Wednesday-Sunday, May 6-10--Globetrotting

Whoo hoo! A new stamp added to my passport! That makes four, if you count the Bahamas and Jamaica, though for some reason I feel like I’m cheating when I claim them as international travel. Anyway, five of us wives from Jim’s office took off on a four-day sightseeing/shopping trip to Seoul.

The first thing I noticed was that Korean people are physically VERY pushy. This started as soon as we hit the runway an Incheon Airport—people in the back of the plane were grabbing items from the overhead bins and scurrying up the aisles before the plane had even taxied to the gate. In fact, my seatmate leapt over me to be one of the first to deplane. This lack of consideration continued anywhere there were crowds of Koreans—at the baggage claim, on the subway, in the mall, in the line for a taxi. In Japan, people stand patiently in orderly lines, wait for others to get off the train before making their way on, and are extremely apologetic when they bump into you. Even Americans have more respect for order and personal space than the Koreans.

That’s not to say the Koreans aren’t friendly. Everyone we encountered was very pleasant. In fact, they are more outgoing than the Japanese, especially the young people. On our sightseeing jaunts, we encountered groups of school kids, and they all enthusiastically said, “Hi,” with many waves and big smiles. A few wanted to ask us questions, just to practice their English.

The sightseeing was good—except that it highlighted just how little I know about world history. We toured a temple, two palaces, a museum, and the DMZ. From the tour guides’ descriptions, it seems that for much of its history, Korea has been involved in conflict—with the Chinese, with the Japanese, with the Americans, with itself. It seemed to me a country that is always on edge, just waiting for the other shoe to drop. The people of Seoul go about their daily lives, oblivious to the soldiers patrolling the capital city (every man must complete two years of compulsory military service after high school, so there is no shortage of soldiers). The river whose course we followed on the drive to the DMZ was bordered by miles of barbed wire punctuated by armed guard towers—just in case the North Koreans float down and try to enter South Korea by climbing up the river banks. So while the South Koreans technically live in freedom, I personally felt shackled by the necessary precautions they are forced to take against the “what-ifs” created by their northern neighbor.

Shopping is great in Seoul, if you are looking for designer (not) goods, especially bags and purses. I’m not really into Coach and Yves St. Laurent and Dolce & Gabbana, so I wasn’t interested in seeing the “A quality” goods in the special room upstairs. But it was fun to listen to other shoppers trying to strike a bargain—some shop owners were eager to make the sale, while others could have cared less. I walked away from the street vendors with two “mink” blankets for $20 apiece. They will be invaluable in our less-than-cozy Japanese house next winter! As for a bag, I waited till we returned to our hotel on the U.S. army base, and bought a large Kate Spade tote at the boutique there (not because of the name, but because it is the perfect size for carrying stuff to and from my English lessons—I’m tired of trying to wrangle the backpack on the train). Since it was purchased on base, I am positive it is the genuine thing (despite paying only $26), and would have sworn as much to the inspector had I been stopped at customs for trying to enter Japan with counterfeit goods!