Pasar 2

The next week at Pasar was blissful.  In the mornings we slept, helping Natsu bake fresh bread for breakfast, then leisurely began a few hours of work.  Since Pasar is mothballed for eight months of the year, the work mainly consisted of getting it shipshape.  We scrubbed floors, wiped down furniture, got the garden ready for planting, and washed all the dishes.  We also assisted our hosts at getting their "traditional Japanese bath" ready to use; this device, a rusty iron tub sitting atop a fire pit, brought to mind Bugs Bunny cracking jokes as he's about to be cooked, or maybe Charles Adams cartoons of pith helmeted explorers surrounded by cannibals.  Still, the bath was extremely comfortable, even if we did get eaten alive by mosquitoes.

We also declared war on the paper wasps that set up shop throughout Pasar's wooden buildings.  Having some experience with dealing with these particular beasties (a gang of them set up above our washing machine in Osaka one terrifying night), I took it upon myself to go Schwarzenegger on their thoraxes.  Step One: spray the hive with poison.  Step Two: run like hell.  If ever my resolve for destruction wavered, all I had to do was look into one of the hives, which were filled with grubs ready and eager to hatch and eat my eyeballs in revenge.

Though they may appear disgusting, these grubs
are actually completely sick and grody as well.

Thankfully, these wasps were mostly harmless, though we did occasionally hear the helicopter-hum of the dread スズメバチ, the Asian Giant Hornet (or "yak-killer hornet") that kills more people in Japan every year than bears and Godzilla combined.

Speaking of deadly flying insects and other fun things, our job hunt was in full swing by this point.  Since the internet connection of Pasar Moon took a backseat to its stunning view of the sea and unsurpassed conversation, we made many a trip to the local Lawson to check our e-mail.  Eventually, we were faced with a dilemma regarding our job prospects: we could take a high-paying job with long hours, a low-paying job with short hours, or a decidedly average-paying job with "meh" hours, all of which are located in Seoul.  Eventually, we made our choice, though not before a few dramatic bike rides across town to check our e-mail.

The menu at Pasar changed by the day; Natsu's always-excellent cooking was made up of fresh-baked bread made with natural yeast, homemade curry, and whatever seasonal ingredients could be foraged from the mountains and the sea.  One night, we ate like kings on tempura'd mountain vegetables, abalone sashimi, yuzu-marinated sea cucumber, and fried whelk, all taken for free from the area.

On another occasion, we drove up to the mountains to pick wild raspberries to make into jam.  Though it turned out to be a bit too early for raspberries yet, we brought in quite a haul of bamboo shoots and leafy greens.

Also a mushroom called a "Jew's Ear," but I don't really wanna talk about that.

While another WWOOFer and I busily scrubbed things, wiped things, and stacked things on top of other things, Jenn was tasked with designing an official Pasar Moon Flag, a task to which she brought all of her determination, as well as a pair of my ruined jeans.

And every night, the sunset grew lovelier still.