Friday, January 14, 2011

Apartment Disease

Korea is covered with sprawling apartment complexes throughout the country, whether it is in a metropolitan area or a rural area. With limited space, if everybody wanted to live in a warm cozy home, what would it take? Although you can't smell fresh soil, apartment would be the only alternative. People live in apartments with the same size, design and layout shared by their neighbors. Given that the Koreans cannot stand falling behind others, anything different immediately catches the eyes of neighbors. Like when you get a wide screen TV, the rumors would then fly all over the apartment complex. It would spread like a plague so fierce competition ensues and other will get wider than your new TV.

People send their kids to all kinds of after-school tutoring programs like English lesson, piano, art, taekwondo, school subject lesson, computer, etc. to keep them ahead of the pack. The Koreans have taken their "equal profit sharing" mentality to a whole new level, which in this modern day has taken on a new name "Apartment disease". If the kid next door goes to tutors after school, they can't just let their child sit at home and play.

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