Ok! Now...Hop on!

I recently just got back to Seoul. I am under quarantine, which I might have to write about a little later. It has to do with a deep-rooted Korean fear of disease and the fact that I might have contracted swine flu on the 26-hour flight back. I am currently diligently working from home but was going through my vacation pictures just now. I came across one that I wanted to share, as it always makes me chuckle when I see it. To me, it embodies the true Korean spirit. You see, Koreans appear quite conservative at first but, the more you stay here, the more you get to witness an innate sense of playfulness.

It happened to me on July 1st. I hadn’t even left the country yet. I’d just stepped off the Airport Limousine. It had been a long ride to Incheon Airport through the city’s busy morning traffic. The driver had spotted my blond-haired, white-skinned, English teacher look, and made it a point of asking me to translate sentences for him throughout the trip. He even pronounced his little speeches in Korean AND in English, although I was, QUITE obviously, the only foreigner there. When I stepped off the bus, he rushed to get my suitcases himself, and asked the valet (yes - of course, Airport Limousines have baggage valets) if he could take a picture of us. We took a traditional picture, smiling at the camera, standing side-by-side. Then, he turned around and said… “Ok! Now…Hop on!” I looked left. I looked right. Yup. The sidewalk WAS full of Koreans and tourists of all nationalities. This would NOT go unnoticed. But still, really, what else could I do?