South Korea vs. Japan

During the trip I decided South Korea is kinda like a rough, dirty version of Japan (but it does have its upsides!). There are so many similarities in the two cultures and yet so many striking differences. 

Upon reaching Korea, the first day I observed several differences from Japan that remained consistent throughout the trip. First, I noticed that the Koreans did not stare at us. In Japan, as foreigners, we are constantly stared at while walking in stores, riding the trains, etc. But the Koreans generally did not seem to notice us that much. After speculation we decided it must be due to Japan's intensely isolated position- it is an island country with an extremely homogeneous population. Often the Japanese do not venture outside of their country or have a very good understanding of the outside world. Of course there are many that do, but the majority may not. 

Second, the people really are beautiful! However, South Korea is the plastic surgery capital of the world. We spent lots of time wondering if the pretty people we saw were natural or if they had plastic surgery. Moreover, the men are big and tall! Koreans are actually the same size as us! Yeah there are short people, but generally I felt like I was shorter than most men I saw. It was awesome to not be a giant among elves for a few days. As we learned in detail during our trip South Korea is in a state of war, and the men must spend 21 months in compulsory military service. So they are all athletic and big because of their military training. Furthermore, I imagine that for the Koreans, being in war, it is common for parents to stress their kids eating lots so they will "grow big and strong," since they know military service and defense of their country is inevitably in their future. Whereas in Japan, the country is very safe and stable and hardly a military allowed so maybe there is less "need" to grow up big and strong? 

Next, South Korea is much dirtier than Japan. Especially bathrooms. There was trash on the streets, broken toilets, and just general grossness specifically in the party areas of town. Of course living in Japan for almost a year we are accustomed to a rather immaculate environment so stepping outside of the country makes you want to reach for knee high waders no matter where you are going. 

The next apparent difference was fashion. South Korean fashion is way more relaxed than Japanese. The South Koreans were still trendy and cute all the time but in a much more casual way, which to us felt more like a style we are familiar with as westerners. Korean fashion seemed to prioritize comfort a bit higher than Japanese fashion seems to. I saw people wearing tennis shoes constantly, even with their cute outfits. Usually in Japan tennis shoes are only worn with athletic clothes; which would only be worn if you are doing athletics, and certainly not out in public, unless of course you are at some type of athletic event- and in that case you should be wearing head to toe matching, name-brand sports wear. In Japan, girls seem to constantly be wearing heels especially if you are to compare Seoul with Tokyo (both capital cities). But most South Korean girls were wearing flats. Also the South Koreans wore lots of jeans, just like we do. In Japan jeans are not worn very often, skirts and other cloth pants are much more prevalent. 

Also, the South Koreans are noticeably more brusque than Japanese. Again, we were probably affronted by this only because we live in the land of politeness. It's not that the Koreans were unfriendly, but waitstaff for example were very laconic and brusque with us. And the bus drivers were atrocious- they did not care who was in front of them, they would keep driving and almost run over people or almost scratch cars. The driving in general was frightful- everyone on the roads was just terrible. Cars would even honk at pedestrians to move faster. Even when the walk signs were on, cars would be right on top of the crosswalk lines waiting to speed through as soon as the lights changed.

Every place has its highlights and shadows of course, and overall I enjoyed Korea a lot. However given the choice to live in Japan or South Korea I would definitely choose Japan with no hesitation. Even so, South Korea was lots of fun and I loved my trip there and I certainly intend to go back!