About K-pop

Why do you do the things you do?

Like what?

Like everything, most things you do, they are things most people wouldn’t even dream them possible.

I’m not most people.

I know but there has to be more to it.

Alright, it took me a while to figure it out but I think it’s because I’m constantly high.

High on what?

On k-pop of course.

How’s that even possible?

You can get high on anything, whatever makes you tick right?

I guess, but k-pop, really?

When something makes you click you don’t care what it is and don’t care about anything else. In my case, I often think the only reason I’m in New Zealand is so that I can save money to support myself in Korea while auditioning till I get a part on a drama or become part of a boys band, kind of like those people who move to California with the expectation of getting discovered and making it big in Hollywood.

You know what, that kind of makes sense actually. I can see you as part of a Korean boy-band, except because well you know, you’re not Korean.

That’s like saying I can’t be a samurai because I’m not a 12th century Japanese noble male in his 30’s.

Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying.

But becoming a Korean pop star is my purpose in life, that’s why I live, you know?

But you’re not Korean!!!

So?

You can’t be Korean if you’re not Korean, duh.

I can try though.

Yeah but that’s just crazy.

And that’s why you love me right?

Guess so.

 

Living in Asia as a vegetarian 1

How to survive in south and far east asia as a vegan/vegetarian:

Japan:  Pretty tough. Fruits and veggies are crazy expensive, only affordable options are udon, katsu-udon but have to fish out some seafood from it, tempura, and foreign restaurants which cost at least twice as much as local ones. The only cheap supermarket is called “super tamade” where they sell lots of pre-cooked vegetarian options, and of course sushi, tempura, salads, at around 100 or 200 yen a tray. Hyaku-en, 100 yen shops are your best friends to find some salads, fruits, drinks, noodles and many other things. It’s pretty much same as a 7/11 but everything costs 100 yen. And as a last resource you can always throw away the inside thing of the onigiri and eat the rest.

Korea: Moderate. While eating out you have like 2 options, kimbab or bibimbab. While ordering kimbap make sure you say something like “ham bek chusaio” so they dont put ham on it. If you’re not vegan there’s always “Pizza school”, they are everywhere and you can get a huge pizza for 5.000 won. Street food is alright, there’s a fish-shaped pastry that has red beans inside and is pretty cheap, often you can find tempura and fried veggies. They have many chigae, which is like a stew or hot pot, sundobu chigae, or kimchi are good but you may have to take out some seafood from it.
Mr pizza could be the best value for money restaurant, they have salad buffet for 6.000 won, so all you can eat of salads, fruits, some cold noodles and other stuff.

China: Fairly easy. Fruits and veggies are dime a dozen and they are everywhere, options are plenty, rice and noodles with vegetables everywhere, beans, vegetable bbq at night. They use almost no dairy while cooking, so very easy for vegans.

Taiwan: Very easy. By far best vegetarian food in east Asia. Vegetarian restaurants everywhere, and most normal restaurants have at least a few vegetarian options. Great variety, affordable and extremely tasty. Even 7/11 are quite cheap and have fresh fruits and salads, noodles, vegetarian fried rice, vegetarian dumplings, fries, nuts, pastries, tofu and many other things.

Malaysia: Delicious Indian food, samosa, curries, roti, paratha, puri, chapati, many dosas, delicious Chinese vegetarian restaurants, delicious Malay food, some fried noodles, rice with veggies, lost of street food and fruits. From Penang, to Melaka, to Sabah, most dishes are delicious + juice bars + fruits everywhere.

Philippines: Probably worst food in SE Asia, there are some fruit markets and western food places, so it’s possible to kind of get by on a vegetarian diet.

Laos: Rice with veggies + fruits.

Singapore: Same as Malaysia, just more pricey.

Indonesia: Not as bad a Philippines, but local cuisine doesn’t have much to offer for vegetarians, there’s is gado gado and that’s pretty much it. You may find some Indian food in Bali if you’re lucky, but in Sumatra, Java or Borneo you’re going to eat your rice with veggies, every day + fruits 🙂

 

What’s your visa?

I met some North American friends the other day that are still quite new to Taiwan, and they couldn’t stop laughing when I told them Taiwanese people always ask me about my visa status.
Young and old people alike they are like really interested to know what visa foreigners have.

At the beginning, I didn’t understand why they were laughing, because after some years in Asia I just got used to people asking about that, in Japan, Korea and Taiwan people for some reason really need to know what your visa status is.

In south-east Asia they don’t seem to care about that though.

Maybe people here need to make sure you’re legally staying in the country or they want to see if you will stay a long time, or maybe it’s to check your social status, so they can judge you by how much money you have, as people without the working visa can’t work here, so they are automatically assigned a lower social status, either by being poor or by being forced by the system to work “illegally”. Because sadly we live in a country where is illegal for a human being to work. And even more sad is the fact that people here think that’s right, because the government says so, and everything the government says is right.

People with a student visa are somehow under the wing of a recognized government institution in the country, making them decent citizens, as they are part of the system that helps maintain the status quo. Unless they got the visa attending a language school or private institute, instead of an university. In that case, they are assigned the same social status as someone on a tourist visa.

People on a tourist visa, unless they are tourists, get placed in this underdog category, not yet a criminal but not someone they would like to hang out with either.

To conclude, in the eyes of Taiwanese, Korean, Japanese people they use the visa question with this simple formula to judge the foreigners:

Working visa = Good people
Student visa = Good people (unless it’s from a language school)
Tourist visa = Bad people

Coming back to the laughs though, first I didn’t get it, but then I saw how ridiculous it sounded because they sound like police when they ask you that. And because as a foreigner myself, if somebody comes to the country I live, It would never even cross my mind to ask them about their visa, but maybe also times have changed now and I’ve been a foreigner for too long, got used to that and started seeing it as normal, or just the way it is.

But when we meet someone from another culture they help us see things from a different perspective, and sometimes no words are needed, but a rapid honest laugh can make us understand how flawed our position really is.

Ready to die 2

I’m still trying to wrap my head around the concept of death.

I learned that life is fragile, and unless you’re a very basic form of life, for most of us advanced organism with many cells and organs, there’s only one.

So we gotta make the most of it, right? Or does it even matter?

Life is so fragile that if a bus hits me while I’m crossing the street I will die and everything I did all these years will not matter at all.

Whether I build a space station or stay at home masturbating every day for 20 years will make no difference whatsoever, because I will close my eyes and will never open them again, pretty mind blowing right?

Now that’s not a valid excuse to stay at home masturbating I know if everyone thought like that we wouldn’t get anywhere, but it’s hard to know that all the things you’ve accumulated all these years will be gone.

I’m not talking about material things of course, but about knowledge and experience, all the things you’ve done and thing’s you’ve learned, the people you’ve met, gone just like that, the bus hits you and that’s it.

Maybe the bus doesn’t hit you, maybe it’s just a bicycle, it hits your chest and a rib punctures your heart, and you get some internal bleeding, or you step on something and break your neck. Our bodies are so fragile, that every day we could die in a million different ways.

In Japan some people go to die at the Aokigahara forest, many others jump in front of the train, some jump from the window at work or at school.

Up to 30.000 Wapanese kill themselves every year, that’s one every 15 minutes.

Around 15.000 a year in South Korea, so like 1 every half an hour.

And that’s just 2 countries.

Sociologists and psychologists say the causes of suicide are usually stress, competition, social pressure and emotional isolation, but I wonder is it really that, or those people realized it didn’t really matter whether they lived or died.

That either now or in a few years or when they are old, but they will have to die, there’s no way around it. So they chose to do it sooner than later.

In the animal kingdom, there are only a few insects that can willingly take their own lives for no apparent reason. Most of them try to adapt to their environment, to the food they find, to the weather, to some stimuli.

But not us, some humans, especially east-asian humans will jump from the building, just like that.

That reminds me of once I did bungee jumping in China, I was so scared, and they had to push me.

How can some people do it without getting pushed I can’t understand?

 

save my friend

People who read this blog may have noticed an anti-government rage the writer of it often expresses.

That’s because he often times forgets that politicians and armed forces are also human beings, the fact that they torture and kill people doesn’t mean they are monsters.

And he fails to see that governments ARE the people.

Governments have no power whatsoever without an army or some mercenaries to enforce their decisions.

Armies consist of normal people who enlisted in order to help their governments enforce their policies, no questions asked.

Both in their country and abroad.

But today, reading about Korean history, about Park Chung hee and Chun Doo Hwan, some dictator that killed many people in 1980, his dictatorship was, of course, same as most dictatorships in latin america and the middle east, sponsored by the United States and reading a bit more about the massacre of Gwangju, I remembered all the other massacres from other countries. Times when the governments suddenly decide to just kill everyone.

Few weeks ago we went to a protest near the chinese embassy, it was a big one, called “save my friend” to save the north koreans refugees that china was about to send back to north korea so they can get tortured and killed for escaping. from north korea.

And journalists who were covering the event, knowing that foreigners sell more news, were happy to interview me, so they asked me “why are you protesting here?” I said “because governments kill people”  after that there was a pause,

I think he was expecting me to say something else

but i didn’t

and he didn’t

so there was a pause

but they kept the camera on

so i started feeling awkward.

and then they left.

Someone that I’ve never known

The other day, I was talking to a friend while we were waiting to shoot some scenes and the subject of western-Asian relationships popped up.


She’s originally from north america, but has been living in Korea for a number of years now, and had the chance to date a bunch of korean guys, so we started talking about the differences between dating koreans vs dating western guys. 


For me as a guy, always find it amusing to hear the female point of view of the asian dating scene. because you see white guys with asian girls all the time everywhere, but white girl with asian guys, that’s still a pretty rare sight.


After talking about it for a while, she told me how she hated the way korean guys “broke up” with her and the lack of straightforwardness in pretty much all of her relationships.


You know how in the west usually, after someone says “we need to talk” you sit and talk about it, then someone says “it’s not you, it’s me” or “this isn’t working”, then you blame each other, scream, cry, slam the door or whatever and never see each other again.


Well, in korea, you just skip the whole process straight to the never see each other again part. The guys will just stop calling her and wont pick up her calls from one day to the other for no apparent reason.


But in the west we usually need that close up, in order to move on with our life, instead she would be wondering for a few weeks, what’s really going on, are we over, are we still together, did I do something wrong, did he do something wrong.


I had noticed that before, and had some relationships in korea and japan, that after a few years I’m actually still wondering, what the hell happened there? One day we were like big time in love and the next one she wouldn’t take my calls anymore and had vanished from my life completely. 


Instead of somebody that I used to know, she would become somebody I have never known. 




In Japan for example, divorce usually works something like this:




1- Husband comes home and finds that his partner’s belongings have disappeared.


2- He finds the divorce papers on the table or are delivered by someone the same day. 


3- He signs the papers or gives them to his lawyer.


4- He forever wonders what the hell happened.




How’s that for some loose ends? 😉




And as for my experience, it’s not just like that for dating, but for friendships and work relationships as well. One day best friends, next day total strangers, one day best employee, next day fired for no reason.





We know of course, that this comes from a need to avoid awkward situations, which is totally understandable, but as westerners who of course, still highly value honesty and straightforwardness in our daily relationships, it comes as a bit of a pain, to never really know what’s going on with the other person. 


Because they will treat you exactly the same way either they love you or they hate you.


On the positive side though, that’s why people usually decide to move to a different country, to experience all those little differences and nuisances in everyday life.


And hopefully, hopefully, learn something from them as well.

Whatever 8

Friend: Hey there.


Bruno: Hey, how’s it going?


Friend: I feel terrible, just had an argument with my parents.


Bruno: Why? What happened?


Friend: Well, I want to go on a holiday, but they don’t want me to go. What do you think I should do?


Bruno: Mmm.. that sounds like a typical first world problem. And the solution is usually the same, just brush it off.


Friend: What do you mean “first world problem”?


Bruno: Well, you know I have a friend, an English teacher here in Korea, and she told me that before coming here she was volunteering in Uganda, helping people with AIDS, and those people would die, because they didn’t have access to the medicines, sometimes they were some medicines somewhere, but they were just too far away, and the transport costs too much for them, so they can’t make it to the city, and they just die. 

Sometimes they have to trek for long hours, just to bring some water to their family and on the way they may get eaten by a lion if they were lucky enough not to encounter some bandits or soldiers that will rape them and kill them, or make them slaves. 

You see, in Korea, same as the country you are right now, we don’t have AIDS, we don’t need to struggle to find food or water, we have no malaria, famine, plagues, drought, we have no dictator and no mass massacres, to put it simply we have no real problems. 

So we have to make some up, for example I would worry about the corruption in our government and about the high-income inequality, you would feel bad because your parents don’t want you to go on vacations, someone else will worry because their iPhone broke, they can’t find a boyfriend, the weather is too cold or whatever.


Friend: Why do we do that?


Bruno: As with most things, there’s no just one reason or one person to blame for it, it depends on a million different variables, a million different “if”‘s. But maybe the simplest of reasons is that we’ve always done it and we don’t bother changing it because change scares us. 


You know, there’s a documentary I really enjoyed about stress, basically, they observe and study some distant cousins of ours, a tribe of baboons in the wild, their hierarchies, social status and relate it to the level of stress in their blood.


It turned out that the average baboon only needed to spend around 3 hours a day finding food and eating it, that left them the rest of the day free, to make someone else’s life miserable.
Which is pretty much the same we do. And, paradoxically enough, same as in a corporate environment, each baboon, knew exactly who he could be picked on by, who could he pick on, and in turn, who could be picked on by the baboon he can pick on and so on.


The rest is history, as we evolved, almost every known human civilization, once they get to cover their basic needs (food, water, shelter) they have tons of free time to terrorize each other, either by making up gods that will punish them, finding some reason to invade or conquer their neighbors, or just make their own lives miserable with a bunch of utterly bureaucratic procedure of some kind. 


Take the egyptians, for example, once they started thriving, they couldn’t just relax by the Nile and do some bird watching, they HAD to create a intricate series of gods, rituals, laws and hierarchies, then enslave hundreds of thousands of people in order to build some massive structures, for some retarded reason. And they HAD to do it, of course, in the most ridiculously difficult way possible, let’s take 20 years to build only one of this structures and let’s use stones weighing up to 2.5 tons, yay!


And this is not me complaining about the Egyptians, this is me complaining about human stupidity, we’ve been here for 200.000 years already (homo sapiens), we should know better already.


It’s just not you that worries about what your parents say, everyone worries about things that don’t matter, I also worry about my job, the weather, the future or silly things like catching the 150 Pokemon.


Friend: I think they are more than 150 now.


Bruno: You get my point though?


Friend: There are 649 Pokemon now.


Bruno: I know, but for me, they will always be 150, maybe I’m just old.


Friend: Not old, but things change, we discover more Pokemon, they evolve, and they get more and more complex every day, unnecessarily complex I would say, did you know that there are 7 Eevee evolutions now?


Bruno: Now that’s just too many Eevee evolutions.


Friend: You said you worry about your job, but how come you never talk about your job?


Bruno: True, I don’t usually talk about it, but I do worry, not as much as everyone else worries about it though. I’m just trying to change my perspective, see, pretty much all my life I’ve witnessed how everyone’s life revolved around their work. 


Friend: Well, you are what you do, right?


Bruno: Exactly! That’s what I got tired of, of having to “be” something, and the million social obligations that something, that title carries with it, so if I’m an office worker I have to dress a certain way, I have to talk, eat and behave in a certain way, hang out with certain people, at certain places, drink coffee and look stressed, because if I’m relaxed I wouldn’t be fitting the stereotype of the office worker, the same will happen if I’m an artist, musician or something like that, I have to dress a certain way, hang out at certain places, with certain people, I’m expected to care more about social issues and my ideas are expected to be more liberal, so I got tired of always having to fit into some job description that will, in turn, define my personality, my ideas, my appearance and that the rest of my life will revolve around that job description.


Friend: So you’re not gonna work anymore so you don’t get labeled.


Bruno: It’s not about working or not working, it’s about not giving it more importance than it should have and not be letting my job control my life. So yes, I’ll work for a couple of weeks or months every year here and there, save some money, then go traveling or do something I enjoy, like learning a new language and spend all the money, when I run out of money, I’ll find a different job in a different country, save some money, spend  it all doing something nice, work again, and so on, but I’m not gonna stress about it like I did before and definitely not going to let it take over my soul.


Friend: I wish I could do that.


Bruno: So do it.


Friend: But everyone expects me to work my whole life at the same job, I’m Asian remember?


Bruno: I’m Asian too.


Friend: No, you’re not.


Bruno: Ok, I’m not, anyway, being Asian is just the most handy excuse you can find now for not doing what you want, Asian countries have some expectations towards their citizens, same as every other country in the world, they are all pretty much the same, and we all think our life is harder than everyone else’s and we all think our country or our family makes our lives oh so very difficult, just so that we don’t have to take responsibility for our lives and we can keep blaming someone else for our misery.


Friend: 649 Pokemon.


Bruno: It’s crazy, right? 649 and counting and some of them just look ridiculous, like, seriously, what is this?

Friend: It’s a Solosis.


Bruno: And that?

Friend: that’s a ferrothorn.


Bruno: How about this one?

 

Friend: Luvdisc


Bruno: How clever! And what’s this supposed to be?

Friend: That’s a chimecho.


Bruno: This is getting out of hand.


Friend: You know it’s just a children’s game anyway.


Bruno: Children’s game? How dare you!?!?


Friend: It is.


Bruno: Well, whatever then.


Friend: 🙂

The Script (when you’re 19)

I recently talked to a Korean friend of mine. He’s 19 years old now, that means he’s entering the age where people will start demanding from him to start being productive and do something with his life. And by “something” I mean, of course, something they want him to do and by “something they want him to do”, I mean of course, work or study.


Studying not as a way of helping mankind, not as way of understanding more about life, about our universe, your body, your mind or about how things work, but as way of satisfying society’s hunger for predictability and doing just what you are expected to do, to keep things predictable, play by the rules and make sure everything stays the same. That the rich stay rich, the poor stay poor and the foolish stay foolish. 


And working not as a way of helping others, but as a way of helping yourself. Everyone around you wants to make sure you get a job and make just enough money to pay the rent, food and pay for a bunch of things you don’t need. 


The amount has to be just the right one, if you get too little money you may get sick or depressed, being unable to keep working, if you get too much you may try to escape the loop of working-getting little money-spending that little money-working again- getting little money again-spending that little money again-working again..

Same as a dog, they have to make sure you are kept on a short leash, giving you enough money and freedom so that you won’t complain but not too much so that you will run away.




So coming back to my Korean friend, we were in a group, so other people, after learning he had just finished high school, understandably wanted to know what’s he gonna do after, because he has to do something, right? He can’t do nothing. We all have to do something. Something that keeps the machine running, something that keeps the money flowing.


So his scrips would go something like this: 


“When I finish, I’m gonna go to the army, then I’m going to study business administration, and then I’m going to find a job at a company”


Now, there’s nothing strange with this, that’s what most Koreans would say at his age when people ask them what are they going to do after high school. It’s just what’s expected. Graduate then work at the company.


The problem is that this guy has dreadlocks, wears Jamaican colors, and looks and talks like he’d rather be playing ukulele in costa rica, than going to the army and business school.




So I remembered what my script was when I was his age, and it was, surprisingly enough, pretty much the same as his.


I used to say whatever people around me wanted to hear just so that they’ll leave me alone, and sometimes I almost believed it.


Sometimes I almost believed that was what I wanted to do, just because it was what they were expecting me to do.


Sometimes I almost believed I had to do something just because everyone else did.





And then when people found out I had the chance of going to Spain, and they asked me what I was going to do after. I remember myself saying “I’m going to save some money in Spain, then come back to Argentina and start some business or buy a house here”. That one was not only the answer everyone was expecting to hear, but also the only answer I knew, the only thing I thought it was possible doing then.



When I was 19, I couldn’t have said “I’m going on a trip for the rest of my life” because no one would have understood it, and neither had I of course.




When I’m a guy and I’m 19, I’m trying to figure out what’s going on with my body, why do I want sex, why do I like breasts. Why do I have so much energy, Why do I feel like fighting.???


And trying to figure out what’s going on with my mind, why do I cry? Why do I feel lonely? Why do I feel unfulfilled? Why do I feel confused? Why do people look at me weird? Am I special? What’s the meaning of life? Why am I alive? Why do I exist? Why am I so paranoid? Why do I hate everyone? Why do I hate myself? 


And on top of that everyone around you expecting you to have everything figured out already, and not only know what’s going on with your body and mind but also to know or  “choose” what is that you want to do during the rest of your life. And to give them a detailed explanation of why have you chosen that and how are you going to pull it off.




Now I’m 27 and still haven’t quite figured out what’s going on with my mind, what I did learn though is that every day we get a million new different thoughts and ideas, what I want to do now is not the same I wanted to do 10 minutes ago, assuming there’s even something I wanted to do.


Change is unavoidable and next week I will probably have radically different thoughts and ideas from the ones I have today, and so on.


So the advice I would give to that friend of mine and to the 19 years old me through space-time continuous, is not to worry too much,  take life day by day, try to enjoy the moment, because today there are so many things going on, and you’re missing them by trying to plan everything in advance.


There’s is no future, it’s an illusion, there’s just today and you are missing it.


Maybe you can plan today what you want to do tomorrow or next week, but don’t bother on planning next month, because you will be a totally different person then. 


Sure your family and most adults you meet everywhere will want to know what are you going to do for the rest of your life, but you are 19 already, so it’s time you understand that “I have no idea” its a perfectly valid answer to any question in life.

 

Music

Come to think about it, most memories I have are associated with some music.


My first recollection of music was when I was 12 or 13 years old, some bands that played on some radio somewhere, Nek, El Simbolo, Los Autenticos Decadentes, Aqua, Fey, Toy Box and that was it.


Some years latter, got my hands on an old walkman, and 3 cassettes: Hayashibara Megumi, Ska-P and Blink 182, this was back in Rosario, I was maybe 16 years old. listened to them all day long.


Still back there most memories are still linked to songs or music.


At Wilson’s place there was usually Hamazaki Oyumi, Okui Masami or Too Mix playing In the background, utada if we were lucky.


While hitting the highway on alejo’s car there was always some dance music, eiffel 65, sasha, or music from DDR.


At rodrigo’s place there was cumbia, at sebastian’s there was always either 70’s disco, like earth wind and fire or some ballads, like luis miguel or alex ubago.


At belkis or my friends from missericordia there was always AFI or alejandro sanz.


If I hang out with the guys from normal 2 there was usually nightwish, cradle of filth, rhapsody or stratovarious.



There were some strange people who always listened to bjork and there were this two sisters who played nobou uematsu. and ariel always wanted to make listen to boom boom kid and fun people.


come to think about it, all my friends in argentina had very different music taste, so i got to know lots of new music from them.


After that the mp3 came in, I skipped the cds stage. One day there were some cassettes in my life and then suddenly the computers came along, which brought the mp3, rendering audio files instantly obsolete.


I remember having bought only one CD in my life, but it was probably the most important one: “terra” by larc n ciel.


By the time I was 18 years old, the mp3 brought along many good bands for me, daft punk, smash mouth, the offspring, green day, sum 41, aerosmith, bryan adams, BoA, leo garcia, el otro yo, guns and roses, bon jovi, nirvana, the beatlles, the corrs, savage garden, ricardo arjona, the doors, dire straits, estopa, u2, mozart, tchaikovsky and all the classical delights.


After that, my time in spain is remembered through lots of strange music I dont think i can describe, and while riding the bus on the way to work, there was m2m, marit larsen and hilary duff playing on my mp3 player. What was I thinking, i dont know.


When I think of my time in germany the first band that comes to mind is kings of covenience. Always playing in my room, specially on those cold winter afternoons, snow outside, opening the windows to let some fresh air come in, stretching in bed. 


I’m actually still very much in loved with Berlin, with my apartment in friedrischain, with all those worn out buildings, falling apart windows, midnight bicycle rides, flash mobs, volkskuche, the umsonsladden, kopi, kreuzberg, neukoln, patryk, jurgen, julie, mia, morris, caspar and the others, treptower park, those reggae bars with fake sand by the river, the lakes, grunau, the camps, sleeping by the shore of the lakes, snow, couchsurfing guests, hitchhiking trips, the abandoned houses, the art galleries, maoz, the 1 euro falafel, the nights playing werewolf, the morning playing firsbee, football, turkish sweets, sunday brunches, the 1 euro glass wines, graffiti walls, the boat parties, the berlin wall, alexander platz, the trams, long walks, never knowing what’s going on, and always kings of convenience playing, sometimes cafe del mar, norah jones, maybe regina spektor. 


In india I stopped listening to music, maybe it interrupted my thoughts, but I could connect with the soudns of the ocean, of the birds, of the trees, the wind, the animals.


In china I got really into korean music for some reason, I think it was just because I didnt like chinese music so much, so was looking for an alternative.


In japan, mostly thanks to the music i got to understand why i love japan, and why i hate it also. funkey monkey babies, mr children, sakamoto maya, perfume, ringo shiina, x japan,yoko kano,  ketsumeishi, those isakaya nights, those sunday afternoon concerts at osaka jo, those walks by the river, those camping nights, tempura, those small rooms, the smell of tatami beds, hot summer nights,
I always thought no one understood me like the girls from bennie k and no music would reach me as “the brillant green” did.


The most important memories i have are all linked to some emotion, which are in turn brought back to me, by listening to this bands, once again.

An outing in Seoul

   

   

   

   

 

more hiking pictures

   

   

   

   

Hiking On Sunday the 19th

   

   

   

   

start a revolution

Bruno: What do you mean, you feel lonely? You’re like the strongest and most independent person I know.


Friend: Everyone feels lonely sometimes.


Bruno: But you have many people who care about you.


Friend: Do I?


Bruno: Well… No, not really, but people know you, they know who you are.


Friend: You care, right?


Bruno: Yes, I do but at least you’re still free.


Friend: Yes, I’m free in the sense that I can only afford things that are free.


Bruno: Best things in life are for free.


Friend: That’s what poor people say.


Bruno: Alright, I know what will make you feel better.


Friend: What?


Bruno:  


Friend: potato?


Bruno: Yes, potato.


Friend: How.. How’s that’ suppose to make me feel better?


Bruno: I just thought..


Friend: A potato..


Bruno: It’s the thought that count.


Friend: well, thanks, I guess..


Bruno: I don’t know what else to do.


Friend: How about making me a sandwich?


Bruno: Alright, what do you want on it?


Friend: How about some tomato and lettuce, some pickles and a bit of hummus. And maybe some carrot juice to drink, no make it kiwi juice, ok carrot, carrot and kiwi juice, could you do that for me?


Bruno: I’ll do my best, but you know we don’t have any of those things, right? How about some instant noodles with some bread from last week and some tap water to drink?


Friend: Damn! Are we still poor?


Bruno: Last time I checked.


Friend: Ok, where’s that potato?


Bruno: Yeah.. actually it wasn’t yours, I took it from your flatmate’s shelf.


Friend: Damn! Damn you Korean government, Y U NO PROVIDE FREE FOOD, HEALTH AND EDUCATION?


Korean government: Because fuck you, that’s why.


Friend: Damn you!


Bruno: Sorry bro, you’re on you’re own.


Friend: I guess I am on my own.


Bruno: And getting angry won’t make it go away.


Friend: I know, but what else can I do?


Bruno: Start a revolution, take back the power, take over the government, give power to the people and provide free home, food, health and education for everyone, that’s always been your dream, right?


Friend: But everyone around me seems oblivious to everything around them and oblivious that I’m aware they are oblivious to everything around them.


Bruno: They are just too busy trying to keep themselves busy by trying to look busy so you don’t notice how busy they are, trying to look busy.


Friend: Wait, I’m confused.


Bruno: Yeah, I don’t know what I just said.


Friend: Do you think there are others like us out there?


Bruno: No.


Friend: Only on the internet?


Bruno: Yes, that’s a start, right?


Friend: Right?


Bruno: Right?


Friend: Right.

Bruno: Right.


Friend: Left.



Bruno: Left?



Friend: Left?



Bruno: Right.



Friend: Left.



Bruno: Left.



Friend: Right.



Bruno: Left.



Friend: Right.



Bruno: Left.

Friend: Left.



Bruno: Left.



Friend: Right.



Bruno: Left.



Friend: Right.



Bruno: Left.


Friend: Wtf dude it’s 3 am, go to sleep.



Bruno: Right.

Sunday is…

…Hiking day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Muslims, you’re doing it right :)

I started Korean and taekwondo lessons went on many outings this last few weeks and met some new friends.

Enjoyed a freedom few people can enjoy. Not freedom like spending all night showing your private parts in chatroulette,  but the freedom of being able to do anything you want or doing nothing at all. Without having to fulfill other people’s expectations, without worrying about the future and without feeling guilty about being “unproductive”.

It happens to me (and to most people I think) that when we procrastinate for a long time, a year or more, we start feeling guilty about not generating any source of income.

In our materialistic society we’ve been taught that time is money and money is time, we spend time doing things we don’t like and in exchange we get money. Any time spent not making money or learning something that we think in the future will be useful to make money is wasted time.

And even myself that I have been unemployed for many years now, still have to deal with those values that were unfairly imposed and inculcated on my subconscious mind when I was most vulnerable. During my childhood.

And now while enjoying this freedom, I get reminded that the Korean government has arranged things for me not to be able to find work and for me to have to leave the country every 3 months because they only give me 3-month visas.

And I wish 2 things:

1~ For me to be able to enjoy freedom for the rest of my life, freedom of movement, living and traveling anywhere I want, unrestricted by visas, borders, or lack of money. Without the need of a passport or wealth.

2~ For everyone else on this planet to enjoy this freedom. Because we deserve it, it’s our right, should be undeniable, like breathing,

But wishing is not gonna take me anywhere, I have to do something about it.

I know what to do, but I don’t  know how to.

I need to learn how to share everything I have, and then I need to find a way to teach it to people.

My friends from rich countries, Scandinavian countries, Japan, Australia laugh at me when I tell them we should just open all the borders, let everyone get in and out as they please and share the wealth of the rich nations with the poor ones. or better yet, organizing things for the poor one not to be poor anymore. They say I’m crazy.

And on the other hand, my friends from poor countries, S.E asia, Latin America, think it makes perfect sense to share everything we have so people don’t need to suffer anymore.

I don’t know how can I learn to share everything, but I know where can I learn it.

Muslim countries.

I was very lucky to spend some months in Muslim countries and staying with many muslim people and something that struck me was how detached they were and ready to share everything even when they didn’t have much.

For me, the first time I went to a Muslim country was in 2008. Was shocked and never thought people could be that hospitable, altruistic and kind. Just going for a walk, cars will stop and ask “hey, do you need a ride?” that made me smile and I was like “YES! Faith in humanity restored!”

Of course, after many years of hitchhiking, Couchsurfing and just wandering around I’ve also stayed with Christians, Buddhists and atheists hundreds of times, slept at many branches of the Christian churches and at are-khrisna, Indian and Buddhist temples. But no one was nearly as kind as the Muslims.

When everyone else asked me how long am I staying or let me stay just a few days, the Muslims won’t let me go, and if I say i’m staying just for one week, they always ask me if It’s possible for me to stay longer with them.

Same with food, or with their time, they are generous with everything and don’t expect anything in return.

So I think If I move there for a while and live with them I could learn it from them.

I’m an atheist myself, don’t believe in the paranormal, will never agree with the way they treat women and I know sometimes they are not so nice to each other, but when talking about generosity and kindness towards foreigners visiting their countries I will humbly take off my hat and say: Muslims, you’re doing it right!

8 reasons why south korea is my favourite country

#1.  No cops bugging me: Sick and tired in Japan and some European countries that the cops will just stop you for no good reason on the street and ask to see an ID.

#2. No ticket controllers: No need to hide, no need to be paranoid all the time, no need to carry fake ID or run for it when you see them. Because on Seoul’s subways and buses, there are no ticket controllers.
In Seoul, you can just enjoy the ride, without having to think that the police will storm into the train to harass you. You know why people hate cops? Because 70 percent of people are just terrible under pressure! including myself of course. So even if I do have a ticket, I can’t deal with the pressure, of having those guys raiding the train in search of the people that have no tickets. Who (i think) are just normal people like you and me, except that they have no ticket, but for them, are criminal masterminds. And they have to be punished for not being able to afford a train ticket.

But.. wait a minute, we pay taxes every month, shouldn’t that pay for the trains and public transport instead of paying for people to punish you for using it?

#3. Free visa and easy visa run: You know how in most countries after a few months you have to leave the country in order to re-enter to get a new visa and sometimes they don’t let you back in, or you can do it just a finite amount of times. That’s not the case here.

#4. Free shuttle bus, concert tickets, and Korean lessons.

#5. So safe! Unless you had the chance of growing up in a 3rd world country as I did, you probably don’t know what it feels to be mugged at gunpoint, to be afraid you won’t come back home alive, getting beaten up by the police, not being able to trust anyone and always having to watch your back to make sure you’re not being followed.
Well, it’s not pleasant! So I’m very happy that in Korea people don’t have guns, it’s safe to go out at night, there’s not much crime and the police are usually young guys in their 20’s who just finished high-school and present no threat most of the time.

#6. Easily accessible: there are cheap flights and ferries to many countries (and by cheap I mean under 100 dollars)

#7. People: the kindest I’ve met, will expand on some other post, even though my Korean friends say people here are friendly only to foreigners.

#8. Pokemon! Most Korean words sound like Pokemon names. And some people look like Pokemon also. I think.

Christians in Korea

After spending some time in Korea, I started to wonder, why are there so many Christians in Korea, how did they get here, when, why.

Yeah, I know this is a delicate subject and people usually get offended but get over it.

I was very surprised when some people I’ve met, instead of asking me: “Do you have a religion?” or “what’s your religion?” they would ask: “Are you a Christian?

Just assuming everyone’s Christian here, or all the foreigners are Christians.

And even though I know it looks very arrogant, I can’t help but laugh when they ask me that question, it’s a reflex-like reaction for me. Same happens in the Philipines.

I was surprised there also because as a westerner I always saw Christians as descendants or somewhat connected or influenced by the Romans or Jews, or at least Caucasians.

So when I see a Korean or Asian person going crazy about Christianity it looks weird, funny.. but weird!

Ok, so I googled and it seemed that the reason was mainly all the missionaries the US sent after the war, to gain full control over South Korea’s society and economy.

And I came across a comment from a Korean guy on a teaching forum that got me thinking, he wrote: “Christians are the retards of Korea, you talk to them and it’s like there’s something missing.”

So I thought about how many times I talked to someone, and there was something off.

Quite a few, not just in Korea.

And I bet they were thinking the same about me, that there was something weird about me.

We are all so similar and yet we find so many reasons to fight about.

If an alien were to visit our planet, do you think they will notice any difference between you and me?

Probably not.

Poligamy

I met a girl once. And was really really into her, thought of her all the time, tried to see her often, wrote her every day, brought her a gift every time i met her and tried to make every moment we spent together a special one.

Would have done anything for her.

She made me want to be a better person, she inspired me. And every time I was with her I couldn’t help but smile and being nice to everyone.

She made me feel so confident about myself and about what we had, that I told her I didn’t want a relationship based on possessiveness or jealousy, so if she wanted to see other guys I was cool with it.

And that I was with her because I wanted to be with her, without any conditions and without expecting anything from her, In my mind that was the theory for a successful relationship. Being with someone despite the world, accepting them how they are. Instead of being with someone only if… they have sex just with you, only if… they care about you or if… they do this and do that and they are exactly the way you want them to be.

But actually (i realized so very late that) when I said that to her I was unconsciously expecting her to say something like “I don’t need anyone else, I’m happy with you” but of course she didn’t say that she started seeing someone else on the side instead.

And then she told me and said “you said you wouldn’t mind” and I was like f***k, she’s right! I was the one who said it was ok in the first place. But I only said it because I thought she wouldn’t do it and I wanted to look so open minded and self-confident. She wasn’t cheating or doing anything wrong and I had absolutely no reason to get mad at her.

But still, I reacted like I was in a Kevin Smith’s movie, dumped her and never saw her again.

The days after that were just hell, crying, insomnia and my stomach was sick, like that song from The Killers. I’m sure most of you’ve been there before and know that feeling.

So that was when I realized I wasn’t ready for an open relationship yet, I thought I was but wasn’t mature enough yet, not even close.

And I thought f***k, I spend so much time trying to be in control of my emotions, so much time trying to get rid of all the negative feelings, like greed, hatred, anger, jealousy. So much time trying to think and act in the most logical and rational way possible.

This shouldn’t be happening to me, not to me (I thought) I’m stronger than this, I’m better than this.

Polygamy makes sense! for a number of reasons, I know that in theory, so I thought I could handle the practice. Because it was the logical thing to do.

She hadn’t done anything wrong, she only did something that made her feel good, having sex with someone else, getting pleasure, being happy. Sex makes us happy. Affection makes us happy. To all of us. No one can deny that.

So I should have been happy that she was happy and she was doing something that was good for her and should have kept enjoying the good times we were having together, that was the logical thing to do.

But I couldn’t and I had a dilemma, I’d been betrayed by my own beliefs and wasn’t able to walk the talk.

And well… In the end, that girl taught me I was actually much weaker than I thought and not so liberal and open-minded as I wish I was.

I usually act cold, like I don’t need anything or anyone like I don’t care about anything.

But actually, I do.

I do care, I just haven’t learned how to show it yet.

Talking to strangers

I wish I had a camera or one of those new phones that can take pictures so I could put pictures or videos on the posts here.

Last time I had a camera it was in 2005, I remember because it was very big! I think Mike gave it to me as a present and I was so very excited about it!!
For like 3 weeks.

But if I had one of those smartphones I would probably be like this people:

I always seem to be the only one who thinks there’s something wrong with those pictures.

We have lost our humanity!!!

I don’t reject technology at all, it makes our lives easier most of the times, but in Korea and Japan, it’s just too much! We have become slaves of the machines we built. But seriously:

Y U NO TALK TO EACH OTHER???

There was a campaign last year in OZ to encourage individuals to be friendly to each other on the trains, it said to start with a simple “how was your day?” and it explained how you could make someone’s day by just showing a bit of interest in their life.

and nononono, I’m not homesick at all, I love Korea, I really do, that’s why I live here, but I do miss a bit the chance of striking conversations on public transport in the UK or Australia without people thinking I’m a creep or I have some ulterior motives.

I think it’s very helpful talking or getting advice from strangers because they don’t know you so well, so they can be more objective than your close friends.

I’ll always remember once I was on a bus on the Scotish countryside, and there was this old man, in his 80’s sitting next to me, so we started chatting, he asked me where are you from, how long have you been here, the usual, and then he asked me: “what do you think of scotish people?” I said “they are so nice to me, I almost can’t believe it” and he asked, “do you know why they’re nice?” I said No.
“Because you’re nice” he replied.

Non-Coffee Shop Friends

In the few months I’ve been in Korea, only managed to make 2 non-coffee shop friends, but today one of them left, Maxi went traveling for a few months, so now only Okkeun’s left. And he will also go traveling next month :((((

A non-coffee shop friend is a friend I can meet outside the coffee shop. Meaning there is no need to meet at a loud and crowded location, like a coffee shop, bar, restaurant.

Non-coffee shop friends are the ones that can come over to my place or I can go to theirs, we can cook together, watch a movie, have a cup of tea, play some games or just talk.

With the coffee shop friends, you always need to spend money, because they don’t hang out at free places, like parks or libraries or each other’s places. So I usually try to avoid them. Not because I’m cheap or anything, but because the less money I spend, the more time I get to live without working and doing things I like, if I go to the coffee shop or dine out every day I’ll probably go bankrupt in a few weeks.
And I don’t even like coffee, why do I have to pay 5 or 7 dollars for something I can get for free at home?

In Europe, Australia and South America 95% of my friends were non-coffee shop friends (maybe not 95%, I just really really like statistics) but in Asia, that percentage drops down to less than 5% of my friends. For example in Japan, I was there for almost 6 months and managed to make only 1 non-coffee shop friend, only one! (referring to the locals, western friends are usually non-coffee shop)

But.. Joint consumption doesn’t bring intimacy… joint creativity does!!

I hate living in the past, but actually I really really miss Argentina, where my friends would come over at least few times a week for a game of Tekken and they’d bring pizza and we would stay up playing until 5 in the morning and then go to sleep all together in some joint mattresses on the floor, maybe 10 people in 3 mattresses, those were good times!

Or in Germany where Patryk or Jurgen would drop by for a cup of tea every time they were around and then went play frisbee in the park, and then cooking everyone together and playing UNO and for a bike ride. Those were awesome times!

In Korea or Japan, is just meeting at the entrance of the subway, walking 10mts and sitting at the coffee shop.. for 2 hours…

 

 

personality traits

Have you noticed how, if you speak more than 2 languages, your personality is quite different depending on the language you are using?

And you can find yourself playing a handful of different characters during the day depending on the language.

In my case, my personality will change something like this:

Spanish: even though it’s my native language I found it utterly difficult to express myself in Spanish. So my personality is usually very shy and quiet around other Spanish speakers. I think everything twice before speaking and I’m often misunderstood.
I’ve probably been neglecting it for some reason and usually feels weird, probably thanks to the awkward experiences I had in Spain where I could never fit in anywhere.

Italian: It feels comfortable, Italians feel like family, so the language makes me feel warm and I can easily open up to anyone in Italian, even just 5 minutes after meeting them. While in Spanish it would take me months to open up to someone.
That’s why Italians will usually perceive me as friendly and approachable while Spanish speakers would think I’m shy and reserved.

English: I’ve somehow managed to ignore all the political issues that being an English speaker brings forth and accepted it as the universal language for international communication.
My head and ideas are in English, I think, dream, and can express my ideas clearly without worrying about being misunderstood, that gives me confidence!
So if you met me as an English speaker (and if you’re reading this chances are you had) then you’ve met the real me.

Japanese: Always shy and respectful, listening more than I talk and being careful not to brag and keep modesty and respect as a priority to communicate with anyone in this language.
Can’t challenge anyone’s ideas, can’t open up to anyone, I just listen and agree with everything the other person says.

German: Feels good also, feels familiar, probably also thanks to the legendary times spent in Germany.

Korean: I don’t really speak much of it, and usually don’t understand what people say, but when they talk to me, I think “oh, this sounds so cute” so I’m sure they’re saying something nice to me and that makes me feel good!

Living like a boss (At Incheon airport)

In this post, Bruno recalls a dialogue that may or may have not taken place at Incheon Airport in Seoul somewhere around 2.45am.

Bruno: So, what’s up with that security guard?

Old weedy guy: Which security guard?

Bruno: Oh, come on! you live at the airport too, right?

Old weedy guy: No way, what makes you think that?

Bruno: I saw you washing your underwear on the toilet sink this morning.

Old weedy guy: That one wasn’t me.

Bruno: Yes, it was you, and I saw you scavenging leftovers from the fast food restaurants.

Old weedy guy: That one wasn’t me either.

Bruno: Yeah it was, and just now the security guard went crazy because you were molesting the airport staff.

Old weedy guy: Not molesting, just talking and that wasn’t me either.

Bruno: So, you’re in denial.

Old weedy guy: Ok, you got me, I’m going through some rough times and I temporarily happen to be living at the airport, so what? It can happen to anyone.

Bruno: Yeah, it’s actually pretty cool, isn’t it? you get free food, no need to pay rent or spend any money, there’s TV, music, internet, clan toilets, and it’s not cold like outside.

Old weedy guy: I used to have a real job you know, but somewhere along the way I realized i wasn’t meant to follow orders.

Bruno: you mean orders from your boss?

Old weedy guy: Exactly. Why do I have to follow orders? I don’t understand. I don’t want to do that… So I woke up one morning, turned off the alarm and said: “fuck it, I’m moving to Incheon International Airport”. I’m my own boss here, don’t need to take orders from anyone and can do whatever I want.

Bruno: How about that security guard? just now he told you to go away and you left.

Old weedy guy: Yeah, he’s just having a bad day today.

Bruno: “Fuck it, I’m moving to the airport”. You know I really like that phrase, it has a nice ring to it!

Old weedy guy: It does actually.

 

understanding the old lady

I went to watch a documentary, the name was: ” My heart is not broken yet”. It was about an old Korean lady who was a comfort woman, a sex slave for the Japanese army during the war.

She spent the last 10 years, and lots of money, filling and following a lawsuit against the Japanese government, asking them to issue an official apology to her, because she knows Japanese don’t like to apologize or admit they made mistakes.

That’s right, she didn’t want monetary compensation, she didn’t want the Japanese or any other country to just get rid of their armies, stop the wars and live in peace, she didn’t want to make sure what happened to her won’t happen again to anyone else in the future.

She just wanted an apology.

And she didn’t want an apology from the soldiers or military officials that served during the war, but from the actual Japanese government that little had to do with what happened 60 years ago.

Yet the Japanese keep denying everything, whitewashing the textbooks and censoring the history regarding Nanjing, Korea, and SE Asia.

And the Japanese people believe it, because, you know that’s what the government says…
same as the chinese believe that the tibetans are hostiles and whatever story the teach them about chairman Mao, the North Koreans believe their dictator is a hero or a god or whatever.
Same as the Israelis with the Palestinians, the Russians with the Georgians, the Americans with the Middle Easterns, they will always believe the official story (whatever b.s. the government says) just because they say it. Yeah, that’s all the proof we need right now to believe something. We need the government to say it, that’s it. Same as before we needed the church to say it and that was it. Whatever they say we will believe and whatever they want us to do, we will do, because we are stupid and it’s easier just to follow orders than to think for ourselves or stand up for what’s right.

In my case, growing up in Argentina, in Latinamerica, when I was there I’ve been conditioned to believe that the reason why I was poor and had no food it was because the Americans owned all the big companies and controlled the economy there. and because the British stole some island, and because the Chinese, Koreans, and other Latin Americans came and take the jobs from us, and yeah, you know, the economy, the inflation, the corruption, the debt, the crisis,  WTF!

We are always blaming other people (or the circumstances) for our misery instead of taking responsibility for our actions.

And the Korean woman just wants an official apology…

Let’s say the japanese government will admit everything, apology and give money to everyone like the germans did. What would that change?

I think we should learn from our mistakes and make sure it doesn’t happen again. what’s the point of worrying about the past and regretting things we did or other people did to us?

And all the people who went to watch that documentary were all happy with the documentary and admiring the old lady.

This kind of things happen to me every day and make me feel like I’m all alone and no one understands me.

Maybe im taking the wrong approach, and  I should try to understand them, instead of asking other people to understand me.

That’s difficult, and I would have to accept he fact that I dont have the ultimate truth and other people have their own truths also.

Maybe the apology would help and change things by making them understand that they made a mistake and they shouldn’t kill, torture and rape people again.

And other countries will see what that the Japanese took responsibility and won’t make the same mistake.

Well, probably not, but I should still try to understand others, instead of always thinking I am the only one who’s right and I know everything.

I will try today, and maybe in a few years if I ever read this again it will remind me that I should try harder to understand everyone (including this old lady)

NEET

Been a good boy lately, did some exercise, inspired a few people, seeded most of my torrents most of the times, but still don’t feel like I’m making any difference.

I learned the words “chigeopi eopseoyo” something like “I’m unemployed” in Korean, to answer people’s questions. And I remember when I was in Japan and learned the acronym NEET (neeto) which stands for “Not in Employment, Education or Training” so I could accurately explain what my status in the society is.


And I got many laughs, because Japanese and Korean always see foreigners as wealthy and successful, or at least brave enough to leave their countries and make a living abroad. So when they hear some foreigner is unemployed and living abroad they think it’s funny! And most times they say “cool, same as me” and we can laugh together about it or just blame the economy.

I found out it works something like this: when you are in your home country, or where you grew up you have all this pressure, from family, friends, governments and the Illuminati, to make a living, be successful or at least do something, when you’re abroad is the opposite. You are expected to be relaxed because you don’t really know what’s going on, you don’t understand the news or the politics and usually can barely manage to get around.

You can do whatever you want and it’s cool because you’re “traveling” and no one really cares much about what you do or don’t do.

Unemployed in your home country = loser
Unemployed abroad = funny!

And yes, sure, you don’t feel like you contribute much to the society, you don’t pay taxes to support all the corrupt politicians, their armies, and nuclear weapons.
You don’t contribute much to the waste of resources for the production of useless goods we don’t need and the destruction of our planet.
You don’t get stressed and give away your life, your time and your health, so that other people above you can get even richer than they are.


But it’s still cool, you get to hang out with other unemployed people, usually at odd times of the day in odd places, you get to read lots of fanfics and you get to write stuff like this so that in 10 years from now you can read it and say: “Bruno, what a waste of talent! What were you thinking? You were so smart, you should have been inventing a time machine or something!!!”