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Published: February 26th 2015
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I'm going to take a break from the posts about the places I've visited for a minute. (Don't worry, Taipei and Seoul will be coming soon!) I have no been in South Korea for just about 3 months. I am 25% of the way through with my teaching contract. I survived my first Christmas away from home by spending it with friends instead. I have watched my niece and nephew get bigger and reach milestones without getting to see them except in photos; I missed my niece's second birthday. In the next 9 months, three of my closest friends will get married and I won't be there to celebrate with them.
In three months, I have visited Hong Kong, Manila, Taipei, and Seoul as well as taken several trips in to Busan to explore. I have made friends from around the world. I learned that I really am brave and independent enough to get on a plane and travel to a city / country where I know absolutely no one, can't speak the language, and have proven that I can find my way. I have experienced things I never would have without leaving home (how many friends back home can
tell me they have ridden to the top of a skyscraper in the world's fastest passenger elevator??).
The past three months have had a lot of ups and downs. Some days I swore I was ready to pack my suitcase and hop the next plane home and forget I ever wanted to live in Asia. The culture shock was far worse than I'd anticipated. For teachers that have come to Korea, you are likely able to relate. For any one else.... you have no idea. Seriously. As I round the end of my 3 month mark in Korea, I've started to think about some of the lessons I've learned since being here. I'm going to share 13 of the things I've learned since the first day I set foot in Korea.
Disclaimer: these are from my personal experiences only.
So, in no particular order....
Language barriers. I knew before I got here that learning Korean was going to be a challenge, and I was right. It's HARD! Even teachers that have been here for years are far from fluent; they often have a good vocabulary base but horrible grammar.
Personal space - it doesn't exist. Not in public spaces at least. I've been on buses where people are almost literally packed like sardines. People will cram onto elevators until they reach the weight limits. And remember how we learned to form a line in elementary school? Yeah, that doesn't happen here. Be prepared to get just as pushy or you'll never get a seat on the bus!
Public affection: People (men and boys) are very open and comfortable with each other. Regardless of their sexual preferences. I am working at a public middle school for boys and it is not unusual at all to see two boys holding hands or basically cuddling in class. This is totally normal and, after a while, I have almost stopped noticing completely.
People here
will ask ANYTHING. Within the first couple of weeks, I was asked everything from my age to my weight to my marital status to my blood type (yes, it actually matters here...) to whether or not I wear a bikini. (Yup, that one came from one of my students).
Age is an odd thing to try to figure out in Korea. Every January 1, Koreans "age up". This basically means that, regardless of when your birthday is, you are one year older. This really only makes a difference with babies / young children; for example, a baby born January 2 and a baby born December 31 of 2014 are both now considered to be 1. When they start school, they will be in the same grade despite being almost a full year apart in actual age. I'm still never sure if I'm supposed to be telling people I'm 26 or 27!
Where are the trash cans?!?! If you are in a public place - walking down the street, in the subway or train station, at a store - you will be very lucky to find one. This drove me nuts at first... where am I supposed to put this water bottle now that it's empty?? The easy answer: find the closest pile of trash. You may think I'm exaggerating, but I'm not. People will put out their bags / piles of trash on the sidewalk and others will just add to it until it's collected.
Deodorant is very difficult to find here. All I can say is I'm glad I brought plenty with me!
There are
tentacles and fish every where!!! For those of you who know me well (or at all...), seafood is NOT my forte. The smell of just about any kind of seafood immediately brings on my gag reflex and I have to escape as quickly as possible. Well that's very hard to do here when any store / outdoor market has loads of fish and squid and octopus and crab and whatever other sea creature you can think of. Most of the time at school there is some kind of seafood in the soup and several other dishes... it's enough for me to start telling people I'm vegetarian so they stop giving me weird looks when I say I don't eat seafood and start asking why!
Parking. Oh, where to even begin with this one.... People in Korea will park any where. Any time. Whether there is a parking space or not. I have seen them parked in crosswalks, on sidewalks, on both sides of the street so there is barely room to drive down it... They generally suck at it too. I watched a woman take at least 15 minutes backing out of a spot (back up a few inches, pull up a foot, back up a bit, pull up again) because she was afraid of hitting the cars behind her. She had AT LEAST 4 feet of space behind her. Don't even get me started on the driving...
Mopeds are every where, and drive where ever they want. Sidewalks included. Traffic lights generally don't apply to them, especially delivery drivers.
Korean television (especially the dramas) are really bad.... I watched about 10 minutes of one movie and was in tears laughing at the horrendous acting. It was a drama / what looked like the sad scene in a love story. Don't think that's the reaction they were hoping for from the audience! Korean commercials are also quite absurd. Just go to YouTube and find some for yourself!
Banking: it's both incredibly infuriating and amazingly convenient. Want to transfer money home to pay bills? Yeahhh, good luck. Took me over a month and at least 4 visits to the bank before they figured that one out. Want to transfer money to an account through another Korean bank at the atm? No problem!
Body / sign language may be about the only way you have to communicate with natives. Be prepared to act out simple questions like "I need to buy trash bags" or "I want some rice".
South Korean culture has been a HUGE learning curve for me. 3 months in and I STILL don't know how to order a plate of rice or some chicken at my favorite Korean BBQ restaurant, ask for a bag at the store, or tell a taxi driver where my house is... but you can bet I know how to order a beer, ask for the bathroom, and make sure there's no seafood in the dish I want to order! I know where my priorities lie.... 😊
Until next time!
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anna
non-member comment
WOW
I stumbled on your site and was in a state of awe, excitement and pride as I read from beginning to date. Felt like I was reading a novel about a young woman on a lifetime adventure (which I guess I am) except it's not a novel. You are amazing and I have to thank you for sharing your experience with us. I will be sure to venture back to see your new adventures, so keep em coming. Love you and can't say enough how proud.