Flanders dog

Flanders dog

october 2001
finally i have found an easy way to explain where i come from. in this part of the world, all young people are familiar with the cartoon called 'flanders dog' (http://us.imdb.com/Details?0168334), the sad story of nello and padrash, a poor boy and his dog in Antwerp in Rubens' time. today somebody asked me if milk carts are still pulled by this kind of dogs in belgium. i wonder how many belgian people have heard about this story, i only found out last year in japan. anyway, the fact is that my friend youn-ho has a flanders dog here in seoul; last week in the park i saw troops of schoolchildren jump in delight to see a real flanders dog, although some thought it was a sheep, couldn't blame them, he has a funny haircut at the moment. on a sunny afternoon, i followed my mom's advice and went to the belgian embassy to register. nothing much seemed to be going on there, still i didn't get beyond the reception window. if you have the chance, pick up the free series of postcards 'belgium a state of mind' at any belgian embassy. for my fellow belgians, maybe you don't want to know what your tax money is being used for.. this is the '.be' image the belgian administration wants to convey about our country: 'the map says you're here. here, seen from above, is really small. here is a crossroad, a roundabout, a meeting point, a thirty thousand square kilometre conference table. here, everything is big for those who see distinction in little things. people here complain in three languages but laugh in one. and when there's sadness, the rain falls in sympathy. here, proportions are either absolutely normal, or completely over the top. here, works of art aren't afraid of poking fun at their audience. and there are so many flags in parades that they look like catwalks at fashion shows. certainly, the country is flat, but it encourages people to aim higher. they say of here that people have remained simple. well honestly, what's the point of being difficult? hope to see you soon in belgium.' the style reminds me of the singaporean holistic lifestyle magazine coincidentally called 'Be.' too many magic mushrooms i guess. anyway, back to the streets of seoul. in the evening i wandered around alone, looking for a place to have a social drink. i realised that i hadn't done that since my transsibtrip last year, probably because i don't particularly like it. many bars, and too many neon signs to read while i am walking. i found a grungy cabin called 'bar fly', and remembering the good times at 'la mosca/the fly' in caracas, i had to check this out. the place was almost as small as my room, one of the three tables was occupied by four pierced local teenagers drinking, smoking, and chatting on their hand phones. i stayed long enough to finish half of my soju bottle, the local firewater, and then headed back to a more social place where i had been talking with an american fellow student a couple of days before. again i ended up in the company of an american (with a germany-complex) and his korean wife. when the bar closed, an unidentified foreigner interrupted our conversation with the remark 'america sucks cock'. fortunately my new friend was a bit too intoxicated to take action, but we couldn't figure out what this was about- maybe just jealous of his pretty wife. by the way, the war against terrorism seems far from korea at the moment, however, they are probably breaking their head over extra security measures for the worldcup next summer. korea had a five day weekend to celebrate chusok, the harvest festival to honour the deceased ancestors. i was very excited to be invited to my friend sang's house. got up early to witness the rituals, but should have double-checked with the bus driver because after a scenic ride ended up somewhere in the province, while sang and family were worrying about my whereabouts. after a very warm welcome we sat down for a day of delicious food and hospitality. between meals played a traditional korean board game with grandma, indeed the best chusok i have ever had! next day legs a bit stiff from sitting on floor, so went for a hike. behind my house is a old buddhist temple. took off my shoes and sat down in peace with the smell of incense in the air. being in such a huge room completely built of wood seems to have a relaxing -even spiritual- effect on me. i climbed the hill behind the temple, and thought of that magnificent mountain the avila in caracas. also here many people sweating to reach the top, and i must say some koreans do overdress for hiking: boots, hats, sunglasses, knee-high colourful socks.. the effort is rewarded with wide views over the city, its 10 million people, and the surrounding mountains. while i am studying for my vocabulary test i wonder if one day these words will get lost in my memory as happened to many other words before. 'autumnal tints', 'two days after tomorrow', 'not to be properly salted'..