Soju

Soju. How can I explain soju? I should probably mention that I'm laying in bed because while I don't feel that bad this morning, I mean afternoon, I get a little dizzy when I stand up. Because of soju


So- the drink of choice in Korea is soju. There are many different kinds of varying strength and ingredients and on average costs about $1-3. Everybody drinks it- rich, poor, old, young. Well not kids. Unless you count teenagers. My students drink it. And then they sleep in my class the next day and give me dirty looks when I bang my hand on their desk and tell them it's their turn to speak. It's sold everywhere- restaurants, bars, and every convenience store. It's hard NOT to buy soju.

It tastes sort of like a sweetish vodka and like many liquors is best when it's cold. I like it (surprise surprise) Sometimes it's mixed with fruit flavors like strawberry and kiwi- which is safer because it's fairly weak that way. Until you add an extra bottle. Plus, the choices are limited- the 2 big beers here are Cass and Hite- sorta like PBR- but PBR is better. Good imported beer is super expensive- Guiness costs about $9 for a half pint in a bar (though you can buy it for about $4 a bottle in the stores- singles not 6-packs) and even Heineken costs about $7 . I like the fruit wines ok but they're a little too sweet to drink all night. There's fermented rice drink I like called makali but that's usually only in restaurants and bottles from the store.

It's considered rude to let someone's glass be empty -though in the first week I figured out how to just pretend to sip and move my shot around with out actually consuming much (I had to work the next morning). If the bottle goes empty someone will quickly order another. If your drinking with Koreans it's like they magically make them appear- you don't see them leave or gesture or push the call button on the table or anything. Also- the service in Korea is incredibly excellent. You can even return something you decide you don't want. Which I've only seen once and it wasn't soju. And you always get food with your drinks.

The first few times I drank it I didn't see what the big deal was. I had a few shots and didn't really feel any more drunk that I would be from tequila. It's sorta like tequila too- where you get kind of a psychedelic buzz, everything gets bright and shiny, and you feel warm and happy. And then I discovered the secret of soju. You go out with a group and order a bottle or two depending on the size of the party. The bottle goes empty and while you are discussing whether or not to order another- someone already has. Plus- I mentioned the 'not leaving glasses empty' thing, right? Even if you sip your glass is constantly being filled. You don't really know how much you have drank. This goes on for hours and then, even though you still don't feel that drunk, you agree to go to a noraebang (karaoke room), expensive dance club, or find yourself convincing the bar to add Funkadelic to their play list. And suddenly your WASTED!

The first time this happened I remember going to the noraebang and wishing I was a little drunker if I had to sing. I remember Nicole singing Leonard Cohen, I vaguely remember holding my hand over one eye to pick out songs. I do not remember what I sang, being carried down the stairs when we left, or the restaurant afterward. The second time, last night, I do remember everything. I remember the dance club, paying for our table (it's like renting a table), checking our purses so they didn't get stolen, getting hand fed fruit by our Korean co-worker Rachel, teaching Rachel how to booty dance, getting taught the dances and gestures to the Korean songs that everybody knows the moves to- like this one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wIYAw4-l_I&feature=fvhl

and this one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwSfJan2Tlw&feature=popular

although- it's mostly the gestures. Koreans don't wiggle their butts too much. It's also very segregated gender wise. Like a middle school dance. They club had a mix of live performances and dj's of various types and slow jams in between. A lot of the DJ stuff samples western music and one was awesome- super funky and rockin'! We ate afterward. It was super fun.

But- today, like last time, I am wiped out. Not sick, probably because of all the eating, but zombiefied. I started this post at 1 this afternoon but had to take many many breaks due to the need for brains. Which means tomorrow I have a lot to do as today I did nothing except watch movies. I did get out of my pj's for an hour- but that is ONLY because I needed to get water and food.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soju