There are millions of people living in Korea and Uijeoungbu (my city), right? Yet, I walk around ourside feeling like I only live in a city of maybe a couple hundred thousand. I remember walking around the philippines jostling people constantly and always having to vear one way or the other just to avoid all the people. Not so here. As I stroll around outside, things seem rather spacious and open. The schools have large playgrounds. The roads are wide. There are even parks with benches scattered about. When I first got here I wondered where everyone was all the time. In the Philippines the shanties/houses are nearly on top of one another, rather then jus next to. Another foreign teacher here pointed out to me, what now seems rather obvious, everyone lives in really high rise apartment buildings. With all the mountains around, so many people, and not enough living space, they've gone the only way they can, up. Families live in small apartments each in some sort of high rise building, whether it has 4 stories, or 20.
However, that doesn't solve the mystery about why no one's ever outside. The only time I seem to get jostled here is when getting on and off the subway or going shopping in a grocery store. What they say at home about asians and the work ethic can definitely be jotted down as true here. The majority of people work 6 days a week and only have sundays off. That leaves little time for outside entertainment/fun, hence I don't see all that many people for living in such a heavily populated place. However....if you go out on a Sun. afternoon....that's a whole different story. It's like all the apartments empty out for the day and families are everywere.
Within the area of always working/running around, this also includes the kids. They go to their regular schools during the day (mon-sat), and then are hustled from one academy (extra-curricular learning center) to another at night, sometimes until 8 or 9pm. I don't know how they do it. Many of the kids I teach in the afternoon, also have piano academy, math academy, taikwando, korean academy (to learn to write), and also science. Which one they go to each day just shuffles with their schedules. I remember school getting done at around 3, having sports practice and going home tired at around 5-5:30. I can't imagine 8 or 9 every night. They get used to it, I suppose. It's what they know. I guess it's all a matter of what's expected of you.
I'd like to point out too, that these academies aren't free either. So, what it boils down to, as a parent, is working your butt off 6 days a week, investing nearly everything into your kids, and hoping they make something of themselves to take care of you with in the future, as well as their own kids. It's a cycle. Work and give all to your family. They give back later. I suppose it's that way to a certain extent at home, but not nearly as much. Feel free to tell me otherwise, if you disagree.