Staying Alive

The weekend that was: tremendously jam packed, totally epic, and truly Korean. I'm finding it difficult to digest now, but man, did it ever go down easy at the time.

As soon as Friday let out it was a mad dash to Seoul station to link up with my u of fellow degenerates and catch the first available train to Daegu, Korea's third largest city. Daegu is a nearly 4.5 hours train ride from Seoul on the snail-rail or a speedy 1 hour 40 if you hop the KTX (high speed train). Despite a price reduction of a mere 3 dollars we boarded the KTX with "standing room" tickets in order to avoid an unnecessarily lengthy ride. While things in the country are often unlike one would imagine, a standing room ticket means that you get the opportunity to ride in the small entrance way to train car- barely enough room for 4 people we crammed in twice that number. A comfortable ride compared to those in the standing 'area' one car down which looked to be holding upwards of 10-15. Nevertheless, we were on a mission and we were well equipped, with a few 40's of Hite beer and a bottle of soju that probably should have been smaller.


Our mission: get down and dirty in Daegu for the evening, find a an always fateful jjimjilbang to eventually pass out, wake up at the crack of dawn (provided we aren't still drinking at the time) and hop on the train once again for the 30 minute journey to the small rural town of Cheongdo. Why Cheongdo you ask? Featured destination: The Cheongdo Bullfighting Festival--a 1,000 year old tradition of balls-out, bull vs. bull brutality!

While animal cruelty is not a pastime that I condone, I am certainly no animal rights activist. Safe to say, watching two 3,000 pound masses of muscle with horns butt skulls, falls well within my criteria of a good time. Insert an array of vendor stands, a mini marketplace with fresh local fare and barrels of beer for under two bucks and we've upgraded to the ideal afternoon!

(vats of YukGaeJang, piles of whale meat, tables to dine at...what more could a hungry man ask for?)

Before partaking in the festivities it was imperative that we filled our famished bellies. So, we sauntered over to the makeshift 'restaurant' row where they were serving up everything from massive fish platters, vats of boiling soup and the controversial local delicacy--whale. Some friends we were with suggested we partake in a hearty bowl of beef soup called YukGaeJang. This steamy assortment of small fatty pieces of beef, lotus root, mung bean sprouts, green onion, yam, garlic and rice is simmered for hours in a delicious and spicy beef broth. To accompany our lunch, several bowls each of Dongdongju the more homemade cousin of Makgeolli--a traditional Korean alcoholic beverage made from a mixture of fermented rice, wheat and water. The cloudy brown liquor which is served in a large bowl and ladled into smaller drinking bowls is slightly sweet with a tangy aftertaste and only contains about 6.5-7% alcohol due to an incomplete fermentation process.

(Chopping up some whale meat. It took me a while to spy-cam this shot because the lady kept trying to block my view. Maybe it sully's the flavour of this highly disputed delicacy? Or maybe the fact that she was chopping up a pretty illegal piece of meat had something to do with her unwillingness to give a thumbs up and smile for the camera.)

(A steaming bowl of YukGaeJang)

With our immediate hunger pangs gone and our thirst temporarily quenched, we relocated to the grandstands inside the stadium to watch a few hours of exciting bovine bashing. It was no blood bath, but with cold beers always in hand and 1,000 won side bets on our favourite bulls we all had a riff of a time! The sun was out and a calm wind kept us at a most comfortable 23 degrees. Little did I know that this was just one of the many positive events which would eventually complete my most enjoyable weekend in Korea to date. 

Post fight-fest the crew and I skipped back to Seoul, leaving behind a most unforgettable afternoon. The weekend, however, was far from over. Early to mid April in Korea is cherry blossom season; a short period of roughly two weeks, where thousands of indigenous and hybrid cherry blossom, magnolia, and other trees of this nature are in full bloom across the country. In Seoul, Yeouido Park is the go-to destination for cherry blossoming (a new verb in my dictionary). The streets surrounding the park are lined with over 1,500 cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Their delicate pink petals gave off a sweet and subtle aroma as I strolled along in the warm sunshine.

(View from the entrance of Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market)

As beautiful as the cherry blossoms were, I have little interest in eating flowers off the branches of trees.  Luckily for me, the infamous Noryangjin Fish Market, the largest wholesale fish market in the country (to my understanding) is just a short walk away. Along with my faithful travel companion, Yoni, I wandered over in search of one of the most talked about and exciting foods that Korea has to offer--sannakji (live octopus). I'm not trying to pull your tentacles here, this is seriously real, and as I would soon find out first hand, seriously delicious as well.

The Noryangjin Fish Market is bustling with people and 'poisson' starting from roughly 4 or 5am when the early morning fish auction takes place. As fresh as possible, and in many cases still live, Noryangjin is a must visit for any food fanatic visiting Seoul. As you wander around the overflowing stands of fresh and saltwater fish, crustaceans, cephalopods and mollusks, the fishmongers feverishly promote their personal supply and shout at each other if you should decide to walk away in favour of another's catch. It's times like these I wish I were a marine biologist, because the myriad of freaky looking fish as so enticing but equally foreign to me.

(Only one small step away from my stomach)

It took a bit of figuring out and some help from one of the vendors who saw us peeking down uncharted corners with baffled looks on our faces before Yoni and I could get our hands on what we came for. The way that Noryangjin works for the individual eaters is that one is free to select whatever they desire and if they so choose, they can have their catch prepared onsite in one of the various restaurants for a mere 3,000 won seating fee. The preparation of sannakji or sannakji hoe ("hoe" meaning "raw dish) is quite simple: chop up the small baby octopus into bite-size bits, immediately put it on a plate and wrestle with the squirming pieces as they suction themselves on to your plate, strangely aware of their fatal destiny. Sannakji is often garnished with sesame seeds and sesame oil and dipped in gojuchang (Korean hot sauce), however, our was presented straight up and with a nice selection of sides, including kimchi, lettuce and sesame leaves, fresh green chili peppers, carrots, garlic, gojuchang, soy sauce with wasabi and sesame oil.

(Sannakji: still al-eye-ve and ready for the eating)

(The stand from which out sannakji came)

I can understand how many people would have a difficult time getting over the slimy appearance and lack of seasoning, not to mention that it might appear as though your food is trying to squirm off your plate, but for any adventurous eater or sushi lover this is a must try! The texture is far more delicate than cooked octopus with the right amount of chewiness. The freshness is unparalleled and the flavour is subtly sweet and pairs perfectly with the saltiness of the chili or soy sauce. Just make sure you chew well! There are asphyxiation related deaths nearly every year from the consumption of this dish...the reports fail to mention the blood alcohol percentage of the fools who succumb to such a death.

(Mr. Squid himself)

Following this most enjoyable meal we wandered back in the direction of Yeouido for some more cherry blossoming and managed to delve in to 4 more untested, yet widely available Korean delights. First, some dried, grilled squid; a common street vendor item which has confused me ever since entering in to the country due to its incredibly large, flat and rippled appearance. "How does a squid end up in that shape?", I wondered. Until I saw the process before my eyes I wasn't all that interested in tasting what turned out to be the beef jerky of the sea-world. In the end, like most Korean dishes I've tasted thus far I was more impressed than I ever anticipated. The pieces of dried squid head are pressed between a flattop grill and brushed with butter and then fed through a press of sorts a total of three times, widening and thinning the squid with each pass and creating ribs across the body. A couple more shots on the grill and you're mowing. The chewy strips of squid grow on me and become tastier with every bite. The chewy texture is identical to that of beef jerky and the smokiness and subtle crisp from the grill had me stuffing squid down my gullet until I was gnawing on my fingertips.

(Roll out)

The final few pecks along the road featured an amuse bouche of soft warm and rich roasted chestnuts, a palate cleanser of small amost waffle like donuts filled with sweet red bean paste (these things are all over the place, but I'm not sure what they're called), and main course of small sandwiches filled with coleslaw, ham and cucumber in some sort of fried bread (possible made from rice; I tried to ask the owner what they were made of but ran into some communication problems as per usual).

(If you're not a fan of friend bread you may not be a friend of mine)

No need for desert here; this was without a doubt the most unbelievable day of eating I've ever had. Never have I experienced places, smells and sights in such form and had the good fortune to constantly eat my way through an entire afternoon of foreign, fun and excuse the language, but fucking delicious food! I sincerely hope that this is just the beginning of many years of fresh and unfamiliar feasting.

As I mentioned before, this weekend was hard to digest, more mentally than physically. I have finally begun to indulge in the type of food porn that I lust for and pursue the type of eating that fills my belly with satisfaction and my mind insight into the world of food that is commonplace for some and completely unheard of for many. This is the life I've been waiting to live and I doubt a day will ever come where I'm not quite literally, hungry for more.