Read it if you have time.I have written this article in Korea Times of Today,12th May'99. Hopes for Capital Seoul is a world city, a capital city, a modern, commercial and industrial city. Like all such cities it also has its weaknesses. It teems with people and traffic for almost three-hundred and sixty-five days of the year, and in some areas for the full twenty-four hours of each day. For most of the time the city is enveloped in a haze of pollution which yellows the sky by day and obscures the stars at night, and can be seen after dawn or at dusk from high buildings, lying over the city like a dead brown sea. In the summer the heat turns this haze into an airless smog that adheres to and irritates the skin. Now that we are near to entering the new millennium, it뭩 time to think for Seoul to gear up for next century yielding very little to write home about. The problems are myriad and solutions are at premium leading to an existentialist lifestyle. It has been a long standing wish of the people living in Seoul that we see less of cars on the roads of Seoul. But this is a wishful thinking with the number of private vehicles bound to swell as the Korean economy is recovering after the season of IMF. Owing a car in Seoul, in fact anywhere in Korea, is not a big deal. The another think I am hoping for is a greener Seoul. At present we have patches of greenery in Seoul but the landscapes at large is quite dry. As a bonus I would love Seoul to have more interesting places to visit and spend time in. I believe that the pollution problem will remain the worry for all Seoulites and would help the metropolitan government to make Seoul more greener. I hope that the new millennium will not force Seoulites to wear the masks in public to breath clean air. The health and hygienic levels in capital also need an uplift with better sewerage and basic health facilities. I also feel that as the capital of such a great nation, Seoul should be a show-piece as far as cleanliness is concerned. We also need a very sophisticated transportation policy which may be in the shape of an efficient service to share the burden with the other means of transportation. I feel that a greater civic sense and sense of caring and compassion for others is what is to be realized. I would, in fact all who love Korea and Seoul in particular, to see roads that are safe and a pleasure to commute on. All this can be realized if each person does his or her bit to make Seoul a better place to live in. If immediate steps are not taken, one of the most beautiful city of the world could end up as an ugliest and most polluted city. Citizens of Seoul have to play an important role in making Seoul clean, pollution free and more attractive to all. Only with a cohesive effort by the concerned authorities and the people themselves, can Seoul be a healthy organism. I am hoping for a major attitudinal change on part of Seoulites. People should learn to take care of themselves and the officials should perform on their own sense of duty. If initiative is taken individually then problems related to traffic, pollution, crime and civic amenities can be met with. In a city of rampant and hectic modernity like Seoul one must not only seek out but also preserve all that can revitalize the soul. Yet these areas have the character and atmosphere which is an essential part of Seoul's uniqueness. Do generations of motor-cyclists and bus-drivers teach their sons the art of reckless driving? Is exhaling pungent fumes encouraged officially as a laudable counter-offensive against air-pollution? Despite my satirical tone I would be sorry to see these phenomena disappear completely. It has also been quite a strange but sad experience to see many people spiting on roads, in the buses and moreover in the subways. From them life in Seoul derives much of its colourfulness and vibrancy. Is it because of these weaknesses that the city's moments of beauty acquire added poignancy? Seoul, aggressive and strong, possesses many different and unexpected faces. Seoulites, with all of the spirit and endurance of the tiger, will maintain the pace of social and economical growth with the motto of keeping the city clean and pollution free. Then only, Seoul would be truly a teeming metropolis boasting the blend of old and modern Korean cultural heritage and values. Thanks for sparing your valuable time!^^ :)