Korean Tidbits

Had a great vacation in South Korea! Such a beautiful & clean place! Any visitor would be greatly impressed by the humongous new airport in Incheon. I just wish I can say as much for our NAIA (weep!).

Like any 1st world country, South Korea is grappling with a low, near-zero population rate. Due to the high cost of living, couples opt to postpone or totally rule out having children. The government gives an incentive to couples for up to 3 years but then it's still very expensive to have kids. Just sending them to school sets them back by millions (and the tour guide was talking in US dollars)! It's no wonder Koreans send their kids to the Philippines to study. Our tour guide says that it's so cheap here!

I totally loved Korean food! The typical Korean meal has a medley of appetizers, usually vegetable, served in tiny dishes. The hands down favorite was of course, kimchi while a close second was the dried seaweed that almost always disappears as soon as the meal starts. The viands are not really that spicy. Compared to Thai food which I would rate with 5 chilis, Korean food is about 2.5 chilis only.

This is one of our favorite meals: duck barbeque. We wrapped the duck slices in a variety of greens then dipped it in yummy soy bean paste.

The time we visited coincided with the blooming of the cherry blossom trees. They are so beautiful!!! The blooming marks the arrival of spring. Koreans are mighty proud of their cherry blossom trees.

One thing I also noticed: Koreans have lovely skin! Maybe it's the weather? Or their diet? Or maybe Face Shop? lol!You'd see flowers furiously abloom everywhere.
A quaint custom that we followed: taking off shoes when entering an establishment and sitting on the floor for meals.
Annyong haseo!!!!
If you'd like to take a photo tour of South Korea, please visit my multiply page.