D79 -- Land of the morning calm

I first lived in South Korea in 1979 when my father was stationed there for 3 years. My family returned in 1986 and I would spend 6 years there until I graduated from Seoul American High School (SAHS) in 1992. But I would continue to visit Seoul twice a year until my family left in 1997. My brother and both sisters graduated from SAHS as well. As strange as it may sound, Seoul--or more particularly the US military base in Seoul--is as close to a childhood home as I have. (El Paso is a close second, but since we never actually lived there, it is hard to think of it as my childhood home.) The US military plans to close down Yongsan (the military base in Seoul) in 2009 and move it to a new location, so I wanted to make this trip before it was too late. Here is the Sims family in 1981 just outside our house in Yongsan.


We arrived into Seoul around 2 p.m. and were met by Kim Huchun and his son Joe. Mr. Huchun worked for many years with my father when he was in Korea, including when they both served in the US Army. When Mr. Huchun heard that Elva and I were coming to Korea, he insisted on meeting us at the airport and taking care of us during our visit. During the car ride to our hotel, Mr. Huchun and Joe told us how Korea has been doing since I left. The country seems to be doing quite well, although the current president is making many in the older generation nervous as he builds more diplomatic ties with North Korea. Many older South Koreans, although open to reunification, are distrustful of the North and suspicious of its motives.

We were dropped off at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, which is close to Yongsan. My family stayed here for two months when we returned to Seoul in 1986 because there wasn't any housing available on base. My brother and I used to play football in the hotel's parking lot. But the hotel has gone much more upscale (it wasn't a "Grand" Hyatt back then). In fact, the day after we arrived the hotel received the president of a country (they wouldn't tell us which country). The hotel is also REALLY expensive. They charge US$15 just to have your jeans laundered, and daily internet access costs US$25. A 6 ounce can of coke will set you back $7. Luckily, we got a really good rate on the internet by booking months in advance.

-Tom