An exciting evening among the diplomats

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Despite the pen name "Gypsy Scholar," I don't get out very much. Last night, however, I braved Seoul's rough streets and made my way utterly on my own toward the Grand Hyatt Hotel to attend a special reception "On the Occasion of the 31st Anniversary of the Independence of Papua New Guinea," personally invited by Ambassador Kuma Aua.

You see, the Gypsy knows people in high places ... even if he doesn't get out very much.

Anyway, I was immensely enjoying the very bearable lightness of being alone until my arrival at the Hyatt, where I followed the directions provided and inadvertently strolled into a wrong room, intially mistaking it for the Regency Ballroom. Finding myself confronted by a long mirror, several sinks, and the instant, unexpected focus of intense female attention -- a strong clue in my case that something is amiss -- I quickly backed out, found the actual ballroom through an entrance a bit further to the right, and drowned my embarrassment with a glass of refreshing white wine that the steward couldn't identify but that I tracked down as a sauvignon blanc from Australia.

One meets all sorts of people at such functions, even outside of women's restrooms. For instance, I met the marketing manager for Arabicas Limited, Eung Joe Bae, who imports coffee beans from Papua New Guinea to South Korea. I told him that if he's introducing Koreans to genuine coffee, then he's doing a commendable thing. He generously offered to supply me with their special roast, which I might take him up on.

I had an even more exciting encounter with a journalist from the Korea IT Times. I happened to be alone for a moment, sipping an Australian shiraz and musing about maybe testing that special Arabicas roast, when a Korean man approached me to introduce himself. He was a perceptive fellow, for he already had me pegged as a professor and asked if I taught literature.

In our ensuing conversation, he learned that I had previously taught at Hanshin University. At this point, he became animated and informed me that he had majored in German at Hanshin. I responded by switching to German, and he impressed me not only by replying in German but also by continuing our talk in that language.

I say "impressed" because many Korean students in Korea are not especially serious about their major, and one often meets people here who know very little about the field that they 'studied.'

Anyway, I was just about to hand him my card, when a rather burly fellow who was clearly deep into his cups came over, grabbed the journalist, spoke some angry words in Korean, and began pushing the poor fellow. Astonished by this sudden irruption, I could only stare as my conversation partner was pushed halfway across the room. Other people intervened to separate the two, the aggressive man was escorted out, and my journalist returned to accept my card and supply his own before exiting with determination in his eyes.

I wonder what that was about ... and what came of it.

A New Zealand couple that I know had been watching the entertainment and asked me if I knew why it had happened. I admitted to my ignorance but observed that although Koreans are generally peaceful, courteous people, they can also suddenly erupt in anger, and turn to violence ... albeit controlled violence. For example, once or twice a year, the political parties in the Korean parliament get angry at each other, square off, and start shoving. Their brawling usually limits itself to that and doesn't degenerate into uncontrolled melees.

The occasional punch, however, does get thrown ... but not last night.