Language Differences

Learning a new language introduces lots of new challenges, especially one as different from English as Korean, which has been ranked one of the top 4 most difficult languages for native English speakers to learn.  These challenges can be frustrating when you suddenly learn there are many exceptions to a grammar rule you thought was simple, and enjoyable when successfully communicate directions to your home to the taxi driver.  Other times it can be funny or just interesting how things translate differently in another language.  Here are a few examples of some of the language differences between English and Korean that I find funny or interesting:

Some notes from an attempted language exchange

"I'm sorry"
This is one of the first words learned in any new language, and so might be surprising that it could cause any confusion any language.  However, whereas in english "sorry" expresses a feeling of sympathy or regret for another person's misfortunes, in Korean it is only used when the speaker is the cause of the misfortune.  More simply, "sorry" in English is used both for offering an apology or condolence, but in Korean it is only used as an apology.

For example, if someone accidentally bumps into you, then it is expected that that person would say, "I'm sorry" whether it be in English or Korean (unless it is a Korean ajumma.  In that case it was likely intentional).  On the other hand, if your friend laments to you that their grandmother just passed away, it is totally acceptable for someone to say, "I'm sorry" in English as they are expressing a feeling of sympathy for your loss.  However, in Korea to say "죄송합니다" ("I'm sorry") would cause confusion and could be interpreted as if you killed your friend's grandma.

Answering Negative Questions
This is one that made me realize how confusing English can be.  Take a second and think to yourself about how you respond to a negative question, such as, "are you not hungry?"

In English, whether you simply answer with a "yes" or a "no" to this question, it would be understood that you are in fact not hungry.  To Koreans it works like a math problem.  A negative plus a negative makes a positive and a negative plus a positive stays negative.  So, if asked, "are you not hungry?" and you are in fact hungry then you should answer "no" making the statement positive, or "I am hungry".  If you are indeed not hungry a simple "yes" is all that is needed in response.  Simple and makes a lot more sense.

Funny Literal Translations
Some words in Korean just have funny or strange literal translations, when translated directly into English.  English has these too, but we just rarely think about them and accept them as the word.  For example, jellyfish and butterflies are pretty strange when you think about it.

Likewise, there are a few Korean words that also have funny, or at least interesting, literal meanings.  The first is the korean word for mustache, which is 코수염 (ko soo yeom), and translates directly to "nose beard".  This such a perfect description of what a mustache is that I am in favor of changing the English word to nose-beard.  I hereby propose that all mustaches hence forward be referred to only as nose-beards!

Another example is the word for blister, which is 물집 (mool jib), and translates to "water house".  I guess you can think of a blister as a little house containing water, but seems like a strange way to describe it.

This last example comes with a story.  When I was first visiting Korea back in the winter of 2013, I was nearing the end of my trip and I hadn't eaten much Korean food, which was unacceptable.  Too unfamiliar with the language and too afraid to just point to something on a menu and hope for the best, I needed some guidance on what to eat.  So on my last night, I decided to ask a stranger on the street to suggest me something to eat.  The first people I stopped were two cute girls (yes their appearance may have had a little something to do with why I chose them).  I simply explained, in English at this time, that I wanted to eat some Korean food and if they knew any place nearby.  To may amazement, they invited me to join them for dinner as they were on their way to eat Korean food.  *Sidenote: can honestly say that it was interactions like this, and this was not the only one that trip, that made me move to Korea! Now back to the story* Completely trusting my new friends, I let them order whatever they wanted and told them anything was okay.  Only after the food arrived, and having already eaten it, did I think it necessary to ask what it was.  Looking confused as she struggled to come up with the English word, she pointed to her stomach and said "shit house.  Chicken shit house".  Of course at the time I found this both a hilarious and repulsive translation (the visual imagery was not pleasant having already eaten it) of what I interpreted to be chicken intestines.  Only recently did I discover that this is the actual translation from Korean for chicken gizzard, which is 닭똥집 or so elequantly put, "chicken shit house".

Slang
Every language and every generation has its own slang.  Just in my life time something that you want to describe as nice or cool has gone from: "rad", to "hip", to "da bomb", to "boss" or "beast, to "swag", to "on fleek", to now "lit".  Here are few slang words I have picked up in Korea:

노잼 (No-Jam)
This slang actually combines both English and part of a Korean word.  It takes the "노" (no) from the English word "no" and adds it to 잼 (jam), which is the front part of 재밌어요 (jae mee suh yo), meaning fun, to create "노잼" which means something is lame or really not fun.

화이팅 (hwa-ee-ting)
This is just a Konglish (Korean+English) version of the word "fighting".  You may think it sounds nothing similar to "fighting", but you must realize that there is no f-sound in Korean, so this is how they compensate.  What makes this word slang, is not the word itself, but rather how it is used.  Koreans will say "화이팅!" as a cheer of encouragement similar to "cheer up!' or "you can do it!". So to all my readers out there, 화이팅!


불금/월요병 (bul-gum/wohl-yo-byung)
These two terms help express most people's feelings on both the days that bookend the weekend; Friday and Monday.  불금 (bul-gum) translates to "fire Friday", which kind of indicates it is going to be a hot or lit day.  The flip side of that then comes on Monday, which Koreans express as 월요병 (wohl-yo-byung).  The 월요 comes from 월요일, meaning Monday, and the 병 means sickness.  Combined they form the word "Monday sickness", or what we would say in English as "having a case of the Monday's".

술고래 (sool-go-lae)
This last example of Korean slang just has a funny translation and is an interesting way to describe what it is.  술 (sool) in Korean means alcohol and 고래 (go-lae) means whale, so can you guess what 술고내 means?? 

Koreans use 술고래 to describe a person who can drink well.  Or in other words, a person who can drink a lot without getting drunk.  Don't ask how I learned this word 😉

From Soul Food to Seoul Food

Undoubtedly the most exciting part of experiencing a new culture is sampling the food, and if there is one thing that Koreans are most proud about in regards to their culture, it is their food.  Eat Korean food with a Korean outside of Korea and you are bound to hear comments similar to, "it's not the same as in Korea" or, "in Korea it is so much better".  Having now lived in Korea in what is now approaching three years, I too have acquired a taste for the local cuisine (well, most of it).  Here is a list of some of my favorites:

1. 갈매기살 (Galmaegisal)
Grilled beef skirt.  This is not the traditionally most common Korean BBQ food item (that is 삼겹살 samgyubsal) but it is definitely my favorite.  Not only is it delicious but it is a fun social experience as well with friends.

A before and after look.  That is egg with kimchi and spring onion on the outside.

2. 닭갈비 (Dakgalbi)
Mixture of grilled chicken, rice cake, cabbage, and other add-ins coupled with a cheese fondu.  This is certainly my overall favorite Korean dish.

3. 만두 (Mandu)
Deep-fried or steamed dumplings.  This is more of a side or a snack than a meal, but delicious and must be included.  My cousin Hudson was addicted to these when he visited me.

4. 김치찌개 (Kimchi Jjigae)
Kimchi soup.  This is a very basic dish which usually is eaten with rice, however when I ask many Koreans what their favorite Korean meal is this one is the most common winner.

5. 김밥 (Kimbab)
These look like sushi rolls but can have a variety of meats in them.  김in Korean means seaweed and 밥 means rice, so it is no surprise that this is primarily rice wrapped in seaweed with a few different ingredients in the inside.  Typically the inside consists of your choice of meat, pickled radish, SPAM (yes the same SPAM), egg, carrots, and kimchi.  This is basically the Korean equivalent of a sandwich, not because it is anything like a sandwich, but in that it is a common quick packable lunch that people eat when they just need to eat something simple.

No not sushi

6. 짜장면 (Jajangmyeon)
A thick noodle dish covered in a black gravy-like sauce.  This is debatable on whether it is considered Korean, but rather Koreanized Chinese food just like Kung Pao Chicken is Americanized Chinese food.  Despite it's look and my description of it, it is really delicious.

7. 돈까스 (Donkkaseu)
Deep fried pork cutlet covered in gravy.  Another dish that is not authentically Korean, but is quite popular.  This has a Japanese origin, but some might argue that the Japanese emulated it after the German schnitzel.

8. 갈비탕 (Galbi-tang)
Beef short rib stew.  Not much to add here, it is just beef stewed with some veggies but is really good.

The one on the left is 갈비탕, the one on the right is basically the same thing but with a whole chicken.

9. 제육뽁음 (Jaeyook Bokum)
Spicy pork stir-fry.  This is just what it sounds like.  Pieces of small chopped pork bits marinated in spicy chili sauce, stir-fried with some vegetables, and served with rice. 

10. 치맥 (Chi-maek)
Chicken and beer.  Although definitely not authentically Korean, this is a very popular meal in Korea amongst friends.  You cannot walk hardly anywhere in Seoul without seeing competing 치맥 restaurants.  The chicken can come coated in a variety of different sauces, and it is this that Koreans argue makes it uniquely "Korean Style".

No Sauce, Just Plain

11. 빙수 (Bingsu)
Flavored shaved with different toppings.  A popular Korean dessert,  the shavings of 빙수 dissolve quicker in your mouth than ice cream and is a really delicious treat in the hot summer.

Blueberry Cheesecake 빙수

The Strange Popularity of SPAM in Korea

This last week was one of the biggest Korean holiday of the year known as 추석 Chuseok.  This is the equivalent of Korea's Thanksgiving in that it originated to celebrate a good harvest.  It is celebrated the same way as American Thanksgiving as well, with large family gatherings and lots and lots of food.  However, substituting green-bean casserole for glass noodles mixed with vegetables (잡채), buttered rolls for kimchi pancakes (김치전), pumpkin pie for sugary rice cakes (송편), and turkey for SPAM.  Yes, that is right, SPAM.  That can of suspicious meat that most often get associated as "trailer park food" in USA.

Not only does SPAM not have the same negative association attached to it in Korea, but it is loved and almost viewed as a luxury. In my first year in Korea, I was shocked when I visited the local grocery store and found an isle of elaborate and fancy SPAM gift sets.  This, of course, got me thinking, "why is this American product which is mostly viewed as 'disgusting' in its home country, so popular in Korea, especially during its biggest traditional holiday?".  And the most logical theory I could come up with has its connections to the Korean War.

See during the Korean War, South Korea was not the developed modern country that it is today.  It was still very agrarian with many people living in poverty.  It used to be that some Koreans would hang outside US Army bases and collect the food that they discarded.  Usually this would be things like simple produce, but occasionally cans of SPAM would be thrown out as well.  Now to a person from a modern, developed, and wealthy nation, where fresh meat is readily available, it is easy to understand why canned preserved ham would not be very appetizing.  However, to a poor farmer, during a time where meat was scarce, SPAM was a delicacy!

So it really comes down to perspective when the food was introduced, but what I find interesting is how that perspective becomes part of the culture even 60 years later when Korea is a modern, developed, and wealthy nation.  Today, meat is readily available and yet Koreans still love their can of blended pig parts and preservatives and it is all due to cultural and historical perspectives.  Fascinating!

Public Transit

I feel like too many of my posts might be perceived as negative, even though they are intended to be just observations of differences in culture, so I want to talk about some of the good sides of living in Korea.  After all, I do choose to live in Korea so there must be some admirable qualities to life here and I want to show case one of those in this post: public transportation.

I must say not owning a car and not being able to go where you want when you want was definitely an adjustment when moving overseas.  Not only is it more challenging to get places, as you have to walk to a bus or subway station, wait, often make some transfers to other buses or subway lines, but also you are limited by time.  Public transit usually ends around midnight, which means you have to either go home before then, or pay a taxi to take you home, which luckily is not too expensive here in Korea.

However the benefits to not owning a car in a big city far outweigh the inconveniences.  Not having to pay or worry about parking, which is extremely hard to find and is expensive in Korea, is one example.  Another is never having to be stuck in miserable rush hour traffic.  If the bus I am on is stuck in traffic I can get off at almost any stop and still be walking distance to a subway station.  Lastly, I don't have to worry about the extra costs and maintenance of owning a car.

Arrows pointing where to transfer

Aside from the minor challenges mentioned in the second paragraph, South Korea has made living without a car even more convenient with its ultra efficient public transit system.  With almost 300 subway stations (291 to be exact), you are never far away from a subway station.  Once inside a station, it is very easy to find out where to go as each line is number and color coded, there are subway maps as well as that line's map in each station, and signs telling you which way to go depending on which station you are going to.  To transfer at a station is also extremely easy as the screen inside the subway car tells you which stations to transfer at depending on which line you are connecting to, and once off the train you can easily follow arrows and colored path (coordinated to the color of that line) to the next train.  Also the trains run on a consistent schedule everyday, so you can always know exactly when a train will come by learning the schedule and it is always punctual.

Screens tell you the station name, which side to exit, which
lines you can transfer to and even the next few stops

If by chance you are not near a subway, or the place you want to go is not near a subway, then there are always buses.  In many cases a bus can be even more convenient than the subway, even when both choices are available.  For example, I have the option every morning to take a bus or the subway to work, and, unless I am running late, I always choose the bus.  Why? Well I can always get a seat first of all, where on the subway that is rare, and on a bus you can zone out and play on your phone, stare out the window, or do something productive like study Korean without having to miss your stop since you can see where you are.  On the subway you cannot see anything, so you constantly have to keep track of which station you are at in order to not miss your stop, which happens to me way too frequently.  Also, like the subway, they come quite regularly.

One last thing that makes public transit so convenient is technology, specifically in mobile apps.  For the subway there is an app that allows you to search how to go from one station to another.   It will tell you how long the journey will take, when the next trains are coming, the fastest route or the route with fewest stops, how many transfers are made and even which train car to get in to make the fastest transfer at the next station!  They really have it all covered.  Then for the buses there is an app that can tell you which bus to take to go where you want and where that bus is exactly at that moment so that you know when it will arrive.

There are times I still wish I had a car, mostly to travel to other cities, but thanks to Korea's efficient public transit, I am satisfied without one.

The Difficulty in Keeping Korean Friends: Korean Education/Work Culture

Some of my Korean friends through the years

Making friends in Korea is not very difficult, as most Koreans are very friendly and fun people.  This is actually one of the main reasons that made me move to Korea after I spent 3 years struggling to integrate myself with many locals in Singapore.  However, I find that my friend list in Korea is a constant revolving door and it is all perpetuated by one common factor; Korea's work culture.

Korea is a very competitive society, and finding a good job is difficult for a lot of Korean graduates.  Because of this, student's education expectations also become exaggerated.  Most High School students do not end their studies until around 10pm and many even study most of their weekends and holidays.  They go to their regular school until about 4pm, and then immediately go to separate academies (called hagwons 학원) to either learn other subjects or to get extra help in subjects they take at school.  They do this all to try and stand out and have a more appealing resume for Korean universities.  However, when just about all students do this, it eventually becomes the norm and the bar keeps getting raised higher and higher.  In universities their studies only intensify to the point where it consumes most of their time.

Upon graduation, most students are again competing for the same few top-end jobs.  Because the supply is so high, companies place unreasonable expectations on their employees that results in many Koreans not finishing work until 9pm and working on weekends.  Not to mention routine work functions called 회식 (hweshik), which is a combination of the Korean words 회사 (company) and 식사 (meal).  At the 회식, which are basically mandatory, employees are often pressured into drinking copious amounts of alcohol, staying out really late, and in some cases going to establishments that they may have a moral objection to.  Then they are expected to wake up and go to work the next day.

Real photo of my students during a 10 minute break during exam week.

As a foreigner and as a teacher, I am not really subjected to this intense work culture, but that doesn't mean it doesn't affect me.  As aforementioned, I am constantly having to make new local friends in Korea all the time as most Koreans eventually get too busy and difficult to meet up with.  My phone becomes an ever growing roll-a-dex when searching for friends to do different activities with.  I never know which friend will be free at what time because neither do they.  It is common for Korean's to tell me they are meeting one of their good friends whom they haven't seen in 6 months or sometimes even over a year, despite living in the same city.

I feel bad for them as it has always been my mentality that I work to live, not live to work.  However, many Koreans are powerless in this regard if they want a decent job in Korea.  This culture has many negative side-effects for Korea.  The first and most serious is the suicide rate among young people.  South Korea has the tenth highest suicide rate in the world, and first among developed nations (WorldAtlas 2015), with the vast majority of these being students.  The reason is obvious: educational pressures.  A society that views not going to university as a disgrace and such high competition for the limited universities, many students who get lower scores feel that their life is over and not worth living.  Even in discussions with my own Korean students I have heard them vocalize that they don't feel that their life could be a success if they don't go to university.  This perception needs to change.

Another consequence of this culture is Brain Drain and a decreasing population.  I am going to bundle these two problems because the source of the problem is the same.  That is, that many young Koreans who get frustrated at the pressures and the rat-race that is the Korean work culture simply decide to move abroad where they find life more peaceful and exciting.  This means Korea, which spent government money educating these students as a future investment to help develop their country, are loosing out on that investment as the students take the fruits of that education to another country and help develop that country.  This phenomenon is known as Brain Drain.  Also, as these professionals develop lives and families in other countries, South Korea's population is decreasing so fast that it is projected to have the oldest average age by 2045!

I know I am a foreigner in this country and have no right to complain and say that their culture is wrong and that many Koreans might be quite angry to hear a foreigner talk like this.  However, this country has treated me really well, I have made many close friends here and I truely do care about this country and the people in it.  Due to this I cannot keep quiet about what is such a self-evident crisis without at least offering my advice.

My advice to Korea would be, "wake up".  Recognize these wounds to your country are self-inflicted.  Educate your citizens about all the opportunities that exist to people with just a high school diploma.  Regulate stricter labor laws that prevent companies from abusing their employees simply because they are expendable.  My advice for Koreans would be "relax".  Learn to prioritize fun.  Your success and your happiness are not determined by the size of bank account.  Your real friends don't care about your GPA or how good your job is.

Korean Professional Volleyball Game: A Story of Foreigner Privilege in Korea

When living in a somewhat homogenous society such as Korea, it is inevitable that I will experience some special treatment.  This treatment is usually unsolicited and innocent in intent.  However, on rare occasions it is nice to be able to use the "foreigner card" to get special treatment.  Whether its getting a little extra food at restaurants (or the occasional free beer), getting out of minor trouble by simply pleading ignorance, avoiding conversations by pretending to not know any Korean or English if that fails, or going onto the court to celebrate the championship of one of Korea's top professional sports with the team that won.  That is what this story is about.

So this Monday, one of my rugby teammates invited me to watch a professional volleyball game with him because he got free tickets.  Apparently the Croatian community in Korea is so small that whenever a new Croatian comes to Korea they instantly bond, because this professionally volleyball team recently got a new Croatian player and my teammate is Croatian and they found each other on Facebook and became friends just because of their shared nationality.  Anyways, he got us free tickets to sit with his wife and child.  Upon arriving at the game I learned that this was the championship finals with the series tied 2-2 in a best of 5 series.  Winner takes all.

The match was pretty intense with each set being very close, but in the end the Croatians team won it.  It was very exciting.  At this point I was ready to pack it in and go home as it was a weekday, I had work the next morning, and still had about an hour long commute to get home.  However, my Croatian friend said, "I want to get on the court and congratulate him."  Speculative in nature, I told him that I don't think we could do that, as it was only for players and families.  This is because I did not yet know the power of the "foreigner card" because I had never tried to use it.  Now I think my "card" will come into play a bit more often, because as we were walked towards the court and were inevitably stopped by security, my friend just simply said, "we are family".  At this, the security stepped aside and we walked past all the adorning fans being blocked off by security right onto the court.  Once on the court we were handed the same championship t-shirts that were passed out to the players.  Being feet away from these professional athletes, dressed in the official championship gear, and being showered in confetti as a part of this championship celebration was a cool experience, and I don't even care about volleyball.

Familiar Faces: When Students Come to Visit

I learned early on in my career that the rewards from teaching are prospective, meaning that they come much later, usually when you are no longer teaching those students.  I have had students who vocally despise me do a complete 180 and reach out to tell me how much they miss my class.  Perhaps the most humbling reward I have received from my years of teaching are not the occasional lamentation of nostalgia or retroactive compliment, but that ex-students from Singapore still keep in touch and want to spend time with me when they visit Korea.  Almost every winter, summer, and spring vacations I have students from Singapore coming to Korea and reaching out to me to hang out.  Such was the case this last week as my Singapore students were on their Spring Break.  Two students whom I was especially close to came to Korea together and we got to spend some good times experiencing Korea life.  Likewise, over the last Winter vacation, I got to hang out with another student who I was especially close to.  These visits remind me why I got into this profession and I really value these relationships I have built over the years.  It is good to know that they don't go away.

Wonwoo and I

WonWoo and I at the Trick Eye Museum 

Can't visit Korea without some Korean BBQ

Carissa acting like she knows how to use chopsticks

Julie looking "natural"

So many memories with these two

Carissa conquering her fear of dogs

Making friends

*I was told I had to include this picture

A Fashion Comparison

If I asked you to tell the difference between a French, Australian, or American without hearing them talk, could you do it?  Possibly you could, but it wouldn't be based on their looks.  Chances are you would use their fashion and style as your indicators of their nationality.

I sometimes get asked a similar question in Korea, which is if I can tell the difference between Koreans, Japanese, and Chinese.  Sometimes I feel there is a hidden agenda in this question and that they are basically asking, "how racist are you?"  But I tell them that I usually can (not always) based on what they wear.

Despite the world becoming more globalized, there are still some things that are fashionable in one country that are not accepted in the other.  In this post, I will identify some of the fashion trends that are popular in Korea that would get some second, and maybe third, glances in America.

Men's Fashion:

• Turtle necks:
• I actually don't know if these are popular or not in the U.S. right now, but when I left America I wouldn't be caught dead wearing one, and many guys wear them here.
• Dyed hair/Perms:
• The most noticeable difference in men's fashion is the hairstyles.  It is not uncommon for a guy to sport colorful hair colors, such as green, pink, white, red, even grey!  The strangest style to me though, is the perm!

Woman's Fashion:

• Curlers in public:

• These days it is very fashionable for young girls to have bangs, and for these bangs to be curled.  Girl's apparently think this look is so attractive that they are willing to sacrifice looking ridiculous part of the time in order to look good the other part.  I say this because I see many young girls walking around in public with the curler still in their hair.  
• Tennis shoes with a dress:
• I have to admit that Koreans, for the most part, out dress Americans by a long shot.  They will dress up nicely just for running errands or grabbing a quick lunch.  However, I have never understood why they would make the effort to make their whole outfit look really nice and then give up when they got to their shoes, but I see it at least once a day.  Some girl wearing really nice clothes, obviously spent a lot of time on her hair and make-up, but then look down and say to myself, "WHAT ARE THOSE!?"  What I see is a pair of off-brand and usually dirty sneakers.

Couples: 

• Matching Everything

• This is a very common and disgusting trend in Korea.  The equivalent of a couple making out in public, these couples feel it necessary to show everyone that they are together by matching their outfits.  Some couples are a subtle in their declaration of love and may only have "couple shoes", while others go all out with "couple tees", "couple hats", "couple pants", "couple shoes", and "couple jackets".  Some stores even sell outfits you can buy as a couple!  Dressed as twins, these couples walk around so proudly, and I will never understand that.  You want people to know you are a couple?  Hold each other's hands; trust me, we will get the picture.
• Couple Rings
• Although this sounds a little cheesy, I actually like the idea of this even though I don't think I would ever do it myself.  But in Korea, it is common for dating couples, just as it is with married couples, to exchange rings and wear them.  Now the reason I like this is because it makes it really convenient for single guys like me.  It is easier to spot if a girl has a boyfriend or not.

Profiting from Love

Many of the secular holidays that we celebrate in the US are not celebrated in Korea.  Holidays such as St. Patricks Day, Cinco de Mayo, and other holidays are largely ignored in Korea outside of the international community.  However, one that is not is Valentines Day, but Korea does have a slightly different way to celebrate this holiday.  In fact they found a way to turn this day into three separate holidays: Valentines Day, White Day, and Black Day.  Where as in the USA love is expressed reciprocally with both the man and woman in a relationship buy each other gifts and candies, in Korea everybody gets their own day to feel special.  Here is how it works:

Valentines Day: February 14th
This is the man's special day.  On this day, woman treat the men to dinner and usually buy chocolates for their significant other.

My Valentine's Day Gift

White Day: March 14th
This is the day for the man to payback and show his love to the girl.  As a guy, it is a huge advantage going second in this exchange.  We get to see exactly what we are competing with, know exactly what we have to top, and have an extra month to do it.  I feel this had to be intentional.

Black Day: April 14th
Not wanting to leave out people who are not in a relationship they even created a day for singles.  On Black Day friends who are not in a committed relationship will gather and typically eat 짜장면, which is a noodle dish with a thick black sauce (also one of my favorite dishes in Korea).

짜장면

The motive for this is up for debate.  On one side you could argue that it gives each person their own day to feel special, rather than just blend it all together.  It is also nice as a guy, because you know exactly what you have to top and get a month to plan and prepare for it.  The more skeptical might argue that is only a ploy to spread the wealth out over 3 months and encourage more economic spending.  Whichever is the intended motive for the alteration of this holiday's traditions from its Western origins (perhaps its a combination of the two), it certainly gives more to look forward to.

Incompetence of Immigration

After 5 long months, I finally have my new visa to work in Korea.  For those who are close to me, you know how frustrating and stressful this process has been, but for those who don't I will detail that experience for you in this post.

It all started when I was changing my job and moving from Incheon to Seoul.  While working in Incheon I had an E7 working visa which was for education specialists.  However, I knew I was likely going to be working in a hagwon (academy) rather than a school, which requires only an E2 visa.  Seeing as this was a less special visa, I was assuming that it would be easier to obtain and that all my documents that I submitted for my E7 visa would still be valid, but I wanted to make sure just to be safe.  So I called the immigration office and they confirmed that indeed my documents would transfer and that all I had to do was bring in my new contract and they could begin processing my visa application (a two week process).  I even asked if the criminal background check I submitted two years ago was still valid just trying to cover all my bases and they said that if I had not lived outside of Korea for more than three months it was still valid, so it was all good.

Then when I finally found my new job, I went to the immigration office with this new contract and quickly found out that this was NOT all good.  As they were looking through my documents they came across a problem.  They told me that my background check, which I had specifically asked about over the phone, was not apostilled (a document certifying its authenticity) and therefore could not be accepted.  When I told the lady that it was accepted for my E7 visa she told me that it was not necessary for an E7 visa but for an E2 visa only, which makes no sense.  I then asked, since it was still a valid background check, if I could just send it off to get it apostilled, to which the answer was no.  I had to get a whole new background check which is at least a three month process usually, and that's not including the apostille.  I told the lady that I just took a new job and could not wait three months to start work, and she basically said that there was no other way.

So faced with this serious problem I quickly had to come up with a solution.  It was illegal for me to work in Korea until I had my E2 visa and my job was obviously not going to wait three months for me to start working.  Luckily, I am blessed with a creative mind and MacGyver-like problem solving skills.  So I came up with the solution that I would work at my school as a "volunteer" until I got my visa, upon which they would then backpay me for all the time I had worked.  It kept things legal and my school was happy, and I had enough savings to last me until then so it all worked out.  

There was still one small problem.  This meant I was in Korea technically under a tourist visa, which is only 90 days.  Seeing as how I felt this process would likely take more than 90 days, I would have to make a visa run (go to another country for a short trip and then come back to Korea with a new tourist visa which would give me another 90 days).  There was another option however.  I could apply for a D10 visa which is a "job seekers" visa and lasts six months.  So I made another trip down to the immigration office (after calling again and asking about the process), but when I got there I learned that they had changed their policy and now you have to make a reservation to make an appointment at the office.  They told me there was a computer in the back of the room where I could make my reservation.  Luckily for me there was still an open time for that morning, so I booked it.  After waiting for about an hour, I began to see that the number on my ticket was not going to be reached by the time of my scheduled appointment, so I went up to the counter to ask about it.  It was then they told me that I cannot make a reservation for the same day, even if the time is available, and that I would have to make another reservation for another day, which I begrudgingly did.

Three days later I made yet another visit to the immigration office to apply for the D10 visa, all of these visits required missing time at work by the way.  As we were sorting through the paper work, I informed them that I would traveling to Mongolia the next week and asked if this would complicate things at all.  The lady (who was the same lady I would talk to for all my visits) told me that if I leave the country while my D10 was being processed still that it would cancel the application.  However, it is perfectly fine to leave the country once I had the D10 visa.  This was yet another policy that makes no sense and only adds to complicate everything.  I had already planned and paid for this trip, so there was no way that I was not going.  Sensing my frustration, she told me that she would talk to her supervisor about trying to process the application quickly, but that it was very unlikely and that the only way I would know was when I went through immigration at the airport.

Well the time for my trip came and I nervously passed through immigration, but nothing was said.  Still I was unsure if it had been canceled and they just didn't say anything or if it would only be canceled when I came back to Korea.  Well after an amazing trip to Mongolia (read about it here), I returned and again nothing was said.  I took this to mean I was accepted somehow, which was the first good news I had gotten through the whole process.  Now I just had to wait for my background check.

I was able to work through a channeler which helped speed up the process. I then had the background check mailed to my parent's house in USA, who then mailed it the U.S. Department of State to get it apostilled, and then mailed it completed to me.  Now with my documents completed I went again to the immigration office to begin my application for the E2 visa.  Well, so I thought.

Arriving at the office the took my background check, but said that I now needed a NEW contract from my school since the last one had my starting date back in August and my starting date had to be after my application had started.  So I had to go get a new contract, return back to the immigration office on another day and finally process my application (this was now December by the way). 

Relieved that my application process had finally begun I returned to work that day.  As I was getting off work, happy to have all this mess behind me, I was getting on the bus to go home and then out to celebrate when I got a phone call from immigration.  The woman on the phone immediately apologized and told me she had bad news.  What's new right?  She said that I still needed to do a medical check-up before my application could begin.  Livid, I ask why this couldn't have been told to me months ago so that I could have done it in the meantime.  All she could do was offer me sympathy, which I wasn't interested in, as I vented my anger out on her.  After about 5 or so minutes of a verbal tongue lashing, I asked, "I had to do a medical check when I got my E7 visa two years ago, does that not count?"  I shouldn't have been surprised by her response, but I still was, as she said, "You did? Hold on let me check your records".  After finding my medical check she apologized for the inconvenience and informed me that she didn't see it before and this was all a mistake.  I was relieved that I didn't in fact have to get the medical check, but at the same time I was shocked by their entire offices level of incompetence.  I was told that all I had to do now was wait two weeks for the application to finish and I could pick up my visa after that.

I called every week asking if it was ready, dealt with rude incompetent workers on the phone, and it was still a month before they told me that I had been approved, but now had to wait for the card to be printed.  The good news about this was that I could now begin working legally and receive all of my backpay, which was perfect timing because I had just burnt through all of my savings in Korea.  Still it wasn't until almost a month and a half later (this last week) when I was finally told my card was ready.  Even though they had told me that they would call me when it was ready, it took me calling them to find this out.

So last Friday I made what I hope to be my last trip to the immigration office to finally pick up my visa and put an end to this very long, very frustrating process.

Lunar New Year: A Comparison between Singapore and Korea

Singapore

VS

South Korea

Being my sixth year living in Asia, I have been fortunate enough to be able to celebrate 12 New Year's.  This is because most East Asian and South East Asian countries celebrate both the calendar new year and the lunar new year.  While in Singapore there were many traditions surrounding the lunar new year, such as lion dances, the giving of "fortune" oranges, and the annual emergence of pineapple tarts.  Korea also has many of it's own traditions for the lunar new year, such as 제사 (Jaesa) or 세배해요 (saebaehaeyo) bowing ceremonies, and eating 떡국 (ddeok guk), which is a rice cake soup.

For the bowing cermonies, they are done for different purposes.  제사 is done to honor dead relatives and give thanks to them.  I once was randomly stopped in the streets of Seoul and asked if I wanted to partake and learn about this unique cultural tradition.  I had nothing to do, so I accepted.  To my surprise it had a VERY specific procedure which was very repetitive and honestly exhausting to bow that much.  The strange part was that I was told I could not tell anyone that I had done this ceremony for 100 days and my ancestors would bless me, but if I told someone then I would not receive the blessing.  I didn't last even one day.  The 세배해요 ceremony is done by younger generations to the older generations to show respect.  Usually the younger generations receive money for this respect, which makes me question the sincerity of the practice.  This year I even had a strange kid bow to me on the street on Lunar New Years and I questioned to myself if was expecting me to pay him.  Regardless it was a nice gesture. 

For all the differences between Singapore's and Korea's Lunar New Year traditions, there are many similarities as well.  Both gather the entire extended families together to share a lot of food together.  Both place an emphasis on paying respect to dead and elder relatives.  Lastly, both also give children money in red packets (hongbao in Singapore; 세뱃돈saebaetdon in Korea) for showing respect.

However, for me Lunar New Year means time off from work and usually going to travel somewhere.  This year me and some of my rugby mates decided to book a pension in Pyeongchang, the site of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, and have a short snowboarding trip, which is becoming a new hobby of mine.  It was a little challenging planning it all, and I was relied on as translator, but it was a success and we had a lot of fun.

The gang