World Cup fans are buckling under a South Korean charm offensive.
All over the country, soccer supporters, tourists and foreign journalists are being approached by pretty young women and invited to parties, the beach or local hot spots.
Yesterday, for example, while waiting for the bus, I was caught in a pincer movement by two local postgraduate students outside Busan City Hall. Ye Sun-ne and Ryu Hye-ran are volunteers who work for the Global Association of Culture and Peace, an organization that has worked with international events as far apart as Taipei, Paris and Honolulu.
Its purpose, according to the literature I was provided by the young ladies, is to "provide forums for interaction and understanding through sports, arts and culture in order to promote love and peace."
My interest piqued, I asked the ladies what this meant in practice.
"We can escort you on trips to many areas of beauty and we can help you and also organize home stays," Ye said. "Every day there is party, party and we are very busy making introductions with tourists, to drink tea and try taekwondo, for example."
Ryu said she was a taekwondo student and asked me if I wanted to try.
Regrettably, I did not have the time, but was offered a program of events for the next day, which included going to nearby Heaundae Beach, riding an elephant at Haedong YongKung Temple ("Ride an elephant here and get your wish to come true"), followed by some ceramic making and a high-tea party.
As if this wasn't enough, there were opportunities to dress up in traditional Korean clothes, eat local food and play five-a-side soccer on the beach with the Brazil supporters' team.
South Korea has gone to enormous expense and trouble to ensure the World Cup will be a success and public relations have not been ignored.
Before the World Cup started, the government appealed to the public to smile at tourists. In some other countries this might have been perceived as an infringement on the individual's fundamental right to be miserable, but not in South Korea, where the appeal has been taken to heart.
Even taxi drivers, according to a visiting academic who has been in South Korea for 10 months, have polished up their acts.
"Free interpretation" devices have been installed in many cabs, which connect driver and passenger to an interpreter over the phone.
There are also official supporters clubs for the national teams competing in the World Cup, to help fill out stadiums and forge diplomatic relations.
Before the match between France and Uruguay last night, thousands of South Koreans turned up in "Les Bleus" replica shirts, waving the tricolor and posing with French supporters.
One "official" French supporter, university student Jong Hor-seu, said all the UN-affiliated teams had their own volunteer cheerleading teams.
"France helped South Korea so we are helping them fight toward victory," he said. "All the teams have their official supporters.
Asked whether South Koreans were supporting China, Jong said, "No, of course not. They helped the North Koreans. We are not helping them."
The charm offensive seems to be working. Two Irish lads dressed in the County Kerry green of their country said the South Koreans were being more polite than usual.
One of them, who said he had been teaching English for a year in Daegu, South Korea -- but ran off into the crowd before giving his name -- said, "There has definitely been a difference [in attitude]. I'm kind of wondering what it will be like after the World Cup."
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