The City I Live In

            I know that I’ve talked about getting to Gwangju, South Korea but I haven’t talked about the city itself.  I think that it’s pretty important for you to know the type of town I’m living in because that helps to understand the people I’m living with here.

            The city of Gwangju, pronounced Kwangju, with a population of just over 1.4 million is the fifth largest in South Korea.  Its history goes back over 2000 years and is considered the Korean home of education.  The reason for this is because the population of Gwangju is 25% student.  This includes K-12, private academies, the Universities and private tutors.  It also is the source of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement that protested the Japanese occupiers in 1929.  That movement became a national movement and is celebrated throughout South Korea.

            Moving on, two questions that I got a lot before I left was about the climate and geography.  Well I’m finding out that it’s really similar to the East Tennessee.  This is both a good thing and a bad thing.  The good thing is that there are seasons here like home but the bad is that the pollution is just the same.  This is due to a similarity in geography but also because of the pollution from both Korea and China.  However at least it’s not a shock to me since I grew up in what has been consistently ranked one of the top 10 polluted cities/areas in America.

            For a bit of perspective South Korea is just a bit smaller than Kentucky, whereas the peninsula itself is the size of Minnesota.  The geography of Korea is really similar to Appalachia and this is no exception here in Gwangju.  While the mountains do not go any higher than 6,500ft, the highest one here in Gwangju is around 4,000ft.  But the beautiful thing about these little mountains is that they just pop up out of the ground and then drop back down.  Whenever they drop down, that’s usually where a town or farmland is and that’s exactly how Gwangju is.  This weekend I’m going to the peak mountain here and see what the view is like. 

            Before I go I want to tell you a quick story about the cultural difference between the locals and me.  I love to exercise or go for a run and Gwangju is perfect for that because the city is on a lot of hills so you get a great workout.  However, I’ve noticed that whenever I do go and run that I get stared at.  Not in the “Oh he’s running at 9am good for him.” kinda stare but the “What the heck is that crazy foreigner doing?  Is he running from someone?  Doesn’t he realize there’s work to be done?  Why is he being different?”  It doesn’t bother me but it sure is not what I’m used to. 

            As I’ve thought about it, it’s starting to make more and more sense why they look at me in confusion.  And it’s because they don’t see the need to exercise like that.  They walk around so much and eat smaller portions so they don’t get obese like most Americans.  Plus playing sports as a youth just isn’t that common.  Studying and studying and studying are what you do as a kid here.  So it is truly a foreign concept to take time out of your day to exercise in zest.

            Anyways, take a look at my video of Gwangju from the roof of my school so you can get an idea of what I’ve been describing.  Enjoy your weekend!