JAG Journeys: South Korea

So you may have heard that we're in South Korea now.

I just thought I'd give you a little feel for what it's like. To start out with, let's talk about a few statistics from Maine, my home state.

Maine has an area of about 35,400 square miles, with a population of 1.3 million. This gives it a population density of ~43 people per square mile. It's largest "metropolitan area" is Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, with a population of about 516,000. (For those readers who are from Canada, BC has an area of about 365,000 sq. mi. [larger than the combined areas of California, Oregon, and Washington], has a population of 4.5 million, giving it a population density of 12 people per square mile, and it's largest city is Vancouver, with a population of 2.1 million in an area of 1,111 sq. mi.)

South Korea actually has a very similar area to that of Maine, about 38,600 - only about 3,000 more square miles. However, the population is VERY different: South Korea has a population of 48,875,000. That's nearly 40 times the population of Maine! Thus, it has a population density of 1,271 people per square mile. Cheonan, the city we are working in now, has a population roughly the same size of the Portland, etc. metro area, at ~583,000, which seems like a large city to me because it is in a much smaller area. The Portland metro area actually consists of three counties in Maine, with a total area of nearly 3,000 square miles. Cheonan, on the other hand, is only 245 square miles, less than one tenth the area.

But...

Cheonan, to Koreans (at least ones from Seoul) is out in the country. They say it is a small town. Believe me, I've been told this on more than one occasion. Now let's talk about Seoul. The district of Seoul is actually even smaller than Cheonan, at 234 square miles. But it has a population of more than 10.4 million!! That's 8 times the population of the entire state of Maine! Seoul has a population density of 44,777 people per square mile (1,000 times the density of Maine). That's about twice the population density of New York City. Needless to say, South Korea is a packed place.

The thing is, the cities are actually well organized and clean (at least judging by Cheonan, I haven't actually been to Seoul yet). Seoul has the most well organized subway systems, as well as a very efficient bus system, and high-speed railways that will take you to any of the decent sized cities in the country (including Cheonan). South Korea is extremely technologically advanced, making the US look sorta 90's-ish in comparison. Even the intersection we cross every day to get to school is designed better than any one I've seen in the US - it just works smoothly, including having time for 10-20 people to cross every cycle.

South Korea wasn't always at the head of the game, though. In fact, only 50 years ago it was one of the poorest countries, and was actually occupied by Japan from 1910 to 1945. Nevertheless, the economy has grown by leaps and bounds, and is now the 15th largest economy in the world, in a country roughly the size of Great Britain. It's pretty crazy to think about people who are still alive today seeing South Korea when it was that poor, and watching it grow this fast into such a economically and technologically successful nation.

And it is the people, of course, who have made South Korea what it is. Koreans have a huge drive for work and advancement. Many Koreans, even businessmen, work more than 8 hours a day, in some cases 12 or more, and many of them work Saturday and even occasionally on Sunday, as well. They only get 2 sick days per year, and you sometimes hear them complaining when a holiday is coming up, because then they won't be able to work. This lifestyle, however, doesn't only begin when they enter the workforce. My classes at 3:00 are 6-8 year olds. That means they get out of school at 2 or 2:30 and then come to the language institute for English classes. Then there are classes at 4, 5, 6, and even 7:00, usually getting older as they get later. High school students often have class till 10pm! Then they have to go home, do their homework, and be in school the next day at 8am. I have adult students that come to a 7am class, before they go to work for 8-12 hours. Others come to an 8pm class after working a similar day. I've heard that there are even 6am classes in Seoul, sometimes.

This is so different from what I'm used to. Granted, the kids probably don't have as much drive to attend school and extra classes as the adults do to work, but they have to do it if they want to be successful in the highly competitive economy. No wonder there is a high suicide rate among them. I was asking some of my students if the kids even get time during the day to play outside, and they said no, if they play it's on the weekend. They might watch TV for a few minutes in the evening, but that's all the relaxation the typical student gets during the week. Even if they don't go to English class, or Karate, or music, or art, or some other extracurricular class in the afternoon/evening, they must stay at their school and do extra classes there, or have structured study time. I'm really glad I didn't grow up here, that's for sure...

Now, to hear my description so far, you might think that all of Korea is just one huge bustling city, pretty much. But actually, 70% of South Korea is made up of nearly impenetrable mountainous terrain, and the cities are usually surrounded by farmland. Some of the most stunning national parks in all of Asia are in Korea. They even have a "Hawaii." The island of Jeju, off the southern coast, has a much warmer climate than the rest of Korea, probably because of the Indian Ocean, and is a huge vacation destination (Yes, Koreans actually do take vacations, usually in the summer). I can't wait to visit all of these varied places and really experience this amazing country.