1) Seoul looks just like Queens (though probably it is the other way ’round). Except for.
2) As little as I care for Tokyo, it is a much nicer city than Seoul.
3) Metal chopsticks are really hard to use.
4) The thing that makes Bib Bim Bap really good is some kind of sesame oil, without which it’s just a bowl of rice and veggies in a stone pot.
5) South Korean airport security is so tight it rivals Israel’s.
6) Sebastian Faulks is kind of a mediocre writer, at least judging from The Girl at the Lion d’Or.
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
I’ve never been able to read past page 10 of anything by Mr Faulks.
It’s good you got a chance to pop over there for a visit. I imagine Seoul is worth seeing at least once! And Bib Bim Bap — strangely enough, I had a bowl of this once in what was meant to be a Japanese restaurant near the Champs-Elysées, but I think they did a combination of both Japanese and Korean cuisine. And you’re right — it’s definitely something in the sauce that adds that special touch — sesame oil is great!
I hear you on Sebastian Faulks, although I have to admit that I did like Birdsong. And I think On Green Dolphin Street resonated with me because I could relate to certain elements of it. But it’s not spectacular. And I thought one of his more recent novels, Human Traces, was particularly tedious. I still don’t know how I made it through it…
I’m disappointed to hear your take on Bibimbap. I’m a big fan, I guess I’m bias because Angie’s version is amazing. Did you have Bulgogi and Japchae in it? That makes it particularly good. With of course the sesame oil and the Gochujang (spicy sauce).
Hi Coz! Actually I *love* bibimbap, that’s basically why I went to korea! I love when the rice gets all encrusted and crunchy as it cooks onto the bottom of the pot. But I had 2 bowls of it in my first two days there where that didn’t happen, and I was disappointed. Even with the bulgogi and the spicy sauce it didn’t taste as good as the bibimbap I’ve had in NY and in Tokyo.
But on the third day, lo! the bibimbap was served with the sesame oil, and the crunchy thing happened with the rice, and it was good!
I’d love for Angie to make her bibimbap next time we all get together!
I think wonderful.