Hello! I’m writing from Seoul…am having a good time exploring the city, eating and doing touristy stuff. I’m staying in a traditional Korean house called a hanok near the area called Insa-dong. It’s a lovely area filled with small shops…pictures to come after I return to Singapore.
Meanwhile, after some observation over the past week and a half, here’s why you can tell I’m not Korean:
1) I don’t have long hair – every Korean woman seems to have long hair. Very few have short cropped hair.
2) I’m not fair. All Korean women seem to be fair of skin. I think they must think I come from the countryside or something…I spend my days in the field farming hence I’m so tan!
3) I’m not thin nor skinny. I think all Korean women and men are born with a skinny gene. They can eat a lot (in fact I’ve noticed that most can really eat) and yet remain so thin! It’s amazing…I’m jealous. Maybe it’s all the chilli keeping their metabolic rate up.
4) I don’t own or carry around a pocket mirror. It’s bizarre…Korean women love checking themselves out in mirrors. The phenomenon is so prevalent that it is even mentioned in The Rough Guide edition for Korea. I’ve noticed that they all carry a pocket mirror in their bag and they take it out after a meal to check every corner of their face at the table. Even the subway stations have big mirrors along the pillars…I guess it’s for people to check themselves out (and they actually do so) as they walk past! I think it’s rather bizarre…this obsession with looks. But hey, this is the land of plastic surgery, so I guess i shouldn’t be too surprised! I propose that the Korean Tourism Board make the mirror the quintessential Korean souvenir.
5) I don’t dress girlishly…every woman is so feminine. I’m like a total tomboy. I hate all those frilly dresses and skirts that the women here are so fond of.
6) I don’t put on a lot of make-up. Been noticing that many slap on lots of foundation, powder, mascara etc. But OK, still nothing compared to Japanese women!
7) Korean women love taking photos of themselves with, most commonly, their mobile phone. They are posing for pictures left, right and centre. According to a Korean friend, one of the most important features of a mobile phone is the camera feature. That’s the first feature they test out when buying a phone. It’s known as ‘self-camera’ but in Konglish, they call is ‘cel-ka’.
Anyway, am enjoying the foreign-ness of the place and what the city has to offer. More when I’m back! ,