Filipino Absentee Voters

If you are a Filipino citizen living in South Korea and wishes to vote on the May 10, 2010 national elections, register at the Philippine embassy in Seoul.

The registration will be from February 1, 2009 to Ausgust 31, 2009.

You need to bring your passport, Oath of Allegiance or Order of Approval (for dual citizens) and Seaman’s Book (if seafarer)

If you want to know more about absentee voting check the Philippine Embassy website.

For all the Filipinos overseas check the following related links for more information regarding absentee voiting:

Commission on Elections

DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs)

The cold, the sneeze and the pills

It’s been snowing here almost everyday and seems like my sneezing is worse than before that I had to go to the doc to get some prescription pills for my allergy. In the Philippines, most of the times, the pharmacists will give you the pills/medicines in separate packages and they’d tell you which ones and how many of a paticular pill to take at certain times.

Here in South Korea, when you bring your prescription to the drugstore, the pharmacist will give you pills in these small packages- all the pills you need at a certain time put together in one package. Tthey even have morning, lunchtime and evening written on the packets to make sure you don’t get confused because for a simple cold/cough they often prescribe 4-6 pills. Other pharmacist would write on the packages like 1 (for morning), 2 (for lunchtime) and 3 (for evening time). And if you will look at the packages below you will notice that aside from numbers, the pharmacist also wrore morning, lunch and night.

I guess I looked pretty dazed and sick back at the drugstore and he was being helpful by making sure I am taking the right drugs at the time. hehe.

And since I sneeze a lot, the doc prescribed me a nasal spray too. I was reluctant to use this because I had a terible experience the first time I bought an OTC nasal spray. Every time I would spray my nasal cavity my mouth and lips would get so dry.

The one you see below is not as bad but I don’t use it as often as the doc told me to because it has steroid. For some unfounded reason, I don’t want my body to get use to steroid. I think that if my body does, I may need a stronger prescription if ever I really need one.

Mama in South Korea

I have been lazy in updating this blog and I promise myself I’ll write here more often from here on. I’ll start with Mama’s visit last October. I’ve written a little bit about her visit in the other blog but these are some of the pictures I’ve taken while she’s here.

Here are some pictures of her visit:

My friend Inna and Mama at Incheon Airport

Mama and moi at Incheon International airport when I picked them up.

Sunny, Mama and moi at a temple at the foot of Mudeung Mountain in Gwangju.

Sunny took us to this outdoor resto at the foot of Mudeung Mountain. She treated us to a delicious chicken dish.

Mama at Boseong Green Tea Plantation

Mama, Inna and a Korean guy who was kind enough to give us a ride to the bus station after visiting the Naju Mary Chapel.

At the War Memorial at Itaewon, Seoul.

Insadong, Seoul. Mama in Hanbok, the traditiona Korean dress. We shot this picture inside the shop instead of a more scenic spot because it was drizzling.

…with the Palace Guard. Seoul

At the COEX Aquarium

Bennigans inside Incheon International Airport just before their flight back home.

In the German Village at Namhae

Mama sampling some kimchi at the Gwangju Kimchi Festival.

Dried octopus, anyone?

Korean Street Food

I’ve had some before and they’re ok. I’m still alive, hehe.

I am a certified WWOOFer now!

August 2008

World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (also known as Willing Workers on Organic Farms) (WWOOF) is an organization which facilitates the placement of volunteer workers on organic farms. There are WWOOF groups in many countries around the world They all maintain similar standards and work together to promote the aims of WWOOF.

I went to Jiri San Bioland last week of August and stayed for two
days (Saturday and Sunday) and helped with the farm work. I’ve been meaning to blog about this experience but I’d been
putting this off. Now I’ve forgotten the names of the farm helpers that have been so great to me.

I had a great time at the farm (actually two farms- I went back and forth several times) and will try to write more details about my stay there when I am not too lazy to dig out the notes I’ve written about my wwoofing experience.

Damyang Marathon/Race

November 9, 2008

Finally, Mike and I joined a race. We’ve been talking about joining one since last year and it’s been all talk until now. And we almost didn’t go because I had bronchopneumonia and was still coughing, although not as bad as the weak before.
Mike tried to discourage me from running but I stubbornly said I would run no matter what. It was my first race and I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

There were several races: 5k,10k and half course. The 10k race was at 10:40 but we got there two hours earlier.

I hadn’t run outside for more than a month prior to the race. I’ve only been running on a threadmill in the gym and only twice the week before the event. And I was still sick. Thankfully I didn’t cough as much while running but it was hard for me. At about two kilometers to the race I started mentally telling myself I could do it because I was
having difficulty breathing. The air was cold
and dry and my nose was congested so I
breathed through my mouth which was also
really bad because it made my mouth very
dry too. I stopped at virtually all the water stops to drink. I would stop and walk for a bit but I continued running. If I wasn’t sick I’d probably be pushing myself hard to beat my own
time but I just wanted to finish without making
myself sicker.

I timed 1 hour 4 minutes and 10 seconds. Slower than my usual 10K time but it was a great feeling just to finish. Mike did it in 46 49:06. Also slower than his personal record.

The funny thing was, an hour before the race started one of the organizers approached us and motioned us to come with him. He brought us to the starting line, on the side there was a table with gongs and he banged it while telling us something. He was speaking too fast that I couldn’t catch on that when I heard something about the time I thought he was telling us that we start running when we hear the gong. Mike and I were like, ‘Yeah , we know that, we start running when we hear the gong.’ We thought because we are foreigners, they were being extra nice by telling us. We thought it was kind funny and awfully nice of the ajussi to make sure we know what we were doing. So we smiled broadly at him and said yes and ‘kamsahamnida’ (thank you).

I was wrong though because just before the 5k race started the ajussi asked us to come to the front and gave us gloves and the gongs. That’s when we realized we agreed to start the race by banging the gongs and we didn’t even know we did! I was really great though! The emcee introduced us to the runners and we were ‘famous’ for a bit there. He He

A lesson from gender selection

I saw Sunny today. It’s the first time I’ve seen her since she treated Mama, Inna and I to a nice meal at this open-air resto at the foot of Mudeung Mountain and also the first time since she found out she’s pregnant. We’ve stop meeting for our ‘language exchange’ sessions indifinitely and I just went over for a visit.

Our chit-chat centered mostly on pregnancy, babies and giving birth. It was interesting to hear that doctors here are not allowed to tell soon-to-be parents of the sex of their child – as in it is illegal, not allowed by the law!

She told me that years and years ago women would have forced miscarriage once they’ve learned that they were having a baby girl – one of the horrors of gender selection! We did not talk about how the law came about but I am guessing it may be because of a resulting gender imbalance or sexual discrimination. One could only guess the effects of the practice of gender selection.

Anyways, she told me that although it is not permitted for doctors to divulge the sex of the unborn baby they have ways on giving hints to excited parents-to-be. A doctor may say that
parents may want to have the baby room painted blue or decorate it with some toy cars (indicating that the baby is a boy). Parents may be let in on the baby’s sex by telling them that they may want to welcome their new baby (girl) with flowers or a yellow-painted room.

Boryeong Mud Festival

July 19-20, 2008- It was the last weekend for the Boryeong Mud Festival so although the weather forecast said heavy rain ( because there was a typhoon brewing or raging in the Pacific) we still went. We were ready for some mud and lots of fun! It took us a little more than 3 hours by bus from Kwangju and we got there before noon. We looked for our mimbak (guesthouse) that I’ve booked a week before and were a little disappointed that it was not right on the beach like the picture in the website led us to believe. But it wasn’t so bad as the mimbak was only 5-7 minutes walk to the beach.

It was sunny when we got there but by mid afternoon it started pouring but the rain did not deter the revelers from enjoying the activities like mudslide, mud prison house (you get inside this small prison-like structure and you get hosed down with mud) and other such fun ‘mud’ activities. And there was body painting too.

And there’s the beach of course where you can wash off the mud and the paint anytime you want. The waves were big so it was an added fun in the water.

Some people rented ATVs (all-terrain vehicles or four-wheelers) and raced on the beach.
Others enjoyed the indoor mud spa and massage. And for a lot of people there, fun included getting so drunk.

We stayed up late and enjoyed the beach at night. People enjoyed the beach concert and the fireworks.

The only terrible thing about the whole thing was the sand fleas’ bites. Mike’s feet were swelled up so bad that we had to go to the doctor right after we got back from Boryeong. Mine were not as bad but we itched and scratched for almost a week after the festival.

But I’d still go back if I could next time. I’d just make sure to cover up good or slather anti-bug lotion if I’d be staying late on the beach.

Gamami Beach

August 4, 2008.

Gamami Beach is located in Yeongwang county, Jeollanam-do. During the peak summer season, there is a direct bus from Kwangju, Jeollanam-do to Gamami beach otherwise you get on a bus to Younggwang. It’s a 50-minute bus ride. From the bus terminal in Yeonggwang, buses leave for Gamami every 15 minutes. It is a 20 minute ride.

I’ve read there are other interesting things to do and see around the area but we never got to explore the place when we went there.

I still have dark marks on my legs from the sandflies’ bites. …

….this old lady was in the water for almost two hours — she was wearing pants, long-sleeved shirt, a hat and an umbrella…

Stuart napping inside this tiny cave….

Sand bubbler crab

Mike sunbathing …. just before the tide came in….
… the tide was so far out when we arrived before noon…

South Korean Wedding

I attended my friend/teacher Sunny’s wedding last month (June 28). It’s my first time to attend a South Korean wedding.