It's a little surprising that Shabu Shabu is popular in Korea. Japanese food has always had a somewhat tenuous attraction for Koreans - Japan is somewhat distasteful to older Koreans due to the history of conflict I mentioned in a previous post. But still, Japanese food is popular, especially among younger Koreans. Despite the longstanding strain of relations, the two nations share remarkably similar cultures and languages. This of course extends to food as well, so it's hard to appreciate one and not the other.
Japanese cuisine (and traditional culture in general, I suppose) tends toward more ornamental presentations, while Koreans prefer a more rustic feel. I'll go out on a limb and call this a difference in the way the two cultures handle authority: Koreans appreciate a practical DIY approach, while Japanese are more at ease with a heirarchical order of aesthetics. Still, Koreans were ruled by Kings with a well ritualized court culture for millennia. I can't say that Koreans don't appreciate the ornamental in small doses.
This place is a very popular chain - I forgot the name of it. You get a table full of different vegetables and sauces, then you put them all together in a rice paper roll (think spring rolls). This is kind of like a Vietnamese barbecue I had once, but I don't know if it's typical of any particular cuisine. It's definitely a fusion concept in Korea.
Golfzon is a screen golf system developed in Korea that's like a mix between a driving range and a video game. I've talked about the concept previously. Golfzon is the same setup, but it's supposedly much better at tracking the ball and being realistic and stuff like that. Personally, I found the realism and tracking to be about the same as when I played a few years ago with bro. He's gotten better of course, so it was a route once again. I somehow improved my game with absolutely no practice since the last time (maybe the computer was being nicer to me). This prompted bro to comment that I have golf potential. Well I'll keep whacking away with Wii Golf and let you know when I'm ready to hit the links, bro.
The system was nice for practice because you can watch your crappy form in action after you've sliced one into the woods. It's good to know that I tend to slouch and look generally frumpy when I'm swinging a golf club - nice! This whole experience has thoroughly discouraged me from setting foot on a real golf course again.
No comments:
Post a Comment