A Man Of Many...

Call it field cap, call it beret, call it kevlar... we call it "cover" in the military. Even our winter PT uniform has a gray-green beanie. Rarely will you see a soldier without cover in uniform unless they are indoors.

Add to that the only baseball caps my cranium will sport... those of beloved almae matres... BYU and UW. Keepin' it covered!

What's "almae matres" in English? It means "nourishing mothers." Hmmm... Ok!

Seoul Food du Jour...

A nice shop next to TDC's "Second Market" offers a tasty, healthy fare: chicken and rice porridge, or dakjuk (닭죽). This happens to be Brendon Ewers dining pick for the eve...

Juk is a common dish in Korea. When somebody feels sick they eat porridge since it’s easy to digest and brings back your taste when you don’t feel like eating anything.

There are many different kinds of juk using nuts, grains, seafood, vegetables, and meat for ingredients. This meal of dakjuk and kimchi will set you back whopping 8,000 won ($5.70). Bon appétit!

April Means FTX...

The 618th spent last weekend camping for the semi-annual field training exercises at Camp Humphreys. Get to sleep in comfy tents, enjoy hot showers and lunch on yummy MREs... life is good!

Our Army Warrior Task training included the M9 range, land navigation, combatives, medevac commo and the coup de grâs--CS gas chamber. Fun, fun times!

Just remember the 3 basic steps: you remove the mask, you clear the mask, you seal the mask. How hard is that?

Be sure to take a d-e-e-e-p breath before removing the mask! You'll need it.

A Blossom Fell*...

A day trip to explore the old style neighborhood of Bukchon was fun and with the weather suddenly pleasant in Seoul cherry blossoms were in bloom almost everywhere. Strolling beneath the pink canopies and being showered by petals is something a guy could do... once a year and like it maybe.

Also nearby is Cheongwadae (청와대 or The House of Blue Tiles) the home of the President of South Korea, Lee Myung-Bak. Not far away is Gyeongbok Palace and Changdeok Palace. Also in the area is the Brazilian Embassy. "Muito interessante," Stu might say.

In Korean, butkot (벚꽃) is the word for cherry blossom--a nice word but not as sexy as sakura (桜), I think!

*A classic Nat King Cole tune.

The TDC Ville...

Where do 8,000 young men go for a good time around Tongducheon? If they're from Camp Casey they seem to find themselves in the "Ville"--a small area just west of the Bosan Train Station. The Ville is home to several restaurants and shops but its main source of income are the night clubs.

All of three city blocks, the TDC Ville contains some 53 clubs, better known as "juicy bars." Once the mainstay of Korean hostesses, the "juicy girls," or simply, "juicies" of nowadays are primarily Filipina women. GIs looking for company get things going with fruit juice drinks ($20 apiece) for their hostesses. It is not uncommon for soldiers to drop $200 to $300 in an evening... that's a lot of juice and these girls must need to pee, right?

Now I get it... that's why we see so many Filipina women pushing strollers around base!