"I do not wish my house to be walled on all sides and my windows stuffed. I want the cultures of all lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible." - Gandhi
I wanted to write about some of the things I've noticed, experienced, & discovered in Korea, so over time I would jot notes down in my I-pod. While I will admit most of them are pet peeves, I've learned a lot from living in a different culture for a year. I do not look down on Korea's culture what-so-ever! America has plenty of its own flaws, so to say it's any better would be a lie. However, living here has made me appreciate certain things more, as well as see some situations with a different perspective. On top of living in a new culture, I have also benefited from the experience of traveling across the world to live by myself & do something I've never done before. Meeting new people, listening to their stories, & creating relationships within the fellow foreigner community has also played a major role in the person I am now. All of this in just one short year! It's been a memorable journey & I can't wait to use the knowledge I've gained from it in my future life choices!
Here's a list of things I will miss in Korea:
- Feeling of safety (leaving my purse unattended without worry, walking down dark alleys, honesty in returning lost items)
- Not having to carry keys of any kind! Some people had apt keys, but I was happy to have an electronic key pad (wouldn't feel as safe with that back home though)
- Bank books..sounds odd, but I like the electronic bank book that you can update at the ATM
- Bars closing at 6am (ok, I agree it's not healthy to stay out at a bar that late, but I enjoyed the handful of fun nights I had with friends staying out late & walking home when the sun was rising)
- Being able to walk down the street with an alcoholic beverage (kinda like a mini-vegas haha)
- Being able to walk down the street with an alcoholic beverage (kinda like a mini-vegas haha)
- Public transportation, especially trains & subways (the convenience of it, not the crowded claustrophobic feeling I'd get from time to time on it)
- Ondol (heated floors)
- Cheap price of going out to eat with friends (at Korean restaurants at least)
- The little bells you press for service at restaurants
- The amount of money I get paid to do minimal work...I mean yes, teaching ESL has it's difficulties, but overall the job is fairly easy
- NO RENT!
- Cheap gas & electric bills
- No car payment or having to worry about the cost of gas & riding my bike everywhere
- How easy it is to get around the country quickly
- The opportunity to travel to other countries (convenient and affordable)
- All the free time I had to just relax & do whatever I wanted to
- All the free time I had to just relax & do whatever I wanted to
- And most of all....my awesome friends I've made here!!
However, I will NOT miss these things:
- Feeling the need to take two showers to scrub off the smell of smoke after you come home from the bars, no matter how little time you were in there
- Humidity of summer & freezing temps of winter
- A bathroom entirely covered in water all the time
- Waiting 2 days for clothes to dry
- Hand-washing every dish
- The difficulty for cooking for one person (and finding the ingredients for non-Korean food)
- Jumping over piles of puke and globs of spit on the morning walk to the bus
- Seeing everyone's trash on the street corners & scattered everywhere else in small piles
- Seeing everyone's trash on the street corners & scattered everywhere else in small piles
- Having to depend on only public transportation (yes, I said I will miss it, but sometimes it's easier to have a car in certain situations)
- Overpriced western-food
- Instant coffee
- Korean cable TV
- Never being informed of important things at work
- Korean food in general (yes, I learned to like a few things, but overall it's not my favorite)
- Getting glared at for showing skin or cleavage, lol
- Lack of "common decencies" (ex: saying "bless you," "please," & "sorry") & getting shoulder-bumped all the time
- Korean SPAM text messages!!! (3-5 per day)
- I could think of more, but that's all for now, lol!
The following is the list of the notes that I jotted down over time about what I noticed around me.
My Personal List of Things I've Discovered in Korea:
The following is the list of the notes that I jotted down over time about what I noticed around me.
My Personal List of Things I've Discovered in Korea:
- Smacking! That's a pet peeve back home, but it's 10x as worse here!
- Lack of courtesy and consideration (shoulder-bump wars!)
- No such thing as a line...
- Pushing and shoving through people like it decides if you're going to heaven or hell
- Overcrowding trains, buses, and subways rather than waiting for the next one
- Koreans answer everything with "maybe!"
- There is no special assistance for special needs students, so sad!
- School keeps the toilet paper in the staff office rather than in the restroom (because that makes so much sense right?!)
- Koreans talking about you in Korean and when you ask them what they are talking about because you heard them say your name, and they reply, "Oh, we were talking about how beautiful you are!" That's when you know they are lying!
- Squatter toilets...just not as comfy!
- Walking into a clothing store and having the store lady tell you "Largey ubsayo!" aka "you're too fat for the clothes in here"
- Lack of dressing rooms & lack of size labels on clothes
- All shirts either look like they are for Barbie, or they look like you could fly in them because of the extra baggy style under the arms of the shirt
- Hips don't exist on Korean females, therefore it is nearly impossible to buy jeans or shorts that fit foreigners (unless you make a trip up to Seoul)
- Foot size larger than an American 9? No shoes for you!
- Whiny Korean girls who take a picture of themselves or re-apply make-up every 5 seconds whether they are sitting or walking
- At the schools they have you change into slippers, yet you walk outside in snow, water, grass, spit, etc. to get from building to building, then enter the classrooms. Doesn't that defeat the purpose?!
- Going to the gym is a whole complicated process in itself
- Getting stared at in the saunas for having tattoos or constantly having creepy ajummas follow you around to different areas of the sauna & speak Korean to you as if you understand
- Going into a Korean hair salon and not walking out with un-requested bangs or hair up to your chin is considered a miracle
- You have to be careful to make sure any cosmetic you buy doesn't have bleach in it!
- You pray your taxi driver doesn't speak English so that you don't have to interpret what the hell he's trying to say to you
- Hair accessories....good God, the hair accessories!
- Forgot your deodorant for the weekend? No fear, you can find some at the convenient store, but for the inconvenient price of around $12 for one small spray can
- High heels, short skirts, and sitting in the squatting position - not a nice look Korean ladies!
- Ajummas use public transport not only to transport themselves, but also their crops in a baby stroller (sans baby of course), and a few cardboard boxes
- I once saw a young woman pushing her child in a wire basket w/ wheels (like a shopping cart) across the street, while an ajumma pushed her crops in a baby stroller the opposite way across the street...oh the irony!!
- Men carry not only their girlfriend's purse, but also their own
- I've seen more "crazy" people on the streets here than back home (I wonder if they believe in insane asylums here?)
- I've admired more shoes on males than females, because it doesn't matter what gender you are, pink Nike's are acceptable
- Breakfast is the same as lunch and dinner, sweet American style breakfast items are considered desserts or snacks and eggs and sausages are part of lunch or dinner.
- Being force fed Korean food in the office or at staff lunches and dinners no matter how much you insist "kinchanayo" which means "I'm ok or I'm fine"
- Being asked if the food is too spicy by every single person at the table during eating
- Being corrected on your usage of chopsticks on a daily basis
- Every time the principal is sitting at the lunch table it never fails that you didn't put any of the side dishes like kimchi, radishes, anchovies on your tray that day and like clockwork he looks at your co-teacher to translate to you that it's traditional in Korea to eat these foods...oops!
- Any Korean who stops you on the street and can speak English is most likely trying to convert you into their church
The next list is one I modified & classified into categories from a fellow English teacher. I posted one of these lists before, but this is a more lengthy one. People who have actually lived here may relate more, but still kinda funny & interesting if you want to know what it's like to live/teach in Korea!
Living & Accommodations:
- Your
apartment's peephole is useless because it's always covered with a restaurant
or grocery store flyer.
- You have not
had to change a light bulb since moving in.
- The sound of
the doorbell means that the Jehovah’s Witness want to call you a heathen. They
have English DVDs if you can’t understand that you’re going to Hell.
- The dirt in
the space between the sliding doors builds up faster than you can possibly
control.
- You’ve stopped
wondering why all your cardboard disappears the minute you throw it out.
- Half of your furniture IS cardboard.
- Half of your furniture IS cardboard.
- You find
yourself chopping vegetables on the floor or on top of the fridge because there
is no counter space.
- Dishes and
ironing are taking up too much of your spare time.
- You never shut
your bathroom door for fear of drowning...
- You need to
start making a schedule of your laundry waiting period...
- At least once
a week you crawl across your apartment floor to get something you forgot after
putting your shoes on...
- There are only 3 shower settings – boiling hot, luke warm, freezing cold…
- There are only 3 shower settings – boiling hot, luke warm, freezing cold…
- You wince
every time you turn on your bathroom faucet…
- You still have
no clue how the garbage/recycling system works here...
- You leave the
house almost every day with the hem of your pants soaking wet...
- All you watch
on TV are Korean game shows and K-Pop music videos…
- Loud
construction workers are Korea's answer to the alarm clock...
- Hope you can read Korean because your heater & washing machine aren't in English!
- Only fools move furniture up a stairwell.
- Your non-smoking hotel room smells suspiciously like smoke.
School Life/Teaching:
- On overnight
school field trips, six highly intoxicated chaperones are just as effective as
one sober one.
- Kids better be on the bus when we leave because there are no head counts.
- On field trips, the kids are perfectly safe being let loose on their own in a public place while the teachers have a picnic and/or take shots of Soju.
- Kids better be on the bus when we leave because there are no head counts.
- On field trips, the kids are perfectly safe being let loose on their own in a public place while the teachers have a picnic and/or take shots of Soju.
- There is no
better browser than Internet Explorer...if you download Google Chrome on your school computer, it is likely they will delete it...every time!
- No matter what page it’s on, the word search will be completed first.
- Mechanical pencils break after each letter but students love them.
- A cutesy pencil case is an elementary girl’s most prized possession.
- No matter what page it’s on, the word search will be completed first.
- Mechanical pencils break after each letter but students love them.
- A cutesy pencil case is an elementary girl’s most prized possession.
- Your school’s
English section is decorated with spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
- You never know
how to dress. It might be school picture day or you might be going on a staff
hike up a mountain. You just never know.
- The P.E.
teacher is the chubbiest Korean at the school.
- At least 1 student has gotten your phone number somehow.
- At least 1 student has discovered where you live somehow.
- At least 1 student has gotten your phone number somehow.
- At least 1 student has discovered where you live somehow.
- For English
teachers, foreigners use the non-existent word “deskwarming” a lot.
- The school and
the DMOE is always trying to screw us over. Always.
- You feel like
you’re playing Frogger every time you walk to school or have lunch in the
cafeteria.
- During class, your co-teachers are more concerned with fixing their badminton rackets and checking
the floors for rubbish than they are with teaching (or they sleep!)
- You & your students' fate is
often determined through a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors.
- You can’t be
trusted to teach regular class alone. But if it’s after school, they’ll expect
you to teach multiple grades, levels, and gender groups alone for hours.
- You can
pronounce over 20 of your students Korean names perfectly but none of them can
pronounce yours, even if it’s only 4 letters long.
- School
sports day has nothing to do with sports.
- Wearing your gym clothes to class every day after running in circles is comfortable and hygienic.
- You’ve-ah started talking like-ah this-ah
- Wearing your gym clothes to class every day after running in circles is comfortable and hygienic.
- You’ve-ah started talking like-ah this-ah
- The
school bell makes you crave ice cream...
- You hit
the switch language button on your keyboard more often than the space bar…
- Who
needs a janitor when you have a school full of kids?
- You
understand that your chalk will break and your whiteboard marker will give out
several times in one class.
- You
look forward to discovering another new species of giant insect that flies in
through the open classroom window.
- You
cross your arms in an X every time you say NO or disagree about something.
Food/Eating/Stores:
- The
perfect sidedish to pizza is a bag of pickles.
- Food allergies are non-existent. You should be able to eat anything and give the kids whatever you want.
- Food allergies are non-existent. You should be able to eat anything and give the kids whatever you want.
- Pizza
and hamburgers are snacks; not meals.
-
Easy-open packages are definitely not easy to open.
- Most
food comes with 3 layers of packaging.
- You
look over your shoulder for your kids every time you buy booze or cigarettes.
- You love buying food in the supermarket that is scotch-taped to something else.
- You love buying food in the supermarket that is scotch-taped to something else.
- The
wait staff likes to cook your food and feed it to you.
- “Free
samples” means “feed your entire extended family” (even if they’re not there).
- People
just love to watch your groceries go through the checkout.
-
Chocolate pies are currency – who’d have guessed that?
- Clerks
in the stores stand at attention and ready to pounce on you with customer
service.
- All
food is "delicious" with no exceptions...
- The
smell of kimchi, garlic and soju is an aphrodisiac...
- Fish
and rice belong at any breakfast table...
- Everyone is very impressed with your chopstick skills and kimchi-eating ability…
- Everyone is very impressed with your chopstick skills and kimchi-eating ability…
- Animals
love to advertise their own consumption on the restaurants advertisements....
- You
will buy ANYTHING with English instructions…
- All food comes either in a single serving or a convenient 30-pack…
- All food comes either in a single serving or a convenient 30-pack…
- The
only thing Chinese about a Chinese restaurant is the name…
- You
wish the country would import cows…
- If you
had a wish, you would make every person taste a Western pizza…
- You can
wrap your umbrella when entering a store - this is genius!
Transportation:
- Koreans
are in a rush to go everywhere... except when they are standing on escalators
or moving walkways.
- Even if
the cab driver has no idea where you want to go, he will spend 10 minutes
pretending that he does.
- Middle
school girls practice their dance routines at the subway station.
- You can conveniently buy thermal underwear on the subway. Its use will also be demonstrated for you.
- You can conveniently buy thermal underwear on the subway. Its use will also be demonstrated for you.
- People
are respectfully quiet on public transportation. (you WILL get shushed & glared at)
-
Pedestrians share the sidewalk with automobiles and motorcycles...
- Every
city bus will have at least 2 teenage boys sitting in each other's laps and
playing with each other's hair...
- People think you should board the train first before allowing people to get off...
- People think you should board the train first before allowing people to get off...
- Little
kids traveling alone on public transit is nothing to be concerned about...
- Even if
you are fast asleep on the subway or city bus, you won't miss your stop...
- No
matter where you are standing, you are always in an old lady’s way…
- There
are more bags of recycling taking up space on public transportation than baby
strollers.
- Parking
a car means turning off the engine.
- Stop lights & stop signs are pointless
- Sleeping on public transportation is an art form
Out in
Public:
- It
makes perfect business sense to open your cell phone or jewelry store right
next to 20 other stores that sell the exact same thing.
- The push/pull signs on doors are often blatant lies meant to embarrass you.
- It's impossible to flirt through eye contact because everyone is looking at their phones.
- The push/pull signs on doors are often blatant lies meant to embarrass you.
- It's impossible to flirt through eye contact because everyone is looking at their phones.
- No one
is trying to steal your wallet, kidnap your kids and shoot you in the head.
- Korean
women can do anything in high heels.
- One of
the double doors is always locked. They vary which one each day to confuse you.
- You
think you’re back in university after hearing loud drunks stumbling home at 4am
on a Sunday morning… but then realize its 50 year olds wearing suits.
- You’re
getting used to walking on brick after brick after brick.
-
Restrooms don't have tiolet paper or paper towels...
- A
single bar of soap can kill the bacteria on the hands of 1,000 people…
- Every child you pass on the street will say 'hello' to you...
- Every child you pass on the street will say 'hello' to you...
- Kids
and non-smokers are invincible to second-hand smoke...
- Trash can fires are not just for the homeless anymore...
- You are at risk of being hit by a car the second you walk out of your apartment...
- Trash can fires are not just for the homeless anymore...
- You are at risk of being hit by a car the second you walk out of your apartment...
- People
think that it is really nice to meet you once again for the 300th time...
- Most laws are merely suggestions...
- Most laws are merely suggestions...
- The
apocalypse has not arrived... it's just some guy selling fish...
-
Everyone is fascinated by their own face and like to take lots of pictures of
themselves...
- There is no pornography anywhere but there's at least 5 brothels in every small town...
- There are only 2 languages ever spoken - Korean and English...
- There is no pornography anywhere but there's at least 5 brothels in every small town...
- There are only 2 languages ever spoken - Korean and English...
-
Everyone, including 7 year olds, has a nicer cell phone than you...
- The
most used feature on the phone is the mirror.
- Cell
phones are meant to always be turned on...
- Your shoes’ safety is always at the back of your mind…
- Someone is always watching you…
- Sometimes you feel that the whole city is just a giant school…
- Your shoes’ safety is always at the back of your mind…
- Someone is always watching you…
- Sometimes you feel that the whole city is just a giant school…
- People
only need to walk one block to reach a convenience store or PC room…
- People politely start public trash piles rather than littering everywhere…
- People politely start public trash piles rather than littering everywhere…
- Little
children will pee wherever they are.
-
Matching outfits show a committed relationship.
- Men in business suits puke in the street. Seems classier than home.
- Men in business suits puke in the street. Seems classier than home.
- 1980s
American popular culture is catching on here fast.
- You admire their ability to squat...they make it look so comfortable!
- You will hear the same techno music song coming from 5 different stores on the street within walking a few feet
- It's perfectly acceptable to literally grab customers off the street to get them to come inside your store.
Older
Generation:
- The
elderly have more active lives than you do.
- The
elderly are scarier than teenagers.
- Even
when your spine is twisted all to hell, you can push with the best of them.
- Visors are always in style
Money:
- 10 won
is of less use than a penny.
- You can
often make purchases by swiping your card, without entering codes or signing
anything. You feel very secure about your finances.
Exercise/Health:
- You
need at least 3 pairs of shoes to go to the gym and must store them in separate
lockers.
- The
treadmill is for practicing reading and texting while walking.
- Old men at the gym spend over 10 minutes blow-drying their pubes.
- Old men at the gym spend over 10 minutes blow-drying their pubes.
- The gym
has equipment for every possible useless exercise you can do and they’re being
used regularly.
- You
find yourself disappointed in the equipment offered at the free public park
gyms...
- You
receive health advice from 10 year olds.
- Your
medical exam is like a relay race.
- You
start telling people they should “take a rest.”
Weather/Nature:
- You
like 2 of the seasons. The start of Spring and Fall are more anticipated than
Christmas.
- Your hands are cold all winter. You can’t stop sweating all summer.
- Your hands are cold all winter. You can’t stop sweating all summer.
-
Curiously, you are a little excited about the yellow dust season…
- You
keep wondering what makes this season so distinct from the others…
- You’re
getting used to fruit flies buzzing around your head.
-
Mosquitoes and fruit flies are more resilient than cockroaches.
Language:
- If
foreigners can’t understand Korean, then they are obviously clueless to body
language and gestures as well.
- You are not even sure that you could imitate the hacking sound Koreans make when they spit. It's all in the pronunciation.
- You are not even sure that you could imitate the hacking sound Koreans make when they spit. It's all in the pronunciation.
- You
actually prefer bowing to saying hello…
Other Random:
- Koreans
have made condescension an art form.
- Sometimes the only thing more annoying than Koreans are other foreigners.
- Nothing says I love you better than a cheap candy breadstick.
- Broom handles are needlessly short. Now you know why their spines are so twisted in old age.
- Kids go crazy for leading a wire rim across the ground with a stick and throwing arrows in a bucket.
- Blue eyes can put others into a state of hypnosis.
- Sometimes the only thing more annoying than Koreans are other foreigners.
- Nothing says I love you better than a cheap candy breadstick.
- Broom handles are needlessly short. Now you know why their spines are so twisted in old age.
- Kids go crazy for leading a wire rim across the ground with a stick and throwing arrows in a bucket.
- Blue eyes can put others into a state of hypnosis.
- People
love to know your blood type...
- Children love arm hair...
- There are more oscillating-fan-related deaths than shootings...
- Any decent men's tie should sparkle...
- You are now always ready for anything to happen…
- You actually believe that you are really handsome or beautiful!
- There are more oscillating-fan-related deaths than shootings...
- Any decent men's tie should sparkle...
- You are now always ready for anything to happen…
- You actually believe that you are really handsome or beautiful!
That's all for now! Will update about my vacation to France once I'm back in Texas!
XOXO,
Amanda
