to korea and back

Last night after a long day of traveling I made it back to my apartment with just enough time and energy to throw my backpack down, check my email, and collapse into my bed. My head was filled with thoughts of my previous week in Korea and, though it was only seven days, it felt like I spent a lot of time there. It's interesting that countries can be so close in proximity and at the same time have such different cultures. I've only been living in Japan for a little over two months but it's been enough time for me to notice and experience a lot of things about the Japanese way of life. I think that this trip holds a certain significance because I now have these experiences in another Asian country to compare with what goes on here in Japan.


The first three days of my trip were spent in the port city of Pusan (aka 'Busan'). Jon took a train from Hongseong (where he teaches) to meet me after putting in a full day of work. Both of us were new to the city so as we were looking for a place to stay we ended finding ourselves in an 'interesting' part of town. After lots of searching, we found somewhere where the bathrooms were bigger than the bedrooms (and it was actually quite nice and cheap as well). Riding taxis around the city that night was a crazy experience. Koreans, form what I am told, have some of the worst driving records and I can see why after speeding down ten-lane highways and running red lights in a cab.

The Pusan International Film Festival was really cool. Jon and I only saw two movies but they were both very interesting and worth the time spent in getting to the theatres. The PIFF drew a big crowd and there were celebrity appearances that were amusing to us because we had no idea who they were but the mobs of people were going absolutely wild.


Not much can compare with good Korean food. During my few days in Pusan I was generally unimpressed with the culinary selection but my first homecooked meal with Jon's host family made me see why Jon is happy to have his host mom for a cook. I never thought that kim chee (a spicy food made from fermented cabbage) for every meal would be so pleasing but I never grew tired of it. There was also an assortment of fish, eggs, greens, roots, rice, mushrooms, and beans. I felt very at home eating a meal with Jon's family...in Korea, everyone uses chopsticks to eat from common serving dishes. I liked the sense of closeness that this brings to the meal.




One evening was spent at a lantern festival in a town about two hours away from Pusan. We were on the fence about going but at the last minute decided to make our way out there. It was well worth the trip.




I was also fortunate enough to visit Jon's elementary school school for a few days. There are only 65 students there so I was able to get to know a good number of them during my time there. Not many foreigners make their way to Hongseong so my presence was a big deal. Jon and I taught a few classes together on the first day and I spent a few hours on the second day exploring the surrounding area on foot.


Korea is a very interesting place. From the gas masks in the subway (see below) and the habitual peeling off the outside of fruit (apples, pears, etc.) to the crazy drivers and the lack of lines in public places...lots of time can be spent observing the people and their habits. I was happy to be a participant in their way of life for a short amount of time. I have to say, though, that I started to miss Japan. It feels good to be home.