130602 [NEWS] ‘Real Men’ get taste of military boot camp

Source: OhKpop
Reuploaded: blaqrain@mblaqwithusa

“Real Men”, a reality show about military life, features male celebrities, including Australian entertainer Sam Hammington.

A few male entertainers recently joined the army and it’s the talk of the town. Here is one more clue that will help you understand what the fuss is about: Four of them had already served their military terms and there’s an Australian guy in this group.

The situation is not real. It’s a reality TV show called ‘Real Men’, airing now, with each episode depicting the celebrities’ struggles in getting used to boot camp life while staying with real soldiers at army bases in Korea. The show is becoming a big hit as it draws many viewers to the television. Male viewers can reminisce about their own military experience while watching the clumsy soldiers go through the tough military training under strict discipline. Female viewers, on the other hand, can indirectly experience what life is like at boot camp.

What is it about army life that draws people to the TV and even has the Australian entertainer, Sam Hammington, looking for episodes with English subtitles in the hope of showing them to his mom? Some stories about a Korean soldier’s life in the army are revealed here, so ‘atten-TION!’

Every able-bodied Korean man must serve a two-year military tour. Conscription begins upon receiving a draft notice and after physical examinations, young recruits convene at one of the military training centers across the country. There, they receive four to five weeks of basic military training before being deployed to different troops and bases.

When it is time to part from their parents or girlfriends, recruits with their newly shaved crewcuts drag their feet along the ground and awkwardly salute their heartbroken families standing in a sea of tears, before marching onto the base.

Saying goodbye to loved ones is difficult, but what unfolds at a boot camp will be much more challenging for those who were civilians until a few minutes ago. Newly inducted soldiers first cut off all contact with the outside world, sending their personal belongings such as clothes or watches home with a letter addressed to their parents. They are provided with supplies, including uniforms, boots, underwear and a rifle.

With everyone in the same green uniform and performing the same maneuvers, they learn to act in uniformity, which is one of the critical military values along with discipline and obedience – the oil that makes the entire platoon run like a perfectly timed engine.

Another word to describe the military is routine. Night owls take some time to learn a new habit of getting up and going to bed early every day. To solve the problem, exercising until you are worn out is key to a good night’s sleep.

At the training center and the bases they are assigned to, recruits receive intense physical training to build up their combat capacity. They engage in various training exercises involving personal arms and equipment handling, individual combat techniques, close-order drills, physical fitness training, and live-fire exercises with weapons and grenades. Drills in preliminary rifle instruction, which is a repetition of the actions to get the hang of the correct firing positions, are given as punishment. They also have to stand in a gas chamber with a gas mask in their hands which is rather torturous.

An overnight, 20-kilometer tactical march with weapons and full gear weighing about 40 kilograms is one of the toughest activities. The young soldiers return exhausted with blisters on their feet, eyes brimming with tears and missing their cozy bedroom and homemade soup.

The endless and intense physical workouts increase the metabolism and that is what makes the young guys crave sugar. The most popular sweet snack is “choco pie”, a chocolate cake with marshmallow filling. To get this iconic snack in the Korean military, soldiers would even be willing to convert to a different religion.

Speaking of military snacks, there is one quirky menu option all soldiers look forward to seeing in their tray. It is a hamburger, but not the kind we find at regular burger joints. A mixture of cabbage salad, ketchup, meat sauce, and strawberry jam creates the filling between buns and patties. It is an odd combination of ingredients but even the Australian on the TV show praised it. The hamburger is dubbed ‘gundae-ria’ as ‘gundae’ means military in Korean and the suffix comes from the name of the famous Korean hamburger franchise.

Besides sleeping and furlough, the next best thing to bring comfort to their tired minds and bodies is watching TV in the room each squad shares. Pretty K-pop girl groups become their “girl friends” and at the same time, an ultimate stress buster and taste of civilian life. Privates are not allowed to lie on the floor like higher-ranking soldiers, except at bedtime.

However, watching TV is still their favorite part of the day, even if they can only move their eyeballs. They sit perfectly still, not even allowed to turn their heads and with their hands to remain in their laps. Not the most comfortable way to watch TV, but any chance to relax must be much appreciated.

Everything seems different and life in the army is tough to adjust to, but things get easier and better as time passes and you rise through the ranks. Korean men who have completed their mandatory military service often say that dreaming of walking onto a base to serve a military term all over again is possibly the most terrible nightmare they can think of.

We salute the brave soldiers’ who shed blood, sweat and tears to protect us living in Korea even right at this moment. If there are any curious readers out there who want to make the military-style hamburger at home, I warn you that it is only tasty in the army.