SIMPLY: SOUTH KOREA

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (Hangul: 대한민국; Daehan Minguk), is a sovereign state located in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. The name "Korea" is derived from Goryeo, a dynasty which ruled in the Middle Ages. Its neighbors are China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. South Korea lies in the north temperate zone with a predominantly mountainous terrain. It covers a total area of 99,392 square kilometers and has a population of 50 million. The capital and largest city is Seoul, with a population of 9.8 million. (Source: Wikipedia)

During Ceauşescu regime, Romania had no economical relations with South Korea, but with North Korea, due to the communist regime of both countries. After the 1989 Revolution in Romania, South Korea could be visited by Romanian tourists as well. It is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, but also has one of the world's lowest birthrates (1.21 children per woman). Dealing with this very low birthrate will be one of the major problems for this country in the 21st century. Confucian attitudes about the importance of a male heir have led to a strongly skewed sex ratio, with about 112 men for every 100 women encouraging many Korean men in rural areas to seek wives from other countries such as China, Vietnam and the Philippines. About 85% of South Koreans live in urban areas. Koreans believe that the things that set them the most apart from other Asian cultures are their cuisine, their language and their hangul script.