Things I Like About Korea

In no particular order, here are some of the things that I like about Korea:

- my fabulous staff at Military Sealift Command Korea

Here are two pics of members of the staff at the house for a get together.  I have no idea where those brown bottles in the corner came from.

- bulgogi (Korean barbecue)

- red traffic lights are optional and advisory in nature

- the fact that the baggy pants hanging off and showing your underwear and half your butt crack fad has not made its way to Busan

- taxi fares are cheap

- the strong alliance between Korea and the US

Me with some Korean Officers in my office.  I'm the one in green.  It really is an honor for me to work with such professionals.  Korean males have mandatory service in the military.  We can learn a lot about national pride from the Republic of Korea.

This is from a visit to the Korean War Veteran's Hospital.  One of the things that make my tour here in Korea so great is the strong Korean-US relationship.   

- people are normal sized, like me

- it's a hard working society

- people flash their hazard lights at you for a second when you let them ahead of you on the roads, like a quick thank you

- the clean subway

This is a quaint man-made babbling brook down in the subway.  Like I said, the subways are clean.  By the way, is a brook really a brook if it isn't babbling?  Just a thought.

- Koreans practicing their English on you

- you can pick your seats in advance at the movie theater;  this is cool cause you can buy your tickets early, pick your favorite seats, then go do dinner or whatever and not have to wait in line at the theater afterward

- the friendly people

-  you don't have to take your shoes off at airport security unless you're flying to the US

- the police rarely give out traffic tickets

- the delicious asian pears

Check out these giant asian pears that Jake, his classmate and their teacher harvested during a field trip to a nearby farm.  These things are juicy and plump.  Here's a little known fact.  The English translation for the Korean term "asian pear" is "J-Lo's rump roast."   

- you're not allowed to ride motorcycles on the highways; yeah, it limits your freedom but also keeps people alive

- girls, young and old, holding each other's hands in public

- coffee shakes

- kim chi (it really grows on you!)

- paper lamps; Carol says we have to get one more before we leave

- spicy octopus

This is nachi boku (I'm sure I've botched up the spelling) or spicy octopus, one of my favorite Korean meals.  There's also the octopus meal where it's alive and it crawls onto your plate.  I haven't had that pleasure yet but I'm willing.

Here are some octopus (octopi?) before they turn spicy.  This was taken at the Jagalchi Fish Market.  What a cool place to visit.

The shocked look on CJ's face is because he just saw a live octopus getting its head squished inside out and then flattened.  That is some seriously fresh seafood at this market.

Back to my rambling about things I like about Korea:

- Koreans respect their elders

- the way Koreans just fawn over children

- last but not least, all the great sights to see.  Here's a sample:

Amman Park - a spectacular cliffside park.

One of the temples in Busan.  This one is along a cliff by the water.

One of the Korean War Memorials in Busan.

Another shot of the temple.

A shot of Haeundae Beach taken from beautiful APEC Park.

Hope you enjoyed my ramblings and the pics.  Until next time -- C2