Martoons

Today: Mr Go panics. 

Cast of characters

Mr Go

Donna

Miss No

*

Meanwhile, the ladies were ready for dinner.

“You go out and wait for Mr Go outside his room,” No instructed enthusiastically.

“I’ve got a sightseeing map around here somewhere…”

She was envisioning a shuttle bus tour around after dinner and fished around her bag for the map.

Donna got to Go’s room and leaned against the wall outside the closed door.

A commotion seemed to be coming from within.

It sounded like a scuffle.

Was he fighting someone?

 * Is someone else also in Go’s room? *

Then all of a sudden he was trying to get out!

From the inside he was yanking on the door but had inadvertently chained it shut.

Donna was able to view the goings-on through the crack afforded by the short, standard chain.

Like a panicky child, Go couldn’t focus on sliding the simple little chain out of the rail.

He was hysterical.

“Open up! Let me out!” he shouted.

“Ayeesh! I’m trapped!”

* What is really causing Mr Go to panic? *

“Calm down Mr Go,” Donna said.

“Don’t panic. Do exactly as I say.”

She tried to instruct him to first close the door and then slide the slackened chain out.

She even slipped in bits and pieces of Korean language but it was futile.

Having abandoned reason, Go reefed on the door so hard that the flimsy chain broke.

The door flung back toward him.

He stumbled in reverse onto his bed.

Collecting himself and then quickly springing to his feet, he charged forward like a crazed bull.

Donna was standing right there in the open door but before she could step aside, Go elbowed his way right past her.

Then he shot down the hallway, gone.

* Where is he going? *

“Ow!” Donna said, clutching her bicep.

“Two minutes for elbowing!”

Still no sign of No so Donna was curious and went in Go’s room to see what had triggered his outburst.

She had to step over his suitcase, and his clothes were strewn all over.

It was as if a tornado had blown through.

“Aigo!”

She gazed up at the large watercolour painting of Mountain-of-a-Thousand-Jagged-Peaks.

“Wow – marvelous. Note to self: As of right now I’m putting North Korea on my ‘to go’ list.”

Her deep entrancement by the artwork was jarred by a subliminal thumping coming from behind.

Her eyes gravitated to the window and the neon evening-scape outside.

“What a hideous, gaudy advertising display.”

She turned away, her eyes seeking refuge on the wall and the gorgeous painting, taking her mind to lofty altitudes.

Then back to the window and the tacky visual assault, stirring up the base desires of consumerism and ‘pay-to-play’ entertainment.

Korea, Donna could see, was a land of contrasts.

Shifting back and forth between the two scenes, all of a sudden everything caught up with her.

Two flights and over a day in the sky breathing in manufactured airplane air.

She sat on Go’s bed and then lay back with one arm limply hanging over the edge.

She felt something there – a little trash can at bedside.

Inside was an empty, little clear bottle.

Baffled, she lifted it out and read the label: SOJU.

Again she thought of Mr Go and wondered what she’d gotten herself into.

*

Tomorrow: Fred’s still adjusting to Korean life.