This is only my second attempt at publishing an article for the bulletin, so bear with me. Recently, I completed a two week stint in Korea, compliments of my dear Westinghouse. Although others from my work group spent a week each in Korea, it was my first trip there and I was a tad nervous. Oh, I've been in foreign countries before, but not on my own. Fortunately I had a driver, whose normal job was at the Westinghouse Seoul office, to take me back and forth to work. He spoke some broken English which made it fun talking to him - like talking to a 6-year old.

Korea is 14 hours ahead of us so jet lag was a major bummer. I met daily with Korean engineers who paid us to teach them how to design a new nuclear power plant. They were from the Korean Power Engineering Company (KOPEC), and their one and only customer is the only Korean utility, Korea Electric Power. They work in an industrial complex with a couple of related companies, in buildings that look like they were designed in the 50's. There were two soccer fields and tennis courts in the complex for all employees' benefit. The cafeteria was free and only $2.50 for a good-sized lunch for visitors (but they treated me).

Koreans are polite and respectful to a fault. They won't really tick you off but they are persistent. I went to a department store that was really impressive. Several floors of strictly designer-name clothes for men and women, but fortunately, they also had an old fashioned bargain basement." That's where I shopped. The clerks flocked to you like bees to honey if you even make eye contact. I felt bad as I couldn't say, "Just looking!" in Korean.

I decided to stay at a company-owned apartment, where I could make my own breakfast and dinner. I bought a couple boxes of "hamburger heIper-type pasta and filled in with some local pizza and other American restaurants. American? Oh, yeah. I saw McDonalds, KFC, Outback Steakhouse, Pizza Hut (they had their own pizza places also, which actually weren't bad), Dunkin' Donuts, and TGI Friday's.

You hear a lot about spicy food there. Yep! Their kimchi will weld your tongue to the roof of your mouth. But I tried lots of different stuff, most of which was OK. I'd say about 20% of their food was too spicy for me to eat.

Finally, there were two barbershop tidbits I want to share. The first is that they have barber poles; lots of them. Seemed like every block. Sometimes they'd have 2 side-by-side, turning in opposite directions. The second is about something I heard on a cab's radio one Sunday morning. They had a special on American tunes - old ones. Of all things, I heard "Dominique" from the "Singing Nun" in its original French verse. Well, I just had to sing along, and I even got a short applause from the driver, who surely did not understand French, but seem to recognize that my babble matched the babble on the radio! Whats the connection to barbershop? That's the melody that the baritones sing for "saints"!!!

There's no place like home.