Friday, November 21, 2008

On my way home

I'm at the Seoul Incheon airport right now, and I have about an hour until my flight to Tokyo boards (then I have a really long layover in Tokyo before heading out to New York). There's free wireless so I will amuse myself with this briefly.

Overall my time in Seoul was good. I had a few moments where the lectures didn't go so well (long story), to the point where I thought my presence was not worth it. Then, after Friday's lecture (which, by the way, lasted five hours, from four to ten, with about an hour for dinner, because it was believed (not by me) to be a good idea to finish up to a certain point, driving all of us to the point of complete fatigue), I was told over an over again that I should come back in the spring and give more lectures. I take that as a compliment, obviously, although it was an exhausting week.

Most of Friday was spent going around the city with two of the graduate students (that is why we started so late with the lectures). I saw one of the old palaces, and the N'Seoul Tower, from the top of which one gets a spectacular view of this city. I wouldn't say Seoul is beautiful, architecturally, but it certainly is massive (over 10 million people live here), and impressive.

But I have to say the most hilarious part of this tour was walking by the American Embassy. As we approached it, I thought it was a prison. There were cops everywhere, busses with grates over the windows, a giant wall with barbed wire surrounding the building and cages on the windows. Then one of the graduate students said what it was, and I responded with complete disbelief. But sure enough, there it was, the American flag and all.

New game, to go with "Gay or European?" and "School or Prison?" (in New York): "Prison or American Embassy?"

by Topher at 8:56 PM |