The Tim Horton Exemption

“It is naively assumed that the fact that the majority of people share certain ideas and feelings proves the validity of these ideas and feelings. Nothing could be further from the truth. Consensual validation as such has no bearing on reason or mental health.” 

Erich Fromm

Expats and travelers fill cafes and squeeze into restaurant booths around the world. Their tales and opinions saturate the air like heavy particles hovering over the Beijing skyline. The local culture is dissected and diagnosed by these physicians certified by their wanderlust and sanctioned by the consensus of the group and the evening's rites.

Here in Korea, we might overhear talk of Koreans' driving foibles, or the nature of Korean marital dynamics where women invariably become the family CFO and take forceful and unequivocal command of all monetary matters. You can sometimes hear talk of the local disregard for minding litter, the conversation invariably drifting off to Japan by way of comparison. "You can't so much find a cigarette butt on the streets of Japan," someone will say. And yes, likely too will be the mention of the eating of dogs, an ignominious cultural artifact that is rarely practiced these days.

On the other side we have the cultural defenders, the sympathizers who, having done their homework, herd most of the naysayers back into their culturally insensitive corrals. A Peace Corps document from the early 1970s served to remind newly arrived U.S. volunteers of the foolishness of their cultural missteps: "Korea is generally judged to be a less than developed nation. This judgment is based on many factors, but mainly those dealing with economic or materialist measurements. In the field of education, and from a Korean viewpoint, it might be difficult to accept a less developed label. If you had produced movable block printing in the 12th century, a written phonetic alphabet before Columbus discovered America, and had revered education with intensity of almost religious fervor, then you might not consider yourself less developed with regard to education."

Well, touche! And we will graciously ignore your culturally insensitive comment about Columbus "discovering"America.

Sometimes, we just need to give these cultural-dialectic, this back and forth criticism and defensiveness, a free pass; a "Get out of jail free" card like in the board game, Monopoly. Instead of vitriol, allow the prevailing westerlies to do their thing and blow the smog out of Beijing naturally.

The other night I went out to dinner with three Canadian friends. The food, drink and conversation were awesome. Somehow (am I guilty?), the conversation turned to Tim Hortons, the ubiquitous coffee and pastry franchise that adorns nearly every intersection across that grand country. Canadians forever sing the praises of their beloved "Timmy's." As an American, who has driven hundreds of miles and many hours, craving coffee and something, anything, to eat, and finally seeing a Tim Horton's on the horizon, well, it was an ugly experience. I could have been had so easily. But alas, the coffee was nearly undrinkable and the donuts, literally a cardboard substitute. Here, let some closet Canadians speak for themselves:
"They just built a Tim Hortons in the Midwestern town where I live and I would rather eat a box of donuts that I found on the side of the road than ever return there."
"Tim's could sell poop on a stick and out of Canada loyalty, Canadians would still buy." 

But I smiled and kept my opinion to myself. My Canadian friends were happily adrift in their reverie for their national symbol. Going to "Timmy's" was like a religious experience for them. It was then that I realized I had needed to take out my Get out of Jail Free Card and figuratively hand it over to my Canadian friends. Why trespass on their cultural delusion? Was I going to judge Canada as being a less developed nation because of their blind faith toward Tim Horton's? Certainly not. After all, they have maple syrup and national health-care, don't they? And besides, when our most popular exports are McDonalds and Donald Trump, I have good reason to keep my tongue.

Aged-Out Korean Style

For an outsider, living here in the 1970s, it was hard to miss the pedestal they were placed upon. The elderly in Korea had earned their stripes; surviving the often brutal and dehumanizing Japanese occupation. Then came the unforgiving horror of the Korean War. If you made it to sixty you earned the privileges that society gladly bestowed on you: the respectful bows; the honorific language; for men, the long wispy beards; and for women, the convivial smoking in groups. People routinely fought to give up their seats in public buses for society's grandparents. But that was then...

…Having received the highest student evaluation scores, the three expat professors were invited to the Director's office. In a brief exchange, they received certificates of accomplishment,  a handshake from the Director and a few perfunctory words of congratulation. "I hope to see you three back here again next year," he said, "Continue with your great teaching." For one of the three professors, the author, those comments felt a bit insensitive and incongruous. Having just earned the highest evaluation scores from students, I was being aged-out, forcibly retired. I wouldn't be teaching at his university next year. I was turning sixty-five.

In today's Korea, forced retirement based on age is systemic. As a result, just 3.7% of regular employees at medium and large companies are 55 or older. This, in a country where the life expectancy is pushing 82, one of the highest in the world.

Older Koreans on a public bus in 1974. Being "aged-out" is as common as kimchi and rice.

Being aged-out here is as common as kimchi and rice. A former colleague in the English Department, very popular with students, was recently let go because he had turned sixty-five. "It was awful," he said. "My popularity ratings were over 95% for nine years. I did extra work for the university, the school, and the department, all for 
no compensation. And, I have to leave?" he asked rhetorically.

Relatively, few folks who are aged-out take it personally. Most expats know the cultural expectations when they come to Korea and quickly learn how the guidelines are interpreted and implemented at their places of employment, usually universities. Korean natives are treated no differently, so it's not a matter of being treated inconsistently; age discrimination is institutionalized. To many though, it's more than frustrating or infuriating--it's hurting the economy and the society. In the light of day, it simply doesn't make much sense. The cultural context is unambiguous; Koreans are sent into retirement at age 50, 55, 60 or 65. In fact, new figures put the average retirement age at about 53. Younger workers are ushered into companies where they earn less, are willing to take orders, and are allegedly more flexible and more productive. But are most of these operating assumptions true?

Certainly young, fresh recruits are paid less. In South Korean firms, pay and position rise with seniority. But nearly all employers operate from the belief that productivity decreases with seniority. Over 57% of them cite “low adaptability to change” as a reason for not keeping older workers, according to the Korea Labor Institute, a government-funded think-tank. 

According to Thomas Klaassen of York University in Toronto, 

"Internationally, there is little evidence to suggest that older workers are less productive than younger ones,  Their underperformance in South Korea, if real, may be a self-fulfilling prophecy," he argues. "It could be the prospect of premature retirement that discourages older Koreans from investing in skills."

Two older gentlemen ride the subway.
Questioning their value in today's Korea?

Korean society is rapidly aging and its birthrate is in steep decline. In the late 1950s, Korean families averaged 5 children. Today, families average about 1 child. Additionally, and this should come as good news, as of 2013, the life expectancy for Koreans reached 81.9 years. A man or woman retiring at 53 still offers their country almost thirty years of productive life. But how Korea puts those still productive years to use, to fuel its once vibrant economy, is yet another question. 

Wall painting in Busan, Korea's 2nd largest city

There is much talk that new laws and guidelines will be implemented to change Korea's current "early retirement" practices. Time will tell if and when those promises result in real, systemic change. In the meantime, kicked off their pedestal, older Koreans, the very people whose blood, sweat and tears built their modern country, are sent off into the setting sun, neglected, forgotten and unrewarded.

Exotica: Why I Love Living Abroad

Living in a foreign culture can be a visceral existence to say the least. There's never a dull moment. Around every corner there's a confounding curiosity, an exchange highlighted by a smile, or perhaps an ambiguous glance.  You may need that figurative playbook, the one you keep in your back pocket or purse, to help you translate what just happened. 

My favorite scene from the movie Ghostbusters ironically may shed some insight. It's the one where Bill Murray's character, Dr. Peter Venkman, knocks on the apartment door of Sigourney Weaver, playing a woman possessed by the devil. She opens the door, seething from her dark world. He meanders in, in his capacity as world class ghostbuster. Weaver immediately starts coming on to him in her devilish stupor. Now splayed across her huge bed, he pushes her away, proclaiming, "I have a rule never to have sex with a possessed woman." Not easily deterred, Weaver continues trying to sexually overwhelm Murray. Suddenly, he sits up and says with a sly smile, "Well, maybe it's more of a guideline."

Sigourney Weaver in Ghostbusters. Living in a foreign country requires navigating
the often unclear rules and guidelines of a culture

Seeking to understand the rules and guidelines of a place is part and parcel of living abroad. It's the caffeine in the experience. How does a place work? What are the rules and laws? What is it they might drag me away for? Just as important, are the informal guidelines of the culture--the routine expectations one needs to know to navigate day-in and day-out without leaving too large of an expat wake that unsettles the natives' boats.

Back home, the rules and guidelines are more intuitive. Nearly all the background chatter is intelligible to my senses. My knowledge of where the boundaries lie, and where the footing might be soft, saves me from cascading over a cultural cliff. Life is normative, not exotic.

One time in Korea, decades ago, I had missed all the signs, literally and figuratively. A friend and I were walking along a isolated, pebbly beach. We were lost in a world of our own. Suddenly there were screams, unrecognizable yelling, all of it in Korean. Soldiers came rushing toward us demanding that we come to a halt. We had been walking along a beach mined to protect that part of the coastline from North Korean infiltrators. We had been oblivious to all known rules and guidelines. Luckily, we lived to see another adventure.

The cultural landscape can be riddled with social "landmines"

Less dangerous, but still highly stimulating are the more mundane encounters of life in a foreign culture. What's the guideline, for example, when during a rare quiet moment on a tour of the DPRK, your North Korean tour guide who, until that moment had been distant and staunchly pro-North Korean, turns speaking in a low voice, to talk about her personal life?  Handling this awkward encounter was not mentioned in our pre-tour briefing.

Once, while walking on a busy downtown street, clothed in my youth and naivety, a new Korean buddy reached across our cultural divide to hold my hand. Chills of embarrassment ran up and down my spine. The idea of two guys holding hands in public pushed me way out of my comfort zone. The guideline here, of course, was that its quite normal for Korean friends of the same sex to hold hands.

These experiences, sometimes significant, but more typically innocuous, occur on a daily basis living in a foreign place. They become exotica, objects considered strange or interesting, because they are out of the ordinary, your ordinary. They make living overseas unrelentingly stimulating.

Having spent many years living and working in so-called foreign cultures, thoughts of returning home raise perplexing quandaries. Will life be as exciting, or even as interesting? Will I miss the familiar smells and sounds that have come to define my life in Korea? Will my life be less exotic, and does that even matter?

I don't imagine I will ever lose the wanderlust that flows through every fiber of my being. Nor, the thrill of discovering the peculiar rules and guidelines of distant places. In the spirit of ghostbusting, I trust there will always be doors too tempting not to open. 

Burma Before the Boom

Posted from Phuket, Thailand

For the wind is in the palm trees, an' the temple-bells they say:

'Come you back, you British soldier, come you back to

Mandalay!'

from Rudyard Kipling's poem, "Mandalay"

Old photo of Mandalay, Burma

While here in Thailand I've had the space and time to reflect on our recent three-week journey through Myanmar. Time to recall the ubiquitous temples and tea houses, the funky trishaws, the painted faces, the friendly people, the broad, genuine smiles. Here in Phuket I stop at the end of a pier that juts-out into the harbor, and stare out into the shallow, mesmerizing, azure-colored waters. A man with a blue nylon fish net strewn over his shoulders interrupts my daydream, asking me where I'm from. Taken somewhat by surprise, I hesitate. A world of assumptions fills the space between us...

Myanmar's ubiquitous and wondrous temples

Myanmar is facing its own surprising transition. And nearly everyone has an opinion about the change. Except the Burmese finally feel safe to express their views. After centuries of rule by emperors, Burma became a British colony. For the next 50 years, the country, hugely rich in resources, became the spoil of ruthless rule by a junta of greedy military generals. In Emma Larkin's fascinating work, Finding George Orwell in Burma, a native Burmese aptly remarks, "The British may have sucked our blood, but these Burmese generals are biting us to the bone!" Just a few short months ago, the unmistakable bite of capitalism struck the country's capital, Yangon. Our guide made sure to point out the huge new KFC that had recently opened in a busy area near the old Scott Market there. "They just opened the first three here," he observed.

One of the first KFC's in Yangon. Is Myanmar now 
welcoming capitalism?

In a few short weeks, Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD party, voted into office with 80% of the popular vote, will accept the reigns of power. That transition, is filled with its own huge basket of assumptions. After decades of understandable reluctance to talk honestly to foreigners, native Burmese now speak more freely and candidly about the political earthquake that is taking place. All of our guides, and others we met, spoke excitedly about the forthcoming transition, most without being prompted by our questions. Over breakfast, I asked an Australian official I met in eastern Shan State who was in Myanmar to audit the election results. "What is prompting the generals to relinquish power?" "It's complicated," he said, "but I wouldn't rule out some degree of benevolence."

In some ways, today's Myanmar reminds me of the Korea I witnessed in the early 1970's. South Korea then was a military dictatorship under the strict rule of president and former general, Park Chung-hee. The country, largely rural in those days, was rationing rice, enforcing curfews, and actively arresting students and professors--anyone who spoke out against the regime. Fast food chains, amongst the more obvious signs of capitalism, had yet to take a foothold in Korea. Technology was primitive and largely limited to poor quality local products from Lucky and Gold Star.

Today of course, Korea is vastly different. In the span of 40 years Seoul now boasts more Starbucks than New York City. College students, like those in other developed countries, aspire to BMW's and expensive apartments with impressive addresses. What is generally taken as "progress" was accomplished without significant indigenous natural resources. Rather, what has made Korea the 15th largest economy in the world, was the remarkable sweat-equity and toil pumped-out by three generations of Koreans.

Myanmar, on the other hand, is rich in natural resources. In the early 1920's, the river Delta that surrounds the Yangon region, exported over 3 million tons of rice, half the world's supply. It is rich in gems, including jade, silver, gold, natural gas, rubber and teak. With the possibility of democracy and a full dose of capitalism on the doorstep, Myanmar is likely to be a future economic power in southeast Asia. Speaking with an expat while I was deplaning in Yangon, I asked her what had brought her to Myanmar. "I'm here to discuss the development of their natural gas industry," the Californian told me. "Are you speaking with officials from the current military government," I asked, "or the incoming government of Aung San Suu Kyi?" "The new government," she responded. While the Myanmar we saw is still largely unspoiled, by some accounts, the generals have nearly wiped out the native teak forests and exploited many of the natural resources. Those sites, needless to say, are not on tourist itineraries.

Many veteran travelers to southeast Asia recall with sadness the rapidly changing landscapes they see: the highways that were once quaint dirt roads; the quiet, pristine beaches that have become hedges to endless cement edifices displaying the names of western hotel chains. They lament that local teahouses and small restaurants seem to inevitably give way to Starbucks, McDonalds and KFC's. This is someone's measure of "progress." But whose?

What will Myanmar's likely forthcoming economic
boom mean for this young Burmese girl?

Sometimes, I vainly hope that a golden moment on a quiet strip of beach will remain forever frozen in time. Sometimes, even that which you thought you knew about a place and a time, was just a mirage. Rudyard Kipling, he of the "come back to Mandalay," epic poem fame, never even visited the place. History notes that Mr. Kipling never set foot in Mandalay. In fact, Mr. Kipling spent only 3 short days in Burma...once upon a time. 

11 Things About Myanmar That May Surprise You

"During the three weeks I spent wandering through postcard 

perfect scenes of bustling markets, glittering pagodas and faded

British hill stations I found it hard to believe I was traveling

through a country that has one of the worst records for human

rights abuse in the world. To me, this is the most staggering thing

about Burma: that the oppression of an entire nation of some 
50 million people can be completely hidden from view."

Emma Larkin, Finding George Orwell in Burma (2011)

The changes I witnessed in Korea between 1973, when I arrived there as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and 1988, when I returned for the Summer Olympics, were nothing less than astounding. Myanmar may be on an even faster track.

The magic that is Myanmar is easily accessible from South Korea and the rest of Northern Asia. You can jumpstart your trip with a flight from Inchon or Busan. We flew to Bangkok and then went on to Mandalay. It’s from that city, or the capital, Yangon, where most people launch their Myanmar adventures. Capture the essence of Myanmar before Starbucks arrives.

Myanmar's most famous site, Shwedagon Paya,
in the capital city of Yangon.

Here are 11 surprising things about the country formerly known as Burma:

1. The infamous dictatorship here is, for all practical purposes, invisible to routine travelers. Other than a few propaganda paperbacks on our night stand in one hotel, the military government’s presence to tourists has largely receded into the background. To be sure, everyone here knows people who have served in prison. Myanmar and North Korea share common histories of cruelty and oppression. But with the recent open elections, Myanmar's military leaders have apparently decided to take a new path. The air here is filled with a cautious optimism.

2. International tourism and business is evident everywhere here and is already taking off. Planes are filled with the likes of LNG deal-makers and NGO staffers. Tourists abound from Germany, Italy, France, other parts of Europe and the U.S. From Asia, Koreans and Japanese arrive in large groups. Building cranes dot the skyline, especially in Yangon, where several KFC's recently opened. 

Construction cranes, these from South Korea, dot Yangon's skyline.

3. ATM’s are now accessible nearly everywhere you might go as a tourist. Yes, you will run into "out of order"signs on some machines, but it is generally easy to get access to your funds. 

4. U.S. dollars are no longer required! It was routinely suggested that you need to bring clean, crisp unfolded US dollars when you travel to Myanmar. While it is always smart to have back-up currency, it is no longer obligatory. Yes, dollars are nice to have, but you can access and use the local currency everywhere.

5. Everyone in Myanmar is courteous and friendly. The rest of Asia (and the West) can learn a lot about courtesy and "service with a smile" from the people of Myanmar. One surprising and effective practice we found throughout the country was that nearly every waitperson repeated our order before handing it off to the kitchen.

The people of Myanmar are universally friendly
and always seem to be smiling.

6. Though sometimes intermittent and frustratingly slow, the Internet is available in most hotels and in many restaurants and other establishments. We found the best reception in hotel lobbies. It is also easy to buy mobile sim cards thanks to two large foreign service providers from Saudi and Norway. The national service provider, MPT, is partnering with Japan to deliver services.

7. Meals can be had anywhere for just a few bucks. The food, a wonderful mélange of native dishes, Chinese and Thai culinary delights, is consistently delicious and inexpensive.  One of our more expensive dinners (there were two of us) came to $19 (including tip). We had four (4) cocktails, shared a soup and had large plates of chicken fried rice, fresh vegetables in oyster sauce, and a mixed grille seafood plate. Oh yes, there was a shrimp appetizer too.

8. Myanmar is a Baptist country! Well, in a sense. Myanmar is home to the world’s third largest Baptist population. That's in addition to the ubiquitous stupas and Buddhist temples that dot the country--which is 89% Buddhist overall.

9. Myanmar is about to go democratic. Well, fingers crossed on that one. But Noble Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to lead the NLD (National League for Democracy) Party’s transition to power in April, 2016. There is universal support and optimism here for her leadership. Recently, her party called for all citizens to go out and reduce the litter in their streets and communities. The next day millions of people heeded the call, including soldiers who nominally opposed her party's coming to power.

A calendar on the wall of a business in Mandalay. The NLD Party,
led by Nobel Prize winner, Aung Sun Suu Kyi, comes to power
in April 2016. Here, she is pictured meeting with President, Barak Obama,
first sitting U.S. President to visit Myanmar.

10. Many people in Myanmar have “double names.” One flight attendant’s name was Ei Ei Tun. Our guides’ names included Sai Sai and Min Min. One of our waitresses in the beach town of Ngapali was So So. Her service was, in fact, much better than her appellation would suggest. Traditionally, Myanmar people do not have surnames. The spelling of their first names tells others what day of the week they were born on. 

    

    11. The book "Animal Farm" was actually about Burma. Dogs are everywhere in Myanmar. And in the countryside, one sees pigs in nearly every nook and cranny. Dogs and pigs. It's not coincidental then that dogs and pigs took over the farm in George Orwell's Animal Farm. Orwell, who served with the British Imperial Police Force in Burma in the 1920's, found his life transformed by his experience there. While many people believe his famous works 1984 and Animal Farm were either about England or Russia, they were actually largely influenced by his experiences in Burma.

    Pleasant surprises are plentiful in Myanmar, a nation with more than 50 million smiling people hoping to finally reap the benefits of their richly endowed country. Myanmar is at the crossroads of the new world, where the two most populous countries, China and India, meet. It's a place with countless Buddhist temples and an array of ethnic tribes and racial groups that are as diverse as the spices and tastes one finds here. Countless too, are the reasons to find your way to Myanmar...before the boom.

A woman from one of the hill tribes in the Golden Triangle area of
Shan State. Integrating the many ethnic tribes will be one of the
countless challenges facing the new government.