What struck you about South Korea?

Don't be surprised if you think you are still in America, when you visit or relocate to Korea. The street signs are in Korean AND... in English!

Eveybody acts like you are NOT a foreigner and treats you as if you're the thousandth westerner, Candian, British, Aussie, Yank, European they've dealt with and they know all about you and what you want. And treat you like you are a celebrity half the time.

AND... they want you to enjoy your time in Korea. They are nervous about their first impression they are making on you, they want you to like Korea, they actually take you seriously and they feel obligated to help you have a great experience in Korea!

Have you ever met a more considerate, globally conscientious person on the entire planet? Welcome to Korea!

They probably can't speak much English but you've probably never met somebody who loved and worshipped the English language more than people from Korea. Congratulations, if you speak English you can get an awesome high paying job, many friends, celebrity status in Korea.

Unfortunately times are changing, and Korea is mastering English to the point that soon they wont need westerners anymore. Korea is already basically a weatern country. And as soon as they realize this fact, they will treat you less and less like a celebrity.

And forget about finding romance in Korea, it happens, but rarely. Korea places more importance on education and status than marriage. Until your partner is the age of 31 you won't convince them to marry you.

However... you can find millions of people age 31 who are desperate to marry you... if you are rich and Korean. But dont give up hope... your odds are just as good in Korea as in your own home nation (pun not intended but was inevitable).

Q: What were the things that surprised you the most after your arrival?

As far as culture shock, everybody looks Korean. It's one of the most ethnically pure (homogeneous) nations on the planet.

However for USA born/raisee person it felt like home because in the USA every 5th person has Asian ancestry.

China for example built most of America's major highways (even before America had 51 states) thanks to a diaspora of immigrants during America's early growth stages, gave America martial arts and contributed to America's movie industry through Bruce Lee etc, some awesome cuisine dishes, helped tremendously in WW2, created Taiwan, and so much more!

Of course being Asian doesnt mean China only, there are many Asian nations, even India is considered Asia. The island nation of Indonesia has almost a third of the world's population (and I think there are more English speakers there than in India)!

Bottom line, when stepping off the airplane my buddy leaned over close and whispered, it looks like America, and I whispered, look there's even a Tae Kwon Do flag (quickly I learned the Tae Kwon Do flag is actually a nation's flag, the nation where Tae Kwon Do was invented, it's not Tae Kwon Do's symbol, it's Korea's flag, oh my goodness I was so ignorant and uncultured)!

Another thing that surprised me was that you are going to feel like you are in France. Everybody, and I mean literally everbody in Korea are fashionistas from Paris France! Fashion is serious here. They buy all new clothes every 2 weeks and out out their old clothes on the street so that even the homeless are wearing last months fashion trends!

Shoes made in Korea are infinitely higher quality than anywhere else on the planet, and infinitely cheaper! Everything else is as expensive as clothing in Paris. This is NOT a third world country, although everybody off the boat (cruise ship) will still look hard for the discount market areas.

And everybody here looks like models, they are tall and beautiful, like athletes and movie stars! And everybody here has twins or triplets!

Q: Are there any practices that are particularly out of step with your culture of origin?

ANSWER: YES!!! The children staying in school until midnight, 7 days per week, and then at midnight going to violin class!!!

In Korea many parents are complaining that this is not a good thing. Suicide trends (which the whole world has already seen repeatedly in the news) hopefully are dropping in Korea.

But to be honest, I am in awe, totally inspired by how educated the vast majority of the population here in Korea are (which explains why there is basically zero crime and behavior problems anywhere you go here in Korea; racism here is rare and anyways non-violent). Nothing but respect.

The bad part (kids being stressed to the extreme) usually isn't due to the insane schedule, but rather the demands for perfect exam score results and overal grading. And the reason finding a job in Korea is so competetive and difficult is just because it's a small country with a lot of people, not because there is a lack of industry.

Of course, if the demands are lowered, students will have less need to attend night classes.

Truth be told, even if they followed a schedule as relaxed as western schedules, Korea would still have the top performing student population, or equal, in comparison to most of the top western nations. And in Asia and the whole world.

Look at it this way, in the USA usually only engineers, NASA scientists, Air Force, high paid professionals, etc, use Apple Computers (I'm not talking about cell phones, you dont need to be smart to operate a phone that does everything for you i.e.-smart phone).

The average person in the USA uses non-Apple computers (Myself included), mostly for that very reason (too much work to learn how to use it; high learning curve).

In Korea for the past 12+ years that I have lived there, literally everyone used Apple computers until Samsung engaged Apple in open warfare.

And yet you still see the Apple symbol on almost every laptop on the bus, subway train, at coffee shops, libraries, and so on.

I do try to study more, I took a lot more interest in Steve Jobs and Apple, and have taken the academic world, and engineering, and technology and science much more seriously thanks to my time in Korea.

I have a much more profound interest in the competition between the world's nations for a high ranking in the cosmetic surgery race, fashion industry, medical industry, automotive, technolgy, academia, English speaking national demographic, culinary arts, green energy, democratic evolution, enhanced relationship with former enemies, embracing change and innovation, and so on.

South Korea isnt just the up and coming power horse of the new age, but is already here and becoming as recognized a player in the big leagues as is France, India, Japan, Germany, and so on.

Its name should already be synonymous with USA, and Korea is already well known in most of the world as of the past decade thanks to Gangnam Style, Psy, K-Pop, Tae Kwon Do, N.Korea, Former UN President Moon, Samsung's war with Apple, Korea made vehicles, its technology and medical and charity contributions to the world, fashion industry, and increasingly  its movie industry.

Q: Do you think you would take some of the customs of South Korea with you when you leave Korea?

ANSWER: Aside from improving my chopstick skills, I will definitely cook and serve meat dishes differently from time to time. Who can eat Sam-Geup-Sal (slightly thin, slightly long sliced chunks of barbecue beaf or pork) and not be changed as a person?

I will miss seeing people of all ages tilt their heads, or even bow very low, in respect to each other and me. And also when shaking my hand how many people reached out with both hands.

I think because I will miss these aspects of the culture, that I will subconciously or even consciously emulate some of these things from time to time or every chance that I get when it seems appropriate; certainly it'll happen accidentally whenever I hear somebody speaking Korean.

Some aspects of the Korean culture are what is missing from the world and other countries that I constantly hear people say it themselves that something is missing or "what's wrong with the world" and I thankfully have found the answer to that question and many of the world's problems.

I think for that reason, what Korea can offer the world, to save the world, Korea will continue to have a significant, important, even vital place in the future of humanity and the planet.

It has been the greatest priviledge to have personally witnessed and experienced what I refer to as the true center of the global community: Korea.

I could easily write a 1,000 page book about how Korea is the epitome of the nearest-to-being Utopian nation on the planet.

Thank you Korea!

Ben Arnold,
Expat.com user