Ahn-nyeong hah-seh-yo! (Hello!, in Korean)
I’ve been in Korea now for just about two full days – the only thing I can say is WOW! I’m having a great time here. Being immersed in this new culture is amazing, and I’m feeling constantly invigorated with everything I do.
Meghann and I started out Monday morning with a four mile run through downtown Seoul. It was surprisingly quiet, but it was an excellent way to get a feel for the city. We stuck to the same street two miles down and back, but we went through several different areas, some nicer than others. I didn’t get too many “weird” looks, but I did have several people smile or nod. I was the only non-asian I saw during the entire run. After the run, we had breakfast at the hotel which offered a pretty standard American breakfast buffet – it was pretty good.
After the run and breakfast, Meghann and I met the rest of the tour members in the hotel lobby, and we boarded a bus for a Korean palace. On the way to the Palace, we saw the “blue house” which is the South Korean equivalent to America’s White House. It was in a beautiful area surrounded by lush mountains.
After the Blue House, we walked through a large temple area. They talked about how the temple was used by the king and queen. We saw a lot of impressive Asian architecture, and they talked about the history of the temple. The temple had hand painted detailing all over the ceiling and exterior, and some of the areas were very large. We also saw the “changing of the guard” ceremony, which was pretty neat to see.
After the temple, we went to Namsan tower, which is up on a mountain. It had a great view of the entire city of Seoul, with the city stretching out from the tower in all directions. It really reminded me of being on top of the Empire State Building in New York City. It was definitely a tourist attraction and had gift shops and several Americanized shops. There was also a tradition at the tower, where couples would put locks on various parts of the tower to signify their everlasting love. Meghann and I decided to buy a lock, and we locked the bracelets to it that we won together on one of our first dates over three years ago, and had not taken off since. It has definitely felt weird ever since without the bracelet on my ankle.
After the Namsan tower, it was finally time for us to eat lunch. This was our first encounter with real Korean food on the trip – definitely an interesting experience. The first thing we tried was Kimchi, which is a very popular Korean appetizer dish. It’s essentially cold rotten cabbage with spices. The first time I had it in the US, it was about as tasty as it sounds. Having it in Korea though, was surprisingly better. It’s not about to top the list of things I want to eat regularly, but for trying a foreign dish, it was acceptable.
The remainder of our lunch was Korean BBQ, which we also had for dinner, and lunch the next day. It’s a very unique experience, and not like anything I’ve ever had in the US. In the middle of the table they place a grill-like thing with hot coals. They then place meat on the grill, and everyone eats the Kimchi and other things on the table while the meat cooks. The amount of food they give here is unbelievable – probably 5-7 dishes of food per person, mostly things to accompany the meat. The food is also mostly communal – no one has individual plates, but rather you make your own food from what’s on the table and eat it as you make it. We also noticed they kept bringing us more and more of the meat, despite our table being full. One restaurant also had us all sitting on the floor. I tried to sit indian style, but at this point in my life my body isn’t made for that anymore. After some adjusting I finally got comfortable. Another piece worth noting – the restaurant server culture is very different. Each table has a button which can be used to call the server at any time. Also, the servers seem very polite towards the males, and not at all towards the females. Luckily I’m one of the few males on the trip.. 😀
Today’s highlight was another morning run through Korea, this time through the beautiful river walk area. One thing I’ve noticed about the culture here I’ve enjoyed – whether it’s the driving, eating, hiking, or anything else – the culture seems to learn towards individual accountability, which is a change from the US where much of our culture always blames problems and issues on others. During our run this morning on the river walk, there were waterfalls and other paths with no railings whatsoever. Not at all dangerous if you were careful, but in the US anything like that would always have excessive railings and signs, significantly detracting from the experience. The driving also seems very chaotic, but it moves quickly and I haven’t seen any accidents or road rage. It’s pretty refreshing, and I wish our country’s culture would lean more towards individual accountability.
The last key thing to note is that Meghann and I had the chance to visit the offices of the adoption agency through which she was adopted. They reviewed the adoption case file with us, which was very interesting. We met several of the people involved with the agency, and even got to meet some of the babies! It was a very interesting experience and really shed light into some of the culture challenges single mothers may have in Korea, which has led to a large population of babies needing permanent homes. We will be participating in more adoption-related activities throughout the trip. I still have so much to write about, but with ten days left in the tour, I’m sure I’ll have several most opportunities to keep it up. More to come, and kamsahamnida (a Korean thank you!) for reading…
