...McDonald's is the only thing American Part I

Obviously the title is sarcastically misleading, but here are some quick little things that I've noticed about Korea: things and practices that may seem very peculiar to a Western observer and considered "barbaric."

1. For some reason there are no conventional F-150-like pickup trucks. Trucks are very oddly shaped. Pictures I'll post will explain better than I can.

2. Cigarettes are everywhere. You think you may find them alot in the streets of New York City, but cigarettes in Korea have become an integral part of life in Korea, as have StarCraft, pisswater beer, soju, and permed men's hair. You'll find them in the mouths of high schoolers, strewn all over in bathrooms, and pretty much anywhere you can expect a cockroach to be. A walk through a crowded street will affect you more than probably smoking a pack a day yourself.

3. If you know anything about me, you know I tend to sweat more than normal people. I know it's disgusting, but I can't help it. The weather is so damn hot here that I can rarely do something without breaking a light sweat outside. The weather is pretty much New Jersey, except hotter and more humid if you can imagine that.

4. I love Korean dramas, but here save for StarCraft TV (yes a TV soley dedicated to rerunning tournament matches 24/7 with always loud and passionate announcers) and reruns of subtitled CSI, there is NOTHING on.

5. The food is unbelievably good here. I'll have a post wholly dedicated on it but I must tell you it's amazing. Since my hosts (old friends' families) insist on taking me out to eat everywhere, I've gotten to eat an array of Korean food ranging from fresh sushi to duck meat nonexistent in the states. The streets are also full of "Po Jang Ma Chas," mobile eateries that serve authentic and scrumptuous Korean fastfood(?).

6. City planning is awful in big provincial cities. Roads are cramped to an extent where you can only drive one way and sidewalks are fair game for cars to drive on or park on for that matter. To decorate, there are too many big signs for stores per building. I'll have to post a picture to really convey what I mean. Oh and these signs are usually advertising for PC bangs (internet cafe with hardcore gamers AND smokers) or eateries.