It was quite a transformation for me to come from a provincial life to be suddenly thrown into a global mix! Countries that I had only read about now came to life through those fellow students. In a matter of months after graduate school began, I had become what the Republicans now condescendingly, insultingly, and dangerously refer to as a "globalist." And there was no going back.
So much have I been bitten by this bug that I long for interactions with people from other parts of the world. And the list of countries that I want to travel to is long. I am proud to be a globalist.
Among the international students in graduate school across various disciplines, I had a whole bunch of classmates from South Korea. Some of the Korean classmates became good friends. Friendly enough to borrow and loan money, and share meals with. One of them took me to a Korean BBQ restaurant, which was quite an experience. Another guy took me to the Chart House in Malibu.
All of them are now doing really well as academics and policy wonks, and remain well networked. They are the Korean Mafia.
Only one among them had a Christian first name--Keith. I am not sure whether he was a Christian, as quite a few Koreans are, or if he assumed that to make his interactions easier in the US. I never did ask him that question.
After his PhD, Keith went on to work on a number of innovative urban planning solutions, including tearing down a multi-lane freeway in downtown Seoul in order to restore the river and create a green space.
Keith's wife was pursuing a graduate degree in music. Graduation recital was a part of the academic process, and Keith invited us to attend. I went there in my sloppy graduate student outfit and was shocked to see Keith in a full suit. His wife was in a flowing gown. And it was a piano recital!
Classical music appealing to people coming from different cultures has always fascinated me since growing up listening to, and reading about, Higgins Bhagavathar. Except for a tiny minority, an overwhelming majority of Carnatic music fans and musicians welcomed Jon Higgins as one of our own and even bestowed on him the honorific "Bhagavatar."
It was through Keith's wife's performance that I learnt about the spread of Western classical music in South Korea and China. Until then, I had never imagined tiny kids in Seoul or Shanghai learning to play the piano. Mao destroyed pianos, and what a cultural transformation it has been after Deng Xiaoping opened up China to the world!
Last night, Joyce Yang was the featured guest musician at the local symphony concert. Her finger movements over the keys, the way her entire body swayed to the music, and the magical sounds that she produced were a delight even to this uninformed listener.
I was not surprised by this part of her biography: "Born in 1986 in Seoul, South Korea, Yang received her first piano lesson from her aunt at the age of four." That was about the same time that Keith's wife was playing the piano as part of her graduation recital!
Two East Asian-looking women were seated a couple of rows in front of us. They did not return after the intermission--Yang was the featured artist only in the first half. I wonder if they went to talk with Yang about music and Korea and more.
I would not have had any of these experiences if I hadn't left the old country in 1987!
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