Autumn in Korea

So it is the most wonderful time of the year. No really, ask anyone. Well, anyone who has spent an October or even a November in Korea. Autumn is absolutely amazng. Even today, as the snow that has been collecting dirt on the sides of the slushy roads in Calgary melts on a rare temperate November afternoon, the leaves (some still completely green and lush) cling tightly to the branches of the big, protective trees that line every "heavenly" street in Bundang. They say Bundang means "under heaven" in Korean. If you can't get to heaven yet, the next best thing is this little town. I thought it was a little overly dramatic (yes, even I can recognize melodrama....), however, I'm not so sure now. I love all seasons, and to pick a favorite would be to ignore the significant brilliance of each individual one. However, if I didn't already have a particular soft spot for Fall, I do now.

Not all things are heavenly in the Fall, however. Korea is notorious for sending brilliant students over to study in North American schools, make our academic record look like crap. This might have something to do (and by that, I mean everything) with the enormous pressure they put on their kids to succeed. The future of the country depends on it! In reality, it may have been the only way they could have pulled their country out of the economic mud it was in after the Korean War. Nonetheless, the pressure is heavier than ever these days. The seniors in high school are knee deep in it these days. They are writing the entrance exams, the one test that will make or break their post secondary academic career. It is such a big deal that test day is a town event. All night, parents and supporters camp out (literally, camp fires on the street) outside the gates of the school, awaiting the big moment when their friend or brother or daughter will walk through the gates and face their fate (no one was able to explain to me why they feel the need to line up all night....and I mean no one. Everyone seems to take for granted that this behaviour makes perfect sense, even when it's twenty below). Bill could hardly wait to show me the scene Thursday morning, and what a scene it was. There were literally hundreds of people outside the gates, with tears in their eyes, and personal cheers for each individual student. They looked like a bunch of heartwrenched carollers, pouring their hearts out in song to the lyrics written on the pages in their hands, and their banners waving above their heads. I awkwardly snuck into the crowd for a photo op or two. It was a sight. Where the hell was my cheering squad during exams, huh?

---

---