I have reddish hair. Usually, it is reddish brown. Last month I was deeply engaged in reading In Style magazine (English language magazines-they're like heroin!), and didn't notice that my stylist selected a tone little darker than usual. Until it was too late. So, my now hair is red.
And, in case you were wondering, I am NOT a Russian prostitute. I am not from Russia. Or the Ukraine. Or even Eastern Europe. "Are you from Russia?" is an opening line skeevy (a.k.a. sleazy), fifty something Korean men use to find out if women accept money for sex. This line of conversation also tends to reveal that they are willing to PAY for sex. Or looking to buy a wife-which is different, but also kind of gross. Since my hair color became a little brighter, I have been getting this question, "Are you from Russia?" more than usual. This is a common theme here. I heard that a t-shirt company here even makes a sarcastic t-shirt that reads "I am not a Russian woman" in Korean characters. (Can you imagine if you actually WERE a Russian woman engaged in some other legal, innocent business in Asia? They would get harassed all the time, I bet. It would stink to be them!) The men who ask if I, and my friends, are Russian, always have wedding rings on their hands. Lovely.
The only real, live Russian prostitute I ever met in Korea approached a group of people I was with at a dance club. She wanted to now if any of the gentlemen in our small group, or in fact the couples, wanted to "party" with her. She acted like she was on something, possibly E, but there is no way to confirm that. She had blonde hair and dark roots.
A teacher I know in my small suburb South of Seoul reports that she lives in area where it is easy to identify several "working girls," from various countries, hanging out by the subway station. Yet the Korean government reports that they have effectively erased prostitution in Korea. The press reports that the only "problem areas" are near US military bases. There's a "barber shop" in my apartment building with a bed inside, and a very, very friendly "hair staylist" from SouthEast Asia. Sometimes late at night, men knock on my door. Sometimes they are looking for my drunken neighbor, who had a little problem finding his own apartment for a while. But some of the late night callers also seem lost looking for the "barber shop." This makes me feel very safe in my apartment, doesn't it? It got so bad at one point that I just packed up and went to sleep on my boyfriend's couch for a while.
A friend suggested I literally put a sign on my door announcing in Hangul that I am not the prostitute in the building-to ward off any lost Johns (or Kims, or Parks, or Lees). I thought she was kidding. She was serious. In the end I actually did it for a while, figuring it couldn't hurt. How prepostorous is that?
(If I can find a photo of it, I will post it here.)
Prostitution in Korea?
Erased my ass.
And, in case you were wondering, I am NOT a Russian prostitute. I am not from Russia. Or the Ukraine. Or even Eastern Europe. "Are you from Russia?" is an opening line skeevy (a.k.a. sleazy), fifty something Korean men use to find out if women accept money for sex. This line of conversation also tends to reveal that they are willing to PAY for sex. Or looking to buy a wife-which is different, but also kind of gross. Since my hair color became a little brighter, I have been getting this question, "Are you from Russia?" more than usual. This is a common theme here. I heard that a t-shirt company here even makes a sarcastic t-shirt that reads "I am not a Russian woman" in Korean characters. (Can you imagine if you actually WERE a Russian woman engaged in some other legal, innocent business in Asia? They would get harassed all the time, I bet. It would stink to be them!) The men who ask if I, and my friends, are Russian, always have wedding rings on their hands. Lovely.
The only real, live Russian prostitute I ever met in Korea approached a group of people I was with at a dance club. She wanted to now if any of the gentlemen in our small group, or in fact the couples, wanted to "party" with her. She acted like she was on something, possibly E, but there is no way to confirm that. She had blonde hair and dark roots.
A teacher I know in my small suburb South of Seoul reports that she lives in area where it is easy to identify several "working girls," from various countries, hanging out by the subway station. Yet the Korean government reports that they have effectively erased prostitution in Korea. The press reports that the only "problem areas" are near US military bases. There's a "barber shop" in my apartment building with a bed inside, and a very, very friendly "hair staylist" from SouthEast Asia. Sometimes late at night, men knock on my door. Sometimes they are looking for my drunken neighbor, who had a little problem finding his own apartment for a while. But some of the late night callers also seem lost looking for the "barber shop." This makes me feel very safe in my apartment, doesn't it? It got so bad at one point that I just packed up and went to sleep on my boyfriend's couch for a while.
A friend suggested I literally put a sign on my door announcing in Hangul that I am not the prostitute in the building-to ward off any lost Johns (or Kims, or Parks, or Lees). I thought she was kidding. She was serious. In the end I actually did it for a while, figuring it couldn't hurt. How prepostorous is that?
(If I can find a photo of it, I will post it here.)
Prostitution in Korea?
Erased my ass.
1 comment:
What is it with us mid-30s gals and the red tint? I dye my hair myself, and it's theoretically my natural color to cover the premature gray, but everyone else calls it red! Someone even said to me the other day "your little girl didn't get your red hair..." and I'm not a Russian prostitute either!
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