Impressions of South Korea
So, I've been in Korea for 5 days now and thus far I've been lucky to meet quite a few locals but mostly it has been through my past university acquaintances who are living here now.
Friendly Nature
I find the people here are very friendly and welcoming. I was walking along the market the other day, and decided to stop at a food stalls to eat this onion pancake ... so I sat down, there was only one spot next to a middle aged man. He was so friendly, he wanted to chat with me, but he didn't know any English, and despite me telling him that I didn't understand his Korean, he kept trying ... eventually we found some basic language with the use of signs :) ... he let me try a traditional alcoholic beverage called makgeolli. The people across the table were also very curiously looking at me, eventually one of them picked up a glass and said "cheers" ... at the end I was sooo full and I also couldn't finish the bottle of makgeolli, so I gave the remains to a group that was sitting across me ... they were very pleased and shook my hand on my way out.
A friend of Petru's, an acquittance from university, that I met today told me that if she knew that I, a new visitor, was in town she wouldn't have made plans with a friend later on, in order to show me around ... and on no notice, she joined us for a hike to the mountain ... I was amazed.
Safety and Trust
I have to say that I feel incredibly safe here; this might be the safest place I visited. The people are also very trusting ... the merchants at the food-stalls don't keep track of what you ate, you just tell them after you are done. Also, there were times where I went in the wrong direction in the subway and had to come out to change sides, but instead of the operator coming to question me to check if I had a ticket and asking me to explain, he just opened a door for me w/o asking anything. With so many people out drinking late at night, it's amazing that there is no observed damage or danger ... young people of all ages are out late.
Group Culture
Got to love the group culture! People here don't operate so much as individuals as they do in groups ... they study in groups, play online games as groups, go out in groups ... it's wonderful!
Memory of the past
Today, I was remembering how weirdly I used to look at Korean and Japanese food before I first tried it only 3 years ago ... I remember my Korean roomate in 2nd year university used to keep large jars of kimchi in the fridge ... to me that stuff looked scary; it was always red like blood and always left a big trail on the plates. It's strange, how my perspective has changed in such a short time. Today, I love both Korean and Japanese food ... and look forward to eating kimchi!
And so my explorations continue ... more impressions to come.
Friendly Nature
I find the people here are very friendly and welcoming. I was walking along the market the other day, and decided to stop at a food stalls to eat this onion pancake ... so I sat down, there was only one spot next to a middle aged man. He was so friendly, he wanted to chat with me, but he didn't know any English, and despite me telling him that I didn't understand his Korean, he kept trying ... eventually we found some basic language with the use of signs :) ... he let me try a traditional alcoholic beverage called makgeolli. The people across the table were also very curiously looking at me, eventually one of them picked up a glass and said "cheers" ... at the end I was sooo full and I also couldn't finish the bottle of makgeolli, so I gave the remains to a group that was sitting across me ... they were very pleased and shook my hand on my way out.
A friend of Petru's, an acquittance from university, that I met today told me that if she knew that I, a new visitor, was in town she wouldn't have made plans with a friend later on, in order to show me around ... and on no notice, she joined us for a hike to the mountain ... I was amazed.
Safety and Trust
I have to say that I feel incredibly safe here; this might be the safest place I visited. The people are also very trusting ... the merchants at the food-stalls don't keep track of what you ate, you just tell them after you are done. Also, there were times where I went in the wrong direction in the subway and had to come out to change sides, but instead of the operator coming to question me to check if I had a ticket and asking me to explain, he just opened a door for me w/o asking anything. With so many people out drinking late at night, it's amazing that there is no observed damage or danger ... young people of all ages are out late.
Group Culture
Got to love the group culture! People here don't operate so much as individuals as they do in groups ... they study in groups, play online games as groups, go out in groups ... it's wonderful!
Memory of the past
Today, I was remembering how weirdly I used to look at Korean and Japanese food before I first tried it only 3 years ago ... I remember my Korean roomate in 2nd year university used to keep large jars of kimchi in the fridge ... to me that stuff looked scary; it was always red like blood and always left a big trail on the plates. It's strange, how my perspective has changed in such a short time. Today, I love both Korean and Japanese food ... and look forward to eating kimchi!
And so my explorations continue ... more impressions to come.
Labels: Asia, backpacking, impressions, South Korea, Travel
posted by Alex Pilchin at 7:13 AM
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