[ Though written in May of 2001, I think my friend Tamara’s list of observations on her visit to Korea is interesting and certainly relevant today, given the prominence of Korea in the news. I normally include in this blog only stuff I have written personally, but I feel this is a worthy exception. — Adam]
A QUICK PROFILE OF SOUTH KOREA
– high cell phone usage; cells provided mainly by a company called Cyon;
most rings are answered immediately with no apology (incl. in restaurants,
in the middle of conversations, in bathrooms, and on subways)
– most kids have desktop computers with a DSL connection (unlike Japan,
where people surf the web and answer email on their cell phones)
– appearance is extremely important, esp. perfectly unblemished and light skin
– the ENTIRE border to North Korea is lined with barb wire, military
stations & spotlights… and North Korea has built huge apts. in sight of
Seoul to show their economic independence (btw, all the apts. are empty)
– cars tend to be Daewoo, Hyundai & Kia, which use either regular gas or
‘LPG’ (which burns slightly cleaner)… all foreign imports require heavily
taxes (I saw only 2 BMWs in Korea)
– Korean women dress trendy, not cute; however, their mannerisms can be
cute (ok, except all school girls seem to look impossibly cute)
– the myth is true: toilet paper, which is packaged in multiple ways, is
used as a napkin, paper towel and face tissue — even in offices and
restaurants
– Koreans drink instant coffee 2-4x a day; don’t really drink any type of
tea regularly (more a Japanese cultural thing)
– Korean suburbs are actually HUGE apt complexes… 8-12 buildings per
complex, each building 20 floors tall, each floor 4-6 apts.
– no real concept of privacy or solitude, esp. when family is over… you
are always “on” and engaged
– countryside consists of rural high mountains, like West Virginia or parts
of Colorado
– the roles are still distinct between men and women… traditionally, the
women will cook and eat after the men
– women are expected to marry by 25 (latest 28)… I received many
questions about the status of my “upcoming” marriage
– all highways are toll roads, usually costing between $100-2000 won (about
– most Korean men smoke and drink daily, something you never criticize in
public
– outside Korean cities, produce is grown in many greenhouses along rice
patties
– surprisingly, many men and women dye their hair, usually brown/copper
highlights
– kids spend 8-10 hours in school, then 2-5hrs in an after-school program
(called hogwa)
– if home, families are expected to eat and sit together
– every meal includes a spicy dish, usually 2-4 kimchee variations (of 100+
types)
– every store will put its sign on its building — creating an overall very
colorful, very cluttered look (think Las Vegas)
– 1/5 signs are in English, 1/5 are in Korean spelling phonetic English,
most highway signs include English “subtitles”
– American movies are subtitled in Korean
– most product packaging contains English mispellings for some reason
– many Koreans study English in school (mostly written study) so they are
willing to practice English in conversations
– Koreans love small house dogs, but raise & eat a different type of dog
for dog stew (uh-huh)
– most of the houses and restaurants have heated floors (mmm) which creates
very dry heat… in the winters, I’m told they burn coal to heat the floors
– most Koreans sit on the floor, incl. homes and restaurants
– cities have high levels of pollution due to many factories and constant
traffic… if the U.S. pollution average is 100, Seoul is 2000 (my biggest
challenge for the entire trip was a burned throat and a hoarse cough)
– I have observed little attention to design, fengshui, space — Koreans
have a similar concept called “pungso” (ex., most buildings face south) but
it’s not really practiced
– almost always, shoes are removed at the entrance of a home, template and
restaurant
– Koreans tend to be either Christian or Buddhist
– most families don’t continue ancestor shrines but will honor dead
(grand)parents in an annual ritual
– overall diet tends to be healthy (rice, fish, soup, vegetables)… but
Koreans actually love junk food (incl. their version of American hotdogs,
fried potatoes, pizza which has corn and squid)
– the music Koreans hear is all over the map… U.S. 80’s and 90’s, some
recent hits, Japanese hits, Korean bugglegum pop
– while their meals often takes a long time to prepare, Koreans eat
extremely fast with little beverage and eat all day… the order food seems
to be served is side dishes, meat/seafood, rice, a little water…
What do you think?