SDLP 110: Eighth Cultural Post

[Constantinos Beauclair-Kolomtsas]

I was intrigued but the cultural project that presented Turkish coffee culture. A lot of the words used to describe tools used in coffee making were similar or identical to Greek, such as flijani, which showcased the influence Ottoman rule had on Greek society and Greek culture. The Korean cultural project on plastic surgery was by far the most interesting for me. I had no idea how popular plastic surgery is in South Korea and how looking more "white" in features such as the eyes and nose was a trend. A video that really struck me was that of an ten year old girl that was waiting anxiously for her first plastic surgery. I cannot imagine allowing my child to have plastic surgery at any point in his life before he or she becomes independent. Another interesting presentation discussed bullying in Korea and the high rate of suicide due to stress from demanding academic expectations from families. A girl in one video stated that she could not see her parents because by the time she returned from studying they were already asleep, which made me appreciate the education system of Greece and the US.