So, I have decided that if I am going to spend most of my time on planes, I will at least take some photos and thoughts from everywhere I go. I had an amazing time last week learning about our business in Korea.
Korea genuinely seems to be the only place in the world, where senior, austere businessmen are allowed to get completely trollied. Drinking games start the night, usually with a “bomb”: a pint of beer with a glass of whisky poured in. In the military, as a sign of respect for the senior officer, one is encouraged to balance the whisky on top of the glass on a set of chopsticks and smash ones head on the table until the glass is displaced. Failing to unsettle the glass indicates a lack of commitment to cracking one’s forehead and thus, (clearly) a lack of respect for the senior officer.
Thinking of the great Australian Christmas party tradition, I did enquire as to whether you would be in strife for doing something stupid while drunk at a work function. It appears that if one was to be reprimanded for (say) dancing naked on the bar at a work party, your boss would have a “small heart” and accordingly not be respected. What goes on tour etc… It struck me that this was a culture that Ant would truly succeed in. J
Anyway… a culinary extravaganza was had by all… Dinner at a bulgogi restruarant – Korean BBQ style… my highlight was the cows stomach lining, where the otherwise chewy texture gently softened in olive oil and sesame seed marinade. Just beats the abalone porridge for breakfast.
And lastly… in a culture wonderfully obsessed with gadgets electronics… the most functional commode that this little traveler has witnessed … one can’t possibly imagine what that many buttons are actually for…
That’s it. Next week: Hong Kong. To be joined by the family with a sojourn to Disneyland – what can possibly go wrong….
