Basing my Korean reflections on stays at three hotels that spanned the social spectrum, I sensed commonalities despite one being a modern, high-end resort complex and another an aging facility that had seen better days. Common domestic objects –
a rice cooker, slippers – carried an essence of communal and family life into these temporary accommodations. Even the
table and chairs in a surburban hotel room suggested one might sit sedately together as if in a quiet garden while outside the busy roadway said otherwise.

Presented as metaphors, these spaces seemed to echo the
aspirations of a contemporary Korea. I joined those on
holiday taking photos in the mountains and on the beach. Groups posed for each other, couples set up tripods or used
selfie-sticks, preening and smiling. Holiday snaps, just as everywhere, proved one was having a great time.

Back in Seoul, walking in the shopping districts, the simulated wellness which infuses today’s commercialized world was
evident – fashion, style, products of all kinds and invitations to trending lifestyles.