South Korea

If I could go anywhere, I would go to, Seoul South Korea.  While there is an immense amount of reasons for this decision, it all comes down to three main qualities: shopping, food, and gaming.  In Korea, shopping is somewhat like America, except it’s much more diverse and everything is in one place.  The malls in the United States offer a small array of brands compared to South Korea, and often the shops are far apart.  In addition, the food in Korea is quite distinctive from the food I taste in America.  It’s not just about the food, but the delivery service: It is a whole “new experience”.  Finally, the gaming in Korea is on a whole new level.  Korea is known for having places called “PC cafes”, which have extremely powerful and expensive computers, offering an immersive high-quality gaming experience.   

The shopping in Korea is immense in almost every way.  While in America, there might be 40 to 50 brands per mall, the Korean malls are huge with over 1000 brands to choose from.  This system makes it faster to shop effectively and find something that is more appealing to oneself (dependent on individual taste).  In addition, since the shopping at most massive malls are duty-free (no tax), most of the prices are lower than that in America.  Even among brands, the Korean malls offer a larger assortment of designs than in America, making it easier for the customer to choose at the moment which ones they like, without having to order it online and wait.

The food service in Korea is among the best in the world in my opinion.  You can be anywhere in Seoul, and still be one phone call away from pizza, chicken, Chinese food, burgers, and even steak!  The delivery service is well implemented and is known to be fast.  (You thought Jimmy Johns was fast? Wait till your in Korea!)  The delivery service is just one part of the great food qualities in Korea.  One distinctive quality is the Korean food itself.  In America, its hard to find good original quality Korean food (unless it’s cooked by your mom!).  There’s no need to search for this kind of food in Korea!  I had rice cake soup, which is among the best I had ever tasted.  Korea is the only place in the world where a Michelin starred restaurant sells 7$ rice cake soup! 

Just as intriguing as the food service and shopping, is the gaming in Korea.  Every two blocks, PC cafes line the streets.  Inside, high schoolers play video games intensely with each other.  In America, most kids find themselves playing at home online with other friends, but in Korea, you are able to connect with kids in the same place.  As a result, the gaming community is more socially interactive, and makes the PC cafes a more immersive place to have fun.  Alright, I’m going to mention food one more time.  (Why do you think they’re called cafes?)  The food in these places can be described in three words: cheap, delicious, and massive (the size per order is immense).  You can get food ranging from hot dogs to chicken cutlet.  Gaming and eating food with friends in these cafes are ultimately what makes my journey to Korea worth it.