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TALK TO ME IN KOREAN
FEEL GOOD 101: A FEEL GOOD GUIDE TO LIFE IN KOREA
VENUE SPOTLIGHT: ALOHA TABLE
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EVENT: SEOUL-MAZING RACE 38
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SEOUL SISTERS RUGBY TEAM
DANNY CH0 76
STEVE MILLER
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR 11
THE THINK TANK 13
THE INTRO 28
THE FORUM 67
TRAVEL
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ON SPARROW HILLS
ALMOST “PHAYME”OUS
GRINGOS BURRITOS: ENTREPRENEURIAL DREAMS MEET SOUTH OF THE BORDER CRAVINGS
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KBL PLAYER ERIC SANDRIN 16
KOREAN FILM REVIEW: VEGETARIAN
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BARTENDER OF THE MONTH
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TIFFANY HSIUNG: DIRECTOR OF THE DOCUMENTARY ‘WITHIN EVERY WOMAN’
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RYAN RUTHERFORD: ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MIGHT JUST BE MAKING JINHO A SUICIDAL BOY
DUSTIN WILSHIRE: REASONS TO HATE FACEBOOK
JUSTIN WALDEN: THE AFTERLIFE
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JJ VELASQUEZ: SOWING THE SEEDS OF A BETTER LIFE
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WHISPER CHASE: HOW TO PLAN FOR YOUR GOALS ...
A BRIGHTER FUTURE ON THE HORIZON
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이승준
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
NEH
THE THINK TANK
A SELECTION OF THIS MONTH‟S CONTRIBUTORS SAE-HEE BURKE
JENNIFER ROSS 참치찌개
불고기
MICHELE FARLEY IGA MOTYLSKA
BECOME A CONTRIBUTOR TO NEH MAGAZINE: To become a contributor to NEH MAGAZINE, send a resume, cover letter and sample of your work to editor@nehmagazine.com.
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“I‟M HERE FOR THE OPENING BAND.”
(continued on page 14)
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HOW IT ALL BEGAN
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HANCINEMA KOREAN FILM REVIEW: „VEGETARIAN‟
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임우성 씨의 데뷔작 영화 ‘채식주의자(Vegetarian)’는 영화 ‘의형제’와 세계적으로 엄청난 기록을 세운영화 ‘아바타’를 지난해 박스오피스에서 이겨내야만 했습니다. ‘채식주의 자’는 저 예산 영화였던 탓에오직 3,145명 의 관람객밖에 유도해내지 못했지만, 2010년 Sundance 영화 페스티벌 에서 상영이 되는명예를 얻기도 했습니다. ‘채식주의자’는 한강에 의한 같은 이름의 짧은 스토리에 기반을 두고 있습니다. 젊은 결혼한 여성 (채민서, 영혜 역)은 채식주의자가 되려는 망상에 갑작스럽게 빠지게 된 꿈에 시달리게 됩니다. 그녀의 남편은 곧 그녀와 이혼하게 되고 그녀의 건강은 결 국 그녀의 여동생인 지혜(김여진)와시동생인(김현성씨가 힘들게 살아가는 예술가 역인 ‘민호’를 맡음)에게 맡겨집 니다. 영혜의 채식주의자가 되려는 성향은 단지 시작일 뿐이였으며, 그녀는 현실에서부터 점차 현실적이지 못하 게 나무가 되어가고 있다고 강하게 믿으며 물과 햇빛만이 필요하다고 생각하게 됩니다. 그녀의 여동생의 걱정은 이 이야기의 중심이며, 여동생은 형부를 시켜 언니와 같이 살자고 말하게 시킨 것이 엄청난 실수라 는 것을 곧 깨닫습니다. 지혜의 남편은 힘들게 노력하는 비디오 예술가인데 그는 영혜를 그의 최근 작품의 대상으로 초대합니다. 그 작품에 서 그는 꽃으로 두른 그녀의 나체를 그리고, 그녀가 개인 적인 변형의 느낌을 받아들이도록 해줍니다. 이러한 그의 선택은 그에게 심오한 영향을 주었으며 곧 그는 형수에 대 해 육체적인 매력을 느끼기 시작하고 떨쳐내지 못합니다. 아이러니하게도, 이 영화의 한 장면에서, 민호는 다른 한 남자를 데려오고 삐뚤어진 무언가 자유로운 비디오 프로 젝트에 영혜와 함께 참여하게끔 합니다. 이 남자는 민호가 영혜와 잠자리를 가지라고 요구하자 거절하고 떠나버립니 다. 이 영화는 어떠한 점에서는 부족한 점이 많지만 어떠한 점에서는 부족함이 없습니다. 필자는 이 영화를단순히 흥 미로 보게 되었는데, 후회는 하지 않는 반면 이 영화의 몇 몇 주요 묘사 기법에 있어서의 실수를 발견할 수 있었습니 다: 이 영화에서 클라이맥스는 찾아보기 힘들었으며 그렇 기에 저는 어떠한 만족감을 느끼지 못하고 무언가가 더 있 기를 바랐습니다. 이 영화의 묘사는 폐쇄적이며, 적절한 이유가없이 장면이 조각 조각 이어져 있는 느낌을 줍니다. 반면, 필자가 좋게 평가한 것은 이 영화의 주제를 드러내 기 위한 노력인데 이 과정은 이 여성의 경험을주관적이고 객관적으로 이해하는 구조적 분간을 만듦으로써 가능했습 니다. 지혜는 언니의 건강을 신경쓰지만, 언니의 결정을 받아들이는 무능력함은 영혜의 스트레스를 더욱 심하게 만들 뿐입니다. 반대로, 민호는 영혜와 더욱 개인적이고 받아들이려는 수준에서 이해하려 합니다. 그는 그녀의 변 화의 감정을인정하고 그녀에게 그녀가 한 부분이라고 느 끼는 세계를 그려줍니다. 이렇게 함으로써 그녀의 경험의 대상으로서 영혜에 대한 현상적인 이해심을 표현합니다. ‘채식주의자’는 비록 어느 정도 결점이 있지만 흥미로운 영화입니다. 임우성 씨의 이러한 특정 프로젝트에의 작품 은 분위기와 작품의 구성 요소에 대해서 엄청난 이해력을 내포하고 있습니다. 하지만 그의 묘사 기법에 대한 부분은 조금은 부족하고 전체적인 영향에서 무언가 끊어져 있는 듯한 느낌을 줍니 다. 이러한 결점에도 불구하고, 필자는 임우성 감독이 미 래에 무엇을 창조해낼 것인가에 대해 흥미를 느끼고 있습 니다.
ALMOST “PHAYME”OUS
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GRINGOS BURRITOS:
ENTREPRENEURIAL DREAMS MEET SOUTH OF THE BORDER CRAVINGS
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KOREAN RECIPE: DOENJANG JJIGAE 된장 찌개
GREEN GROOVE FESTIVAL: AUGUST 13 AND 14
FEATURING BUSTA RHYMES AND JAY PARK
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맥주 창고
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SHAKESPEARE COMPANY LAUNCH PARTY
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MAKING KOREAN POSSIBLE:
TALK TO ME IN KOREAN
ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JIN-HO A SUICIDAL BOY
SUICIDE IS NOW THE FOURTH MOST COMMON CAUSE OF DEATH IN KOREA, BEHIND ONLY CANCER, STROKE AND HEART DISEASE.
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SOWING THE SEEDS OF A BETTER LIFE:
A SOLDIER RECALLS HOW ARMY MEN AND CIVILIANS DRAPED KOREA‟S HILLS IN GREEN
REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD F&*$ING HATE FACEBOOK
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NICE. YOU KILLED WANDA IN VAMPIRE WARS AND YOU NEED A NEW LOIN CLOTH ON FRONTERVILLE. HOWEVER WHEN YOU FOUND SOME BLACK MYSTERY EGGS IN YOUR CHICKEN COUP ON FARMVILLE, I JUST THINK YOU‟RE RACIST.
HOW TO PLAN FOR YOUR GOALS AND MANIFEST YOUR DESIRES WORDS BY WHISPER CHASE & ILLUSTRATIONS BY LEAH HOELSCHER
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veryone has something they are working towards in life: be it a promotion, a new turquoise Vespa, an iPhone, a beach bod, or a debt-free life post-university. To make things materialize before your eyes, it’s important to first decide what it is that you want. By focusing your attention on what you want, it’s more likely that you can carve out a path to meet these desires. Conversely, if you focus on the things you don’t want, it should come as no surprise when you are living in abundance of the very things you loathe. Ask yourself if you could have, be, or do anything in the world, what would the answers be? Think of the things you’ve always wished for and let your imagination kick into overdrive. The only limitations you may put on yourself are selfimposed, so don’t even go down that route and you’ll be well on your way to cooking up your biggest dreams imaginable. Do you fancy a pogo stick? A trip to Bali? The latest Apple gadgets? To be the best Wii gamer this side of the Pacific? Perhaps you want to be a happier person with a busier social life? Grab a pen you love to write with, an inspirational notebook, and dream big in writing, or typing for you technophiles. Remember that dreams can’t come true if you don’t have any! So you’ve sorted through the swirls of vivid imagery in your mind and it’s clear what you want, and you’re not the least bit focused on what you don’t want, right? I mean it! Don’t you dare revert back to thinking of the things you don’t want! With all these new things you want, who has time for all that nonsense. Now that we are refocused, are you bubbling over with excitement? I know I am! 34 JULY NEH
You’ve got this list and you know what you’re after, but you may feel a bit overwhelmed on how you should go about attaining all these things. This is the part where you have to really examine each goal and desire, and ask yourself if it’s truly what you want? If you decided it passes the test, the next step is to think about how you will attain it. For instance, if you’d like to take a big trip, but
you haven’t got the funds to do it, think about how you can get those funds. Think of all possibilities and your path will become clear. Perhaps you could save the 30,000 won you spend per month on coffees, in addition to working some overtime? Get creative and find a way to manifest those dreams. If you find yourself not wanting to work hard to make things happen, then you obviously don’t want it badly enough. When you are truly ready to knock out your goals, you will be patient with yourself. It’s so important to break your goals down into the smallest steps so you are able to successfully chart your progress. By breaking things down, you will be able to see your route to your goal as a journey and not an end. It is also inspiring to see where you began and to see how much closer you are. Once you’ve broken things down into the tiniest, manageable steps, it’s important to be accountable to yourself. Keep yourself updated on your progress by looking at both the short term and long term aspects of your goals. Some of the things on your list may not be feasible immediately, but with a clear vision, your path is that much easier to follow and you become less focused on getting there and more on enjoying the process. You may want to keep up to date by using a journal, a spreadsheet, or a calendar. The choice is yours, as long as you chose the best method that can help you actualize your goals in terms of charting your progress. Now that you’ve gained a clear perspective on what it is you want, and how to attain it, let’s go one step further and make a vision board. Not sure what a vision board is? Follow these easy how-to steps.
STEP 1 Think of all the things you’d like to attract into your life (riches, job prospects, luxury items). The sky is the limit!
HOW TO MAKE A VISION BOARD STEP 2 Start gathering visual representations of each thing. Use magazines, newspapers, pictures and key words or phrases to help.
Cut out and organize your visuals.
STEP 6
STEP 4 Find a suitable board to support your visions (cork board, durable poster board, etc.)
STEP 3
STEP 5
Put the board somewhere you can see it, and focus on the feelings of having already attained all your wishes.
Get your glue stick ready and paste all your dreams into manifestation.
NOTE: Don’t obsess about the board, but instead use it as a tool of focus and reflection. NEH JULY 35
THE AFTERLIFE
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38 JULY NEH MAGAZINE
HEY SISTER, SEOUL SISTER
If you’re a team-spirited, competitive, friendly woman living in Korea who is willing to travel for fun, boy, do we have the sports club for you! NEH MAGAZINE JULY 39
PLAYERS COME TO THE SPORT WITH AND WITHOUT EXPERIENCE. EITHER WAY IT DOES NOT MATTER. WHAT THEY GET IS A TEAM, AND A GROUP OF WOMEN THAT WILL BACK THEM ON ANYTHING.
THE SEOUL SISTERS RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB
WORDS BY WHISPER CHASE & PHOTOGRAPHY BY LUC BONNICI
Most of you have heard of rugby, soccer’s aggressive and sometimes violent step-brother, but would you have ever imagined a rugby team for women in Seoul, South Korea? Rugby has its origins in Britain, but it takes on a playful, yet fierce twist when it comes to the land of kimchi, where it’s dominated by some of the toughest and fiercest competitors known as the Seoul Sisters Rugby Football Club (SSRFC).
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he SSRFC started in 2005. The club has since formed a three-team league that includes West End Girls, Seoul Central, and the Korean National Ladies Team. The teams are mainly comprised of expatriates with a wide range of athletic abilities, but they’ve also been lucky to attract Koreans who are also eager to learn the sport and willing to compete vigorously against neighboring countries. “Players come to the sport with and without experience. Either way it does not matter. What they get is a team, and a group of women that will back them on anything.” 40 JULY NEH MAGAZINE
Natalie Hallemans, the club representative, continues, “We develop friendships and ties that bond for hopefully a lifetime.” Not only does the team provide an extracurricular activity to keep your weekends busy, but more importantly it offers a type of kinship and bonding that can only come from working hard and challenging yourself within a team environment; and participants don’t even need to have an athletic background. If you are concerned with your athletic abilities, don’t be. The club works very hard to help ease you into the sport with a number of training exercises in agility, endurance, and drills to increase your dexterity and speed. Although rugby is one of the most exhaustive and intense sports for women, it is the club’s aim to ensure you are comfortable and enjoying yourself. They will push you to your limits, but it is more important that you are enjoying yourself, and defying your limitations in a healthy way than anything else. “We try to tap into the strengths of our players on and off the field. We have some talented singers, musicians, and film producers on board.” The team is also known for their fun loving antics abroad. Their Miss Seoul Sisters Beauty Pageant during a trip to Beijing in 2007, is still talked about to this day. “It was a long holiday weekend so we had four days of events in this competition as well as the rugby game. The girls had to wear sachets with their pageant names on them the entire trip or risk being fined.” Now how’s that for some camaraderie and silly fun? I bet the men’s opposition team surely enjoyed being judges when the swimsuit round began! Speaking of swimsuits, or lack thereof. The Seoul Sisters have also put out a risqué nude calendar of the team. It is tastefully done and a great hit among the expat community in Seoul. They have done four to date and are working on a fifth. Look for that in the near future. They’ve got a few other things they are working on to amp up the team’s exposure and to help lend some credibility to this sport in Korea. “Our future objectives are to continue our close relationship with the Korean women’s rugby and help with their team development and promotion of the sport in Korea.” She continues, “It’s an official Olympic game in 2016, so Korea needs to get their sides up to scratch with regular competition as much as possible.” Natalie is also hoping to build an annual Korean university women’s 7 a side rugby tournament for girls only. She is able to get the coaches on board, but it still seeking support from the universities. “This would be a great way for the national team to recruit new talent and build a strong arsenal of talent for the 2016 Olympic games,” she adds. If you are looking for a sisterhood of the traveling rugby jersey, look no further. These lovely ladies are ready to welcome you with open arms, and to support you as more than a teammate, but as a friend. What more can you ask for in an otherwise physically aggressive sport? For more information, please go to their website http://www.ssrfc.com and find their SSRFC page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/ Seoul-Sisters-Rugby-Football-Club/382156324202. For general club information and player recruitment, please email seoulsisters827@gmail.com.
VENUE SPOTLIGHT words by todde allen williams & photography by philippe teston
authentic
Surf in Seoul
IT’S RARE IN LIFE, FOR THE LARGE PERCENTAGE OF HUMAN BEINGS WHO LIVE OUTSIDE OF TROPICAL CLIMATES, TO HAVE THE EXPERIENCE OF SITTING OUT ON THE DOCK BY THE TIKI TORCHES LISTENING TO REGGAE OR SURF ROCK, AS THE WIND BLOWS THROUGH PALM TREES OVER A MEDITERRANEAN STYLE HOUSE WITH WALLS LINED BY SURFBOARDS. IT’S AN EXPERIENCE THAT WE ROMANTICIZE, CHERISH, AND HOLD DEAR FOR THOSE TIMES WE LOVE SO MUCH AND CALL “HOLIDAY,” OR PERHAPS “VACATION.” BUT NOW, DEAR READER, THERE IS AN ESCAPE LIKE THIS IN SEOUL. ALOHA TABLE WAIKIKI, LOCATED IN HONGDAE, NOT FAR OFF FROM THE HAPJEONG DRAG.
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he restaurant itself is stunning from the start, and as a former and likely future Californian, I’m a harsh judge of what a beach bar should be. Without lying, I will tell you that I initially walked up the calmly lit tree-lined path for a laugh. I was expecting something plastic, artificial, a basic Hongdae retelling of something that a young entrepreneur once saw in a movie. However, this was not the case, as when I walked onto the deck I felt at home. I didn’t even go into the building before sitting down with a few friends at an outside booth tucked away in the corner. There we stayed for hours, a few peaceful hours, watching the night go by as young couples came in and out, which then eventually transitioned into a much older crowd. The interior was everything I expected, matching the impressiveness of the outside. Palm fans harkening back to an era somewhere with ukuleles and mixed coconut drinks, surf boards, and dark wood floors with matching 72 JULY NEH MAGAZINE
furniture. All of this was pulled off just as artfully as the exterior. There was not an ounce of kitsch in sight. While delivery is seventy percent of every meal, I will note the menu, A reasonably priced selection of fusion beverages and meals await the diner at Aloha. Pina coladas, daquiris, and anything else you may need for a small imaginary cruise. Hawaiian dishes meet Japanese fusion, much like at their other location, in Waikiki, another surprising aspect of the show. According to the manager this is a venture based out of Waikiki itself, which explains how it could be done so efficiently. For the casual bar hound, Cass and French fries are a popular choice anywhere, and Aloha Table is no exception to the rule. There’s fare for any wallet or personality who cares to partake in the atmosphere, and an attentive staff that will only slightly judge you on your eleventh drink order. If you need to forget Seoul for a while, this place is for you. Mahalo.
SEOUL-MAZING RACE THE SEOUL-MAZING RACE HELD ON JUNE 11 HAD 35 TEAMS (126 PEOPLE TOTAL) RACING AROUND THE CITY IN A QUEST TO COMPLETE A VARIETY OF TASKS AND CHALLENGES AND BECOME THE FIRST TEAM TO MAKE IT TO THE FINISH LINE AT MADIGANIS IRISH PUB IN WEST SEOUL. THE TEAMS COMPETED IN CHALLENGES RANGING FROM MAKING GIMBOP TO IDENTIFYING KINDS OF KIMCHI TO EATING SOME OF KOREA’S MOST TRADITIONAL BUT UNAPPETIZING FOODS. THE RACE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR MANY TEAMS TO SEE PARTS AND ATTRACTIONS IN SEOUL THAT SOME HAD NEVER BEEN ABLE TO VISIT, SEE AND EXPERIENCE BEFORE. PHOTOS BY PHILIPPE TESTON AND MICHELLE FARLEY.
LOCATION SPONSERS: 장소협찬: 진양수산(노량진수산시장) JINYANG SUSAN (NORYANGJIN FISHERIES WHOLESALE MARKET)
JDX ㈜신한코리아
잠실한강공원(서울한강사업본부) JAMSIL HANRIVER PARK
TOMATO KIMBAP 프랜차이즈 토마토김밥
세종이야기 THE STORY OF SEJONG (SEJONG CENTER)
유라시아 EURASIA
SPECIAL THANKS: MADIGAN’S IRISH PUB 메디건스 아이리쉬 펍
BALTIKA 발티카코리아㈜
DALKI 딸기가 좋아
CRAFTWORKS
NEH MAGAZINE JULY 73
SEOUL-MAZING RACE
74 JULY NEH MAGAZINE
SEOUL-MAZING RACE
NEH MAGAZINE JULY 75
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DISCOVER KOREA … AND THE WORLD WITH QIRANGER
WORLD NEWS
YOU SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT OBAMA TO TWEET
KATIE PERRY AS SMURFETTE GREECE IN TROUBLE
YOUR IPHONE CAN SPEAK TO YOU
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE NEW FACE OF MYSPACE
HARRY POTTER TO HIT BROADWAY
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