우리를 위하여 건배

Every gathering is a moment to treasure because the gathering may well be the last time we will ever meet each other. Before we went our separate way, I said that I won't forget you and I do mean it.

단풍이 드는 시

秋天的午后，骑着自行车到公园去找老友。脱了鞋，坐在在快泛红的丹枫树下，与老友对弈，何尝不是件快乐的事。秋天午后的那一份闲情很令我向往。我不会下围棋，不过我还是可是坐在丹枫树下看书。秋天本是灯火可亲之节。有一本好书，有一份好心情，其他的真的不重要了。最近KBS世界台又重播了《秋天的童话》。重看了这出韩剧，不禁又要问:如果有来世，你要变成什么？如果有来世，我要变成树，要变成丹枫树。

잘 먹겠습니다

Bright fluorescent bulbs and food aplenty. Eating dinner by the roadside in Seoul looks so much more convenient and appetising. 배 고파...

등화가친 시절

등화가친(燈火可親) 이라는 말은, 당(唐)나라의 유명한 문학가 한유(韓愈)가 그 아들 부(符)가 장안성(長安城) 남쪽에서 독서(讀書)하고 있을 때 아들에게 열심히 공부하라고 권하는 시 속에 나오는 구절이다. 원시(原詩)의 제목은 부독서성남(符讀書城南) 이다. 그래서 등화가친지절(燈火可親之節) 이라는 말은 독서의 가장 좋은 계절을 나타낸다. 독서의 가장 좋은 계절은 물론 가을이다.

The phrase 등화가친(燈火可親) originated from a poem written by a famous Tang dynasty scholar - Hanyu. At the time the poem was written, Hanyu's son was studying at the southern side of the Chang-an city. The poem was meant to remind his son to study hard. Hence 등화가친지절(燈火可親之節) is used to mean the best season for reading which is, of course, Autumn.

보름달을 즐겼지요?

Today is Mid Autumn Festival, Mooncake Festival, Lantern Festival, Chuseok (추석) and Harvest Moon Festival (한가위). Whichever you call it, you are correct.

Lanterns on display in Chinatown to celebrate Mid Autumn Festival

This year is quite unlike last year because I finally have KBS World. Watching the Chuseok special shows gave me that "festival feel". Just now, I was watching the Chuseok special edition of 《쟁반노래방》. In the show, each participant was supposed to sing a verse of the Korean version of the "Old MacDonald had a farm" in a relay manner. An aluminium tray would drop down and hit on everyone head if someone sang his or her verse wrongly. The song went like this:

박첨지는 밭있어 그래 그래서
그 밭에 오리 있거든 그래 그래서
예서 꽥꽥꽥 제서 꽥꽥꽥
예서 꽥 제서 꽥 예서제서 꽥꽥

박첨지는 밭있어 그래 그래서

그 밭에 돼지 있거든 그래 그래서
예서 꿀꿀꿀 제서 꿀꿀꿀
예서 꿀 제서 꿀 예서제서 꿀꿀

박첨지는 밭있어 그래 그래서

그 밭에 개 있거든 그래 그래서
예서 멍멍멍 제서 멍멍멍
예서 멍 제서 멍 예서제서 멍멍
박첨지는 밭있어 그래 그래서

Just to help you understand the lyrics better, Old MacDonald is known as Bak Cheom Ji (박첨지). 밭 means farm. There are 3 animals in the farm and they are 오리 (duck), 돼지 (pig) and 개 (dog). They make the sound 꽥, 꿀 and 멍 respectively. Finally 예서 and 제서 are short-form of 여기서 (here) and 저기서 (there).

The lyrics for this children song may look simple but the participants kept making mistake in their singing. As I was enjoying the show, I found that I have learnt to sing another Korean song today. So it does show that learning can be made easier by making it fun. I thought that Korean lessons at SKS would have been much better if they could be made more fun.

인생 철학이 담긴 영화

If I am able to recall correctly, my first three Korean movies are Il Mare (2000), My Sassy Girl (2001) and The Way Home (2002). I was once told that people tend to experience difficulty when they have to remember more than three things. Maybe there is some truth to it because I can't remember what is my fourth Korean movie until two Sunday ago.

Now that I recall, my fourth Korean movie is Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter ... And Spring (2003). A very long movie title that has a touch of Zen Buddhism. I don't quite understand the movie when I first watch it in the cinema. Perhaps I have gone through a lot in the last four years and have since grown wiser, I am able to appreciate the movie much better when I watch it again recently on the TV.

In the movie, the four seasons indicate four phases of life. Spring is a season of ignorance. The child sins because he is unaware that his action, which he thinks is fun, actually causes harm to others. Summer is a season of greed and lust. The adult sins because he develops greed and lust and these flame his desire to possess. He will go to the extent of harming others to keep his possession. Autumn is a season of repentance. When enough harm is done, suffering also reaches its peak. The desire to release himself from suffering leads him to go into repentance. Winter is a season of enlightenment. A man tends to grow wiser after coming out from his suffering. When the next Spring arrives the same cycle will repeat itself on other people. So can I begrudge against those people who cause hurt to me? Maybe not, because this is just a natural progression of their lives towards "enlightenment".

My first four Korean movies are really good movies. I cannot remember the subsequent Korean movies which I have watched. Perhaps they are just meant to be forgotten. In the early days of the Korean film industry, I only get to watch one good Korean movie a year. Today, more Korean movies are shown every year but hardly comparable to my first four Korean movies.

주야평분시

If you have not known, today, according to the lunar calendar, is Autumnal Equinox (추분-秋分). This is a time when the day and night are equally divided. After today, night will become longer than day until the next Spring or Vernal Equinox (춘분-春分) when the day and night will become equally divided again. Equinox is the namesake for my blog persona, always reminding myself to be balance in my point of view just like day and night are equal at equinox point.

Somehow I always feel like slowing down my pace of life at this point of the year. But I don't seem to be able to do that every year. For this weekend I was tasked by my teacher to write a 1,000-word essay in Korean. I never thought I could write such a long essay in Korean but I actually did it. The price for that is that I am completely drained out now. It doesn't help that a new work week is starting tomorrow. No Mid-Autumn Festival's consecutive holiday for us because this is Singapore.

In its latest effort to promote Singapore, Singapore Tourism Board coined Singapore as "One City, 3 Festivals". Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Deepavali are both public holiday here but not Mid-Autumn Festival. It is a bit hard to get hook on to the festival mood when there is no holiday. More pomelo and mooncake for me please.

최선을 다하겠다

Starting from this week until perhaps next year, there won't any Korean lesson for me. However, there are still many things that will keep me busy. One of those is my preparation for the Korean Language Proficiency Test or KLPT. The test date is 28 October and the test centre is NUS Extension. Less than 20 people sat for this test at NEX last year and from what I know, the number is not going to change much this year. In my honest opinion, NEX students who have completed Conversational Advanced Korean level 6 will still struggle to pass KLPT because they lack practice in grammar and vocabulary and I am speaking this from personal experience. It is therefore not surprising that only about 10 students did well enough in the placement test to get into the current KLPT preparation class.

It didn't seem that far away when I last took my KLPT a year ago. It was sort of a baptism of fire and revelation for me. Just imagine, spending one year to study Korean only to discover that I might not even get pass the lowest level for KLPT. However, it was a good start. My KLPT result gave me a good indication of how much more effort I need to put in to be considered proficient. The rest, as they said, is history. I have been doing my preparation for the coming KLPT using the "purple book" or the intermediate-level KLPT preparation book. I have completed all the questions on grammar, vocabulary and reading. I am quite satisfied with my progress as I am able to achieve about 70% correct answers. I shall be working on my listening skills next.

I bought the "orange book" recently so that I can continue to study when I am finished with the "purple book". Of course, my level isn't anywhere near to advanced level yet. I have tried certain sections of the book but I can probably get only 2 out of 10 questions right. One thing I do discover is that, in advanced level, there are a lot of words that are borrowed from the Chinese language. Perhaps, advanced level may not be that difficult if I can read the Chinese word behind each of the Hangeul character. I will not strive to complete the book this year as I will likely be back again for KLPT next year. I hope by then, I will find this book a lot easier. Whatever it may be, I will do my best.

드디어 끝

So I have finally completed my first attempt at TOPIK last Sunday. I wasn't after the TOPIK certificate when I decided to take the test. The test is just a means for me to push myself towards a higher level of Korean proficiency. I believe people work best when they are being challenged. Unless I set myself a higher bar, I will have to be contented being a beginner. As I look back, I am actually quite satisfied with my effort. Frankly, it wasn't easy preparing for TOPIK Intermediate test. Firstly, I was only halfway through my intermediate lessons and there were many intermediate-level grammar and vocabulary that I have yet to learn. Also, my work commitment was zapping a lot of energy away from me and I was almost drained out at the end of each day. Attending lessons and doing homework in the evening almost felt like a drudgery. It wasn't easy but I am glad that I have took up the challenge. As the good old adage goes "no pain no gain".

Without being conscious of it, I have learnt almost 100 new grammar and several hundred new words within a short span of 9 weeks. As I flipped through the Kyunghee Intermediate 2 textbook yesterday, I realised I have almost covered everything that is in the book. In spite of that, I will still be continuing with Advance Level 2 and 3 at SKS to get a firmer grounding in the language. There is a good chance for Advance Level 2 class to start in the next semester but I will be taking a break as I have some other plan. It seems that next year will probably be my last year of Korean study because after that there won't be anymore lessons in Singapore for me to attend. I heard that NEX is finally going to make Intermediate level Korean course a reality next year. This will likely give SKS a run for their money but it may happen a little bit too late for me. I will be raising the bar to advance level next year and that is what will keep me busy next year.

괴로운 표정

Want to know how I look these days. Look to the left.

TOPIK is tomorrow and I am having headache now. My head is feeling heavy from all the cramping of notes. That's why I am not writing any Korean today.

I have a realistic expectation of what I will get out of my TOPIK exam. My strength lies in vocabulary, grammar and reading. But I doubt they can help mitigate my weakness in listening and writing. TOPIK level 3 pass will be the likely outcome.

I have come to realise that preparing for TOPIK is actually more difficult than KLPT. With all the study done for TOPIK, I have set a 300 points target for next month KLPT though my ambitious target is 350 points.

배우는 길

A path lined by pinetrees at Nami Island, Gangwondo.

한국어 배우는 건 한 번도 후회하지 않다. 배우는 길은 얼마나 힘겹든지 정지없이 터벅터벅 걸어가고 있다. 그런면은 다행이다. 우리 함께 배울 수 있다면 좋겠다.

쏜살같다

Sunset over Namchuncheon Station.

언제 시간이 지나갔는지 모르겠어. 정말 시간이 쏜살같구나. 시험까지 며칠 남지 않아. 시험을 잘 보는커녕 일요일에 미역국을 먹을 거야.

좀 더 고생해

A leisure mall found just outside of Ewha Women's University

좀 더 고생해야 한국어능력이 물론 늘릴 수 있다 생각해. 근데 지금 배가 꽤 고파. 저녁 먹고 나서 공부하는 거 계속해야 돼. 아자 아자!

백일몽을 꾼다

An open field at Nami Island - Early Spring 2005.

큰 들을 본다면 내가 가장 원하는 것은 그 가운데 누워서 백일몽을 하는 것이다. 백일몽을 하지 말라 복습해야 돼. 아 진짜...

힘을 주고...

The lion sculpture at the College of Oriental Medicine in Kyunghee University. It was said that for guys in KHU to show their manhood they must climb up to the top of the lion. The College of Oriental Medicine is a place where you will find the brightest students.

만약 사자의 힘을 물려주면 모든 문제가 극복될 수 있다. 사실 난 힘이 조금도 없더라. 시험까지 날이 얼마 남지 않는데 어떻게 해야지? 걱정해 ...

나무 그늘에

Elderly men resting under shade in Jang-an Park in Suwon.

할아버님께서 초가을의 오후에 나무 그늘에 안락하게 계시고 있다. 근데 난 지금 대비서와 같이 살고 있는데 최고요. ㅋㅋㅋ

쉬고 싶어

Inside level 2 of Italian restaurant "Pizzamore" at Myeongdong

매일 신경이 많이 쓰는데 정말 피곤하네... 휴식이 필요해. 이번 주말에 집에서도 TOPIK대비서와 함께 살 거야.

우리 종진으로 건너가요

Children crossing Cheonggyecheon in an afternoon of Sep 2006

Before I take my short hiatus, I will like to upload one more "playful" photo. It is not only children who are playful enough to hop the rocks to cross Cheonggyecheon even an adult like me enjoys doing it. It may sound childish for me to say that the act of performing the crossing is enjoyable. What I do mean is that I enjoy it as a simple pleasure in life. One reader, butterfly, once mistook me as still living in Seoul because of the photographs I uploaded. Just to be sure, I am living in Singapore. This photograph is taken last year in September. I remember I quietly skipped one Korean lesson because of the trip and when I came back, I was surprised that the whole class knew where I went. But for this year, I am staying put to prepare for TOPIK and KLPT. This is another milestone in my Korean study journey. Work hard, I must.

좋은 사전을 소개할게

After my electronics dictionary died on me after drinking too much fluid from the leaking batteries, I suddenly feel kinda handicapped in my Korean study. Upon recommendation by my teacher, Ms Choi, I started checking on the Daum Dictionary which is available in the Internet. I must say that this dictionary has both the convenience of the e-dictionary and the comprehensiveness of the paper dictionary. Its only pitfall is that it is not portable.

I have provided the link above. Once you click on the link, you will be brought to a screen like the one below. Among the different dictionaries shown, use the English Dictionary (영어사전). You can type English words and have them translated into Korean. You can also type Korean words to search for their English meanings. If you are looking up for the meaning of Korean verbs, they need not always be entered in their verb-stem form. The dictionary is "smart" enough to guess the correct verb-stem though this is not always the case. The other useful feature is that it gives a lot of useful examples on how a particular Korean word or phrase can be used.

Lack of a e-dictionary, the Daum dictionary is the next best alternative that I can have to help my Korean study. Talking about study, I realise that I only have 2 weeks left to TOPIK. Arrgh, I need to get back to study. I guess I will have no time in the coming two weeks for blog updating.

Update: Kaye recommends Naver dictionary. I did a comparison of Daum and Naver dictionary and they gave the same result. What this means is that both dictionaries are sharing the same database. So there is no different in whichever dictionary you choose. Actually any respectable Korean website should have a decent dictionary. Here are three more dictionaries to choose from depending on which Korean website you support - Empas, Nate and Yahoo.

사랑에 빠져볼까?

Inside level 2 of Caffe Pascucci, Myeongdong

Warm lighting, warm coffee and a pair of warm hearts. It was almost midnight at Myeongdong and the evening crowd had long dispersed. But for love, it was still too early for light-off.

Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder.
사랑에 빠지면 곰보도 미인으로 보인다.
情人眼里出西施.

It seems that love shapes people perception of beauty. Perhaps for those people who can see beauty in everything, they will undoubtedly have lotsa of love within.