To the editor:
As I write this I am sitting in my office at Sun Chang Jeil High School waiting for my list of assigned classes to be clarified. Sun Chang is in Korea. It sits between two mountain ranges near the south central part of the country. It is a town of 35,000 people that has a strong agricultural history. Regretably, they do not grow potatoes. But I have discovered the tractor dealerships, Harry’s Kubota would fit in very well here. Getting here was every much the adventure before I even left the house. I took a flight from Boston, my luggage was sent on another flight. All that I had was a change of clothes in my backpack. Nightmares. But after a night’s sleep, came the phone call that saved the day. The bag had been sent to a different destination because it was mis-tagged. So much for tracking bags.
Sun Chang is highly regarded for its red pepper paste. This concoction is basically a ketchup with a kick. Think of ketchup with a couple of teaspoons of tabasco sauce. Already, the drying mats are being laid out and the fresh pepper harvest is drying in the sun. For now the temps are in the 70s and the sun in nice and bright. Just like we use ketchup on just about anything, the Koreans use their red pepper paste like ketchup. Yummy.
Already I am having to get used to a new custom, Sandals inside! When you come into a building, you change your shoes for sandals. This has been a great moment of amusement given my relatively large size. There are Koreans who top 6 feet. But few who have large feet. Fortunately, I brought my trekkers with me. I did not want to get off on the wrong foot.
orpheusallison@mac.com
