Just So You Know...

the Man Purse is alive and well in South Korea!

Seriously, the Korean Man Purses is everywhere. Some are subtle, sorta messenger style bags. Others are out and out handbags. It's a little off putting.

One thing to remember is that here, it is considered a sign of love to carry your wife or girlfriend's purse for her. So, you do see a lot of men carrying a purse while accompanied by a woman. However, you also see a lot of men carrying a purse while they are alone or with other guys. My personal favorite is when you see a couple and they each have a purse.

The Man Purse is such a pervasive part of society that there are even different sections for men's and women's purses in stores. Man Purses are purses, tote bags, and hand bags that are relatively unadorned. This is because it would just be girly to carry a purse with grommets or buckles. In contrast, women's purses are very elaborately decorated. They are covered with hardware, bows, ribbons, etc so that they are appropriately "feminine."

And now, without further ado, here pictures of unsuspecting, man purse toting Korean men.

New Korean Name

Today, I got called "Jennipah Smell." I went to the dry cleaners to get my coats and scarves cleaned. The lady then asked me to write down my name and phone number so she could enter them into her computer. I wrote it down in English and then handed her the paper. She looks at the name and starts sounding it out. She said "Jen-ni-pah S-sm-Smell." I tried to correct her. I said Small really slowly and clearly however, no matter what I said, she could only say smell. So, at the dry cleaners, I am now "Jennipah Smell.