Every Rose has its Thorn

Now I don’t have much to complain about in Korea, but the following definitely top the list:

Traffic, Traffic, Traffic- Luckily I live in Daejeon, which is the fifth largest city in Korea, so it’s not too bad here, but the traffic in Seoul is out of control. I remember being at the top of Seoul Tower and looking out and being able to see a line of lights from all of the traffic. Korea is about as big as Indiana and there are 10 million people in Seoul alone which is about half of Korea’s population. To put it in prospective, there are more people in Seoul in a smaller area compared to New York City. Oh well, bad traffic comes with any big city.

Crosswalks- Or lack there of. Pedestrians definitely do not have the right away. Watch out.

Traffic Lights- Two things: they’re optional and they last forever. If a crosswalk light is counting down and hits one you better make a run for it or else you’ll be standing on that side of the street for a long time. Traffic lights are just a suggestion. If the light is red, oh well. I’ve been in numerous cabs that go right through them. It’s funny because I’ve had to explain “laws” to my students and I always use traffic laws as an example. Then I think to myself, oh wait, that’s a bad example because traffic laws don’t really exist in Korea.

Spitting- Yuck. It doesn’t matter if it’s inside or outside, Koreans spit.

Dryers- They don’t exist. I have a dish dryer system, but no clothes dryer. I shouldn’t complain because I do have a washing machine, and plus without a dryer, I don’t have to worry about shrinking my clothes, just wrinkling them. Which brings me to my next complaint… ironing. I actually don’t own an iron yet (thank goodness for Downy Wrinkle Releaser), but I hate ironing and wrinkly clothes.

Sales Employees- They follow you when you shop. If you’ve ever shopped with me before, I’m a looker. I like to look at all of my options before I buy something. So it drives me crazy to have someone hovering over my shoulder when I’m just browsing. Talk about stage five clingers.