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Overview of KoreaGENERALThe Korea peninsula is a land with ancient history and civilization. Three rival kingdoms existed here from early historic times to the 6th century AD when the Shilla Kingdom unified the country. The succeeding Koryo dynasty lasted from 10th to 14th century AD. The last dynasty called Chosun Dynasty was established by General Yi Song-gye in 1392 and continued until 1910 when the Japanese colonized and annexed the country. Japanese rule lasted until the end of World War II, resulting in the formation of North Korea (under control of the former USSR) and South Korea (under control of USA) – 38th Parallel forming the dividing Iine. A U.N. Commission of Korea, under the Chairmanship of India, visited Korea. On its recommendations in 1948, general elections were held in South Korea. The Republic of Korea (ROK) was founded on 15th August, 1948 with Dr. Syngman Rhee as first President. While the issue of reunification remained open, in June 1950, the North invaded the South, triggering the Korean War (1950-53). This War ended in July 1953 with a Military Armistice Agreement between the UN Command and the North Korean and Chinese Volunteer Forces, with a division of the peninsula and the presence of about 40,000 US troops in ROK. The ROK and the US are today linked by a security treaty. This War also left the ROK a devastated country, with few natural resources and extreme poverty. After the war ROK went through several years of turmoil under autocratic leaders who encouraged economic growth but restricted political freedom. It was in 1987 that Roh Tae-Woo was elected president, and led further advances towards democracy. This march towards democratization continued under human rights activist and advocate of democracy, when Kim Dae Jung was elected in 1997. The current president, Roh Moo-hyun is also a human rights lawyer who won the election on a participatory governance platform. AREA & POPULATIONThe ROK today is a prosperous country (area: 99,200 Sq. Kms) with a population of around 48.4 million (2005), of which about 70% is urban. The population density is 438 per sq. km. With the successful staging of the 24th Olympic Games in 1988, Seoul has become internationally well known. It is a modern, booming metropolis of over 11.1 million people, situated on the banks of the Han River. GEOGRAPHYThe ROK is bound by the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan (East Sea) on three sides and the Military Demarcation Line in the North, separating it from North Korea. It is a hilly country. The terrain slopes westwards to the relatively flat arable land along the west Coast. There are a number of islands along the South Coast, the largest of them being Cheju Island. CLIMATEThe ROK is in the snow and forest zone, characterized by warm humid summers and extreme cold winters. There are four distinct seasons in the year. Spring (May-June) is short, pleasant and wet with temperature ranging from 8° C, to 18°C. July and August, the summer months, are hot and humid with high temperature often touching 35°C, and include a short rainy season. The autumn (Sept-Oct) is beautiful and pleasant with crisp air and blue skies. During winter months (October to mid-April), the temperature in Seoul drops to as low as -15°C. (The high being in the range of - 3°C). PEOPLEThe 48.85 million people people are of Mongolian origin and the population is largely both linguistically and ethnically homogeneous. They are tough, energetic, good-natured, sensitive and friendly people who are hard working and very ambitious. Society is hierarchical, status conscious and traditional. Western influence, urbanisation and rapid economic development have brought about great changes in the social structure and outlook of the people. LANGUAGESKorean is the official language. Elderly Koreans know Japanese. The young college educated generation is getting familiar with English but remains reluctant and shy to speak the language. Some senior Government officials and senior executives in leading business houses can communicate in English. Nevertheless, for usual day-to-day functioning, some knowledge of Korean is a necessity. RELIGIONFreedom of religion is guaranteed under the ROK Constitution. Traditional religions are Shamanism (sprit or nature worship), Buddhism and Confucianism. According to the census, half of the population follows a specific religious faith. Out of this religious population, 47% are Buddhists and 49% follow Christianity. Only 3% identify themselves as Confucians. TIME DIFFERENCEAs compared to the Indian Standard Time, the local time is 3½ hours ahead (GMT +9). CURRENCY
The unit of Korean currency is Won (W). At present, the rate of exchange between INR and Won is about INR $1 = LIFE IN SEOULSeoul is both the capital and the heart of the ROK. It is a modern city with all the comforts, good housing, hotels, restaurants and shopping facilities, entertainment, etc. available, although at fairly high prices. It is also a center of Korean culture with a wide variety of places to visit such as open markets, student run theatres, art centers, and old palaces. Being the host city of the 24th Olympic Games in 1988, it has architectural symbols of a glorious past in the midst of glistening facades of soaring skyscrapers and bustling traffic. EATING OUTThere are a number of excellent Chinese, Japanese and Western restaurants and tea/coffee houses in Seoul. Many fast food joints serving pizzas, hamburgers, etc. are operating under American franchise system. There are a few Indian restaurants in Seoul. LOCAL TRANSPORTCity Buses: There are four types of city buses in Seoul-local – Blue, Green, Red and Yellow. The blue buses connect the city’s outer areas with downtown Seoul; Green buses circulate within a district of Seoul, connecting branch line roads; Red buses connect downtown and newly emerging centres of Seoul with major suburban cities of Metropolitan area; while Yellow buses circulate within central area, connecting major business areas. Local buses charge a flat fare of W 900 for a distance of 10 kilometres or less and for each additional 5 kilometres, W 100 is added. The airport is connected with the major hotels and city centre by a Korean Air Limousine (KAL) bus service which charges a flat fare of W 13,000. Subway: Seoul has an excellent 8-line subway train system, with one more line under construction. Subway train systems are also available in the cities of Incheon, Gyeonggi-do, Busan, Daegu and Gwangju. Buses, subway and all roads are crowded, especially so at peak hours. Outdoors: Korea, with its scenic beauty, picturesque beaches, ancient Buddhist temples, royal palaces, and museums has much to offer outdoors. The countryside is beautiful; walking and hiking are inexpensive and popular pastimes. There are a number of lake resorts and amusement parks for visits and picnics. Seoul has four ancient royal palaces. Besides these, the other interesting places to visit are the National Museum, the Namsan Tower, the 63-Storey building, the Olympic Park, the Lotte World, and the Seoul Grand Park, which are built on the lines of Disneyland. In the vicinity of Seoul, one can visit the Inchon Port, Suwon Lake, Kanghwa islands, Panmunjom Truce Village and the Unification Observatory in the DMZ area, Korean Folk Village and Yangin Ever Land. Newspapers There are three English newspapers, viz. the Korea Herald, the Korea Times, and the JoongAng Daily (which comes free with the International Herald Tribune), are published six days a week.
Useful websites: WeatherAverage temperature in May (Seoul) is 17.4 C or 63.3 F.
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