigners and other old Korean men come to Cheongdo where the bullfighting event is held once a year. So its ok, I am happy to support the small townsmen. We walked around some more after eating, looking at the sky waiting for the rain to come. Surprisingly it was warm and sunny.

There was a bellydancing show, and some men dressed as women doing comedy and singing.

And a tightrope walker. I am sad to say I missed the bubble magic show. My friend heather and a few others made their own clay pot...well she touched it a few times when the person was doing it and pretended like she made it herself.

Oh I saw some Makgeoli (fermented rice...alcohol. its not like sake, its white and thicker, kind of like old milk with soda) for sale so I bought some. When I opened it up I smelled the bitter, pungent aroma of ginseng. I didnt know it had ginseng in it! It was not delicious. Of course Wil drank it. He will consume anything! (Except for American food.) We bet a few more times, I lost a few more times. Then we went home.

It was a good day, but long and on the train ride home we slept. For dinner Heather and I ate sushi off a conveyor belt at Homeplus (a big store similar to Walmart). It was pretty good. Not as good as my special digs in California, but good for the price.

I was tired at 10pm. I had a fun filled day and did'nt even have to attend a bar! Thanks to Meetup.com, I met lots of other foreigners who live nearby in Busan!