The Beautiful People

You know how over half of all adults in the US are at least overweight? Here I think over half of the adult population is outrageously stunning.
Most of my university students in Korea were attractive young people. And quite a few were beautiful. There was the cute punky girl with startlingly lovely eyes she kept hidden behind over sized glasses. She had a fringe of lashes so thick and long that watching her blink was a scientific exercise. A particularly handsome young man with a jaw of granite and cheekbones that cut glass. One was even a model and Miss Korea contestant.
But here I keep getting blindsided be these incredibly stunning people. I walked out of my door the other day and a bearded gentleman, my age or older, wearing jeans and a blazer was sitting on his bike texting while waiting for something or someone. The whole tableau looked like a fashion advert. It was ridiculous how both good looking and stylish this man was. Many of the men and women here have physiques and faces that range from nineteen forties movie star to fitness model.
Part of it is that though Korean people are not particularly short- my six foot plus brother regularly encountered men his height and taller during his years there, the people here are definitely built on a larger scale. Part of it is that I grew up in America where the Scandinavian look is the epitome of beauty, especially for women. There is a reason I look around and think Hollywood. The All American Girl has been short, curvy, tall, athletic, sultry and more. But she has always been a blue eyed blonde. So I am probably more attuned to the look.
Part of it is I see a lot more skin here. Despite the micromini skirts that the young women in my classes were so fond of Korea was a conservative culture in which shorts outside of the pool were uncommon on adults, cleavage was a rarity, and folks at the beach were more likely to swim in shorts and t-shirts than bikinis. That’s changing, quickly. But it’s a process.
Here, the bikini or speedo is pretty standard swimwear. While most of the beaches are not nude there are usually a few topless sunbathers even on family beaches. Now I don’t care but, as it is not something I came up with, I am aware. At the parks, in this area everyone lives near a park, you’ll see people stripping down to their underwear to lay out on their lunch hour. The other thing you’ll see at the park is people exercising. Never have I seen so many people running. Not jogging, flat out sprinting down the streets and trails. Even my husband has started to run. He’s up to five kilometers and has dropped at least a whole size so far.
Personally, I think that most young, fit people fall into the category of attractive. Despite the “Obesity Epidemic” any stroll among students on college campuses across the US will show that the vast majority are as healthy as previous generations. And, being healthy, they walk about with a spring to their steps and a gleam in their eyes that is undeniably appealing.
But it is interesting living in a place in which everything from the architecture to the people occupying the buildings seems designed. On my #morningwalks every day I see something that makes me think “I live here!” Plus, thanks to the drought, the weather here has been amazing. Endless hours of sunshine, blue skies, and perfectly perfect temperatures. It’s the kind of weather a person can get drunk on. I think that may be the biggest reason the people here are so pretty right now. They are sun drunk and loving it. That joy is shining through the inhabitants of what is, after all, one of the happiest countries on the planet.