The "Is that for real?" column is born

So oftentimes in Asia I notice random things happening and think to myself "Is that for real?" So I have decided begin contributing to our blog and start a column entitled "Is that for real " to share these moments of confusion, bewilderment and/or awe with you.

"Is that fore real" by Paco
Article 1: Korean men carry purses
For some reason men in Korea carry around purses. When I say purses I don't mean the cool looking sachels you see in other parts of Asia and Latin America, but regular women's purses. It is quite commom to see a full grown man with a stylish black leather purse with silver buckles slung around his arm. For awhile I just thought Korean men were real gentlemen, carrying their girlfriends purses. After awhile I began to notice that many of these purse carrying men are not accompanied by a woman and the ones that are, have a lady friend that is carrying her own purse. I guess a bag is a bag and we all have stuff to carry around the city, but seeeing so many men sporting stylish purses made me say "Is this for real?"

Rachel reporting... I just wanted to add a little something. You may be wondering what a guy is carrying in that purse of his. Personally, I thought it was just all of that crap that guys carry around in their pockets and then empty onto the table every time they sit down, but it is a little more than that. Today at lunch, I watched a guy take out make-up and touch up his face. So he might be carrying the exact same thing in the purse as his girlfriend. You certainly can't have your boyfriend looking better than you, which is probably why women here are so obbsessed with their appearance and subsequently look so nice. Sometimes I feel like a slob since (1) I have no purse and (2) I never carry make-up with me.