Kids Say the Darndest Things: Korea Edition

Not much happening this week, but there were some highlights that I felt like recapping. First off, obviously was the presidential election. Honestly it was shocking the amount of coverage that Obama got post victory. My kids were asking and all the teachers were talking about it. Granted all I could understand was Obama (ahahhahyo ahejbeyneda aheueofyo Obamaga), but they were definitely talking about him. I also now realize that anyone who isn't in Korea won't understand the joke in my Korean gibberish. Ohhh well. His election due more light to the racism that exists here in Korea, as some of my kids asked if I like Obama and when I told them I do they would respond with "But Obama black?", obviously confused why I would vote for someone with black skin when McCain has white skin. For the most part though they were very curious to know about Obama, which sucks for me since I know almost nothing about him. It's a shame I don't speak Korean otherwise I would've learned a ton about him last night when one of the news channels showed a biography of Obama for about 3 hours or so. It's amazing to think about how much influence the US has on the global stage. I assumed on some level, as I'm sure most do, that by coming to Korea I would be able to escape the US in some way. Was I wrong. I should have known better since Koreans assume that all white foreign teachers are American, which is fine for me and hilarious for all the Brits, Aussies, Canucks and South Africans (well, hilarious to me, not to them obviously).
The second event of note was my introduction to the b-boy culture and community. B-boys are what they call practitioners of break dancing here in Korea. I knew coming in that I would have no chance of finding a capoeira group, but I was optimistic about finding a b-boy group and working on my .....oh my god, I've been away for too long. I just blanked on the Portuguese word. Damn it. Anyways, I wandered down to the town gymnasium as I need an indoor venue to practice over the winter, as brick and concrete gets really cold when it's covered in snow. So I wander in and what should appear but 8 or 9 Korean guys motherfucking breaking it down. I found a quiet corner and started doing my own thing, but eventually I caught their eye and they asked what I was doing and if I would demonstrate for them. I complied and in doing so probably broke some capoeira unspoken rule, as my performance most certainly didn't bring honor or respect to Omulu Granabara. Sorry guys. At least the solo stuff (handstands, macacus (spelling? sorry), and headstands) has improved since I've been here, as that was what I had to show off. They were impressed and invited me to eat their KFC or whatever chicken, but I had to bail to meet the other foreigners for Obama victory drinks. Hopefully they practice on a regular basis and I can practice with them, as they are much better than me and I can certainly learn a bunch from them. I've got my fingers crossed.