Wednesday, May 21, 2008

It's been awhile.....

So it's been awhile since I posted on this blog. Since my last entry a lot has been going on in my life. I recently got back from a trip to South Korea. I was there for 15 days and spent 18 hours in a plane to get there. That amount of time in transit to another country seems unreal to most, but it actually flew by quite quickly. I had 2 full seats to my self and managed to sleep and read Barak Husseins', The Audacity of Hope( There is not enough time to cover what I thought of this book in this entry).



While there I spent the majority of my time in Seoul visiting some good friends from college. While there I saw so much and did so much it, it has all become somewhat of a blur now. From the time I got off the plane it was non-stop. I saw palaces, ate Kimchi(a Korean dish made of fermented cabbage and spices), went to the DMZ, ate loads of weird food, took in the crowed markets of Seoul, drank Sojo and other random assortments of liquor, met some pretty cool Koreans, took pictures with random Koreans, inhaled enough industrial chemicals in the air to kill a large horse, smoked too many cigs, walked so much I thought my feet would fracture at times, enjoyed a pleasant Seoul cab ride,went to a Korean baseball game, camped out on a beach, went for a bike ride around the Han, and hung out with all my best friends from college. I also managed to make it to the port city of Pusan, which lays on the South East coast of Korea. It is the only area that was not taken by Communist forces in the Korean war. While in Pusan we went to the Bemosa, walked around the markets, ate some good food, went to the beach, and drank too much Sojo, wicked hangover.



My trip to South Korea was as beautiful as it was eye-opening. South Korea as a country is a miracle. To think that most of Korea was completely wiped off the map 60 years ago by wars and famine, and now has become a bustling city of 25 million people (10 million in city central, 15 million in the surrounding suburbs) is astounding. South Korea lays on the peninsula in the Pacific between Japan and China and boarders its hostile brother to the North, the DPRK, The Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, the last Stalinist regime. This geographical location has invited centuries of imperialism, subjugation, and conquest by Russia, China, Japan, and the 20th century Communist movement. It's even a miracle that South Korea has survived and maintained an intact sense of national identity. It's often referred to as the "miracle on the Han River". From a third world country with people starving and living huts to a booming economic super power with the highest income growth in history, South Korea has defied all odds and is the pinnacle of what freedom and capitalism can achieve. Koreans are a very nationalistic people and this is reflected in their language, social and political structure.



This trip to SK was one of the best trips I've ever made. The Koreans are some of the most welcoming and friendliest peoples I've ever met. Where else in the world can you walk in crowded subway, drop some won(Korean currency) and a Korean will run after you to give it back? Although the city of Seoul may be very polluted and densely populated it still presents a certain kind of rouged beauty. This unique beauty that SK represents is a combination of a modern drive to succeed with a reflection on what the past, both positive and negative has given them. While walking in the streets you will see men in suits rushing to the office. You will see military, both Domestic and American casually walking around. You will see men and women wearing face masks to protect themselves from the harsh pollution. All the while this all takes place with a background of blue skies and high mountains.



Getting to the point of my rant, I had a wonderful time in Korea and it made me respect a whole new culture and people that I would have otherwise never visited or come across. It also made me realize that the world DOES NOT hate America like the media elites like to tell us so. It is the LEFT that hates America.