It’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and in my part of the world, it’s been hot and humid. As a boy, my Tennessee environment often saw rain showers in the afternoons arising from moisture through the Gulf of Mexico and cloud fronts traversing the continental United States. They cooled things off. It’s topsy-turvy these days, with Chicago feeling like a sub-tropical zone and showers happening more often at night.

This put me in a mind to discuss my memories of summer in Seoul. I spent a wonderful summer there some years ago, part of my time on sabbatical. The weather then was quite hot, and there were heavy rains on many days, more like monsoon rains. I had no car and often found myself soaked. That gave relief from the heat but wasn’t so good when going to my universities for meetings!

Korean culture includes the idea of fighting heat with heat. I had a hard time with that but tried. Consuming hot and spicy foods does make me sweat. My stomach isn’t the best with an abundance of chili peppers and what not. I did enjoy going to the sauna on a more........

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