Irish envoy soaking up Korea

Eamon McKee, the new Irish ambassador doesn`t want to waste any time at all.

He has been here less than four months and is eagerly experiencing every aspect of Korea that he can.

Living in Ireland for the last seven years, McKee is used to a very different cuisine than Korea has to offer.

The fare in Ireland consists of large hearty main courses with smaller side dishes, very different from the traditional Korean meals of multiple smaller dishes.

"One thing that everybody said to me when we came to Korea was that the food was fantastic. We are discovering the city by going to all the markets, Namdaemun, Dongdaemun, Insa-dong, it`s a great way to learn about the city.

"One thing that struck us was how passionate Koreans are about their food. We are dazzled by the variety; we just don`t know what a lot of it is." said McKee.

McKee`s wife, Mary, is taking Korean cooking classes so hopefully the Mckees will soon be able to enjoy Korean cooking at home.



The ambassador has brought his whole family with him. His three children are attending school here and they were all excited about coming to Korea. The family even took Korean lessons in Ireland together.

"We started taking Korean lessons in Dublin to give everyone an introduction, learning the alphabet and so on. Those came to an end when we left but we are planning further lessons," said McKee.

While not a Korean speaker, McKee sees just how important it is to learn the language even though the majority of his dealings will be in English.

"Everybody does say Korean is tough but on the other hand, you see the response from Koreans when you try to say something. I probably mangled it but nonetheless they are delighted that you try, everybody smiles and it`s very welcoming because you all feel great that you are giving it a go."

"When you learn a language there is so much of a people`s psychology and culture in a language that if you don`t make the attempt to learn it then you are losing out on an awful lot," added McKee.

Ireland has a very distinct culture and way of life that in most ways, are very different to Korea.

Korea is becoming more recognizable in Ireland, however, as globalization increases, Irish people are encountering Korea more and more in their daily lives.

"I think that inevitably there is this impression that people have of Korea that comes from the economic miracle," he said.

"People are familiar with Korea in Ireland because there are so many quality products coming into Ireland.

"They are also aware of the background, the partition, the war, these go along with the impression that Korea is exotic, it is different," explained McKee.

The ambassador sees similarities between the Korean expansion and the "Celtic Dragon`s" own rapid growth over a very short period of time.

Although the two are very different, they do enable both countries to understand the other`s situation.

The majority of Korean goods coming into Ireland are electronics and white products from companies such as LG and Samsung.

The Irish manufacturing base is very similar to Korea`s.

Ireland exports goods such as semiconductors, medical equipment and pharmaceutical goods.

"A lot of our growth has been generated at the more advanced research and development end which has been a deliberate policy by our government to increase economic growth through R&D and cooperation between the private sector and science. So in a sense we are paralleling what Korea is doing and we have recently announced that we are going to begin developing the low carbon green economy," he said.

The Korean and Irish economies are in many ways based upon the same industries. Hence, trade between the two nations will lead to both benefiting as ideas and experiences are shared.

With the new European Union free trade agreement on the horizon with Korea, McKee sees trade relations between the two nations increasing at a rapid rate.

When asked about cultural relations and programs, he said that there was nothing planned but expressed an interest in sharing Irish culture should the opportunity arise.

"The job of any ambassador is to project his country in the country that he is ambassador to. So my job is to look for any opportunity to showcase Irish culture. It deepens relations as people get to know more, it`s an ongoing project. The relationship between two countries is a range of different things, its political, cultural, and economic and they all tend to reinforce each other," said McKee.

While Korea is not going to be inundated with Irish plays and films any time soon, the option is definitely there.

Tourism between the two nations is not large however.

Both countries suffer from the distance factor. Ireland is about the farthest European country from Korea.

Another thing that detracts from tourism is the allure of neighboring countries. Both countries are situated close to well known cultural hubs.

Koreans traveling to Europe are just as likely to decide to visit the more standard European holiday destinations such as Italy or France as Irish people are to visit China or Japan when traveling to Asia.

McKee is optimistic about increasing Korean tourism to Ireland though as he seems to have figured something out.

"It does strike me that if you look at the two great leisure activities in Korea, golf and hiking you can`t pick a better spot than Ireland to go on holiday."

"Generally speaking, Tourism Ireland, which is a joint project between Ireland and Northern Ireland tourism bodies, focuses on a traveler who is interested in learning so we are promoting the idea of Ireland as the island of knowledge; knowledge that is not just contemporary and modern but knowledge that has very deep roots. So again that will probably resonate with Koreans."

As Korea is a culture that puts a lot of focus on academic achievement, if McKee can get his message out there he is confident that Koreans will soon be flocking to visit Ireland to enjoy that which it has to offer.

The new Irish ambassador has set himself wholeheartedly to engage himself with the Korean people.

(tomuden4@gmail.com)







By Tom Uden