So, I've been home for over 3 weeks now and have had some time to reflect on my Korean experience. And I have to say that on the whole it was very good and, while Korea may not have been on my bucket list of places to visit, I'm very glad that I was able to go and spend as much time there as I did. It not only gave me a feel for what it's like for Wimbreth and Blake to live in Korea on a daily basis and try to cope with the differences in their society but it helped me understand why they get so frustrated at times, and why they always want to eat out so much when they come back to the States-HaHa!
The Korean people in general seem to be different from Americans in several ways, and in particular different from Southerners. First of all, they are not very respectful or polite when it comes to putting others first, such as being first in line, opening or holding doors for others, butting into someone else's way, etc.
As Southerners we are practically browbeaten into being courteous and thinking about someone else's feelings or concerns and we are taught to respect other peoples' rights and to give them personal space. Not so much in Korea. They do whatever is most expedient for them and, if need be, will run over you to be first, get their place, stand where they want to and get what they want. They don't consider it rude or discourteous and are used to being bumped into and/or shoved aside. Having been raised in the South, I don't know that I could ever get used to that sort of behavior.
One of the other big differences I see is in how they treat their children. They seem to have a very 'laissez-faire' attitude, and allow their children free rein in roaming around wherever they want to, with or without adult supervision. Nichole, I'm sure it would drive you absolutely crazy to see how little attention they seem to pay to their children in what we would consider relatively dangerous situations. Apparently, the crime rate is so low in Korea that they seem to have no concerns whatsoever about someone taking and mistreating their children and they allow them to be out and about, even after dark, by themselves in areas where it would be quite easy for someone to snatch them. They let them play near busy streets, ride bicycles unaccompanied and wander around to other parts of the apartment complex with no indication that the parents have any earthly idea where they are. Not only do they not seem worried about kidnapping or abuse but they seem to have no concept of safety from the standpoint of not allowing the kids to play in what we would consider dangerous or even inconsiderate spots, such as right in front of doorways. They rarely appear to correct their children and just watch them when they behave in ways that Americans would consider rude or thoughtless. I can't understand a culture that has no concept of what we call 'manners'. All of that being said, I did find that when interacting in more of a one-on-one situation most of the people we attempted to communicate with were polite and seemed to want to be helpful, especially store clerks and others in a service capacity. But even the average person on the street would usually smile back when we smiled at them first. So, while I may have a tendency to generalize and put everyone into the same bad light, we did meet some very nice people and I certainly don't think they are all rude, inconsiderate or careless.
But I want to end on a good note and tell you a little bit about our trip to Jeju Island. This was a truly beautiful place, and the additional ride over on the ferry to Udo Island was a wonderful bonus as well. Wimbreth kept telling me that some of the water we saw was as beautiful as the water they had seen in Thailand. When we first arrived on Jeju and got on the road after our flight it was rainy and foggy so we weren't sure what to do about sightseeing for the afternoon. We decided to go to the larger of the waterfalls on the island, the only one in Korea that falls directly into the ocean. As we drove and got closer to the shore area, the weather became less rainy and we were able to get out and walk down to the falls and rocky shore and get some gorgeous pictures of the shoreline and an island off in the distance. We took a long walk up to another viewpoint and got more beautiful shots and we passed a museum of some type where we made friends with yet another Korean puppy. I have to say, the dogs in Korea are as friendly or more so than the people, but I guess that tends to be true almost anywhere. After a very full afternoon/evening of seeing the falls and driving we returned to our hotel for dinner and I particularly enjoyed the young man and woman who were playing piano and singing in the restaurant area--mostly American songs that I recognized. Nice way to end our evening.
Next morning we were up and out at a decent time to start our tour of the island. Once again the weather seemed uncooperative as we drove to our different destinations but each time we got closer to the shore itself the weather would clear, so I'm thankful that the Lord was gracious with that. We made stops at a couple of beautiful beaches, where I was able to run around for 15 or 20 minutes enjoying the water, sand and sun and pick up a variety of shells, with Blake and Wimbreth's help. We eventually made our way to the ferry to ride over to Udo Island, and I'm so glad we did because we saw one of the best sights of the trip on Udo. We took our rented car across on the ferry and were just driving around the coastline snapping pictures of the beach and the lighthouses when we came around a corner and had our breath taken away by a gorgeous cliff of rock that dropped down to the ocean and a small beach from which people were leaving in motor boats to take a ride out onto the waves. It was so totally unexpected that we had to stop and take numerous photos--like something out of a tour book only of course much better because we were right there beside it.
As much as I love beaches, I have to say this was the prettiest thing we saw on the whole trip.
We finished out our day with the ride back to Jeju and a stop at one more beach (not the prettiest but definitely the most crowded) then decided to try and squeeze in a visit to the second waterfall. It was pretty, though not as pretty as the first, but much easier to get to. Needless to say, the trip to Jeju was well worth waiting for.
In looking back at all of the pictures today I have to admit I was a little 'homesick' for Korea. Not that I want to move there for an extended period, but there were certainly enough pleasureable moments that I feel like I've at least developed a connection to the place and the people. I hope that the impressions that Bob and I left were good ones and reflect well not just on us but on our country and certainly on our Lord. If you ever have the opportunity to make a trip to Korea I'll be happy to share my memories and my pictures.
