I thought this 5 minute clip would give USFK spouses (and others) a good idea of what to expect in a Korea Market. This is an example of a Korean Market in Seoul.

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WOW! Is that sanitary? Well it probably doesn't help that I don't like fish....

LOL...Oh, no, no, no...it's a cool video and gives you a great view of the sights of a market place, but...you until there's *smellavision* , you can't really get the full experience. :)

A friend of mine who had arrived here CS shortly before I did took me down to the marketplace in Songtan, the little dark/dank one over near the bridge, and walked me through it. By the time we were done, between the sights of meat and poultry just sitting out, vats of black stuff that I couldn't identify sitting out,and the smell, I was almost ready to lose my lunch... my friend laughed at me when I told her, and said that I'd done better than she had her first time..she apparently only made it halfway through the market without throwing up :)

And soonergal, that lack of sanitary conditions, combined with the lack of restrictions/inspections on food there in the marketplace, is why most of us here wouldn't recommend buying your meat in the marketplace, especially when the commissary is in many cases..cheaper!

Utilize those benefits, bayyyyyyyyyyyybeeee! LOL :)

-Dee :)

OMG!!! I think I'm in trouble! My dad was stationed at Camp Casey about 15 years ago, he recommended that my hubby go unaccompanied even though they have offered us a CS. He said that Korea is the land of SMELLS and it doesn't help that I can smell everything. My husband is going to be lucky, the man can't smell a thing! I know things are probably different now, but my mom had a hard time when she visited him because she has long blonde hair, like me. But she is worried because everyone wanted to touch her hair and thinks it may be a problem since I also have a daughter that is blonde and when I say blonde I mean WHITE BLONDE... does anyone think it will be an issue when we do leave base? If so I'll just get her alot of really cute hats :)
Thanks

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Heather

Oh, indeed, the smells are the worst part of Korea... that's the one part of this place I could do without. Living on base isn't as bad as off, but still during kimchi season or in the summer when the heat hits the Korean sewers.. blech. Nasty!

As far as your daughter being touched being an issue, it depends on what you define as an issue. Culturally, Koreans have far less "personal space" boundaries than we do, so, yes, they do come up and touch you much more than you would find on an American streets...and it's especially so with children, *regardless* of hair color.

Korean culture adopts the "It takes a village.." attitude toward children, as in, children are everyone's responsibility to care for and keep safe..a beautiful philosophy in some ways, as all in all, I haven't heard of nearly as many crimes against children here, and am told that crimes such as those are punished brutally. The downside, however is that "communal touching" of cheeks, hair, patting, etc. comes along with that. I think most of us with children have encountered strangers coming up and touching our kids, patting them, or praising them. It -will- most likely happen, and not due to your daughter's blonde hair, but due to the fact that she's a child. Period. Hats probably won't do much good to stop it. :)

I think the best way to approach it, and the way we handled it with our child was to sit down and explain to them that it *is* a cultural thing,and that they shouldn't be frightened of it. Also, to explain that they should be aware that they , too, are almost like ambassadors for our country while they're here..how they react to things like that will color what people think of Americans as a whole. I would also continue on, however, to say that they should continue to be aware of "stranger danger" and be on their toes, just to be aware that native Koreans just may see things a little differently than we do, and they may touch her face, her cheeks, her hair... and that that's normal for them.

Our son took that explanation very well.. and the only problem he had at all was when an elderly lady came up to him one day and patted his cheeks,then went on to insist he was a "pretty girl", and when Aric politely said, "I'm a boy", was told "No.No. Too pretty for boy! Girl! Girl!" in very broken English. :)

Not the most fun thing for a 9 year old to hear! LOL :)

Smells and touching aside, however, I think your Father was very wrong about your husband coming unaccompanied. The Korea he remembers of 15 years ago is likely *very* different from the Korea of today. Things have improved vastly over the past 10 years or so,and continue to improve rapidly. The accomodations and facilities on base are better, there are *wonderful* opportunities for children to experience a culture very different from our own.. ITT offers some of the most amazing tours, to very cool and interesting spots! It really is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Dee :)