Sit Down!

I shower daily. I use body soap, shampoo and conditioners all the time to help mask my manly scent. I then have an eye cream to cover my bags up and I pat a high quality face moisturiser into my mug desperately trying to keep a youthful look. I'm not afraid of deodorant and avoid overdosing on colognes. I can say 100 percent convincingly that I am clean.

Then why is it I am the last person Koreans will sit next to on the bus or subway? Everyday I experience the rejection of sharing a bench or seat. Instead, people chose to stand colliding into others who also reject me rather then filling the spot to my right. They would rather hold onto the dirty germ infested handles hanging from the roof than sit comfortably on my left.

But while millions of Seoulites reject me there are a select few that are brave enough to take on my adjacent seat. These brave Koreans come in the form of grandmother's and ajumas(married women usually sporting a perm) who are in a hurry. These are also the two most dangerous travelers in Korea as they will throw a nasty elbow to get any open seat or to create space. I'm not sure if I should be happy they sit next to me or fearful they're there.