Busan Slut Walk Sat. Aug. 31, 6-7 PM, Seomyeon

TONIGHT! Busan Slut Walk Sat. Aug. 31, 6-7 PM, Seomyeon
This flyer was created by the event's organizers: Don't Do That 

I am writing today about cause that is dear to my heart - women's safety and changing ideas about sex crimes. Women who fall victim to sex crimes are often blamed as having played party to the attack for their style of dress or appearance. In other words, if you dress like a slut you deserve it, you deserve violence.

This couldn't be further from the truth. Women (and men) are attacked in sex crimes - rape, assault, molestation - whether they are dressed proactively or not. The issue is not what people are wearing, it's that these crimes exist and that the victims are blamed, in part, for those these crimes taking place.

TONIGHT! Busan Slut Walk Sat. Aug. 31, 6-7 PM, Seomyeon
This flyer was created by the event's organizers: Don't Do That 

In protest of those ideas, the Busan team of the organization Don’t Do That (성범죄인식개선캠페인 돈두댓) is hosting a Slut Walk, an event where women and supportive men gather together and walk in protest of the idea that women's dress puts them at risk for sexual violence. 

Please note that unlike Slut Walk events held in other areas, the organizers this event are asking attendees to dress conservatively. This event has been organized by and for Korean women, so I think it best to mind their request. Also, if you will be attending to take photos, often people will wear ribbons on their arms to indicate that they don't want their face photographed. I am not sure if this will be in place tonight or not.

If you want to join, please meet in front of Judie's Taehwa, Exit 1 at 6 PM. You can find more detailed information in English on The Grand Narrative, where further links for Korean information are provided. It's a great website and definitely worth a look through. Hey, it's where I found this info!

Another post to follow the event! Sorry this is so brief. I will try to provide more details, context and criticism following the event. 

Supporters Over the Moon as Candidate Ends Campaign in Busan

Democratic United supporters crowd Busan Station

Presidential hopeful Moon Jae In of the Democratic United Party
makes his final campaign in Busan on Dec. 18

Campaigns for South Korea's 18th presidential election were in full swing in Busan tonight, with only hours remaining on the clock before the opening of the polls tomorrow, December 19th. Candidate Number 2, Moon Jae In, the leader of the opposition Democratic United Party (DUP), arrived at Busan Station at approximately 9:00 PM, greeted by a roar of applause and shouts from his supporters.

The party faithful arrived early to secure the best spots for viewing the action and to catch a glimpse of their political hero. Dressed in layers and heavy winter gear to battle the negative temperatures, supporters jumped and waved before Moon's arrival not just out of excitement, but for warmth. Many sported scarves, hats and jackets in the bright yellow and green colours of the DUP. Supporters of all ages braved the cold to see Moon, and they waved banners, balloons, and over-sized taegukki, the flag of South Korea. Elderly men shook their fists in support, their skin cracking against the cold, while young fathers hoisted their babies onto their shoulders so that they too could see commotion. Mothers, daughters, and granddaughters clung to one another, their faces wrapped in masks and their hair covered in hoods. Couples young and old smiled and shouted to one another, and families seemed to group together, their children bouncing with anticipation.

News crews orbited the stage and reporters shed their winter coats for the camera, standing stoic in their suits despite the wind chill. All around them shouts and laughter could be heard; music blaring, and flashes popping. A hush fell over the crowd for just a moment as Moon finally arrived in view, and was followed instantly by an uproar of screams, whistles, and chants. "Moon Jae In, Daetongryong! Moon Jae In, President!" they shouted as every man, woman, and child was swept up into the excitement. "100%!" they promised and "Vote, vote, vote!" they pledged to a smiling Moon, waving with a black-gloved hand. 

He approached the stage built into an 18-wheeler truck and outfitted with a large screen. "Friends, thank you!" he greeted them in the honorific form, bowing and smiling. He looked into the audience, his grey hair shining and his face glowing against his yellow parka. He began to speak, pausing every few minutes for applause and the spontaneous cheers that erupted from the crowds. All around people balanced on tip-toes and stretched their necks for a glimpse of the presidential hopeful. Shutters snapped and smart phones could be seen held high over heads, recording every moment. "People come first," his campaign boasts and in this moment, people were united by his promise.

Flashing the number 2 and the party colours
in support of presidential hopeful Moon Jae In

As neared the end of his speech, Moon's voice cast out over his increasingly joyful crowd who roared with delight at his every syllable, their applause thundering as he implored them to vote. "100%! 100%!" came the cries again, as Moon accepted flowers and posed for photos before he was escorted off stage by his smiling aides. The Korean national anthem followed, every member singing, swaying, and hugging; hands on hearts or in the air, their fingers shaped in a peace sign to represent the number two, for candidate Moon Jae In. Only moments later, one last burst of energy was summoned and a dance party broke loose as soon as a loud, thumping, upbeat melody filled the air. Teens twirled while seniors shuffled but everyone felt compelled to move in some way. The dancers, the singers, and all the supporters were thanked once again before they scattered, rushing to the train and subway stations, excitement not yet fading. Costumed workers reminded everyone to vote before dashing off to seek warmth for themselves. And just like that, it was over, the trucks and clean-up crews having removed nearly every trace of the event within twenty minutes of its conclusion.

Colourfully dressed workers implore citizens to vote!

Of course, the main event is yet to come, and nothing certain is concluded just yet. Will the victor be Candidate1, Park Geun Hye of the ruling Saenuri Party, Candidate 2, Moon Jae In and the Democratic United opposition, or a surprise victory from the independents? Along with the citizens of Busan and the rest of the country, I eagerly await the results of this, the 18th presidential election of South Korea.

Readers, what do you think? Who will win the election and where would you cast your vote? I'd love to hear your comments!

Read more about election campaigns in Korea here: 
Korea's Campaigns Bring New Meaning to the Term "Electoral Party"

"Coming into Bloom at the Busan Biennale" - Published on The Korea Blog

Admiring Ju-Ryeon Roh's Ghosts in the Bamboo Forest

I'm pleased to announce that my second featured article, "Coming into Bloom with the Garden of Learning at the Busan Biennale" has been published on The Korea Blog. In it, I explore this year's edition of Busan's biannual art exhibition offering insights into the artworks and the exhibition's focus on collaboration.

Check out the article here, and be sure to 'like', share or comment on it!

http://blog.korea.net/?p=13950

Enjoy, and thanks!

Love,

Jessica

NaNoWriMo Busan 2012! Launch Party Sun. Oct. 28

Launch Party Sun. Oct. 28, 5-7 pm, Starbucks Gwangan Beach near Millak, 3F

Calling all writers and would-be novelists in the Busan-and-surrounding areas! Come join us this November for NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month. NaNoWriMo is a 30-day-long global event where participants attempt to write 50,000 words (the rough equivalent of a novel) during the month of November. Why? For fun, cheap thrills, and to proudly tell others, "Why YES, I have written a novel"! 

Along with two friends, I've made myself a self-appointed organizer for NaNo Busan 2012. We are having a Launch Party this Sun. Oct. 28 from 5-7 pm at Starbucks on Gwangan Beach, 3rd floor (near Millak NOT Geumnyeonsan, directions & map below). Come out, meet some new people and fellow writers and find out what this event is all about!

Sign up for NaNo at www.nanowrimo.org, it's free or by voluntary donation and join the "Asia: South Korea: Busan" forum for questions and updates. We also have a Busan Nano group, where we will post about events, including this Sunday's Launch Party, write-ins, a Halfway Party, and the TGIO (Thank God It's Over!) Party.

Feel free to contact us through the NaNo Busan facebook group. Share this event and hope to see you Sunday, Oct. 28, 5-7 pm at Starbucks on Gwangan Beach near Millak, 3rd floor!

NaNoWriMo Official Site: www.nanowrimo.org
Nano Busan:https: www.facebook.com/groups/300624540310/?fref=ts

Directions (7-9 minute walk from Gwangan station):
- Take subway to Gwangan station (stop #209 on Line 2, Green line).
- Take Exit 3, and walk DOWN the main cross-street towards the beach.
- Take a left when you reach beach boulevard.
- Walk past Lotteria, and a burger joint.
- Starbucks will be on your left. It has a porch facing the beach, 3rd floor.

Map: http://maps.google.ca/maps/myplaces?hl=ko&ll=35.155017%2C129.120346&spn=0.00318%2C0.004801&ctz=-540&t=m&z=18&start=0

Gettin' Arty at the Gamcheon Culture Village

I was sitting in Busan one day naively thinking I'd seen it all, when this wonderful city surprised me with something new yet again. At the suggestion of a friend, my boyfriend and I made our way to the Gamcheon Culture Village, a picturesque art-adorned village perched high atop a hill overlooking the city and the sea.

Fishing for Fun at the Gwangan Eobang Festival

This weekend, Friday, April 26 through Sunday, April 28, come down to Busan to enjoy some fishing festival fun! The Gwangan Eobang Festival or Fishers' Festival, is taking place on the scenic and conveniently located Gwangalli Beach.

Celebrating the traditional ceremonies and rites of Korean fishing towns, the Eobang Festival promises dancing, singing, games, snacks, and much more! Located in Suyeong-gu, or Suyeong District, the area is known as one of Busan's premier fishing regions. Festival-goers will enjoy traditional dance and song performances, originally composed to wish the fishers luck and safety. At night, you can also see the impressive physical feat that is the synchronized group swim, where 10 men swim in time to beach-side drums. They curve and wind their way single-file to the lighted fishing boats, re-enacting nighttime fishing tradtions before making their way back to the beach. All weekend long, enjoy tasty seafood treats, festival booths, games, face-painting and other family-friendly activities. Admission is free and most activities are free or available at a low cost. Don't forget to buy a souvenir fish hat!

To get there, take the subway to Gwangan Subway station, Metro line 2 (green line, stop #209). Take exit 5. Turn back on yourself and then turn right, walking straight for 800 metres (7-8 minutes) down the hill, crossing three crosswalks before reaching the beach. You can also get off at Geumnyeonsan Station, Metro line 2 (green line, stop #210). Take exit 3, and turn left walking 800 metres (7-8 minutes) straight down the cobbled street, crossing three crosswalks before reaching the beach. To get to Busan, take the train to Busan station or Gupo station, both located near the subway line. Several buses are also available, and the Haeundae terminal is only eight subway stops from Gwangan station.

Korea's Campaigns Bring New Meaning to the Term "Electoral Party"

Local election campaign in Osan, Gyeonggi-do. June 2010.

On Wednesday, April 11,  2012 South Korea held a legislative election, a precursor to the upcoming presidential election taking place December 2012. So while this blog will talk about that election, if you want to learn about Korean political parties, or the electoral system, or about the Korean constitution, you're in the wrong place. I'm here to tell you about a different kind of political party - the splashy, heart-pounding, music-blaring, foot-stompin' party that is the Korean election campaign.

I'd only been here a few months when I saw my first election campaign in June 2010. It was the local election, but despite its small reach, the election's big heart was unmistakable. I was blown away. Never had I felt so foreign, delighted, and puzzled all at once. The campaigns were so phenomenally different from what I'd experienced at home in Canada. I asked my expatriate friends, "What are elections like back home?" The singular answer from Americans, Australians, Kiwis, Brits, Irish, and South Africans came back. "Not like this," they replied.

Campaign rally in Busan, April 2012

The Korean election campaign is about two weeks of attention-grabbing, K-Pop dancing, neon-light-flashing madness. It's twenty-somethings in sweatshirts, clapping and dancing. It's elderly women in visors, singing on the backs of campaign trucks. It's lights, bells, sirens, loudspeakers, and banners. It's giant inflatable dolls made to resemble the electoral candidate. It's non-stop, no-holds-barred FUN.

Campaign truck complete with TV, sound system, and dancers
cruises through the streets of Gimcheon in Gyeongbuk-do

The election campaigns are everywhere you go. Campaign workers dressed in party colours wave to you on the sidewalk. They hold signs, and wear banners and ball caps emblazoned with the party logo. Sometimes they even sport light-up sandwich boards! They shout, clap, and thank you from street corners, truck beds, rooftops, and megaphones. In Canada, I'd occasionally forget that an election was nearing until I passed an campaign sign staked on someone's front yard. Not so in South Korea. Starting from 8 AM until well after dinner, trucks with loudspeakers drive up and down the busiest of streets and the narrowest of alleys, blaring traditional tunes, or tailor-made musical jingles. Some trucks are outfitted with TV screens or dancers, or even both! Tents and big-screen projections can often be found city-centre, manned by a team of smiling, bowing supporters, passing out pamphlets and small gifts with the candidate's face stamped onto the packaging.

The election campaigns truly are everywhere, even if it's... nowhere.
Supporters wait to greet passersby in rural Gijang.

Rallies are held in parks and outside city halls, complete with speeches and entertaining performances. Voters come out in droves to support their chosen party, even in the nastiest of weather conditions. Walking to the train station in the rain last week, I was surprised to find workers from three parties dressed in rain ponchos waving and bowing to me, and thanking me with a smile. With so much activity, it's very difficult to ignore election campaigns. I can't even vote in Korea and I know the names and faces of the four candidates in my riding, thanks to sheer perseverance on the part of their workers and supporters!

A campaign rally  in Busan attracts supporters, despite rainy weather

Campaign workers wave to motorists in Busan

So while I resent the elections for waking me up so early on Saturday mornings with their unwanted megaphone serenades, I admire them for their imagination. Never have elections been quite so intriguing and entertaining to me as they have been in South Korea. And with the conflicting political views  that plague democracies worldwide, who couldn't use a little more entertainment? Tune in to Korea's presidential campaigns in December 2012, you're in for a treat.

Campaign workers holding signs and bowing to motorists in Busan

Skates & Smiles at Shinsegae Ice Rink in Busan

Even though Busan is a few degrees warmer than its sister cities to the north, it's still winter here, and occasionally you need to escape the chill. Well, Shinsegae Department Store offers the perfect solution to the dilemma of whether to venture outside or to stay indoors. Shinsegae, the world's largest department store, is also home to a lovely indoor ice rink, located on the 4th floor. It's open from 10:30 AM until 8:00 PM, seven days a week, and it's a popular activity with locals and tourists alike. A two-hour entry costs 7,000 won for adults and 5,000 for children, and skate rental is an additional 3,000 won. You must wear gloves and the rental helmets when skating. 

I joined two friends on a Thursday morning at 10:30 AM and was surprised to see a line of eager shoppers waiting for the store to open. When I got upstairs only a minute or two later, I was surprised again to find that a gaggle of teenage girls had beaten us to the ticketing booth, and that we actually had to wait a moment or two to get our gear. The entry and rental was quick and painless, although I'd advise that you know your Korean shoe size (measured in centimeters) in advance. Key lockers are available for 500 won.

When you hit the ice, you'll quickly get into the counter-clockwise groove with the sounds of K-Pop ringing in your ears, and videos of teary-eyed figure skaters like Korean hero Kim Yuna twirling their way to gold medals.You'll be on your way to Olympic glory in no time! 

The rink closes every two hours for a 15-minute ice-resurfacing, during which time you may wish to refuel with a treat from the snack bar, or take a moment to pose in the photo zone.

Shark Zamboni!

Schoolchildren + Snacks + Skates

So excited to get back on that fresh ice!

While early weekdays are definitely best as you can enjoy the rink to yourselves, weekends provide some good people watching and a more family-oriented crowd. Weekdays also appear to attract middle-schoolers in droves, so it's an amusing peek into the young dating scene. All in all, a fun experience and good way to pass the time if your friends are more into browsing the shops than you are!

Middle school students skate in their uniforms

Catch you next time, cool dudes!

Busan's Shinsegae Department Store is located at the Centum City subway stop (green line, stop # 206). Exit the subway turnstiles, and use the indoor entrance to store. Elevators are immediately to the right of the main entrance. The ice rink is open year-round.

Takin' the Plunge at the Haeundae Polar Bear Swim Festival

I had the pleasure recently of watching the 25th Polar Bear Swimming Contest on Busan's beautiful Haeundae Beach.

I rolled out of bed early on a Sunday to catch the festivities. The opening ceremonies and welcoming activities began at 9:00 that morning, but the real action started at 11:00 with the official swim event.


The swimmers were called to the front-and-center of the beach for the warm-up. Naturally the majority of the swimmers were Korean, but a few flag-toting foreigners could be made out in the crowd as well. The swimmers joined a warm-up group led by a quartet of attractive young Korean dancers. They were pushed through stretches, aerobic exercise and some fun games, all to the beat of loud and exciting music and cheers from the attending crowds. Cameras and tourists circled the competitors, all hoping for a glimpse of the fun.

Warming up with the dancers and camera crews

Swimmers small and big warm-up together

After the warm-up, the swimmers revved up with a roar of cheers. They turned to the water, and were sent off by the organizers with the bang from a gun, the thunder of applause, and a shower of streamers and confetti. Camera crews stood at the ready with commentators to live-broadcast the event.

Organizers cheer on those brave enough to swim

TV commentators reporting the events

Support for swimmers
on land and in the air!

The swim event lasted about half an hour and after that, the cold and victorious stopped to pose for photos with family, friends, and admirers. Yet another fun and unique event that I've enjoyed during my stay in Korea, and the perfect way to pass an afternoon during the long, cold month of January!

Post-victory pose with penguin

The Polar Bear Swimming Competition takes place every January at Haeundae Beach in Busan. Take any number of trains or buses to Busan, and then the subway to stop #205 on Line 2 (the green line). The beach is only a 5-minute walk from exits 4 and 5. This year, the festival took place January 8th, 2012, and the cost of entry was 20,000 won, including an official t-shirt. You can register through the festival's website, http://bear.busan.com.