2.5 months in Seoul, South Korea
 
Friday, August 04, 2006
Korean "Summer Dress Code"
Now that the swelteringly hot weather of Korean August has arrived, the newspapers have been putting out articles about dressing for the heat.
Let me rephrase "dressing for the heat". Dressing to avoid offending people, despite the heat.

From the Korea Times, "Dress Properly, or Don’t Complain of Stares".
By Korean college student Park Yu-rie.

She complains that every day, "
A naked leg is plastered on my leg. Another naked arm is stuck on my arm."
Naked leg. E.g. leg in shorts or skirt. Obscene, the nakedness of a female leg.
Not to speak of the fantasies that men have of naked arms.
She continues, "
And once again, I close my eyes as to avert my vision from staring at the nakedness. "
Every time I see someone's arm exposed in a t-shirt or tank top, it makes me feel faint as well. Right. This girl had better not go to a mokyoktang (Korean public bath), she'd be scarred for life.


A slightly more useful article, from the Chosunilbo: Summer Fashion No-No's and How to Avoid Them. I completely agree with the "No"'s, particularly:
-
"panties visible over a pair of low-rise pants -- plus, for good measure, some excessive flab around the tummy. "
...popularly called muffin tops in America, as shown below

- "wearing shirts so tight they show the shape of your nipples; wearing just a vest without anything inside it."
Men, this is just gross.
- "staggering around in 10 cm wedge heels when you can’t cross the street in time"
Though I have to admit that Korean women are pretty good at running in high heels.

The article also says that, "for men, wearing T-shirts with armpits soaked or discolored with perspiration" is a No, and informs us that "there are sweat-absorbing pads to be attached around armpits available on the market." Wow, having pads strapped to your armpits seems uncomfortable... ever heard of a thing called deodorant?



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posted by Jane @ 9:49 PM  
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Name: Jane
Location: New Haven, CT, United States
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