Hello South Korea!

We're finally here!

After spending four months in Southeast Asia, Daron and I were really looking forward to South Korea.  Not only for the cooler weather (we were averaging three showers a day in Hanoi!), but to be somewhere a bit more modern too.  Neither of us knew much about the country, so we weren’t exactly sure what to expect.  Our main reason for going was to visit Daron’s older brother, Rod, who lives in Seoul.  Although they have kept in touch via email and the phone, Daron and Rod have not seen each other in fourteen years.

The streets of Seoul

Rod has an interesting story (at least I think so!).  He has lived in South Korea for 27 years – longer than he’s lived in the U.S.  He joined the army when he was young, where he went to school to become a Korean interpreter.  He was stationed in Korea for fifteen years or so, where he worked along the DMZ, which is the heavily guarded border between North and South Korea.  After his release from the Army he decided to stay in Korea.  He is now a writer who specializes in Korean history.  Rod has written, co-written, and contributed to numerous books; he also writes articles for the English newspaper in Seoul as well as for a few local magazines.  He’s quite the busy guy!  We were looking forward to seeing him and learning more about Korea.  A big plus is that Rod is fluent in Korean, so we would finally have help in the communication department!  

Beth in an alleyway in Seoul

We flew Korean Air from Hanoi in Vietnam to Seoul, which only took about five hours.  The bummer was it was a red-eye flight, leaving at 11pm.  Korean Air was fabulous – so friendly and professional.  We were served good food (by airplane standards) and each seat had a small screen to pick and choose movies, tv shows, etc. to watch.  We knew we needed to sleep, but the temptation to watch new releases we had missed during our travels proved to be too much.  We probably only slept two hours total (if that) during the flight!

Rod & Daron doing what they do best - feasting!

We knew we weren’t in Southeast Asia anymore as soon as we hit the airport!  It was so modern, CLEAN, and spacious.  People were friendly and tried their best to help us when we looked lost – and they didn’t even ask for money! J  We took the subway from the airport to our youth hostel, where we had booked a private room.  It was a small but modern room with its own bathroom – plus it included breakfast and all you can drink coffee (haven’t had that since we left the U.S.).  We can finally throw toilet paper into the toilet again!  Yay!  The weather was perfect too – warm days and cool nights.  The only downside is things are much more expensive in South Korea.  Our youth hostel cost us approximately $50 a night.  But it was worth it.

I'd hate to be the one doing the dishes!

After a nap (stayed up too late watching movies on the airplane!), we met Rod in the afternoon for a late lunch/early dinner.  He took us to a Korean BBQ restaurant that was delicious!  All across the city they have these restaurants where the food is cooked at your table – either you cook it or they cook it for you, right there.   Millions of little dishes come out too, some look familiar and some not so much.  We were happy to have Rod to tell us about the food and the etiquette of how to eat it all.  Of course, Daron beats to the sound of a different drummer and does his own thing with the food, forget the local customs!   The one thing Rod couldn’t help us with is how to use the darn metal chopsticks!  We had mastered the wood and plastic chopsticks during our time in Southeast Asia, but hadn’t come across the metal ones.  They are very slippery!   More than once during our stay we were given forks after making spectacles of ourselves trying to get food into our mouths (or out of our laps!).

The Neff brothers just chillin'

In case you are like me, and don’t know much about South Korea, here are some facts I’ve gathered about the country: 

• South Korea’s population is approximately 49 million (the capital city of Seoul is 10 million)
• 83% of the population lives in urban areas
• Life expectancy is 79 years
• The birthrate of 1.19 babies per female is one of the lowest in the world
• The country is slightly larger than the state of Indiana
• The climate is subtropical, with four distinct seasons
• The terrain is mostly hills and mountains
• Christianity is South Korea’s largest religion, with Buddhism coming in second. 
• All South Korean males are required to serve two years in the military
• South Korea has the 11^th largest economy in the world
• Well known South Korean companies:  Hyundai, Samsung, LG
• Koreans have a high regard for harmony.  It often supersedes truth or logic.  Hierarchy is also important – everyone must know their position on the ladder.  This contributes to harmony.
• There is very strong social pressure to be successful, dutiful, and to fit in.  This pressure has resulted in a high suicide rate. 

It was great to see Daron’s long lost brother and catch up a bit on the first evening.  We look forward to spending more time with him and learning about his life in this country.