Close Encounters and Whatnot

With only about ten days remaining in Korea I've been thinking back on all the interesting experiences I've had here. Some of the most memorable and surreal experiences have been brief encounters with strangers. Usually it was people approaching me because, hey, I look different, and they figured they would test out some English. Here's a list of some of those encounters that come to mind:

• When shopping alone in a department store in Jamsil I stopped at a conveyor belt sushi bar for a little snack. While I ate, a woman in her fifties sat down next to me and after a few minutes of silence she asked me if I thought the sushi was delicious. I told her I did, and we ended up having a short broken conversation in Korean about Japanese and Korean food.
• A drunken man approached me in a PC bang and wanted to talk about music. A few minutes later he was singing 'Hotel California' for me and dancing.
• On my way to work a man started talking to me. I found out he was from Sri Lanka and he soon insisted that I should go to Sri Lanka someday. He then asked to see my passport. I got the hell out of there.
• While he never spoke to us, Sam and I watched a middle-aged man molest some statues at the park. I'll never forget that golden moment of randomness. The whole story can be found here.
• My friend Edison and I were travelling on the subway when a young Korean man sat down next to us. He enthusiastically began to tell of his hip hop dance aspirations, and how he wanted to someday make it big in America as a dancer. He then proceeded to show us his moves with an assortment of dance styles, including break dancing on the subway car floor.
• After bumping into the same man several times in my neighborhood and politely declining his offer to go drinking, I finally gave in. We stopped at a nearby bar and he bought me a beer. He didn't speak any English, but I could understand enough to talk with him a bit. Before I was done my beer I had met his friend, father, and wife.
• When visiting Korea's treasured southern gate (Sungnyemun), my friend Sam and I were quizzed on Confucian symbolism by a 68-year-old volunteer guide.
• A few days ago while walking to my usual Internet cafe a man passing on the street asked me, in Korean, where I was going. I told him I was going to a PC bang. He mimicked typing and I said yes. Then he nodded and went on his way. Oh yeah, and he was wearing shorts, slippers, and a t-shirt rolled up to his armpits.

There have been many more than these and each day has been another chance for some quirky individual to reach out and start some inexplicable conversation. For the most part I appreciate the effort.