Contents provided by THE NEW SANNO Welcome to the Pacific Staff Ian Waddick Editor KOREA Ayako Kamio Layout Designer Writers When in Korea 06 We’re here for you! Shoji Kudaka Takahiro Takiguchi Language guidelines 08 f you’re reading this magazine, you’ve likely already arrived The wonders of won 10 in Korea and have been welcomed to your new duty station Max D. Lederer Jr. Getting a cell phone 12 Culture Iby any number of people. Well, on behalf of the Stars and Publisher Stripes family, we’d also like to welcome you as you begin your stay in the Asia-Pacific region. No handshakes or hugs here Lt. Col. Richard E. McClintic 06 Commander Doing your DoDEA homework 16 though – just some good ol’ useful information you’re going to want to know. On-base colleges 20 Michael Davidson In this Welcome to the Pacific 2018-19 magazine, we really Revenue Director try to help you as you begin your journey overseas. Curious Education about the local food? We’ve got that covered. Need to find a new Marie Woods car? Flip a few more pages to find some of the top dealerships Publishing and Media Design Director 16 in your area. Mastering mass transit in Korea 21 And all this useful information Stars and Stripes offers Chris Carlson Space-A travel 26 doesn’t end with this magazine. Please use this as a guide to Publishing and Media Design Manager help you get settled in your new country. It’s a big change, and hopefully this can provide some help as you learn the lay of Kentaro Shimura Production Manager Transportation your new land. But, to go along with the Welcome to the Pacific magazine, Stripes also has its community newspapers that hit 21 Rie Miyoshi the blue boxes on your base every other week. Buying & registering a POV 30 Member Services Manager Local twist to road rules 31 Stripes Korea is there to give you the 411 on all the off-base Camp coordinates 32 events going on, the hot new water activity, or that new Seoul Area Managers café with a view that you need to see to believe. So, make sure to Monte Dauphin, Japan/Guam grab a copy and check us out the next time you pass a blue box. Scott Wheeler, Okinawa Private vehicles Private We even cater to the clothing deficient. Need something to Rick Villanueva, Korea 30 do this weekend and you just can’t get out to grab the latest Websites worth bookmarking 33 paper? No worries. StripesKorea.com allows you to research Multimedia Consultants that next outing as you sit half naked at your computer screen. Max Genao Doug Johnson Jason Lee Hans Simpson We don’t mind. Chae Pang Yi Gianni Youn Online At Stripes, we like to emphasize that we are community Robert Zuckerman newspapers and community websites. So, as any good 33 community does, we love to hear from you, the reader! Have a Sales Support story idea? Visit one of our websites and let us know. Better yet, Law and order on the ROK 34 Kazumi Hasegawa Hiromi Isa do you have a great story to tell? Maybe it’s about a colleague Understanding SOFA 34 Ichiro Katayanagi Yoko Noro who’s out there making the community better. Submit your Yoichi Okazaki Yusuke Sato Off-base living 36 story and we just might publish it in the paper! Chae Yon Son Saori Tamanaha Legal Dos and don’ts with pets 37 Garbage disposal rules 37 Finally, make sure you take the time to like us on Facebook. Graphic Designers Search @StripesPacific and give us a thumbs-up and a follow to Yukiyo Oda Kenichi Ogasawara stay up to date on all the latest news relating to the U.S. military 34 Yuko Okazaki Kayoko Shimoda Exploring Korea’s true flavor community stationed in the Pacific. And make sure to keep 40 Yosuke Tsuji an eye out for our photo contests and giveaway promotions, because who doesn’t love free stuff! Food Stripes Welcome to the Pacific 2018-19 is an Ian Waddick, exclusive Stars and Stripes advertising supplement for members of the U.S. military community Publishing and Media Design Editor serving overseas. The content herein is unofficial 40 Stars and Stripes and is not to be considered as the official views The USO connects you 42 Fall 2018 of, or endorsed by, Stars and Stripes, the U.S. AFN is here to serve 46 government, or the Department of Defense. The Exploring Korea 47 advertising in this publication does not constitute endorsement by Stars and Stripes of the products Leisure or services advertised. All rights reserved. Cover and contents may not be reproduced in whole or 42 in part without prior written permission. Email: [email protected] with questions or comments. To subscribe to Stars and Stripes, Cover photo: Namdaemun in Seoul email: [email protected]. Mailing address: Unit 45002, APO AP 96338-5002 4 Welcome to the Pacific 2018-19 When in Korea A cultural lay of the land hough affected by other window shopping, “hand phone” Asian cultures, Korean (hendeu pon) for cell phone and T culture’s roots lie deep “one shot,” a drinking term for within the creative Korean downing your drink in one quaff. psyche; it has tended to spread As with modern-day fashion, rather than be encroached upon. contemporary Korean pop mu- Culture The delicate styling and fine sic is also heavily influenced by craftsmanship of celadon pot- the U.S. It has contributed to tery well illustrates the refine- the global rise of “K-pop” since the bow depends on the relative on cushions around a low table. ment of the culture, even from as the 1990s, which in turn has in- seniority of the two people. Many different foods are served, far back as the Three Kingdoms fluenced the West with success- When passing a gift or any each cut into bite-sized pieces. Period from A.D. 57 to 668. ful artists like Psy of “Gangnam other object to someone, use Each person has their own bowl Korea has also spawned some Style” fame. both hands and bow. The right of rice, but helps themselves to Education great inventors. Its first printing hand is used to pass the object, other foods directly from the systems predate Gutenberg’s, Korean names while the left is used in support. serving dishes. Koreans tradi- the famous “Turtle Ship” was Koreans place the family If the person receiving the gift is tionally use chopsticks and a the first ever iron-clad battle- name first and the given person- younger or lower in status, pass- large-bowled spoon, although ship, and the Korean alphabet, al name second. Family names ing with one hand is acceptable. today forks are also used. devised by a group of scholars are traditional clan names and Koreans believe that direct During the meal, rest your Transportation in the 15th century, was so effec- each has a village from which it eye contact during conversation chopsticks and spoon on top of tive that it remains largely un- comes. Thus, there is a differ- shows boldness, and out of po- a dish. When you finish eating, changed today. ence between a Kim who comes liteness they concentrate on the lay them on the table to indicate Korean cultural assets to from Kyong-ju and a Kim who is conversation, usually avoiding that you have completed the UNESCO’s World Heritage from Kimhae. eye contact. meal. Never stick chopsticks or List include Chongmyo Shrine, The five most common names You will see young men walk- spoons in a bowl of rice; this is Private vehicles Private where memorial services to the are Kim, Pa(r)k, Lee, Choi ing in the street with their arms associated with prayers for the kings of the ancient Chosun (Choe) and Oh. Because of the around each other’s shoulders dead. Also, never refill a par- Dynasty are held; the Great inconsistencies of translating and women walking hand in tially, but not completely empty Changgyong Panjion in Haeinsa names from Hangul to Roman hand. This means nothing more glass for the same reason. Don’t Temple, where Buddhist scrip- characters, spellings of these than simple intimacy. Touching worry about reaching in front of Online ture is engraved on 80,000 names vary. For instance, Lee is close friends while talking to others or asking for a dish to be wooden panels; and Pulguksa also spelled in English as Yi and them is perfectly acceptable in passed. Temple and Sokkuram Grotto in Rhee. Korea. Koreans will touch chil- The hostess may put your gift Kyongju, which was built more If at all possible, Koreans dren to show their warm affec- aside without opening it in order than 1,000 years ago. avoid calling a person directly tion for them. This is a compli- to save you the embarrassment if Modern Korea, however, is not by their name. Instead they use ment to let the child know how your gift is small. They’ll open it Legal without its Western influences, their title, position, trade, pro- cute he or she is. Bumping into if you politely ask. particularly from the United fession, scholastic rank or some other people while passing is At a restaurant, “going Dutch” States. For example, pizza is one honorific form such as “teacher.” mostly understood unless you is not customary – Koreans just of the nation’s favorite foreign Parents often are addressed shove him or her offensively.