On the ugliness of Seoul

There it is- or at least one part of it. I actually like this picture- it shows a modern, busy city that appears to be thriving. But that does not make it beautiful. Notice the lack of any distinctive buildings; if you Google "Seoul skyline", you get either photos from far away or some rather drab up close shots. No landmark buildings here, just big and boxy high rises built several decades ago, for the most part. Seoul is not blessed by geography- although the Han river effectively divides the city in half, neither side of the river boasts a distinct panorama, a la London, Hong Kong (ok I'm cheating it's a bay there) and so many other metropolises. Seoul boasts... high rises. Many of them. As in apartments, usually. Seoul was rebuilt, shockingly quickly, after being considerably damaged during the Korean war. Rebuilt and expanded- where I live now (south of the river) was empty until being designated a new commercial district, perhaps 20 years ago, judging by the high rise offices surrounding me. The old adage "It's the economy, stupid" appears to have been adopted as law as roads, subways, apartments, and offices were all constructed in a drab fashion, one after another, as quickly as possible in order to boost the economy and modernize Korea. There are few parks here, and those that exist generally lack in landscaping or any ornamental beauty. This is so strange to me considering Koreans revere nature and the mountains surrounding Seoul, well the mountains anywhere in Korea I suppose.

It is rainy season here, and absolutely pouring now. Usually rain makes cities feel cleaner, perhaps a little calmer, but for me that doesn't seem to be the case here. Everything blends to shades of grey- the sky into the buildings into the streets. This photo of my neighborhood taking shortly after I arrived shows it well I think. See how few colors there are- admittedly perhaps a better camera could have done more, but it would take some real photoshopping to beautify this one...

There are a few brightspots, mostly newer buildings, in Seoul. So hope endures. But I fear they would have to completely start over (not impossible, considering the Koreans and their work ethic) in order to create any semblance of a balanced city with a high quality of urban life.

But the question is, does this matter? I'm not sure- as I have mentioned before, Seoul is a fun city. I like my job and my life here. I cope with my tiny apartment and the lack of aesthetic beauty in the city. But what would it mean if along with the fun and satisfaction I have found here the city was beautiful, like Stockholm, or architecturally interesting, like Berlin? Would it merely be the icing on the cake, or would I perceive the city differently? I think the latter. Seoul, more than any other city, feels like a series of trade offs. Terribly big but cheap public transportation. Poor air quality but nearby and accessable mountains. Several candidates for the city centre, or the "heart of the city" to use a guidebook cliche, but no place that screams "I'm in Seoul!" Or maybe even "I'm in Korea!" for that matter... These situations would still exist, were the city to beautify itself, but I can't help feeling like at least I would identify more personally with the city were this the case. I want to identify with this place, my home for at least one year, but although I have pleasant associations and happy memories in just a short time, Seoul is generally an indistinct part of this. I could have been anywhere, I just happened to be in Seoul. Place has always been important to me, and perhaps I am overly preoccupied with a connection to places, since I have for most intents and purposes abandoned places I was connected to when I was younger. Do Koreans show civic pride in Seoul, and I am just unaware of it? It certainly feels like Seoul is more of a means to an end than an end in and of itself....

Some more music links- not sure if anyone even likes these, but oh well. There is good music here if you want to check it out. This seems appropriate to a rainy day. I didn't like Fleet Foxes when I heard them last fall, and now I'm not sure why. Their album was Pitchfork's album of the year, despite no critic naming it the best album of last year...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-CEfY9CDLw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIU4A_TiGeo

on Michael Jackson and futility...

Nearly two weeks without a post- the death of Michael Jackson brought my world to a shattering halt.

Just kidding- there appear to be other reasons for my lethargy (and make no mistake, it has been lethary). But first, a little reassure that there is still some sanity left in the world- there don't appear to be large swathes of Koreans in mourning like in so many other countries. I have played his music in class before, and no students have really asked me anything or even commented to me about it. (Actual comment count: 2- including the student who broke the news to me. I then had to teach a lesson. Can you imagine?)

I can remember snickering at something from my placement agency before I left explaining the stages of life abroad to someone about to embark on the journey. You can imagine- first, the excitement. Second, getting accustomed to daily life followed by falling into a routine. I can remember reading that at three months you must deal with homesickness or frustration. As laughable as it is to generalize about something like an experience abroad, a combination of factors did lead to feelings of frustration. The booklet was right! First and foremost came a long period of inactivity at work. I won't tell you how little I did for fear of sparking resentment or a mass recruitment of people to teach in Korea. This laziness crept into my Korean studies, my reading, my writing- everything. This coincided with the onset of hot summer days; there were afternoons when I came home from work, turned on the a/c, and just took a nap. This laziness, paired with a useful I-pod (useful at shutting out the outside, for me Korean, world) had me interacting very minimally with the world around me outside of other foreign teachers.

Strangely enough, it was two separate events on what was a very lazy weekend for me that prompted this entry. The first one was a visit to a "blockbuster" visiting art exhibition, my second in Seoul. Huge western art exhibitions, coming infrequently, are hugely popular here and a strange communal experience. The crowd is overwhelmingly Korean, without about the same mix of foreigners that you see in the general population- think, in any very crowded area, a handful perhaps. There is something discongruous about processing generally familiar art (Renoir, impressionism in this case) with foreign surroundings. These exhibitions are so popular, and the concept of "timed entry" so unfamiliar to Koreans, that you actually just stand in one big line (or queue, for you pommies!) and snake around the exhibition. It is difficult to extract yourself from this, or to connect to a painting from multiple perspectives. Forget about going back to previously viewed paintings once you have the perspective of more of an artist's work. I think most people value some privacy in a gallery, some space to collect their thoughts and process what they have seen. At these massive exhibitions, it felt to me like a more communal experience than a private one. A communal experience that I was observing, rather than immersing in, as I am an outsider in this community. Which brings me to the second event of my weekend.

I was surprised this evening to find one of my favorite authors (Simon Winchester- he is wonderful!) had written a travel book about Korea. I bought it, even though it was first published 20 years ago. I hate travel writing for the most part, but I trust the quality of Winchester's writing, even if Korea has no doubt changed beyond recognition in the last 20 years. But will any of his perceptions of Korea/Koreans match my own? How much experience as a foreigner/visitor to another country can be shared and understood? Perhaps more importantly for my dwindling readers, how can useful information, sensitive reflections be conveyed? What is of interest and value to outsiders, those within and without of Korea? Why can't I simply explain an experience at a gallery to help others put their time in Korea in perspective, or allow a glimpse of Korea to those who may never even visit?

This rather rambling blog (I refuse to make 2nd drafts of blogs- the first take to long and I would probably sooner just start all over again, in fact I nearly did and just proceeded with my new idea for the next topic- on the ugliness of Seoul). Anyway, my most popular and useful section- links to people much, much more talented than myself. First, here is a wonderful short story by Simon Winchester, published in a Lonely Planet collection of all places:
http://scottmuth.com/Library/Articles/Welcome%20to%20Nowhere.pdf

And of course some music- nothing shockingly new this time. I have been listening to Sunset Rubdown's great new album, Dragonslayer, without ever realizing they were the band that sang this awesome track:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaTdM-v86fI

And a related band, Wolf Parade, is just far, far better than I realized while browsing a few of their songs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmxO1LP1vfg