As an avid hiker living in South Korea, I’ve found the hiking culture very different from the one I was brought up with in the states. South Korean hikers are predominantly day hiking men in their late 50s, either going solo or in big hiking groups. These older men come fully prepared for the day ahead of them, with mini propane cookers, an assortment of side dishes like kimchi, instant coffee mix and often times hauling a bottle of the rice alcohol, makgeolli.
So I guess these products are a natural conclusion to these cultural traits. But I can’t help but find them a bit strange.
Have you even been hiking and had an overwhelming desire for ramen?
Common problem here in Korea, its a classic hiking snack. But what if you had that desire but didn’t want to eat the noodles? Well the store Diaso has the solution for you. Allow me to introduce you to ramen tea with the clever name of “Ramen Tea”. Genius.
For the price of 2,000 won or about $1.70 you too could solve your liquid ramen cravings 5 times!
Like the tea bag riding the ramen itself you too will be licking your lips as the taste is described as “순한 맛” meaning gentle. So basically it’s watered down ramen water.
Take a chance with Ramen Tea! If you try the orange box you will be gulping down the mysterious flavor “시원한 맛” translated as “cool favor”. So many questions.
* Although I respect and value my readers, I will not be sampling these for the sake of a review. Please don’t wish bad things for me *
But wait there’s more! What if ramen wasn’t enough? You wanted a hot drink that tasted like ramen but was also spicy. The masterminds at Diaso, bring you “spicy favor”. You know its spicy by the fact that even the tea bag seems to be suffering.
I’m glad I was able to solve this pressing issue for you. Let me know if I need to send you a box. On to the next crisis.
Have you even being hiking with friends but you couldn’t do shots because glass shot glasses are too heavy and inconvenient to carry?
Diaso has your back! Coming in two colors, clear and vaguely blue, this container comes with 4 soju glasses for ‘outside use’. All for the economical price of 2,000 won/$1.70.
But on a serious note, the shot glasses are a decent product. I just enjoy the fact this product is actually solving a Korean hiking culture issue. The hiking culture is very friendly, beyond just saying hi to each other. If your Korean ability to better than nothing, you will be invited to eat and share in with drinks ranging from store-bought Soju or makgollie to home made traditional rice wine. Most foreigners or general solo hikers don’t tend to prepare supplies to receive free drinks on their hike, so typically the men with the alcohol will carry these for others. A couple times now, I’ve been given one of these to use so I might enjoy a free shot(s) of soju.
While I found the ramen tea stupid funny, this product speaks more to the culture here. I wanted to share a glimpse of that culture with people who’ve never hiked in South Korea and for my fellow hikers in the expat community – maybe I’ve given you some gift ideas for our hiking partners.
*This should be obvious but I don’t advocate for drinking while hiking, it’s a dangerous activity. Nonetheless it’s a prevalent cultural phenomenon in South Korea *
Happy hiking.
