Second Time is the Charm

 

 As I wait for my flight across Asia to Germany and then Denmark (civ-mil conference in Copenhagen), I thought I would look back at what I observed and learned from my second trip to

South Korea.  The big lesson is that I enjoyed it more the second time.  Sure, the first time I got to check out the DMZ, and I think I had more, clearer interviews, but I wandered a bit further this time, got to see more neighborhoods, and then, went to the other end of the peninsula to very pretty Busan.  

I don't know how I missed the night food markets last time or why it took me 1.5 weeks to find them this time.  So, I ended up going out to one with the threat of rain, which then became way more than a threat, last night.  It was great and fun, but wet.  So, next time, if there is one, I will get out to these places earlier and oftener.  What else did I learn this time?

What have I learned?

• With the same kind of plugs as they use in the EU, my Spanish investment in cute plugs has paid off.
• the cabs are really cheap
• Google maps didn't work well since South Korea has a dispute with google.  So, I downloaded a bunch of Korean apps, which were usable but tricky since, well, some of the text was in Korean.
• The history of the Korean War underplays that the UN intervention was possible because the Russians were boycotting the Security Council.  I saw only one reference to it in my entire trip at the massive war museum/memorial
• Koreans are less ambivalent about MacArthur than Americans.  Talking to one retired general, he mentioned Incheon and that gets a lot of play, deservedly so.  That Mac led the forces into a trap and disaster when the Chinese intervened gets much less attention.
• 
  Speaking of massive war museums, I am pretty sure the Korean one is bigger than any other I have visited.  
• An old lesson that was repeated: of the various cuisines, I have to say that Korean is not at the top of the list.  I like some of it, but kimchi does nothing for me, and the bbq is just fine.  The chicken is great.  I found myself looking for Indonesian and Japanese food, which is a bit of a clue.
• I don't know if fall is the season of love, but I saw far more affectionate couples all over the place here than I remember from last time and definitely more than in Japan. 
  
  
  

 What has changed?

• Lots more touchscreens to order food
• No BBQ for singles?
  
• 
  The Dokdo island dispute with Japan now gets more attention on the train to the airport than at the War Memorial.  It got some there as well, but less than last time.
• Parties!  When I was here last, the Progressives were in power, and now the Conservatives are.  The politics here seems more polarized now--lots of upset about the 2019 deal with North Korea which reduced South Korean defenses and .... didn't really change North Korean behavior.
   

 I crammed this trip in between a CDSN conference in Ottawa and a civ-mil conference in Copenhagen.  The timing was not great as some of the folks I wanted to talk to were busy with audits.  I also started figuring out what I should be asking my last couple of days.  So, I may have to come back or send a co-author to come here to pick up a few more interviews.  I am glad I came--I enjoyed the trip, the interviews did push me to think more clearly about the project, we definitely are on to something.  

And as always, I depend on the kindness of strangers willing to talk to me, and everything is awesome when you are part of a team

These sharp folks arranged my interviews and served as
excellent interpreters.  Much thanks to all but especially
to Soyeon Kim (bottom left) for doing all of the
heavy lifting and organizing!