Get ready for the 2016 Rotary International Convention in Seoul, Korea, 28 May – 1 June.
During the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, government officials were in a quandary about kimchi. Their concern was that the particularly pungent smell of this beloved national dish would be unpleasant to foreign visitors. Volunteers for the organizing committee were strongly advised to brush their teeth after meals.
Perhaps they need not have worried: It turns out that many of the visitors acquired a taste for kimchi. Exports of it have grown steadily since then, and kimchi can be found in supermarkets and on restaurant menus around the world.
Rotarians attending the 2016 Rotary International Convention in Seoul from 28 May to 1 June can plan on having easy access to kimchi, and lots of it.
For the uninitiated, kimchi is fermented vegetables. There are more than 100 varieties, but the most familiar form is made from napa cabbage, each leaf lovingly covered with a spicy red pepper paste and left to cure in a cool place, sometimes for a week, or sometimes for much longer.
Kimchi is consumed at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, no matter what else is served at the meal. The South Korean government solicited American help in delivering kimchi to its soldiers during the Vietnam War. And the first Korean astronaut took a stash of kimchi to the International Space Station in 2008 – probably with an extra toothbrush. – Susie Ma
Register for the 2016 Rotary convention in Seoul at www.riconvention.org.
