Brent Dunham: VIP

Pics:
1-My first Mexican meal in 2+ months (in Seoul).
2-Hard-rockin' glasses for a hard-rockin' dude.
3-Food?
4-Adios Soo :(
5-I got her a bear cake so she'll know what one looks like and when to run away while in Canada.

Greetings...

I was just taking a nap when Rob "beeped" an IM letting me know that he posted a new blog that included the footage of him dancing. Ever since hearing about this infamous rug-cutting, I had been dying to see it...and it did not disappoint.

Check it out here.

After reading the blog, (and what a magnificently written entry it is) I suddenly realized that I haven't posting anything of my own since April 28th! This is no way to treat my fans! So, even though Rob efficiently covered the events of last weekend, I decided to cobble together a general report of what's been going on lately.

First of all, I'm very sad to say that our great friend Soo has transplanted herself to Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. You'll notice a couple pics above of her going away party. We've been here for over 3 months now and more than half that time was spent sight-seeing, adventuring and gallivanting with the one and only Soo. I can honestly say that the majority of happiness I've had living in Korea is anchored in the friends we've made and the times we've had. I don't meet new people very often and if you asked me before I left if I thought that would change along with my address, I would've laughed in your face. We still have our other great friend Ji-won to keep us going but there is an obvious hole shaped like Soo in our Korean landscape. The good news is that she'll be back in November to help us finish out the year! I've spoken with her since touching ground in the Great White North and the funniest thing is her culture shock which is a complete 180 from ours. She hates cheese and her first meal at her Canadian house was a cheese dish--we crave cheese all week and finally get our fix on the weekends. It's apparently very flat in Regina (which I can't believe is a problem) but it's maddeningly mountainous here. She's bored in the suburbs and sometimes the city gets to me. She needs a car to get anywhere and I've done enough walking for an entire lifetime.

Most people reading this know that I was back in the States for Dana's wedding. For those who were unaware, it's probably because I had zero free time. One thing that most of you didn't get was an official review of my first first-class experience. Either Dad's got an inoperable brain tumor and wanted to say "sorry" for all the fat jokes...or he was just feeling generous--either way, he pulled out the big guns, relieved himself of many, many airmiles and flew me first class BOTH WAYS from Tokyo to LA and back. I feel obligated to once again say "thank you, Dad!" I'll be thanking him constantly until I take my next Economy flight, at which point I'll most likely wish I had never been spoiled. So, anyway, let's get on with it.

The awesomeness actually began before I even got on a plane. When I checked in at the airport in Busan, (because I had an Economy seat from Busan to Tokyo) they gave me a free pass to their first class lounge to wait for the plane. Nice. So in walks me to their lounge wearing my sloppy hooded sweatshirt and cargo shorts and I'm greeted by THREE "concierges"(?) at the front desk. I can only imagine the confusion and discussion amongst them after I left. There were some fridges with cold drinks and little individually wrapped snacks and I had no trouble accepting. I actually didn't get lunch so I found myself going for a second round of "coke and mini-muffin."

When I eventually boarded the plane in Tokyo, I walked into the first class "area" and had the first of many "you've gotta be kidding" moments. I wouldn't even call these things seats...they were individual relaxation pods, or IRPs as I've come to call them. As you can see in the video, they're not even connected to each other and I had to almost stand up before I could even SEE another passenger. I was so giddy about this whole thing that I immediately took out my camera and started videoing my first experience aboard this alien spacecraft of luxury. I got about 20 seconds before the flight attendant, or Personal Robot of Courtesy (PRC), came over and politely reminded me that all electronic devices must be stowed until after takeoff. This little run-in made me feel a little foolish but I couldn't help myself. I was given an actual menu and WINE LIST in a hardcover folder along with my very own travel kit with mouthwash strips, toothbrush/paste and a sleeping eye mask. I was also given what's apparently called "Relaxing Wear"--I didn't even open this until I got back to Busan but it's a light sweater and lounge pants.

The food on this dream flight was out of this world. I don't mean to say that it was like the best food I've ever eaten--I mean, literally, it was like alien food. You can see in the picture above--a plate with three little dishes, each with a different example of exotic and rich cuisine. I don't remember what was in each one but they all contained food that tasted as foreign in my mouth as anything I've had here in Korea. I have a theory about why "rich people food" is usually given in such small quantities--it's not because they want to emphasize the "preciousness" of each dish by limiting it's amount, it's because the food is actually barely edible. The last thing I want to do is complain about anything with this experience but I can't see anyone over-indulging in steak tar-tar with caviar on top and a side of albino asparagus sleeping on a bed of almond mousse...hence the small portions.

The seat could be adjusted in any combination a weary passenger might desire including the oft-fantasized "fully horizontal" position. I told myself before boarding that I didn't want to sleep for fear that I'd miss ANYTHING about the experience. After a few hours, I noticed every other first-classer was asleep in their IRP--the PRC came over and asked me if I wanted her to "make my bed" but I politely declined. No joke, they literally make a bed--put the seat horizontal, put a "mattress cover" over it, give a duvet and an actual pillow (not just some Barbie pillow). As I finished my second movie of the night, I was feeling a bit tired and I considered sleeping. I came to the conclusion that getting to sleep like this on a plane is perhaps THE MOST AWESOME part of the first-class experience and I quickly made the request for turn-down service. I got about 3 hours of sleep and woke up just in time to enjoy some bread and fresh fruit for breakfast.

Basically, it was awesome. Oh yeah, and the first class bathroom is also an upgrade--imagine, if you can, a full 360 degree turn inside the stall without touching a wall...I know...I know.

I came back to work on Tuesday and thanked the Principal, Vice Principal, Mrs. Lee and Lucy with some authentic American Ghiradelli chocolates. They were concerned that I had also thanked them with the H1N1 virus as well. On Thursday, Mrs. Lee got a memo from the office of education about foreign teachers going home, contracting it and coming back to Korea. Of course, this was perfect timing for me to be considered one of the infected. The memo said that I should NOT come to school for 7 days after arriving for fear of contamination...it's a good thing I was at school for 3 full days!! I wouldn't have minded in the slightest if they wanted to me to take the whole week off. Mrs. Lee and I both kinda shrugged at the whole thing because the (potential) damage had already been done. Then, Friday morning, Mrs. Lee runs out of the class to meet the Vice Principal leaving me to start our 3rd class of the day alone. She came back 10 minutes later with another copy of the memo and pulled me into the other room. Apparently, the Vice Principal finally got his copy of the "dreaded foreign teacher" memo and wanted me to go home. Again, this would've been much cooler on Tuesday instead of Friday but I got off early so I can't complain.

I finally initiated my idea to make a movie with my students in our after-school class. Despite their initial, emphatically negative response, when I offered the suggestion to make a horror movie, they literally jumped out of their seats in excitement. This was last Thursday and today we had our first planning class. So, there's a Korean horror movie that came out last year called Gosa (Death Bell in English) that they want to remake it as a comedy. It's about a string of murders at a high school committed by their teacher who murders them in sequential order based on their test scores...is that perfect or what? I'm going to write the script and we're going to have one more "read through/rehearsal" on Thursday before the cameras roll next Tuesday. Of course, once this thing is in the can and edited, I'll be sure to host the world premiere here on the blog.

That's it for now.

Stay tuned...

-Brent