Culture Clash: What if you go to a new country and hate the food? @AnastasiaVitsky @DecadentPub

Guest Post

by Anastasia Vitksy 

Food. If anything can symbolize culture clash in one delectable—or disgusting—morsel, it’s the food we put into our mouths. When Indigo Adams, a naïve farmgirl, travels to South Korea for a blind date, she expects Koreans to think and behave like everyone in her hometown. Norms for names, greetings, dress, and basic etiquette differ so sharply that Indi wants to go home. Her horror with Korean culture reaches its peak when a waiter serves her seafood mixed with pasta.

She [Hyunkyung] gave a small smile, shrugged, and motioned for the waiter to set down the heaping platter of pasta adorned with oysters and shrimp in their shells.

Spillville, Iowa, did not have much in the way of seafood, and my mouth puckered at a food combination not found in nature. Shrimp and oysters, those were easy to identify. What about the white round circles that appeared to be a cross between tofu and marshmallows? And those purple-edged white rings lay next to more purple-edged white strips with definite suckered tentacles.

CEO of the multi-billion-dollar Han, Inc., Hyunkyung Han, shares Indi’s horror about their match. Hyunkyung wanted a bilingual, bicultural Korean American who would serve as a secondary figurehead. While she struggles to accommodate American ignorance, she judges Indi by herself. Everyone loves kimchi, the Korean national dish…right?

“It’s a little bland,” I agreed. “The sauce needs some spice to cut through the thickness. Here, have some kimchi to cleanse the palate.” I picked up a few choice pieces of fermented, spicy cabbage and set them on the edge of her plate. She looked, if possible, even greener. “Kimchi is good for you,” I said. “Full of vitamin C, low in calories....”

Indi Go picked up her fork and gave a weak stab at the limp cabbage. She patted the tines on top of and next to the kimchi but not through it. Did she not know how to use chopsticks, either?

Bold, confident Hyunkyung stares in gentle puzzlement. She loves kimchi with pasta, and she loves pasta with seafood. Everyone does, don’t they? If Indi doesn’t like the pasta, adding kimchi will make everything better. Right?

Don’t you giggle as you picture poor, horrified Indi staring from the fermented cabbage to the noodles?

How does Hyunkyung settle their differences? If I tell you, I’ll spoil the story. :D Instead, I’ll say that Ms. Han owns a special box of toys and refuses to share.

Ask our dear Sara about refusing to share toys and what happens to naughty girls who do not share. There were plenty of witnesses at the Love Spanks 2015 event when someone declined to use her safeword…

What would you find most difficult about living abroad? Or, if you have experience living abroad, what do you guess would be most difficult?

Ana’s note: I will give a small Korean-themed surprise to one random commenter on this post.

Blurb

Broken-hearted when her live-in boyfriend impregnates her best frenemy, Indigo Adams accepts a one-way ticket to Seoul, South Korea, and a challenge from her Great-Aunt Matilda: Forget that boy. Go and make something of yourself.

Bruised from an international public relations nightmare as the new heir to the multi-billion-dollar Han Incorporated, Hyunkyung Han seeks positive publicity in the form of a wedding. She consults with Madame Eve to find a nice, well-behaved Korean American with bilingual and bicultural skills.
Instead, Madame Eve sends Indi, a naïve philosophy major graduate working for minimum wage at the local pub. Enraged to find Indi can’t speak one word of Korean, Hyunkyung orders her sent home on the next plane to Spillville, Iowa.

Then Hyunkyung shakes Indi’s hand, and the sparks fly. With all of her professional responsibilities, how can Hyunkyung allow herself to fall for the wrong woman? How can Indi feel attraction for a woman who despises her?

Seoul Spankings offers a light-hearted romp through the perils and joys of navigating an intercultural romance. Certain to delight all fans of a happily ever after with a kinky twist.

Author bio
Cookie queen, wooden spoon lady, and champion of carbs, Anastasia Vitsky specializes in F/F fiction. She hates shoes and is allergic to leather. When not writing about women who live spankily ever after, she coordinates reader and author events such as Spank or Treat, Love Spanks, and Sci Spanks. Her favorite event is Ana’s Advent Calendar, a month-long celebration of books, community, and making a difference.

She is too afraid to watch Doctor Who, but she adores The Good Wife and anything with Audrey Hepburn. In her next life, she will learn how to make the perfect pie crust. She can be found at governingana.wordpress.com and on twitter @AnastasiaVitsky.

Social Media Links

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Printable Book List: https://governingana.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/printable-book-list-for-anastasia-vitsky.pdf