Ships, Flims and Raves

Let me pose this question to you, it's been nagging me for quite some time. What is the protocol for pronunciating words that are cognates of English words? For instance "Cafe mocha" or "television." Do you go the extra effort, making a fool of yourself by highlighting your poor accent and say the English word with a foreign accent? Cape mooocha? telebisheeion? Everyday I struggle with this dilemma.

I packed my bags and embarked on a journey to the Pusan International Film Festival. What to expect of the weekend, I hadn't the slightest clue. Kate, Alex and I set out around 6 pm only to be delayed by the passing of a parade. My first thought after hearing the rumbling of drums, the attack has begun-the million man N. Korean Army is invading Jeju. Well, not really, but the thought crossed my mind. We arrived at the ferry terminal only to be greeted by an incoherent mumbling man who quite frankly scared the hell out of me. Now to the best of my knowledge, the ferry is a bit of a Jeju island enigma. It's there for the using, but most islanders are either unaware of it or would never use it. At first it seemed like a logical thing. Who in their right mind would opt for an 11-hour ferry ride when they could reach the mainland in 45 minutes for the same amount? Clearly we did. We boarded the massive ship, passing by security in a flash. Reached our room and settled in. What ensued can only be described as mayhem. After a rousing Chorus Line sing a long-of which Alex did not take part, we set out to explore, or rather do one full walk around the ship. For such a massive mode of transportation, there were limited areas to explore. We did run into a family from Seoul who was just departing from Jeju. Their reasoning for heading to the island in the first place, nerves from the possible nuclear attacks by our neighbors in the north.

After dozing off to blade 3, I awoke feeling as though I was about to face death on a capsizing ship in the east sea. Fortunately we arrived in Pusan soon after. Following a dance party to fully awaken ourselves, we emerged onto the docks of the Pusan Ferry terminal, and started our day.

Kate proved that the bathroom on the ship was not an option to freshen up, as she nearly vomited from the nauseating odors. We wandered the streets of Pusan trying to get some coffee in our systems and figure out our ticket situation. Unfortunately, despite Koreans early morning tendencies, no eating establishments open until mid morning. What kind of society functions before 10 am without a good cup of coffee and baked goods?

After wandering aimlessly, we got our coffee, tickets and were set up for a fantastic day.
He Korean film Dasepo Naughty Girl was an interesting and provocative glimpse at sex culture. Although it was aesthetically pleasing, the story line was fragmented. "Holly" was a film that had an activist feel to it. It depicted the harsh realities of sex trafficking in S.E. Asia. It starred Jack Berger from Sex and the City, and there were a lot of good things going on. A few trite moments, but definitely worthwhile. The next film was our favorite by far. Elementary Particles was a German film about the parallel lives of two unseemingly similar brothers. It walked many fine lines. And although there were many opportunities to fall into a plethora of film clichés, it never crossed the line. Try to get your hands on it. I know I will be checking out the director's other films as soon as I can. Our final film "The Optimist" depicted life in post Milosevic Serbia. I wanted to love this one. But the timing, due to a jam-packed day, did not allow me to have the attention span to fully appreciate the creative dark comedy. It showed triumph and optimism during trying times.

Met up with Nat Kingdon briefly after our film fiesta. I don't think it actually clicked that we just met up in Korea. In a whirlwind of events, we were informed that a rave was next on our schedule. We wandered around trying to meet up with the fellow fublrighters would get us to this late night shindig.

The beats were kickin, too bad we were the only ones whose moves went beyond the traditional head bob. The absence of glow sticks made me question the authenticity of this supposed, "Rave" but nonetheless I got to get down with good people.

The proceeding events of the evening were less than enjoyable. 2 hours of wandering motel-to-motel trying to get a room, only to have no luck led us to hop into a taxi and make our way out of the PIFF proper. Good things come to those who wait apparently-we finally got the circular bed!!! Oh the decor!

Sunday gave us the opportunity to see the Pusan Biennial. Unexpectedly we found ourselves amidst a comic book conference as well. href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/5422/3048/1600/n5900030_30372622_6887.jpg">


Fellow Smithies-think SSFFS. Costumes, swords and live action role-plays Korean style. WOW.

A quick and delightful plane ride was followed by a debacle of a bus ride. Quickly realizing we had hopped on an outbound bus, my hastiness and impulsive side got the better of me. Kate and I decided unexpectedly to get off the bus without realizing that Alex was unaware of this spur of the moment decision. In fact we did not realize this until we saw the bus drive away, Alex still aboard head resting his arm, looking disillusioned and frustrated with what had just occurred. Perhaps this was the lack of sleep that any of us had received. Surprisingly we all met up after a call from Julienne confirmed she had just found a wayward lost boy in city hall. Cheesy pork rice ended this ridiculous weekend of antics.

Now I am off for 3 days due to midterms. Rest is definitely in store. With the exception that I am going out with friends from Jeju every night. I have already been invited to first and second round by a JIBS news reporter and some local Jeju police. Networking folks. Drinking with the local police seems like a great idea.