Summer just wouldn't be summer without it.

I wanted to write a haiku in honor of this weekend delight, but honestly there is too much going on here to fit it all into a 5-by-7-by-5-syllable format.

No. This is something completely out of all of our leagues.

Let me introduce you to the traditional Korean summertime snack, 팥빙수 (or pat-bing-soo).

Now, upon first look, I kind of wanted to run away. In a typical dish, one could be subject to find:
ice
red beans
fruit
random jelly
rice cake
cereal flakes
and some kind of sweet milk.

To me, it sounds like something the Very Hungry Caterpillar would fantasize about, but it's really just the typical snack Korean use to cool off on those very hot summer days.

This weekend, I knew it was time to girl-up and find me some pat-bing-soo, if for no other reason than to write a blog about how much it weirded me out.

Maybe I've been here too long and will accept red beans in and on anything, but I actually really enjoyed sitting on the floor of my apartment, windows open, eating this thing. And-- even better: since it's not ice cream, I felt absolutely no guilt for eating it all... even if the lady I bought it from did  ask me if I wanted two spoons.

With that mystery solved, it's good to know I can walk down the blazing hot streets of my Korean summer no longer in fear.