Here's the Story of the Korean Noodle Vendor Who Went Viral
Around a week ago, a 76-year-old Korean man named Mr. Chang went viral on social media after a netizen shared his encounter with him. The man was apparently selling Korean noodles on the streets while giving out free water to motorists, which touched the hearts of many. Since then, he's been internet-famous and was featured on various media websites.
Basel of The Hungry Syrian Wanderer, a Syrian-born vlogger based in the Philippines, heard of his story and found out that they live in the same city. He then went on a drive to find Mr. Chang and lend him a helping hand.
The Syrian content creator found Mr. Chang and his noodle stand in one of the streets. Initially, Basel had planned to buy all the noodles he's currently selling and give them out to random people. Mr. Chang, however, insisted that he can only buy a few so that others could have the chance to buy the noodles at a cheaper price (He was selling them for P35 a piece and P100 for three pieces). The vlogger ended up giving away the money he had (which he explained was the earnings for the day of one of his restaurants in Las Pinas) to Mr. Chang, who felt really touched by the gesture.
Basel went on to get to know Mr. Chang further and initially called him oppa and ahjussi. They even drove to where he was currently living to check his place out. During their drive, Mr. Chang opened up about his life and how he went from riches to rags.
According to Mr. Chang, he was once a multi-millionaire who owned a construction company. He would build and sell around 350 units a day in South Korea. That was until he got into gambling, through which he eventually lost all his hard-earned money. From staying in luxury hotels and tipping security guards and service staff, he now rents a P6,500 room and is happy with earning around P300 a day.
He's also not on speaking terms with his son and daughter, and claims that they don't like him after he lost all his money to casinos. His wife, on the other hand, had to fly back to Korea three days before lockdown, leaving him alone in the Philippines. Now he sells Korean instant noodles in the streets, earning around P500 on a good day and P300 on a normal day.
Aside from giving him pocket money, the content creator decided to shop for a few home items for his room after seeing its state. He bought Mr. Chang a TV, new bed sheets, tables and cabinets, a mini pantry for his food which Mr. Chang used to just place on the floor, and even light bulbs for his dark bathroom. On top of that, Basel tells Mr. Chang that he can drop by his restaurants to eat for free. From oppa (Korean term for older brother used by females) and ahjussi (a Korean term used for middle-aged men), Mr. Chang touchingly asked Basel to call him aboeji (the Korean word for father) instead.
Watch more of their heartwarming interaction in Basel's vlog:
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