G is for Garbage and Gifts

I have found that South Korea is a place of diverse feelings for me. I've really had a hate-love relationship with it since I got here. I hate the banking system here, the doctors, and the cold here. I love the culture, language, most of the food, the experience of being in a new place, teaching, and the new friends I have met here. How can one place hold such difficult and wonderful things all at once?

Perhaps a better question is how humanity is so like that, full of horror and miracles, cruelty and compassion, and dispair and hope. These things are almost always tied up in us; so closely knit together that from one moment to the next they seem to blend together. I will perhaps save further discussion of South Korean banking and humanity for another day, but today, I feel I could tackle garbage and gifts here in South Korea.

While most of developed South Korea seems a very organized and efficient waste reclaimation machine, my neighborhood is a bit different. Is there trash pick up here? Yes! Is there recycling? Absolutely! In Daegu, at the Costco, at my work, and in downtown Pohang there are recycle bins and garbages fairly regularly on the streets and in other places. The trouble comes with the odd garbage piles strewn about my neighborhood, which is newly developing.

In my neighborhood, the rubbish heaps mount high and the litter that is blown about is like wind strewn garbage-fetti. One factor that leads to this is the wind itself. Often people will put out neatly tied bags of refuse, only for it to fall victim to a dog, then the remaining contents get flung about by the impressive amount of wind that blows here in Jangsongdong. Koreans also seem to value the very new. To this end, much furniture also lies abandoned in lots around my apartment building. Once you look up past this refuse, you can see the beautiful trees and mountains that line the outskirts of my town. They are remarkable.

The really great part of this odd mix of refuse is that sometimes people throw out highly usable items, like my new couch. I have, more than once, thought that for as much garbage as I've walked through and past in South Korea, I've had as many gifts. I had a dream before I left for my new life here. In my dream there was a cupboard at my school where everything I needed to start my new life was held, and all I had to do was reach in and I would pull out anything I needed.

When I arrived at my apartment here, I had all that I needed. In my apartment was furniture, cooking utensils, some food, and toilet paper. I can't believe how good that felt. I thought, wow, this new life is so amazing. Already my dreams are coming true. So, I do need to thank the teacher who lived here before me and some other amazing people for lugging the furniture I now have up to my apartment. I think there are moments here when I let the challenges overshadow my joys.

So, to help me stay focused and to share some of the things I feel are so lovely about South Korea, here is a list of the things that I love about it so far:

• Bulgogi
• Galbi
• Ori (duck--which is so much more delicious here)
• Ori Gui
• Ori kebabs
• Cheesey rice (dak bokke with cheese)
• Heated flooring
• Hanbocks
• Nice co-workers
• Mandu
• Duck bone soup
• Je Yu Dop Bop
• Lam Yen (ramen)
• Korean (the language)
• My students
• Giant vegetables (which are so much more delicious here)
• Jukdo market
• Yogurt
• Bananas
• Asian pears (which are so much more delicious here)
• Korean apples (which are so much more delicious here)
• New friends
• Feeling more grateful for the things I love about the States
• Writing a blog
• Learning more about myself
• Seeing the world through the lense of another culture
• Making money