The Visa, Hong Kong And Giant Buddha

s my first month back in Ulsan passed rather quickly it was soon time to do a visa run. My tourist visa was only valid for one month since I hold a South African passport. Luckily a month was all I needed. Usually everyone goes to Japan for a visa run, but since my little green book is not too welcome in Japan, I went to Hong Kong instead. To get to Hong Kong was more expensive, but I have no regrets about that. That meant I got to visit Henk and Fenny again. I've visited them in Hong Kong two times before during lay overs and I was excited to see them again.

On January 13th I made the trip over to Hong Kong and as usual received a warm welcome. I did not sleep at all the previous night because I had to leave Ulsan way before the crack of dawn to get a bus to the airport.  Monday the 14th I took the train to the Korean consulate and was amazed at how easy it was to find, and how fast everything went. Signing in, dropping off the visa application, signing out, five minutes flat. That meant more time for sightseeing. Instead of taking the train back to the IFC mall where I was meeting Henk later, I decided to walk. Outside again I was greeted by many tall and shiny buildings, but best of all, shiny and expensive cars.  

This is the view from Henk and Fenny's apartment. The airport is on the
right and there is actually an airplane caught taking off in the photo.

On my way to the consulate I came out of the subway right under this
building. Apparently it is being hugged by koalas.

Ah, Rolls Royce Ghost, one of a few I saw.

Audi S5 Sportback. For some reason I am in love with this photo.

After walking around outside and getting back to the IFC I met Henk again. He wanted to go to a few hobby shops in Mong Kok so we hopped on a train to go there. Mong Kok is also where they have a market full of awesome souvenirs and random stuff. I was interested in the souvenirs. After a bit of bargaining I walked away with a big jade dragon, a small terracotta warrior, a golden waving kitty for Anriette and two fans. Another thing I almost bought was a breathalyzer that you plug into your iPhone. I reckoned it would make a kick-ass drinking game, but it was a little pricey. 

After Mong Kok we went back to the apartment and I was treated with a nice South African braai. Skaap tjops, braai brood and mengel slaai. Homesick on a plate. 

The next morning I picked up my passport and visa from the consulate. This time instead of five minutes, it took only one. A total time of 6 minutes spent in the consulate. Not bad at all. 

Back on the train I was on my way to see the Giant Buddha. The starting pint of the cable car that take you to Buddha is only a few minutes from Henk's apartment. I opted for the crystal cabin cable car. Why? Because I am afraid of heights. Time to man up. The cable car ride takes about 20 - 25 minutes. 

Henk's apartment is in one of the buildings on the left.

Eeeek!!

First sight of Buddha.

After getting out of the cable car it is still quite a walk to get to Buddha. First through a little town of souvenir shops, the one trying to be more expensive than the other. I know that because I went into every single one of them. I am a sucker for souvenirs shops.

This one couldn't care less about everyone passing by. The word 'adoption'
came to mind a few times.

Getting closer to Buddha. South Africa - 11,881 km South West. 

And then the climb to see da Buddha.

Right under Buddha's big copper bottom I was told that if I buy a ticket to climb the stairs into Buddha's bottom I could get free lunch at the temple. Oh really? Well why not then? I was quite famished at the time since the foot long Subway sub I had devoured only minutes before I took on the million stairs to Buddha was already processed, packaged and ready for delivery by the time I reached the top. So up Buddha's bum it was. 

On my way to temple these people were praying, I assumed to Buddha.
Duh?! He was right behind me. 

There were a few monks praying in the temple. Unfortunately no photos allowed there.
Again... Oh really? Videos don't make any sound when recorded...

Yet another adorable pooch waiting for his owner.
Adoption!

Aaaaand lunch at 5pm. Tadaa! Coke, noodles, cookie, cookie. Yum. 

 After lunch at 5 it was time to start heading back to the cable car. Before even reaching the souvenir town I saw this little tent... filled... with... souvenirs. So obviously I walk inside and leave with a bag of souvenirs. A Buddha statue, Hong Kong fridge magnets, post cards, another golden waving kitty, this one for myself. Then, walking past the expensive souvenir shops back to the cable car with an I just bought a bag full of souvenirs look on my face. 

On the trip down I shared a car with a group of Korean tourists. After getting out of the cable car I was forced to walk through yet another souvenir shop to get to the exit. I just scanned everything quickly and I saw this awesome backpack. It was a panda, and it was so fluffy! So I bought it. And a Hong Kong shot glass. 

My flight back wasn't until 2:35 a.m. the next morning, so I still had some time catch my breath before returning to Korea. And so another Hong Kong trip came to an end. Part 3 success!

Thanks again Henk and Fenny for your hospitality.

The Return To Kimchi Land

hapter one in Kimchi Land came to an end just as 2011 was about to pass the torch to 2012, and with more than enough snot and tears I might add. About two months and a day or so ago I returned to the land of kimchi for chapter two. Chapter one was a big success and I have no doubt that chapter two will be as well, even though it started with a bit of a hiccup. But like I did with all hiccups, I took a spoonful of vinegar for the hiccup and everything worked out so well that I am back in my old neighborhood, a minute's walk from my old apartment, and working at a great school with awesome people.

Updates of everything since the hiccup up until now to follow soon...

The Airport, The Camper And The Burning Volvo

On July 25th Lindie Erasmus returned from South Korea after two years. Her plan was to come to CapeTown first, because her dad lives here now, and obviously also because Gerdus and I live here.

Her flight was scheduled to land in Cape Town at 11:15 am. Before she left Korea I told her that I will also meet her at the airport. I had never met her dad before that day, so I figured I will just meet him there and introduce myself. Her flight came in via Johannesburg and I walked into the domestic arrivals hall at 11:13 and started looking for her dad. To my surprise he was nowhere in sight. There weren't a lot of people there so I was sure I wasn't being retarded. With no way of contacting him, except for Facebook, I went online and saw that he had posted some stuff just 9 minutes earlier. I sent him a message and asked him where he was, but with no success.

My brain started working overtime. Maybe he was waiting at international arrivals and didn't know that she flew in via Johannesburg. Maybe he was running late. Maybe he had car trouble. Maybe he had the time wrong, but I know Lindie gave him the correct time. And the one I feared the most was, maybe he forgot his daughter was coming home after two years. 

Approximately 30 minutes after her flight had landed I saw her in the back of the hallway leading to the arrivals hall. I had no idea what was I going to say. Maybe: Your dad forgot you are coming home, but welcome back!! So I just welcomed her and told her that I had no idea where her dad was. We walked to international arrivals to see if he was waiting there, but no luck. Like good old Murphy at his best, Lindie's Korean cellphone with her dad's number on decided to pass on to less technological pastures as soon as it entered the borders of South Africa. After waiting outside the terminal building for a few minutes we decided that we are just going to go. I knew her dad lives in Bellville, so we would just go there and send him a smoke signal or something. 

While driving we did some thinking, made some phone calls and finally got his number. I phoned him to tell him that I had Lindie with me and that we were on our way to his house. I think it goes without saying that it was quite an awkward conversation. He had gotten confused with the time she was going to land in Cape Town because of all the delays she had in Korea and Hong Kong caused by the typhoon. So we got his address and headed there to wait for him. 

That weekend two of Lindie's friends, Morne and Selmari, came from George to visit for the weekend and we decided to take the camper, drive down the coast and find a place to spend the night. I think it is safe to say that we didn't plan anything, at all. We just loaded our bags, stopped at the gas station to get some petrol and then we hit the road. 

Road trip!!! (Photo taken by Gerdus)

We headed past Gordon's Bay and found a place to stop and have a barbecue for lunch. After that we drove on and found an awesome camping spot right next to the beach where we stayed for the night. The bags of awesome Woolworths food that Selmari brought was consumed entirely. We ate like freaking yetties! Nom, nom, nom!

The Sunday morning we started heading back and made a stop for lunch at the Spur in the Strand, which wasn't such a great idea. We couldn't complain about the service, because there wasn't any. Poor Gerdus, Morne and Selmari probably got the worst Surf 'n Turfs in history. Not happy campers.

Being not so happily filled with food we are on the road again. We had one concern, however, and that was that we were not sure how much petrol we had left. The gas needle of the camper was all over the place and after a few rough calculations Gerdus and I reckoned that there is a small chance that we might actually make it back to Bellville, if we drive half the speed limit. There would be gas stations somewhere on the way there so it wouldn't be too big a train smash if we ran out of petrol. As we were leaving Somerset West we drove past a gas station on the national road and probably 5km further the camper gave a few chokes and then kept going again, for about 5 seconds, and then it died. I pulled over to the side of the road and then it was time to make a plan. We had an empty 3 or 4 liter bottle and a machete and all decided against phoning Lindie's dad. Gerdus and Morne volunteered to walk back to the gas station to get some gas. What we didn't realise at that moment was that we ran out of petrol right next to Khayelitsha, the biggest township in Cape Town, and probably the most dangerous place as well. And to make it worse, the sun was setting fast. I only saw the Khayelitsha sign when Gerdus and Morne were well on their way to the gas station and they phoned us seconds after I saw the sign to tell us that they were on their way back. A guy driving toward Somerset West stopped on the other side of the road to tell them that they were crazy to walk next to the road in the area, especially when it's getting dark. He offered to take the bottle and go buy some petrol.

At the exact same time that Gerdus and Morne made it back to the camper a Volvo V50, with steam bubbling from the bonnet, stopped a few meters behind us. The steam soon turned into smoke, accompanied by a few sparks falling from under the engine. At this point the family occupying the car, Mr Husband and Mrs Wife, little baby and the dog, evacuated the car. They were barely out of the car when the entire engine bay burst into flames. Just as the inferno began our hero arrived with the petrol. Fearing that the Volvo might decide to explode Gerdus immediately started pouring the petrol into the petrol tank while Morne and I pulled the camper forward, out of harm's way.

While this whole fiasco was taking place at least two police cars drove past us and not one stopped to offer help. Good to know who we shouldn't call in case of an emergency. With a little petrol in the tank again we weren't really sure whether we should get going and leave the family stranded next to Khayelitsha in the dark or stay with them so we could get robbed and murdered together. Helping us make our decision was an ambulance and another car that came to the rescue. As soon as they stopped we took off and by that time the interior of the Volvo was already burning as well.

Knowing more or less how much petrol we had at that time Gerdus and I started doing the math again, and this time we were pretty sure that we would just make it back to Bellville. Finally in Bellville on our way to the house we passed a gas station again, but being so close at that point we just kept going. After reaching the house the camper died again in the driveway. There was just enough fumes left in the tank to get it back into the yard. Needless to say, it was probably the most random and eventful weekend we've had in a long time.

Just before the real fireworks began. It's the only photo we have. I made a
video of the whole fiasco that I still need to get from Lindie. As soon as I
do I will upload it. 

The Elevator That Is Out To Get Me

ou know those days when almost everything that can go wrong goes wrong, when you feel that Lady Luck is being a bitch? Well, this was one of those weeks for me.

After already having a crappy week, my mom called yesterday morning and told me that she found out that my internet bill, for only half a month, is already over R10,000. The exact words I used in the response to the news are not for the faint-hearted, so I will spare you that. I have uncapped internet, which obviously means that no matter how freaking much I download or upload or whatever, it is impossible to get a bill for more than the monthly subscription fee. Right? Apparently not in South Africa. Later I was just like, There is no (insert swear word here) way I am paying that. They obviously (insert swear word here)-up, THEY can (insert swear word here) pay the bill. After a long day of my parents fighting with the internet provider, they found out I wasn't the only one with an internet bill almost as big as my paycheck in South Korea. So I was right, they did screw up. If they do not have it fixed soon they better start running, fast, and far away.

Then today. My grams and I go for lunch in a shopping center every Friday. It is on the first floor, so we always take the elevator up from the ground floor. You should know that this is the same elevator that, upon opening, unleashed an old senile lady who ran to me saying Let me kiss you! Let me kiss you! a few weeks ago. My grams was like She's probably senile, and I was like Ya think?! So after having lunch today we were getting into the elevator on our way down when an old gentleman joined us asking if we could go up first. He had lost his wife in the shop and needed to take a pee-brake in the bathroom on the second floor before continuing the search for his wife. Up to the second floor, drop off the old gentleman, doors close, start to go down to the first floor when all of a sudden the elevator came to a shaking stop and we were standing there in total darkness. I was like Now isn't this magical?! So I told grams to stay calm, turned on the flashlight on my phone and looked for the panic button, pressed it and listened to the buzzer after which absolutely nothing happened. I saw an emergency number above the panic button and decided to dial it. Ring...ring...Hallo and thank you for calling our customer service helpline. Your call is important to us. Please hold for the first available service consultant to take your call. I don't know why but I wasn't surprised at all. Seconds later the elevator started to vibrate gently and just like seeing the gates of Heaven open the elevator door slowly started to open with bright light flooding the elevator.

As we stepped out of the elevator, on the first floor where we got in 5 minutes earlier, the old gentlemen was coming down the stairs after his pee on the second floor, completely oblivious of what had just happened. Before taking the stairs down  to the ground floor I stopped, and You have no idea how close you just came to peeing yourself is what I wanted to say to him, but instead I said You have no idea how lucky you just were.