Top 5 - Loves
1) The people:
Koreans are kind of the Western rebels of the east. They have a chip on their shoulder towards China, and they downright hate Japan...and I mean hate. In the University District here (called Hongdae), you can find some interesting graffiti regarding the not-so-loved country of Japan :) They also have much more of a vibrant culture than I would have ever guessed and their national pride rivals anyone's...I guess in a way I'd call them the England of the East - a tiny little pennisula, but proud and powerful. Also, they generally love Americans...
2) The Internationality:
Seoul is one of the biggest cities in the world, and according to some - the biggest, so the international culture is huge...especially compared to Cincinnati :)
Weekends and nights out for me have involved: shooting pool with everyone from Brits to Ethiopians, talking music with an Australian rocker, trying to speak French in a 3-way conversation with a Parisien and Tunisian, and a few South Africans trying to talk me into using my vacation to go visit Cape Town with them. Mix all that with the fact that you're already surrounded by 23 million Koreans, and it makes for a pretty broadening view of the world!
3) The Rockstar status:
I do not exaggerate here, and I don't even know why I'm trying to explain it, because you wouldn't believe it until you see it. A few examples: I've seen busloads of kids hanging out the window screaming and taking pictures of me (literally, hands-to-face screaming here), free drinks and even free food are not uncommon, and people feel no shame in coming up and staring at me right in the face (even touching sometimes), as if...they've heard of white people before, but were never really convinced they existed until now.
4) The City itself:
Seoul is a monster of a city and you could spend 3 years here never running out of things to eat, drink, or buy. Everything is no more than a block away. The subway is easy, the taxis are everywhere, and if you're driving your own car on the weekend, its because you wanna show it off and are willing to sacrifice literally hours to do so. Overall, Seoul is a pretty upscale city, and the people here pay big to keep up appearances...makes it all pretty nice to look at...and be glad you're removed from.
5) God's People, Jubilee Church:
Maybe this should've been #1, but regardless...maybe the greatest find for me here has been my church, Jubilee. Its an English-speaking church made up mostly of Korean-Americans and foreigners -- and therefore has an unbelievable international quality to it. The Pastor of the church is a passionate man of God, and his desire transfers to the people, most of whom are roughly my age and in similar situations here in Seoul. It makes for easy automatic bonds, made even stronger by the shared faith. Sunday is usually the day I look forward to most in the week...uniting with all these people from every different kind of background to worship...seeing the true catholicity of The Church. I don't think it can be put into words, so I'll stop here by just saying that...God is good, all the time.
I'll post the other Top 5's later :) much love to all!
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