He’s been to some twenty countries so far in his first year in office, but for President Obama, the welcome he received in Seoul, South Korea Thursday was particularly colorful. He mentioned it two separate times to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, noting, "I have to say that the arrival ceremony for our state visit was as spectacular as any that we've seen."

            Take look for yourself…

It was clear there was warmth between President Obama and President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea when the two met in Seoul Thursday. But if there was any doubt, the two laid that to rest when they hugged at the end of their joint press conference. It’s not clear who initiated it, but it didn’t seem to be a problem for either side. Take a look:

Presidents Obama and Lee shake hands after press conference in Seoul, South Korea (AP Photo)

President Obama and President Lee in an embrace in Seoul Thursday (AP Photo)

There’s a lot of back-slapping and hand-shaking at these types of events, but the full-on embrace is rare. I guess that’s what you call direct diplomacy.  

Traveling with the President can be hectic for the press corps. Before you go on any international trip, there are a series of vaccines and medications you may need to get in preparation for that particular country’s health hazards. But it’s a different situation when you become the health hazard. That’s what happened to the traveling press pool, who closely follow President Obama wherever he goes, on Thursday in South Korea.

It all took place just before the press left their hotel for the Blue House (the Presidential compound) in Seoul, South Korea, where Mr. Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak held meetings and a press conference.

The press who attended these events was first made to get their temperature taken, in the event that they had some sort of fever, which could make the South Korean President sick. There was no indication that any of the press was in fact sick, but due to the high temperature of the van they had been traveling in, some in the press were concerned they wouldn’t pass muster.

So what did they do? Took off their jackets and stood outside in the frigid 37 degree Seoul air.

In the end, however, none of this mattered. The electronic thermometer the South Koreans were using apparently malfunctioned. Thinking it was a battery issue, a US sound technician offered up another. Still nothing.

The whole thing was then called off and the press was allowed to enter the building and do their jobs. One South Korean official jokingly concluded that the thermometer must have been made in China.

   President Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak told their respective citizens at a press conference in Seoul Thursday that there's nothing to fear in a US-Korea Free Trade Agreement beyond improved relations and economic conditions.

GARRETT: Mr. President the Fox News Channel is very happy to see you.

OBAMA: Good to see you

 GARRET: And on behalf of the news channel, let me wish you, Michelle, Sasha and Malia a very happy and joyous 2009 holiday season.

OBAMA: That's so nice, I appreciate it, to the Fox family let me say the same.

GARRETT: Very good. Ah, we have a lot of ground to cover, kind of a lightening round nature to this, I’ll have short questions, indulge yourself if you will in short answers. A couple on health care. 

Dick Durbin said the new deadline for signing legislation is now State of the Union. Why is that delay acceptable to you? And how upset are you about it?

OBAMA: You know, I want this done as soon as possible; and, I think the American people do. We've had a long debate, but, you know, there's a reason why Health Care hasn't been reformed in forty, fifty, seventy years. It is a big, complicated piece of business. And frankly, Congress is not accustomed lately to doing big complicated pieces of business like this. Keep Reading ...

After all of his work was done in Beijing, President Obama took some time out to take in one of the Wonders of the World; the Great Wall of China. The President called it “spectacular”.

 The video speaks for itself…

Just before arriving in South Korea Wednesday, President Obama told Senior White House Correspondent Major Garrett that he’s anxious to get a US trade deal with the country through Congress next year. 

Click here…

Throughout the President’s eight-day Asia swing, which is coming to a close in Seoul, the White House has pushed for the agreement, but there is resistance from some on the Hill who want concessions first from the South Koreans.

WATCH MAJOR GARRETT THROUGHOUT THE DAY ON FOX NEWS CHANNEL AND SEE MUCH MORE OF HIS INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA AT 6PM TONIGHT ON SPECIAL REPORT WITH BRET BAIER. 

President Obama tells Major Garrett in a one-on-one interview in Beijing Wednesday that Israeli settlements are complicating the Middle East peace process.

Take a look...

FOR MUCH MORE, TUNE INTO SPECIAL REPORT WITH BRET BAIER TONIGHT ON FOX NEWS CHANNEL AT 6PM ET.

President Obama told Senior White House Correspondent Major Garrett that government loan recipient General Motors is free to make its own management decisions when it comes to the money it received. The company recently announced that although it continues to lose money, stabilizing sales and lower operating costs are getting GM on track to repay the government four years ahead of schedule.

But as General Motors decides on restructuring plans for its European subsidiary, Opel, there has been some talk of using its loan money to remedy the situation.

Take a look…

While meeting with President Obama in Shanghai Monday, Chinese Party Secretary Yu Zhengsheng touted General Motors’ success in his country.

“The business of GM in Shanghai is pretty good. By the end of October this year their sales has (sic) increased by 40 percent over the same period of last year,” Yu told Mr. Obama. “I think that the fantastic performance here in Shanghai is definitely a boost to their business in the United States.”

The President agreed, “I think they can learn from their operations here in terms of increasing sales back in the United States.”

TUNE IN TO SPECIAL REPORT WITH BRET BAIER FOR MUCH MORE OF MAJOR'S INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA AT 6PM ET.

In a sit-down interview with Senior White House Correspondent Major Garrett in Beijing, President Obama touched on his looming self-imposed deadline for closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba.

The fact that some of the detainees currently housed there are now entering the criminal legal system has stirred up anger among members of Congress whose districts could be affected. That tension came to a new height with the recent announcement of the New York-based trial of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and his four accused co-conspirators.

Click on the clip below to hear what the President told Major about efforts to close the Guantanamo facility…

 WE’LL HAVE MUCH  MORE ON SPECIAL REPORT WITH BRET BAIER. TONIGHT ON FOX NEWS CHANNEL AT 6PM ET.