culture

BUSAN, South Korea -- First of all, I am more than just a bystander on the issue of animal rights in Korea. I joined an advocacy organization in 2005, and served for several years as the media production coordinator. In that capacity I reported on various activities related to the dog meat issue, and approached it as an investigative journalist, my career for five years before coming to Korea in 2001. In 2008 I founded the Busan Abandoned Pet Sanctuary, and serve as its administrator.  I am a professor of Spanish at a major university here in Busan, and have been involved in local media for several years as well.

WASHINGTON, DC -- I have a common sense solution to resolve, once and for all, most of the controversy surrounding Korea’s dog meat consumption. It goes like this:

BUSAN, South Korea -- Last year over dinner, my Kiwi friend and I happened across the topic of eating dog meat – he had eaten it before and said that he enjoyed it. As most westerners tend to shy away from such fare, it took me by surprise. After all, he didn’t look like someone who would eat dog meat. I mean, he didn’t have long arms with knuckles dragging the floor or over-sized fangs protruding from his mouth  – he looked like a “normal” person.

So went my stereotype.

My friend then added: “It tastes like beef or mutton depending on how it’s cooked.”

It gave me pause. How could he suggest that what most people in the world consider to be man’s best friend, tastes like a grocery store-shelf-farm-animal? He then asked if I would like to try some. I laughed. I like to try new things. Heck, I'm in Korea. Why not?, I thought.

BUSAN, South Korea -- I was in my first year as a teacher in Korea, and like a dutiful newbie I spent most of my time in bars. One of my favorite and frequent hang-outs was a place called the Hollywood Star in Seomyeon. It’s still there, but now called Foxy and is a very different place to what it was then. At that time if you wanted to dance in Busan, Hollywood Star and Soul Trane were the only options.

BUSAN, South Korea -- Most people I know would be quite happy with a million dollars. Besides the obvious pleasure of being able to walk around confidently whistling that song by the Bare Naked Ladies, you could go to sleep at night comforted by the fact that, well...you’re rich!

BUSAN, South Korea - It is called dong-chim. Roughly translated, it means ‘poop needle,' a Korean act that originated in Japan and is so ingrained in the pop culture there that the prank is gloryfied in the famed anime, Naruto, where it is referred to as the “Thousand Years of Death.”