Interesting article in The Korean Times today about a new list of Korean people deemed collaborators during the period of Japanese rule between 1910 and 1945. A former Korean president (actually military dictator) among others was included in this contentious and subjective list. Apparently the Korean government wants to "reveal the truth" about Korean history. Not sure that the publication of this list will do much good except reopen old scars. Korean-Japanese relations are still extremely raw.

Continuing on from the subject of yesterday's post, I read somewhere where Jack O'Connor of SIPTU was described as Whacko Jacko. I've become somewhat more of a current affairs junkie lately than normal, but then we are not living in normal times. I watched him on Pat Kenny's show last night and he certainly didn't do his cause any favours. Rambling, obfuscating, and blathering are the verbs that come to mind. While I'd still like to think of myself as leaning to the left on the political scale these days, and I'm not an economist, it seems to me that the arguments put forward by the unions and the likes of Fintan O'Toole and Vincent Browne don't hold much ground any more. The realization hasn't dawned that it's not nearly as much an ideological and/or moral choice between cuts and taxes as a choice between saving cash and national bankruptcy. Watch the show though for an illuminating spat between Pat and Jack about trophy homes.

The Front Line

We've been to a few shows recently that each involved an element of dancing to one degree or the other. First up were two shows in the Seoul Performing Arts Festival (SPAF) that didn't fall into any easily categorizable genre. There were elements of dance, theatre, video and holography in both shows. Norman and Yesterday were the two shows we saw. A new type of performance that I hadn't been exposed to before.
And last night we went to see the Michael Jackson film, This Is It. Was never really a Michael Jackson fan, but this film changes one's perspective of him. Based on interviews with him, I had expected a frail, waif like figure struggling to rehearse for his comeback shows in London. What we saw on the big screen was completely different. He looked in fairly good shape to me - maybe he was taking painkillers - and taller than I had imagined. He was also dancing mesmerizingly well on the stage. I have never seen such a natural dancer in my life. The guy directing the show intervened a few times to try and stamp his authority, but generally consented to whatever Jackson wanted in what were awkward and sometimes cringeworthy moments. What came across most was his knowledge of the intimate details of each of his songs and how he wanted the dancers and musicians to perform. A true artist but still a pretty messed up person off the stage.

Many more photos here of our last trip to Jirisan.

As I'm winding down my time in Korea, I thought I'd make a few lists. Tonight is the top 10 bars in my 6 years here, not necessarily in order, frequented often or still existing..

1. Zed Rock - Cheonan. Hot spot of Cheonan back in the early naughties, live Phillipino band and place where everyone congregated after a certain time.

2. S bar - Cheonan. Dim-lighted, famous for cocktails, and the Crucible of the Cheonan pool circuit in the early hours of many a morning.

3. Wooly Booly - Cheonan. Famous for being the meeting place on Friday night in Cheonan.

4. Cool bar - Shinbu-dong, Cheonan. Don't know who discovered this, but an oasis of good taste in a city of neon-fronted tackiness.

5. Nori - Sinchon, Seoul. Spent my first night in Seoul here at a birthday party. Known for playing great music and its pristine bathrooms.

6. Brickx - Itaewon, Seoul. In its former incarnation, was a favourite spot to have a quiet mellow drink in Itaewon. Victim of its own success in the end.

7. Beryl Bar - Jeju Island. Business bar. Only had one night here, but the craic was mighty.

8. Hollywood - Itaewon, Seoul. Memorable for watching a few epic Ireland-England 6 nations games here and also some All-Irelands. Always packed to the rafters for these games. Great atmosphere and crowd for the Brazil-France game in the 2006 World Cup.

9. Namsan function room - Hyatt Hotel, Seoul. Not strictly a bar, but location for scrumptious Irish Ambassadorial parties.

10. Tony's Aussie Bar and Grill - Itaewon, Seoul. Our local over the last few months and heavily frequented at that, due to the sublime Guinness, the eclectic group of patrons, and of course Tony himself.

Two recommendations today:

1. Zelen - Bulgarian restaurant in Itaewon, a sublime culinary experience
2. The Auteurs - a website that streams quality independent films for free or a small fee.

We've been spending money like it's going out of fashion over the last few weeks in order to stock up on items which would be considerably more expensive at home. The logistics of our impending move are quite daunting, yet we don't really feel a sense of urgency about it all at the moment, probably to do with the fact that it's still about 6-7 weeks away. I guess when the realization dawns, it will hit us like a ton of bricks. They say moving house is one of the most stressful times of one's life, and moving country is only bound to exacerbate that. I came to Korea with two bags and a laptop and I'm leaving with an accumulation of belongings obtained from 6 years of living in Korea, along with a wife! I'm a hoarder so I tend to keep a lot of stuff that I don't really need. We'll just try and offload as much stuff as we don't need and bring the rest with us. The firm in Dublin are paying for our relocation expenses, so that has influenced our strategy somewhat.