South Korea
Korea is a 750 mile-long peninsula full of millions of people and beautiful cities. The peninsula is divided into two countries, North and South Korea. South Korea is a small nation full of large cities and beautiful mountains. It officially became a country on Aug. 15, 1948. It was occupied by Japan until the end of World War II. After the Korean War ended in 1953, the peninsula officially separated into North and South Korea. North Korea is a communist dictatorship but South Korea is now a successful democratic republic. Some Koreans still consider the Koreas a single nation because the Korean War never officially ended. Instead, the two nations are separated by a border that is strictly guarded on both sides with an empty stretch of land between them. There is still a lot of tension between North and South Korea.
• Their currency is Won.
• The capital is Seoul with a population of 10 million people.
• The official language is Korean.
• It is officially named the Republic of Korea.
• Kimchi, or spicy pickled vegetables, is one of the most popular dishes in Korea.
• There are 250 different kinds of Kimchi.
• Four is considered an unlucky number.
• The Korean alphabet is called Hangul. It has 10 vowels and 14 consonants.
• Taekwondo, the Korean martial art, is the national sport.
• Cabs are color coded for how experienced the driver is and how much they will cost.
• It’s a tradition to eat seaweed soup on birthdays.
• It is polite to take off shoes before going into someone’s home.
• They eat with chopsticks, often made of metal.
• Seoul translated into English means “capital.”
• The Seoul underground railway system is the largest in the world.
• Manners and being polite are very important to Korean culture.