Embracing Myself

I'm going to be honest here. Oftentimes, I have a hard time embracing my cultural roots.  I visited South Korea this past summer finding out a lot about my own culture and the people. I would sit on a ledge that looked down at the city of Seoul thinking, "wow, the culture that I only knew from my parents is a lot different than I expected." I compare South Korea's culture to America's culture and realize many differences as well as similarities. South Korea is considered one of the most homogeneous countries in the world, racially and linguistically. Korea has its own culture, language, cuisine and even dress. In any country you travel to, you notice there is a certain standard that everyone upholds to whether its in etiquette or in respect. Now, I'm not saying that everyone from South Korea acts like this or that. 

From my own perspective, people in South Korea dress modestly and well. How you dress is even shown as a sign of respect. You tend to see Koreans in Seoul dress as if they're going to an important dinner versus country woman and men in South Korea. In the United States, people don't follow a code of conformity but instead dress however they want. I've noticed that fashion in the United States dress on a variety of factors including location, venue, and demographic factors. From my personal views before my experience this past summer in South Korea, I only experienced different cultures through other people's own understanding. I didn't experience for myself what the world has to offer for me, culturally.