[giallo]

South Korea is as homogenized as it gets, and that place is a cultural prison. Sure, you get everyone thinking, looking and acting the same way - which I suppose can help with a nation's identity, but I've never lived in an unhappier country. The pressure to perform as the "perfect Korean" on every level has caused so much needless stress and anxiety to the populace, it's driven the country to collective alcoholism. Almost every Korean I befriended was looking for a way out - especially if you were lower on the hierarchical ladder.

I've never met a more patriotic citizenry that all wants to leave their country. It's a fascinatingly bizarre place.

I'm so glad Canada isn't like this.