Tomato-Tomatoe-Potato-Potatoe

Thought I'd share a few differences between cultures. There are a lot, but here are a few :)

• all gas stations are full service. some stations even have attendants wearing matching outfits and they play k pop on loud speaker. yes!
• women in khaki outfits push big carts full of yogurt drinks and flavored milks. they are everywhere, especially in the morning. you can buy a treat from her and she'll love you for it.
• public trash cans are hard to find, however the streets are pretty clean. a lot cleaner than Chicago anyways. where does the garbage go?
• the neighborhoods, mine anyways, do a great job of preparing for winter. during the fall workers cut off all the tree branches to avoid power outages. this past winter was the worst in Seoul in over 50 years. and not one power outage for me.
• friends hold hands. i seldom see couples hold hands, but girl friends are always hand in hand or arm in arm. even the guys put their arms around eachother. commarodory is abundent and as weirded out as i get when korean girls do it to me, i think it's great to see how much korean's value friendships.
• I think k pop music is so fantastic and I don't care who knows it!
• when at a restaurant, if you need something from your waitress, you push a small buzzer that sits on your table and someone is there to help you in seconds. so smart.
• if there isn't a buzzer, which is rare, or you're feeling vocal, just yell "yoguyo!" really loud and a waitress will come. it pretty much means "hey! over here!". it isn't seen as rude at all. Hopefully I break this habit before going back to the US....because THAT would never fly.
• over 75% of the calls answered by the police in Seoul are to handle people being too drunk. not because of fighting, stealing, or gun shots...because business men had a bit too much and past out on the steps.
• when a truck backs up, usually a loud BEEP BEEP BEEP goes off. well, not in Korea. anything that beeps doesn't just beep, it plays a song, classical or the national anthem. to be honest it's really annoying, but i admire their desire to take their beep's to the next level.
• you can get a student to do pretty much any assignment if a sticker is at stake. they love stickers.
• mechanical pencils are called "sharps" and kids value them like gold. they are always asking eachother how much their sharp costs. also pencil cases are a must have. they are pretty elaborate. one student even has his name engraved into his. apparently he is at the top of the pencil case chain at school.
• squatters. some restaurants and subway stations have squatter toilets. they kind of look like urinals laying down on the ground. squatter pretty much tells you how it works. me no likey.
• dvd rooms are all over the place. they are small rooms with tv's where you can watch movies. since most children live with their parents unitl their 30's, this is where they go to have alone time with their significant other. secret's out!

More to come!

-C