After 9 days out of the country, it’s good to be back in the good old US of A. The first time, I came back to the US through immigration was in 1988. Before than I was stationed in Germany as a soldier, so coming back was no biggie. That time in 1988, I was a civilian coming back with a passport. I think it was San Francisco – anyways – the immigration officer took my passport; looked at me; smiled and said, “welcome, home.” Felt great to be home.
Feeling never changes…
We all went to Korea for my brother’s wedding, and also took some time to show my little girls a bit of Korean culture – pictures
- Brother-in-law with Bride in Traditional Korean Wedding Attire
below. As they grow older, we’ll have to take a couple more trips to give them more insight into the history of Korea. While I want them to think of themselves as Americans – not korean american or american korean or whatever american – I also want them to understand where their roots lie as they grow to be great Americans.
For all its challenges, America is the greatest, and most exceptional country in the world – and in history.
WARNING – Getting up on soapbox time…
Skip below to pictures and thought on getting in shape Korean style…
Okay, you’ve been warned..
I have an old-timer’s view on immigrants – being an immigrant myself. I’ve never been a big fan of the big “Koreatowns” in LA and NY. But I understand the need for immigrants to gather together, be it for protection or to better assimilate into the country. Every ethnic group has their own “-town.”
I bring this up because there has always been this argument – more frequent of late – of what is more appropriate for describing the assimilation process. Is it a melting pot or a mosiac picture? I of course think it’s a melting pot.
My wife – my korean wife – is cooking spaghetti. And for the sauce, she begun by sauting garlic, which smells unique. Then she added onions, and the smell changed a bit. She added carrots, and the smell got sweeter. Then she added bell peppers and the aroma of those 4 ingredients mixed together, blending together, adding to each other is utterly delicious.
And yet, when that tomato sauce is done, you can also taste the carrots, bell peppers and onions separately as well as a group. The aroma, the texture, the flavors of that sauce is the textbook definition of synergy – which is a melting pot – which is the strength of this country.
I like that…
That’s this country to me…
You don’t get that with a Mosaic…
Everybody has to buy in – all pigs, not chickens…
What…
Okay, pig and chicken time…
A pig and chicken walk past a church; chicken sees bulletin asking for donations for upcoming breakfast; chicken says to the pig, “hey, great idea, let’s donate some eggs and bacon for the breakfast…”
Pig replies, “Donation…hold on there, not a bad idea, let’s be clear…it may be a donation from you – BUT it’s a COMMITMENT from me!”
Being a part of America, it’s a pig thing to me.
Some tough challenges now and ahead but we’ll get through it…
Off the soapbox…
Back to getting in shape…
Korea – man, that country irritates me in many ways – with its traffic, its crush of people, and so forth. But the one thing that holds true now as it did some 23 years ago when I first went out there (since immigrating in 1968); there just is not a whole lot of overweight people there.
I wrote about that a while back ago and opined that it might be to a combination of spicy foods, vegetables, and fiber.
But the one thing I didn’t mention was the walking…
By choice or necessity, Koreans walk a lot. Seoul is a megatrolis of over 10 million people. And although the official size of Seoul is over 230 sq. miles, most seem to congregate toward the center. It is a super dense city of people on top of people.
And that also means that lot of people walk, if only because driving in Seoul can, at times, qualify as an act of insanity. They also have a superb, galaxy class subway system. If you can get to it by car, you can get to it by subway.
And these can go 3 to 4 stories underground. That’s a lot of stairs to walk everyday.
And that translates into Korean women having the best looking pairs of legs in the world – as a general observation! (which I don’t always share with my wife – and no, she doesn’t read this blog all that often)
And it also translates into not a lot of overweight people.
Let me clear here, I’m not claiming that Koreans are a group of ripped and buffed folks. After all, I’m not taking about a society of people working out to Visual Impact Muscle Building (oh my God, what shameless plugging…); but I am talking about a society that is general fit.
And the keys are simple.
Physical activity weaved into everyday living (walking and hiking), fiberous vegetables, and metabolic foods (spicy stuff that rev up the body’s metabolism).
Basics are always where it’s at…
Pictures:
Bride and Groom with my 2 Little Girls
- My Isabelle with her newest “Aunt”
- My little girls and their uncle
- Isabelle wearing the traditional “A” frame for carrying stuff
- Door of Peace to Olympic Park in Seoul
- KyungBok Royal Palace (spread out over many, many acres – big!!)
I took like 300 pictures, I’ll post more as I blog more, but just wanted to share a few for now. Korea is an impressive place to visit. As interesting a co-mingling of old and new as you can get. People in Seoul are as obsessed with building taller and more futurisic high rises as they are with building parks and places for people to gather.
Makes for some interesting dynamics. Good place to visit. Let me know if you are – I’ll be happy to give you some suggestions on what to do and where to go.
