The Catfish Chronicles: Cherry Blossom Festival

Date: April 17, 2011

I met up with some students for the local Cherry Blossom Festival last Sunday. Cherry Blossoms were just starting to bloom so we had a good time just walking around.

The Cherry Blossoms are very beautiful. At home, I have never really seen an abundance of the flowers so to see so many pretty pink and white blooms is beautiful. They last only a very short time (after they fall, the trees turn to green) so you have to be ready and willing to go take lots of walks during Spring Time.

The entrance into the festival. Gives a pretty good first impression, yes?

I walked around, waiting for my students/friends to show up. There was a Pumba Performance going on. There is not a direct translation of the word "pumba" into Englihs, but basically they are traditionally beggar people from way back when in Korea. Now they are entertainers at local festivals where they (I think usually men) dress up in beggar clothes or cross dress. They make a type of taffy that they sell throughout the hilarity.

A cross-dressing pumba performer. He is very obviously fake boobs.

A "beggar" pumba

As a foreigner I stuck out in the crowd...and very quickly I was pointed out by the pumba people. The beggar pumba was selling taffy in my part of the crowd and he quickly started show me various parts of his costume. Not surprisingly, he lifts up his shirt and shows me the lock on his zipper. He moves his hips back and forth, showing me how it sways. (It does not refer to the lock).

The "lady in red" quickly also points at me and directs the audience to look at me. I give a weak wave and answer the obgliatory questions: "Where are you from?" "You English teacher?" "Are you single?" I am single, so I say yes. This gets the pumba men to go a little crazy. The "lady in red" wants to also show me "her/his" surprise under his skirt. S/He has a little red pepper on that dangles, there, that, surpise, squeezes water.

It was all in good fun, and I got some free taffy out of being the entertainment.

I met up with Seo Young and Min Jee after the Pumba performers and Seo Young quickly says, "Oh, yes. Korean culture." and ducks her eyes--like she is embarrased. I think the Pumba are great. I quickly assure her that I loved their show and redirect the conversation so that we can find some food.

We walk past a full pig on a spicket:

It is some sort of Som gyup (like som gyup sal--one of my favorite korean foods, but this is the authentic version).

We sit down in the tent and quickly order some pig ribs.

Yummy yummy!

They were a little expensive, but I really didn't care. It was one of those "cultural things" and frankly, we are at a fair. All things are going to be pricey!

We finish with walking around, so we go looking for the cherry blossoms--that is the reason we are here! We find a nice row of trees and proceed to take a bunch of pictures. Seo Young and MinJee are quiet shy (sometimes, actually, they are only shy in front of a camera)--so it took me some luck and lots of attempts in order to get some great pictures. But the girls are beautiful and we had a lot of fun.