India....

India is such a dynamic place. It sucks when I hear Koreans talk about India. It is frustrating. This is mainly because in Korea package tours are really really popular. Along with the insulated resort style of traveling. All over Korea there are resorts. Thanks to my friend I have been able to see what they are all about.

Usually when we travel we would see them but avoided them, thinking they were tourist traps...which in a way they are.

Basically, you travel to any region in Korea, and in this small country there are so many beautiful places to visit. It is jam packed with variety. Skiing, river rafting, fishing, hiking camping, exploring caves, scenic farms, numerous festivals, pristine beaches, amusement parks, valleys, and nestled among them are the resorts.

So it doesn't surprise me when Koreans visit China, and from the pictures you can see that the food is "buffet" style and not really authentic regional Chinese food. Resorts are great in that they are a one stop for all. They have small markets, restaurants, pool halls, bowling alleys, arcades, spas, some of them have water parks. The main issue? They are ubiquitous. If you have been one you basically have been to them all. Here lies the problem for me.

When Koreans visit India business savvy people set up similar resorts (hotels), in which you can experience India but you use a tour package, and you get a very narrow view of India. If you are going to travel to India, please respect the fact that curry is one of the multitudes of food that is offered. India truly is a subcontinent. While Korea has many different regions, that offer different experiences to the traveler, India has that multiplied 100 times over.

When I was in India I remembered seeing Korean tourist huddled together with the tour guide. They were all wearing masks, and looking quite green in the gills. Yes it was a dirty area, with cow, and dog shit everywhere, along with open sewers. But, if you really want to experience a place....well that is part of it.

So they are huddled together looking like cattle, listening to the tour guide (a Korean), give an introduction on the area..yadda yadda yadda. I understand why it is popular, but it allows misinformation to abound. I wonder if they realize that Indians speak better English, and that India will be a giant economically in the future. I really wonder...because in Korea too many people look down on Asians from southeast Asia.

India is a place with so much to offer, but it isn't understood so well in South Korea. Partly India is to blame. I remember the first time I went to Lucknow, people told me to throw my trash on the ground. The ground was totally cover in garbage. I was horrified, and I think they saw that. They laughed and said "this is India don't worry". I know that they were being sarcastic, well I hope so. Looking back...they did not blink an eye at littering. BUT that is JUST that area!! Other regions are cleaner than Japan!!! Other places the literacy rate is amazing!!! Actually to tell the truth I find that Indians are VERY VERY knowledgeable about the world. In Korea......it is like some places in America where people can no see past their front yard!!

I love South Korea, and India, I just wish South Koreans could see India the way I do...incredible India!!!

/tata