Back to Life, Back to Reality

I'm back in Seattle...physically. Mentally, I'm still wishing I'm in Asia.

I didn't have internet connection anymore when I moved to my more expensive hotel for my last three nights in Seoul. And my days in Japan were too hectic to even try to sneak in some blogging time. Tsk. Must...back-blog...soon.

The verdict? I heart Seoul better than Tokyo. Crazy conclusion, right? Afterall, I've always had a thing for Tokyo. But as always, you never know what you really like unless you try it.

Tokyo to me is just pure chaos. I didn't dig dodging crazy salary men running down the escalator/stairs to catch the train. Kei and I kept saying, "Do they really need to catch THAT specific train?! The next one arrives in like five minutes!" In addition, being squished inside the subway everyday is not fun. If I wanted to be in that situation, just give me unlimited rides on Manila's MRT during rush hour. If Tokyo's subways were full of the oppas in Seoul subways, I wouldn't have minded getting squished, but Tokyo's subways are full of red-faced (read: drunk) middle-aged men starting at 5pm. Hardly fun, I tell you.

Coming from Seoul, everything was much more expensive in Tokyo. Come on, $7 for a KFC meal?! Really?! Where the hell did they get those chickens?! Seoul street food is so plentiful that you can make anything a meal for just $1. Plus, the subway rides were much more expensive than in Seoul. Okay, so Tokyo is way bigger than Seoul, but $3.30 for each ride does add up quickly. Compare that to my $0.90 - $1.20 subway rides in Seoul and you'll understand why I'm whining like a typical American.

And for some reason, Seoul appeared friendlier to me. I barely spotted people smiling in Tokyo; those in the subways were always asleep or looked just dead tired. And Kei would always point out to me when there's an announcement that a certain train is delayed because someone tried to commit suicide by jumping on the tracks. OMG.

Despite the jokes people make regarding Korea's tagline, "Korea Sparkling", I actually now understand it; granted that it should really be "Sparkling Korea" if anything. However, the city is really sparkling: the subways are clean; the people are ALWAYS dressed sharply (they seem to not know what jeans are); and cultural traditions are always combined with something modern, producing stuff that are new and authentically Korean (think JUMP and NANTA).

So, if God were to ask me where I'd like to work in the future, I'd pick Seoul, but this is not to say that I wouldn't think of working in Japan. Just please not in Tokyo.