LKNEOR

A unique version of Hangman, where every mistake earns you half a black heart below the hidden word on the board

His name was Mr. Shinh, asking if I could privately teach his high school daughter English, a business man on the bus. He took me and a fellow foreigner for some beer and seafood, and soju shots. As I ate a lovely boiled egg to temper the rank alcohol in me, our new associate kept talking about 'special places', how he'd help us find them. We were young men he said, we should know about the 'special places'. He wanted us to 'enjoy Korea' he kept repeating, drunk from an afterwork gathering in 죽전 (Jukjeon), getting drunker whilst we weren't. His angry wife kept interrupting our clandestine meeting on the phone.

The whole venture eventually fell through because of scheduling. Oh yes, and because it's illegal too.

#

But I have friends in the police force, at the busy station in our area, where the chief waved me in off the street after school, wordlessly took me to the canteen which I initially took to be the interrogation room, gulping, before a young male/female duo came in and promptly peeled and served me melons. Was a pleasant time, though I had to keep from laughing when they told me how dangerous their job was. And I discovered they carry guns too!

#

The zebra crossing outside the station yesterday - as I walked, a local coming from the opposite direction said something and stopped us both in our tracks to shake my hand. I thought he was reproaching me at first for walking a red light, sensing traffic coming our way from both sides. No idea what he was saying.

#

Paris Baguette. Where I met the inventor of the spoon chopsticks and the piggy bank accordion.

#

The Kodak place, where fellow male teacher had his passport photos taken before a screen. How they paid attention to his hair with a comb... How much they charged him in the end, oh wow