The Seoul Stumbler

You probably think Americans love coffee a lot.. but that's nothing compared to Korea.  Coffee isn't just a morning thing here.  I never was a big coffee drinker in the US. It was a hassel to make for one, and I never really needed the caffine boost most people crave.

Korea... is a different story though.  Yes, they drink coffee every morning, but they also drink it at night too.  There are about three coffee shops or more on every street.  That's not an exagerration.  These cafe's are incredibly popular because when you go out anywhere in Korea, getting coffee in a cafe is always part of the plan.  Go see a movie? Grab coffee afterwards and chat about it.  Getting dinner? Grab coffee afterwards and let your food digest.  Going clubbing? Grab coffee before hand to give you energy. Oh, and coffee afterwards to keep you awake on your way home in the morning.  (When you go clubbing in Korea, you tend to stay out all night.  This is due to the fact that everyone uses public transportation, so you just stay out until the buses/subways start up again around 5am. You can take taxis but it can get expensive, but this is a whole different subject..)

Whenever I go out with friends, we always get coffee. So, yes, a lot of money goes down the drain, but its part of their social life here. That's how they talk to people, over coffee.  At first I resisted, then I started getting hot chocolates, and finally I broke down and started trying different things.  My current love is Vanilla cafe latte's.

When I study korean with my co-teacher, we always study over coffee. 

All of my coteachers at work have their own coffee hoards.  They have a variety of packets on their desks for quick use, and they also make their own drip coffee as well.  So typically i'd say my coteachers drink for 5-7 cups a day! So crazy.  When I first arrived they always offered me coffee and I'd take it just to be nice, but they also like their coffee black and I couldn't do it... So after suffering the first few weeks, I slowly backed away from it. Black coffee and me do not mix.. I need sugar and creme and everything else to make it taste delicious. 

Now I'm sure there are a lot of people in America just as addicted to coffee, but its not a culture thing like it is here. If you say you don't like coffee here... it just doesn't compute. All of my students drink coffee too, they'll get cans of it from the vending machines.