Before I went to Korea I had some ideas on what it would be like there. There were some ideas that were wrong.
#1. I thought there would be lots of vegetarian food. I found out that vegetarianism is only common among monks. The diet is heavy in seafood (which didn't surprise me) but also in pork, beef, and chicken.
#2. I thought I wasn't going to be short. I thought that most Korean women would be about my height. In reality, nearly every adult student I had was taller than me. Only the older ladies are shorter than me, and I think it's because of the lack of nutrition they had during the Korean War and Japanese occupation. I think I am the average height of most Chinese women.
2 comments:
Yip, I also had many misconceptions. Isn't that exactly how life is?
As for height, I consider myself to be moderately tall, and definitely thought that I'd be taller than the average male Korean. To my surprise, I am not. And many of the younger Koreans are taller than I am.
Yes. It's funny. I think more Koreans are taller these days because of the better nutrition they get now. Those living during the Japanese occupation and the Korean War had a lot of their food taken away from them and fields destroyed. Refrigeration and transport also gives them better meals.
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