Samsung Army

I thought that coming from America, where everything is "super sized", I'd be unimpressed by the scale of things in South Korea. To a certain degree that initial assumption is correct and I'm still right when it comes to cars, meal portions, parking spaces (if you can open both driver and passenger doors to get out it's a huge spot), and beer selection .

Where I was dead wrong had to do with the shipyards. Samsung and DSME are absolutely enormous. I'm not sure on numbers, but I heard that about 20 thousand people work at each yard. The parade of scooters (some of which are pretty awesome mini-choppers) headed in and out the main gates every day continue to amaze me, as I'm jammed in traffic behind the mob.

The other thing that is different about the working culture here is the institutional nature of the environment. I primarily see it during lunch, which is currently one of my favorite times at work. At Samsung there are giant 1000 seat mess halls where the Koreans flock for the noon meal. Now everyone that works for the shipyard wears a uniform consisting of a gray zip up jacket, slacks, and name tag. They look like postal employees, only more useful.

So at about 12:00, if I stroll out of my building and walk down the hill I have to jockey for position near the front door of the dining hall. By this time I'm usually surrounded by what I like to call the Samsung Army. At noon, the doors fly open and there is this mad rush down a long hallway to the entrance of the buffet. Let me just say that this is no ordinary lunch line (for an American anyway). First step is to get the tray. As you can imagine, it's the compartmentalized beauty we all had in middle school (or prison for my other readers). Pretty normal....up until the utensils have to be selected. Only choices here are stainless steel chopsticks (which are a bitch to use) and spoons. On to the food.

Rice, obviously, is a huge component. Imagine the bottom 12" of a 55 gal drum filled with sticky rice mixed with what appeared to be a few black beans. I usually grab a big spoonful. Next is an assortment of pickled veggies ( in the Kimchee style....vinegar and LOTS of chili paste) followed by some sort of a pork or fish side dish. The meat is not really the central part of the meal, but really just a bonus and to add a little flavor. Seaweed and/or Kimchee is always available. Finally, a cold soup has been served several times. The first day I had a mild cabbage and vinegar soup and the second was a peanut and sesame broth with cucumbers and rice noodles.

Once you get your tray full of fine Korean cafeteria food, you have to find a seat at one of several very long (like 100 seat long) tables. Now the chow hall fills up in about 10 minutes, so being fast through the line is key to sitting while eating. For entertainment while eating, Samsung has been kind enough to install a half a dozen or so 50" flat screen televisions around the room on which the shipyard can transmit their own programming. Yes, the shipyard has a TV station. There are songs, funny clips of "zany" shipyard workers, safety briefings, and more songs.

After I've spilled half my meal on my front because of my difficulty in using metal chopsticks, it's usually time to leave. As can be expected, the tray and silverware get dumped onto a conveyor belt for washing. The odd next step, that I still think is strangely backwards (yet appealing when I tried it), is to walk out of the mess hall into another hallway lined with cups and water dispensers. Since you don't get anything to drink with your spicy meal, now seems like a great time for a refreshing beverage. So...you pound down a few cups of water, drop the cup into a bin for washing, and head out the door. On the way out, you can usually swipe a few napkins at the mirror stations to make sure you've wiped away any stray chili or Kimchee from your face.

I still can't read the lunch menu, but it adds an element of surprise to my day.