In some countries the effect is subtle. England, for one, is very similar on the surface to the US. Both English speaking countries, similar customs and culture. Its funny--my firsts trips there felt no different than exploring a new city in the US--it was all about the sights, the attractions, and the funny things like "beans on toast." But I never felt like I was in another country, really.
Sometimes it takes time for those things to set in. When you spend a longer time in a country you begin to see the differences. When you can't get your brand of toothpaste at the store. Trying to make your favorite dish (mexican food) or going to the doctor for that pesky cold.
But then there are places you visit in the world where you obviously experience culture shock right away. To some degree I had it in France and Italy, but with all of the similarities between the languages, and after studying a bit of it, it was easy to get accustomed to traveling there. It also helped that most people spoke some English (except one village I went to in Italy), having my mother translate, or that I could deduce what was going on from the signs and layout of the places I went.
Korea is completely different. Walking down the street is difficult, in some ways, because there is nothing familiar I can latch on to. There are very few signs that are translated to English in Namyangju because it's a smaller country "village" (with high rise buildings). I am sure Seoul itself will be different. But I don't know what each shop is--I don't know what they sell, or what they say. It can be disorienting, frankly. I feel very fortunate that I am on vacation here and do not have to seek out the same things that I did in London. Those of you who know me well know that I am no good at learning new languages. Even when I try really hard, it just doesn't stick in my brain.
Today was great though. Simple--we went on the bus (!) to another town and Costco! Things were the same, but different. You could get completely Korean things there, but also Martinelli's sparkling cider and Kirkland Mac and Cheese. After that, I braved the cold (it was like 15 degrees fahrenheit) and took a walk by myself up a country road. Didn't get very far today, but it was very peaceful--different than the highways, or the downtown (it was market day. There were sharks for sale.) Here are some pics:
the view from the apartments
frozen river
very pretty blue
finally--the apartment. isn't it really awesome?! It has heated floors too. Which is a tradition, in fact, that goes back centuries--ondol heating. Although in the old days they used to light a fire underneath...
Its been a slow journey getting over my jetlag--everyone says going west is easier but I swear going east is! Each day we do a little more, and this weekend will certainly be a crazy one. More pictures in the picasa album.
xoxo,
Antonia
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