Hi!
This week's question marks that start of responding to topics chosen by you, the students! Salim has volunteered to come up with this week's question; next week I'll ask another student to do the same. Hopefully, everyone will get the chance to ask a question that they would like to present to the class.
Just a reminder: try to write as much as you can in response to each question. The more thoughts you provide, the more interesting and unique your response will be.
Here is Salim's question:
While living here in Missoula, what is the one thing from your country that you miss the most? Please explain your answer fully. Provide any details you can in your response.
If you would like to read about what I missed when I was in South Korea, please feel free to check out my response below.
Thanks for writing!
Have a good weekend!
Josh
Josh's Response:
When I was in South Korea, there really wasn't much that I missed. I mean, I was able to fish every week, I had good friends (both Korean and foreigners), the food was great, I loved my job, and in general, life was good. Of course I missed my family (especially my mother) and my good friends back in the States. Family aside, the one one thing that I really missed (this is going to sound sooo American) was............pizza! That's right. While I thoroughly enjoyed the variety of cuisine that Korea had to offer (great food!!!), about once a week after eating Korean food for lunch and dinner every day, I would really "pine" for a nice, cheesy pizza pie.
Now, I'm not saying that there wasn't any pizza in Korea. To the contrary: every country I've visited (close to 20 now) has had pizza in some shape or form. The problem was that Korean pizza just didn't taste like pizza. To be exact, the sauces were strangely sweet, the toppings were eclectic but not in a good way (squid? on pizza?), "stuffed crust" meant stuffed with sweet potato, not cheese, and there always seemed to be something in the sauce that just wasn't right. I even went to old pizza standbys like Pizza Hut and Papa John's but to no avail. Even in these "American" restaurants, the pizza had been thoroughly Koreanized.
I was at a loss, and my longing for a margharita with just the basics (red sauce, mozzerella, and basil) grew to point where I made it my mission to find the right slice to satiate my need.
One day while wandering the many back streets of Andong, where we lived, I ran across an inconspicuous pizza stand whose sole advertisement was a picture of a slice of pizza on a white sign. I asked the woman working the stand if she indeed made pizza and she nodded "yes." As I watched her throw together a simple mini-pizza, I made sure to ask her to leave out the corn and other odd toppings. After six minutes, my pie was done. One bite later, I knew that I had found my slice of Korean pizza heaven. It was delicious! Cheesy, saucy, and thoroughly "normal." In fact, I promptly ordered another pizza for the road. I thought to myself that my worries were over.
A week later, when I could no longer curb my pizza cravings, I went straight back to the little pizza stand with high hopes. To my dismay, the stand was closed, the sign was gone, and the litte woman was nowhere to be seen. Two weeks later? Nothing. For the rest of my stay in South Korea, I continued to miss my favorite American food. And even to this day I ask myself, "What happened to my simple little pizza stand with the nice woman who made such delicious pizza?"
8 comments:
When I arrived Missoula, the scenic was gorgeous. The residents in Missoula were friendly and kind. The street was always spotlessly clean and the building in boulevard was beautiful. In addition, Missoula’s scenic was familiar with my home country. Both of the places located in the rural and agriculture area. I was very happy to stay here. But one of thing in here I could endure it no longer, which is dine out place and food culture. The gastronomy in here was totally difference, we always eat Chinese style dish in my home country. But in here we just can found pizza, hot dog, and hamburger and so on, I am not crazy about that because those foods make me grow up some pimple. Besides, it was not good for our health due to salty and fried oil. Although we can find the Chinese style food in cafeteria, but the taste was completely different from my home-cooked meals. On the other hand, we can not found any chopsticks when I ate dish. We just can found fork, spoon, and knife in here. This situation makes me feel inconvenient when I ate the meal. Moreover, in Taiwan, eating out is a common practice. According to statistics from the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS), at the end of 2008, Taiwan offered at least 160,000 food and beverage operations on the street (over 52% of the total street vendors). In addition, Taiwan Tourism Bureau stated that there is a snack bar or street vendor every three steps and a restaurant every five. It is obvious that Taiwanese dining out place have accessible and diversify. But in this place, we barely to find the place where offer the meal on the streets. To the contrary, in Taiwan, we have night market where snacks can be found in abundance. Besides, the business hours of night market is until to midnight. It was a good place to kill time and savor the local food in there. In short, I miss home cooked meals and taste variety of cuisine in my home town.
Honestly saying, I don’t miss my family and my hometown because I think homesick is kind of sick, but Missoula is very beautiful town, and people are so kind. Why can I get the sick? However, I really miss Japanese food, so my most missing thing is probably similar to Josh’s. I think American eating habit and Japanese eating habit are different style. American style is freer than Japanese. For example, in Food Zoo, some people eat hamburgers as a main dish and vegetables as a side dish. In addition, hamburgers have some variety: a beef, chicken, and fish. Other people eat pizzas, sandwiches, or pasta as a main dish. On the other hand, almost every Japanese people usually eat rice as a stable food, and some side dishes that are called “Okazu.” These are lots of variety including salad, boiled vegetable, tempura, etc. Therefore, I eat Sushi at least once a week, but Sushi is not usual food. We eat sushi when it is special day like celebrations. As a result, after coming America, I feel missing a stable food. A couple weeks ago, Food Zoo had race. Although I was excited, I was not Japanese rice. I was disappointed. But missing is not productive, so now, I changed my mind that I should try to adjust American food culture. Probably, I will miss hamburgers or pizzas after going back to Japan if I completely adjust American style.
My opinion is same as Kento. I don’t really miss my family and friends in Japan, because this life in Missoula is my hope. I can speak English with many native English speakers and make many friends with foreigner. Also, there are many beautiful places in here. Of course, I want to spend time with my family and my friends little bit, but I like spending time in here. However, my most missing thing is also Japanese food. I like American food, but Japanese food is better than American food. I think American food is almost high calorie and fat, and always pizza, past, or hamburger. I surprised about a barbecue. I think a barbecue is to bake some vegetables and meats. But, there were barbecue party, it were hotdogs or hamburgers. I was extremely surprised about this. I don’t know about American food well, but Japanese food has vegetables, fruits, and fish in season. I like enjoying foods in season. For example, autumn is best season to eat a saury. A saury is fish, in Japanese is Sanma. I like Japanese food in season. We can enjoy eating different foods as season. I think this is great thing. Basically, I don’t have likes and dislikes in food, but I like healthy and light seasoning. Japanese food is healthier than American food, so Japanese food is better than American food. Also, Japanese rice is so delicious. Usually, people eat rice with Okazu, which is side menu. But I can eat only rice or with an umeboshi(a pickled ume). Like a rice ball. I miss Japanese food.
the mots thing that i miss back home is my family and my girlfriend .Because i used to be with them for 24 h i couldn't sleep without talking with my girlfriend and i can't eat without my mom and grandmother andy can't play without my brother and my sweet sisters i always call them the house angels i love the way they try to make me smile when I'm sad and i really miss the girl that helped me to do every thing nice in my life and she's the one who helped me to stop being a low temper and i don't forget my mom when she opens my room door at night and covers me and kiss me and start saying i wish i can live to see your kids because she's sick and i always tall her you will and u will see their kids also i miss all of them and i love thin i wish that they love me back and miss me
I miss Japanese foods the most, especially rice. Because I like rice dishes, so when I was in Japan, I used to eat rice with miso soup almost every day. In America, there are some rice dishes, but their tastes are different from Japan, and almost rice is all dried out. However, I think sushi that is in Food court of UC is almost same taste and chewy as Japanese rice, but the ingredients are different. Japanese ingredients in sushi are usually used only low fish, but American sushi is used filling ingredients. I think Japanese foods are not too strong and not too weak, but American foods are opposite, so I sometimes want to eat light foods like Japanese foods. Therefore I went to Japanese restaurant in downtown a week ago. I ate various kinds of sushi. That tastes were very good. I decide to go there if I miss Japanese foods.
I also don’t miss my family and friends in Japan. It is because I have a lot of friends here, and they encourage me when I feel lonely. Besides, there are many beautiful mountains. My home city, Kumamoto, has many mountains, so landscape of Missoula similar to that of Kumamoto. I really like nature. However, I miss a lot of things in Japan. My most missing thing is bath tub. I was really surprised when I saw dorm’s shower room. It is the same as easy shower room in the place of sea bathing in Japan. I have never taken a bath standing all the time. So, I worried about it. Now, I am used to taking an American style bath, but I’m really missing Japanese style bath. When I took a bath in Japan, I could sweat because I usually soaked in a bath tab. Therefore, I could refresh and get warm. I think it is very good for our health. But when I take a bath here, I can’t sweat because there is no bath tub. I sometimes feel cold. Besides, I can change the water’s color and smell in bath tabs. I always change them every day. It was one of my many pleasures in Japan. That’s why my most missing thing is bath tub.
I can't be agree with some of you guys because how Kento says that he doesn't miss his family or friends but how you can't think about them thinking about them its the first think for me. How you can't miss that people who grow you. How you can't miss that people who always were with and always they helped you when you were a child their took care about you. When you need some help first they will take you hand. And I will always think about them miss them and feel alone when they are not near. And this feeling make me start healing. I proud with this that I am studying in this University in Missoula. Missoula is very beautiful city I liked it when I put my first steps in this city because all of thing reminding me my country. Natural things here same as unbeleavable as in my country. Missoula is very beautiful city and the people are here so friendly that I didn't imagine to met this kind of people at all. I like Missoula but its not almost half my native city. And I miss that places in my country often than before. Some people like to be foreign. But to be foreigner its very difficult but it has very benefit things. You will respect your parents, relatives and friends better than before.......
Although some guys miss own their cultural foods, I don't miss my country's foods in Missoula. I can understand your guys mind. However, there are some Japanese or Chinese restaurants such as Sushi Hana and Zen, and both of them are surely taste goood as real cultural foods. As for me, the most missing thing is friends or my family. Above all, I just want to see my dog Choco, my little brother. One of my valuable time was walking around a river with my dog. If something bad happened, or I was depressed, I could refresh myself with my dog. I had spent almost of all my life being only child, so it is natural for me to spend almost day by myself. However, I was glad to have the same time with somebody as brother. When I go to Albertsons, I see the dog run park, and then I always miss my dog.
I think people who live in Missoula are friendly more than my hometown. I didn't became sad; nevertheless, I'd like to meet some friends. Tomomi , male, is one of my friends. He and I have a different taste of films, books and music, but both he and I love films, books and music. We always gave the idea of films each other. He is smart, so he has great roles in my life.
May be, everyone has irreplaceable friends, family and pets. I want to make such a relationship with people in here.
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