The Seoul of Korea

Seoul is a heart. A pulsating, beating, heart. Blood comes in, and goes out, without hesitation. The heart is the most used muscle in the body. It works hard... It works fast... and it works efficiently.

The subway, buses, taxis, motorbikes, and commuter cars flow together like cells, never halting. Traffic weaves together... in, out, around. People pushing carts filled with the wares that provide their livelihood fill the crosswalk as soon as the lights change. For a brief moment, the streets change ownership. Unlike the haphazard mess that is called driving in India or Thailand, Korea actually has a method to the madness. Everything runs like a well-oiled machine...like a heart.

Similar to other large cities in this world, the people of Seoul are always in a hurry to get to where they're going. Being a tourist means being in the way. If you visit the heart of Korea, feel free to meander and peruse your surroundings, by all means... but be careful not to get in anyone's way! There is no such thing as personal space here, and many bumps and shoves will be accidental. Some, on the other hand, will be entirely on purpose. If you're in someone's way, they will not stop or slow down to give you your space. In truth, where you're standing is not your space. You just happen to be occupying it at the time!

Don't get me wrong - everyone I've met here has been extremely nice. In general, Koreans don't seem to be very tolerant of tourists. This is just in comparison to other places of course. I don't mean they are negative towards tourists, they just don't take the time to really go out of their way to make you comfortable in their city like the people of say, Siem Reap Cambodia, Bled Slovenia or Reykjavik Iceland. For a good comparison, you can think of Seoul being the New York City of Korea. Too many people in one place make the addition of more people more of an annoyance than a novelty.

The impact of the Korean War is evident today... Both through the memorials and the people. Sang, the minister at the local congregation I visited, is originally from North Korea. His family was able to leave and settle in the rural area of South Korea and he now lives in Seoul. He has family members that he never knew, because they were unable to escape from North Korea. Much like The Civil War of the United States, brothers fought against brothers. The war tore families apart, and with nothing truly resolved between the two countries, families were left asunder. A war memorial that depicts this in Seoul is called the Statue of Brothers. It shows an older brother, a North Korean officer, meeting his younger brother, a South Korean soldier, on the battlefield. Their embrace is a powerful example of reconciliation, love, and forgiveness. 

Statue of Brothers

The weather has been somewhat unexpectedly frigid. I firmly believe that 30° in Alabama feels far more warm than the same temperature in South Korea. I'm not sure why, because I never wanted to be a meteorologist, but I'm not too happy about it! Now, when people ask, "What is the coldest place you've been so far? " I'll have to say South Korea. Not Iceland... not Minnesota... South Korea. I know I'm whining but you have to understand that I've always lived in hot and muggy areas of the States. Never the less, I'm braving the cold in an effort to learn more about this thriving city.

When you go about your day today, wherever you may be... look around. Appreciate what makes your city special. Big or small, fast or slow... what would an outsider say about your town? Do something for a stranger today. You never know...they might be writing a blog about your area, and you might be the one person that changes how they see it. Get out there and make the world a better place!