Widening world view International field trip brings South Koreans to Bangor

Chewing on salmon and roasted red potatoes, seven visitors from South Korea spent Friday afternoon learning a little about the United States.

Accompanying the delegates in a visit to Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor were translators, an escort and state Rep. Emily Cain, D-Orono.

Many Koreans speak English, but during their visit Friday the delegates and their hosts all wore earpieces attached to belt-clipped receivers. Two translators spoke softly into a microphone enabling simultaneous translation.

It’s that kind of ease in understanding that is behind the trip, arranged by the American Council of Young Political Leaders. The council is a bipartisan organization that conducts international field trips for emerging leaders ages 25-40 to learn more about foreign nations.

Delegate Hak Jin Kim said he believes this type of experience is valuable in understanding other nations.

He and the other South Koreans are on a two-week visit to the United States. At EMCC, the delegates stopped for a tour and a lunch buffet.

The 31-year-old is a lecturer at Chung-ang University and an elected member of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council, the chief legislature governing the Korean province of Gyeonggi.

ACYPL’s goal for the trip was to help the delegates understand the United States in regard to politics, economics and culture, Cain said.

Cain, at 26 the state’s youngest legislator, was an ACYPL delegate herself for two weeks in May when she visited Venezuela.

“My whole worldview has changed since I went to Venezuela,” Cain said.

At one point during the luncheon, Hak Jin Kim turned to Cain across the conference room and said, “Emily, thanks so much,” in flawless English.

The delegates arrived in Washington on July 15 for the first leg of their tour. Wednesday evening they flew to the Portland International Jetport.

On Thursday morning, the delegates toured Portland, then L.L. Bean in Freeport.

On Friday morning, the delegates were in Augusta, having breakfast at Republican and Democratic state headquarters.

EMCC President Joyce Hedlund gave the delegates a tour of her campus.

At one point she temporarily got ahead of many of the delegates when they stopped at a large picture window to watch children with painted faces playing at a Red Cross day camp on the other side.

The delegates were not here as representatives of the South Korean government, according to Cameron McGlothlin, program manager of ACYPL.

ACYPL is bipartisan and strives to include an equal number of political party members as delegates and hosts, McGlothlin said.

Daniel Williams, director of development at EMCC, said he was pleased with how the visit went.

This sort of exchange is important, Williams said, “especially in today’s world, which is so much smaller … understanding your surroundings means understanding the world.”

The delegates are scheduled to visit Bar Harbor today and to see a Portland Sea Dogs baseball game Sunday. On Monday they will fly to South Dakota.

After a visit Friday afternoon to the University of Maine in Orono, the delegates were treated to pizza and beer Friday night at an Orono landmark: Pat’s Pizza.