Moses Choi/ Sixth Post/ Tues 9-11 am

Task 4.2

I am sitting in my room with my eyes closed. It is a semi-basement room right next to a road. That's why even though I am the only one in this room, it is full with all kinds of sounds. As I try to concentrate on the nearest sound, what I notice is the noise generated by my laptop. From the bathroom behind me, I can hear the water running down through the drain. Maybe someone upstairs is taking a shower, I think. Also, through the window, I can hear the kids shouting, laughing, and running around at the small park near my dormitory. They never got tired. Occasionally, motorcycles go by, which make such a noise and thus irritate me.

As a semi-basement, this room is always bit chilly and damp. This makes a unique smell, though it is now covered with the smell of fabric softener from the laundry I hung. It is better than that damp smell, but still it smells too artificial. As time goes by, all those smells are getting weaker, but the chill is getting stronger. I open my eyes to grab some more clothes to put on.

 

 

Task 4.4

A Craziest Place on Subway Line Number One

             Every Korean man should fulfill military duty somehow, and somewhere. For me, it was an interpreting police officer, in Bosan. Bosan, a name of a region in Dongducheon city, is located almost at the end of subway line number one. Anyone who gets there for the first time, I think, will be surprised and say, "I never thought there would be such a place like here in Korea!"

             When I arrived there for the first time, it seemed like a dead village. Although it was only 3 in the afternoon, all I could see were old buildings whose doors are closed and locked, some stray dogs, and a few American soldiers who must have come out of the nearby U.S. army base. Naturally, the place was very quiet, except for occasional barks of the dogs and noises from the subway passing right above my head. I started to doubt what the other police officer told me, "You'll get so busy from now on."

             That night, when I came out there again for my first patrol work, I almost freaked out. It was a totally different place. I couldn't even pull myself together because of all that loud club music. Yes. Those old buildings were all clubs primarily for the American soldiers. The whole street was full of Americans, Filipinos and Filipinas, Nigerians, and some Koreans who were drinking, cheering, singing and dancing. There was an endless stream of all kinds of neon signs which made me dizzy. Inside a club, through a flickering light, I could see a smoke all over the place, but it did not smell like from cigarette. I asked, or shouted, one of the American MPs who were patrolling with me, "Hey, what's this weird smell?" That is when I learned how marijuana smells like. He told me "You'll get used to it." I could not believe him.

             Even in that crazy place, however, there was something that cheered me up. During the break time, the MPs brought me to a small sandwich shop, named 'Dog House'. It was run by an old Korean lady, and on her recommendation, I ordered a cheese bacon sandwich. It was nothing like I ever had eaten before. Between a pair of breads, there were a handful of bacon, a fried egg, and cheese, all fried with butter. It was salty, greasy, and so delicious. After that, every time I had to go on duty, I thought, "At least I can have that bacon sandwich." I actually had it almost every day. If I go Bosan again, it is definitely for that bacon sandwich.