Why I ate dog

So on Wednesday night I joined our Korean coworker Edward, Charlie, and his friend Sean for a truly Korean experience of eating dog. First, I must immediately dispel some ridiculous rumors about Koreans and their canine eating habits. First, less that 5% of ALL Koreans have EVER eaten dog. Second, they aren't eating Lassie or Old Yeller. These are special dogs that are bred and raised on farms just like any other livestock. They don't bark, they're hairless and pretty disgusting to look at. People seem to have this idea of Golden Retrievers and Labs getting killed for meat which is totally off base. I should also mention that Koreans originally ate dogs as a last resort. During long periods of occupation by other imperial Asian countries the Koreans were literally starved for protein and dog is a great source of this essential part of the human diet.

Now that I said all of that, I want to try to explain why I ate dog. First, I ate dog because it was an experience that will certainly stay with me for the rest of my life. Inevitably when people here about my time in Korean the topic of eating dogs will come up--now I can give a solid, experienced answer. I can safely say that dog is served in some restaurants. It is also pretty delicious.

But that isn't the real reason I ate dog, just as I assume it isn't the reason Charlie or Sean decided to partake either. We all share a general open mindedness about cultural differences and we're genuinely interested in stepping well outside of our comfort area to dive head first into everything Korea has to offer. Edward graciously offered to take us to his brother's restaurant for a rare opportunity to experience a piece of Korea's history and I felt a self obligation to take him up on his offer. I wasn't excited about the prospect of eating dog, but I was excited about the prospect of broadening my worldview and deepening my understanding of Korea. Certain opportunities only arise once in a lifetime and you'd be a fool to knowing let one slip by, regardless of your personal prejudices about eating particular animals.

I've recently done a lot of thinking about my experience in Korea and how it is perceived by other people. I have come to the conclusion that it is difficult to explain or express anything about Korea to someone who has no frame of reference for what I'm trying to express. I'm not at all implying that I don't want to talk about Korea, but rather I find it difficult to express how I truly feel to people who have never been. People strive to ask questions but without any basis for understanding they can't really ever ask the questions that will prompt responses about how Korea really is and what I've really learned here.

I will try to use an extreme example to outline my point. When Neil Armstrong returned from the moon what kind of questions do you think his friends and family asked him? I would guess some popular ones would be:

"What was it like to be weightless?"

"What did the moon's surface feel like?"

"When did you come up with the 'One small step...' quote?"

"How was the space food?"

But none of those questions even scratch the surface of Mr. Armstrong's real experience. I'm sure floating around in the ship was awesome, hitting the golf ball was fun, and the food was awful, but do any of those elements contribute in the slightest to the awe-inspiring experience of being the first man on the moon? If he wasn't so witty and hadn't uttered those now famous words, would his experience be diminished? Had they served Fillet Mignon, would he look back on the trip more fondly? I think the experience itself, as a whole, is what Neil probably remembers. But when people probe him they can't ask, "What's it like to have a life changing and history altering experience 230,000 miles from Earth?" because they have no frame of reference to even pose the question. You don't knowingly ask questions when you know you won't understand the answer. Instead, they struggle to find things they can relate to and ask about them. But when all the former Apollo astronauts get together I doubt they talk about Lunar 4-irons or freeze-dried ice cream. They are able to discuss and understand their mutual experience on a much deeper level that outsiders cannot begin to understand. Charlie, Ben and I have a similar group dialogue about Korea, obviously on a much smaller and less historic scale.

I think of my Korean experience as if I am looking at a painting from across the room. The details are fuzzy or dull. Rather than focusing on brushstrokes or shadows I'm able to appreciate the entirety of the picture. I'm able to reflect on the sum rather than the components. That is why I think it is hard for me to relate my experience to friends and family back home. They see and hear the details but they can't see the whole picture. For every meal of dog or night out in Seoul there are 20 days spent living in Hwaseo-dong, riding the bus, finding new meals, meeting new people, and experiencing life as a foreigner. None of it is noteworthy or interesting to you all, but to me it is what will define my experience here. It is what I'll remember 20 years from now. It is what I hope to take with me when I leave here.

Take it easy but take it.