#5 Men in Tight Pants

Yes, flesh colored pants painted to your physique, when did this become a good idea? I feel borderline immoral posting this picture, but my task when writing this blog was to show people real things people are wearing over here, and folks this is as real as it gets. I spotted this man standing in line for the Pirate ship ride at the local amusement park (and yes, he did come dressed like this to the amusement park). It actually wasn't his pants that caught my attention, but his John Travolta hairdo circa Saturday Night Fever that he and his buddy were sporting, but I decided in this case the pants were worth sharing. I feel as if I am doing this man and other tight pants wearing Koreans a giant injustice by not telling them their bums are highly visible, much like the way someone tries to politely tell you when there is something green caught inbetween your teeth. When it comes to pants, men in Korea (although this list is appliciable to all) should abide by 3 basic rules:

1. If you size 2 girlfriend has larger pants on then you, perhaps you should go up one size.

2. If you need to lay on a bed and/or apply baking grease to your thighs in order to button said pants, perhaps you should go up one size.

3. Leisure suits died in the 1970's, let's keep them there.

#4 Dressing Your Children Like Grandparents

Have you ever experianced the awkward sitution when an older adult tries to have you guess their age? The question is usualy posed "How old do YOU think I am?" To eliminate the chance of guessing too old and possibly offending or insulting said older adult, you choose to lowball the age as to offer the most seemingly sincere compliment the universe has ever heard since someone told Michael Jackson his nose looked realistic. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would feel this same awkwardness when trying to guess a Korean childs age. This photo does this fashion trend no justice, one time I witnessed a 2 year old in a bow tie, black and white striped socks, Mr. Rodgers cardigan, sperry shoes and salmon colored chinos. It seems almost like a child is a type of fashion accesory rather then a little person who will at one point during the day spill food on their Burberry coat.

#3 Mixing Plaids

I know back in the USA, plaid is all the rage. Anyone who has survived the Nirvana grunge phase back in the early 90's, kept one throwback plaid shirt that has recently made a comeback throughout the Forever 21's and H&M's of the world. If you listen to Sufjan or Sigur, chances are you own a plaid shirt. If you hunt and have a full beard, chances are you own a plaid shirt. If you are in love with Salvation Army, Goodwill or any other vintage or discount clothing store, chances are you own a plaid shirt. Korea is no exception to this trend, the tartans are out in full swing and everyone from infants to the elderly is not immune. I think the quality I appreciate most in Koreans is their, dare to go there attitude when it comes to mixing two different plaid prints into one outfit. If you like the design of something the logical equation is to wear more then one of them.

"Once you can accept the universe as being something expanding into an infinate nothing which is something, wearing stripes with plaid is easy." -Albert Einstein

#2 Couples in Matching Outfits

This very real phenomenon is an every day occurance. It consists of couples, who are so ridiculously in love that the only way to express said love is to match each other so that the entire world can see that they are in a commited relationship. Nothing says love quite like: matching purple converse, plaid shirts and acid washed jeans. Je t'aime.

#1 Visors

Do you find yourself in urgent need to protect your skin from the sun and weld sheet metal at the same time? Look no further. Korean's wear these giant visors to protect themselves from the sun during outdoor activities such as hiking and fishing. However I am conviced that some people just wear them because they like the way they look, as I have seen many a person wearing the visors at night and/or with 98% cloud covering. Not only do they come in plain colors, but you can also get your visor/welding mask in an array of different fortes: bedazzled, tie dye, studs, metallic, decorated with cartoon animals and floral arrangements...the list can go on and on. No matter what the occasion there is a visor that will suit all your needs.

Cheers!

Soggy Waffle Fish?

“Fashion is made to become unfashionable.” -Coco Chanel

Place: Busan, South Korea
Ti me Frame: August 2009-August 2010
Who: Natalie Ursula Smith/EPIK Teacher
Purpose: To expose the western world to the fashion trends that I am experiancing while in South Korea.

I wanted to write a blog, that was always the goal, but more importantly I wanted to write a blog people would ACTUALLY read. If you are perhaps looking for a blog about the day to day experiances of a foreigner in Korea I want to warn you that this is not the place. A quick google search and you will find hundreds of blogs by westeners about the trivial things we go through: kimchi being shoved in our face morning, noon and night, old men staring at you as if you have the word Banana tattooed across your forehead, trying to find a pair of slippers that actually fit above an American size 8. NO! I want to focus on a completely different avenue, expose a world that perhaps some of you may never see, I want to show the western world what these Koreans are wearing. Whether it be ultra hip or ultra cliche, I will cover the good, bad and the ugly.

Why Soggy Waffle Fish? I promise this is my one story that is off the beaten path of fashion mishaps in Korea. While the bus was taking my EPIK group from training to Busan we made a dinner pit stop. I was craving a taste of home so ice cream seemed like a safe bet. I stopped at an ice cream cart a little off the beaten path of the resturant and found a package of what looked to be a waffle cone filled with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce shaped into a giant fish. JACKPOT! I pay my 1000₩ and take it back to the bus. I open it thinking I am about to get a mouthful of crunchy choclatey goodness and what happens? It turns to mush in my mouth. It is so soggy I can't even bite the dang thing. Dissapointed? yes. But the moment I coined the thing "soggy waffle fish" I knew my blog title had been created.

I hope you enjoy this Soggy Waffle Fish more then I did.

Cheers!