Another reason why I love Korea!!

Class let out at 2:30p today and Andrea asked me if I wanted to go with her to get her Halloween costume. It being a beautiful autumn afternoon and she being totally "jokes" (I thought it was a Canadian thing, but I just asked and she said it was probably more of a just her thing - whatever, I think it's fun to say) and all, I, of course, said yes. So, we're walking back from the shop and she says that she wants to pick up some apples from the grocery store that's across the street from our school. I'm not ready to go back and write in the memo books, so I go with her.

We're in the store, picking some apples out. Right next to the apples is a little norebang station set up (y'know, TV, microphones, some tambourines...) and there is a table full of boxes of fruit and bags of seaweed wraps. Naturally, I start singing along to the song - it's in Korean, so I just make up words and mumble along. Then, Andrea comes over and knocks one of the tambourines off the table. Of course we're being noisy Westerners, attracting attention without even meaning to, and one of the store workers comes over to see if we want to sing a song. "Oh, no no." We say and try to walk away. "But wait!" he seems to say with his gestures towards the table, "Look at what you could win!" I think about it and take a step forward, but then realizing what singing in a semi-crowded grocery store in the middle of the afternoon would actually be like, I take a step back. He goes from offering the huge bag of seaweed wraps (which, by the way, I love, and wouldn't mind winning a year's supply, which is what it looked like) to offering a big box of Jeju tangerines. "One song." Ayeyiyi. Well, if it's only one song. In this whole thinking time, an English speaking worker came by and told us basically everything we gathered from the guy gesturing, but it was nice and helpful and made everything seem that much more enticing - the offer being said in words.

What to sing? Oh, how about "Funky Town" as nothing else looked familiar. But, no no no, it's not the Funky Town that you think, it was something about living in a funky town and every other phrase was in Korean. Oh my! We shook our tambourines and giggled red-faced through it, breathing a sigh of relief after it was over. We went to take our tangerines, but then they offered the seaweed wraps for one more song. We looked at each other and said, "But we already sang one!" Then they offered Andrea's apples instead, and threw a few more in the bag. Allllllright! We sang "Choosey Lover" because obviously these aren't real English songs. I JUST FOUND IT ON YOUTUBE!!! (it doesn't really sound like we sang it...)

Again, this was a song where we sang, "Please" a string of Korean words that I mumbled and sang along, repeating previous words or "that looks like a five and I don't speak or read Korean" and "Choosey Lover", etc. you can hear it in the song. "The bass is tight.... all night." We shook those tambourines like nobody's business and totally earned every tangerine in that box!! The English speaking dude asked us to come back at 5pm for a contest, I have to teach so I declined, but I sure hope Andrea goes... I mean, I helped her get those apples, so what's a little singing for seaweed wraps, eh? Eh?

I love Korea. I do. :)

PS- those shiny suits are so hot right now, so hot. Seriously. I see them daily. Businesswear.