Say It Ain't Soju

Koreans are notoriously hard-drinking, but things seem to be changing due to factors including lower birth and marriage rates and higher life expectancy.  So are South Koreans really hanging up their shot glasses for jogging shoes?  And pets?  Seems like it:

"The report indicates that people have started spending more on sports, health and beauty due to steady increases in average life expectancy and quality of life. According to the World Bank, the average life expectancy at birth in Korea was 82.02 years in 2016, up from 80.87 in 2012. The country recently achieved the milestone of a per-capita income of $30,000.

According to the NTS [National Tax Service] report, the number of sports facilities increased by 203.2 percent between September 2014 and September 2018. The number of skin care businesses and fitness clubs also increased by 82.8 percent and 51.1 percent, respectively.

The statistics indicate that people have been spending more on hobbies. The report showed that the number of rental cottages and guesthouses increased by 130.4 percent. The number of bike stores, sports education companies and travel agencies also saw significant increases during the same period."

I teach college students, so walking home every night past packed bars with throngs of smokers out front doesn't really jibe with the larger trends here, but it does seem like a positive outcome for the country as a whole (dangerously low birth-rate aside).