Smudger
MY BLOGS
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South Korea
http://smudgem.blogspot.com/
An in-depth and alternative look at South Korea from the perspective of an Englishman married to a Korean and living in a small city in the far south of the country.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 123 )
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My Experience of the Hypocrisy of Western Prejudice
Picture by Gwydion M. Williams (flickr.com)Just so all of you know that I am not one to only bash cultures different from my own, I have news for you and this i... Read more
Posted on 01 November 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Noah the Jindo Dog and the In-Laws Dilemma
Noah at 7 weeks oldTo have a little break from the controversy of the last couple of weeks on this blog, I thought I'd write a nice warm-hearted post and one fo... Read more
Posted on 27 October 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
The Trouble with Stereotypes
So I posted a couple of blogs last week that created quite an interesting response. I did ponder whether the second was necessary, especially after a friend of... Read more
Posted on 20 October 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
A Challenge: RE My Asian/White Couples Post
My last post on Asian/White couples seemed to offend a few people, so in a bid to understand why, I am issuing a challenge to any readers of this blog, not... Read more
Posted on 12 October 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Why Are There More Asian Women with White Guys Than Asian Guys with White Women ?
I took issue with yet another of Ask a Korean's posts this week (he seems to be good ammunition for the Korea blogosphere at the moment), not so much because I... Read more
Posted on 08 October 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Interesting Korean Blogs
Firstly, let me confess, I am not a very prolific blog or indeed news reader when it comes to Korea. My posts are usually personally based; I find something tha... Read more
Posted on 05 October 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Why Does Korea Make Us So Angry?
Picture by Charles LeBlanc (flickr.com)Why is it that so many people get so upset about Korea while living in Korea? I have never sensed the same acrimony... Read more
Posted on 29 September 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
My Korean Wedding - Part 2
Picking-up from where we left-off from last week then, preparations had been done - mostly not by me - and the studio photos had been taken, so it was time for... Read more
Posted on 27 September 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
My Korean Wedding Part 1
A couple of weeks ago, I had what I thought would never happen, an actual wedding in Korea. Now, just in case you are confused, I have already been married for... Read more
Posted on 19 September 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Korean Food and Why It is So Great - Part 2
Sorry for the delay in this post, but I have had a busy few weeks with a wedding, parents coming to Korea, my wife leaving for Australia to study, and being... Read more
Posted on 14 September 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Korean Food and Why It is So Great - Part 1
I often label Korean food as one of the significant plus points to living in Korea in my posts, but I am regularly amazed how so many people come back to me... Read more
Posted on 18 August 2013 DESTINATIONS, FOOD & DRINK, TRAVEL -
Freedom of Speech Threatened by Cultural Etiquette and Sensitivity
Last week, I wrote the longest post ever in reply to Ask a Korean's post on plane crashes and culturalism. I felt compelled to do it because it touched a nerve... Read more
Posted on 03 August 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Culturalism, Plane Crashes, and Ask a Korean's Error
Ask a Korean's blog gained even more popularity last week with an extremely widely-read post debunking Malcolm Gladwell's theory of Korean cockpit culture. Read more
Posted on 25 July 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Fight the Flab in Korea!
Perhaps this is simply an observation from my own experience, but I have known so many people that have lost weight and got in shape while living in Korea. Read more
Posted on 21 July 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Troubles with the Co-Teacher
First a bit of background into teaching in Korea for those of you that haven't taught English here. It is a legal requirement for the school to have a co-teache... Read more
Posted on 13 July 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
The Nazi Swastika and the Japanese Rising Sun Flag
Over the past few months an issue has kept on raising its head from time to time and that is the Korean outrage over the use of the Japanese Rising... Read more
Posted on 07 July 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
Are Westerners Living in Korea Developing a Persecution Complex?
It has struck me that, for quite a long time, I have noticed a sort of heightened sensitivity in the foreign community living in Korea to any form of... Read more
Posted on 29 June 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
English Speaking Competitions: All Status and No Substance (and Certainly No...
So what is getting my goat in Korea at the moment? English speaking competitions. These little contests seem to be cropping-up in many schools this month in my... Read more
Posted on 21 June 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
The Privilege of Having Korean In-Laws
Having fairly conservative-minded Korean in-laws can be extremely frustrating, but I do sometimes forget the tremendous privilege it is to have a Korean side... Read more
Posted on 14 June 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY -
He's a White Westerner? He Can't Say That! - A Civilised Disagreement
This blog gets re-blogged on on another site (koreabridge.net) and I had an interesting discussion with someone who commented on it. Read more
Posted on 08 June 2013 CURRENT, SOCIETY