There are no casinos in Yeongdeok, but few other places rival the gaudy, hyperreal simulacra of the infamous city in the Nevada desert. Clinging to the buildings on Yeongdeok’s waterfront are giant crustaceans in bright orange armour. The town seems to exist only as a monument to the King Crab, a tribute to the insatiable Korean appetite for this sea beast. Locals have dedicated their energy to maintaining the town’s reputation as one of the best places to get a crab fix. These garish facades team with neon lights to assault pedestrians, as each crab joint hopes to be more inviting than the next. People come to worship the crab, to eat of its flesh and drink of its blood. There are no other earthly gods here, with the sea’s bounty paying the bills for many Yeongdeok residents.
Judged by their weight, size and colour, the chosen ones are heaped onto a wagon and dragged off to an adjacent restaurant, where a steamer awaits.
We leave a table laden with debris and exit this King Crab carnival as it begins to light up the dusky port. Feasting will continue into the night.
Along with Uljin Snow Crab Festival, Yeongdeok Snow Crab Festival runs through February and March every year.
Pretty big crabs. I guess they are delicious too!
I dislike this writer’s style. I gave her a pass with “simulacra” in the first paragraph, but when she used meaninglessly difficult words like “kerfuffle” a little later on, I quit reading. I wish she never writes again, or changes her style.
Kerfuffle isn’t a difficult word. This style is more poetic than narrative or journalistic, perhaps that is why you dislike it? Either way, you can’t be a writer yourself Charles, because writers never wish for other writers to “never write again”, instead they encourage each other. If indeed you are a writer, I would encourage you to be more critically supportive, or change your style.
Kerfuffle isn’t a difficult word. This style is more poetic than narrative or journalistic, perhaps that is why you dislike it? Either way, you can’t be a writer yourself Charles, because writers never wish for other writers to “never write again”, instead they encourage each other. If indeed you are a writer, I would encourage you to be more critically supportive, or change your style.