True/False

Last post I told everyone about my hagwon, but I forgot to mention that specific word. “Hagwon” is the Korean term for a private school that focuses on a certain thing (piano, a language, Pilates). An English school is called a “'yeong-eoh hagwon,” and if I tell a Korean that I work for a hagwon, he or she doesn’t really expect me to be a piano teacher. As a side note, I learned this word at work and proceeded to look it up on Wikipedia. The things it said about hagwons scared me a little (their reputations for how they treat their staff, etc). But after two weeks and a large number of conversations with coworkers, I know that I don’t have to worry about this school.

Now you’re all going to look it up in Wikipedia.

My hagwon is part of a larger private school corporation, and you could kind of liken it to a school franchise. Interestingly enough, the corporation itself is the original creator of English hagwons.

After looking up “hagwon” in Wikipedia, I started thinking about all the things I was told about Korea that were pretty much untrue. For example, people said that I wouldn’t be able to eat anything but Korean food. On my second night here, I went to TGIFridays. There’s a Pizza Hut, Outback Steakhouse, and Dunkin Doughnuts within five minutes walking distance of my house. So that was clearly false (though it’s probably closer to the truth in a smaller city). Another thing about Korean food that people kept warning me about was that the meat is sketchy. Okay, so there are probably plenty of places that have spurious meat, but the most unusual meat I’ve come across here has been Spam. I ate Spam in a soup last Monday. It’s not that hard to find decent meat here, and it’s frankly a little insulting to imply otherwise.

Falsehood number three: You won’t find any clothing or shoes in your size. One of my Korean coworkers has the same size feet as me. Pretty much everywhere carries up to an eight or nine. If you have larger feet than that (American women’s feet average at size ten), you can go to special shops that carry those sizes. I wandered into a shoe store today that carried ten and higher; it’s not that hard. Not to mention, there’s this area in Seoul called Itaewon that caters to foreigners. Itaewon is near the American Air Base and has the largest population of non-Asians in Seoul (probably in South Korea). The point is there are many shops here that have sizes that you need if you’re larger in stature.

I’ve only been here for two weeks, and already most of the things I heard about or read have been proven false.

That said, I have learned a few interesting things about Korean culture that I decided to pass on to you lucky people. First of all, I mentioned Kimchi before, but I didn’t give it the emphasis that it deserves. Kimchi is a spicy pickled cabbage side dish served with everything. I’ve had Kimchi with every Korean meal, and a part of me suspects that I would receive it as a side if I went to a restaurant for breakfast. It’s so vital to Korea’s food and culture that Korean appliance stores sell Kimchi fridges. These refrigerators store your yearly supply of Kimchi at the exact temperature for optimum taste. Honestly, the best analogy I can come up with is that Kimchi is to Korea what pasta is to Italy. When a foreigner tells a Korean that he or she doesn’t care for Kimchi, they are incredibly surprised. Why wouldn’t you love the pickled cabbage that I’ve been eating since I teethed?

Today, I found out that Koreans consider it extremely bad luck to write someone’s name in red pen. I’m not sure why. Also, when a group is served drinks, the youngest female is supposed to pour for everyone. This social nicety isn’t really followed by the people I know, but they’ve mentioned it. Fashion-wise, they don’t seem to have any particular styles, except that I’ve seen several things that remind me of middle school. A number of women have had the big, boxy sandals that were really popular in the 90’s. They’re fond of Crocs here (why, God, why?). Also, even grown women wear unusual nail colors (neon orange, sparkly pink, etc). As I’m writing this blog, I can’t help glancing at my nails. I got my first manicure today. Apparently manicures are pretty big here, and I’ve got a bright aquamarine color. Between my current nail hue and my Hello Kitty subway card, I’m looking kind of Korean (well, you know what I mean).

Let’s not forget KPop (Korean Pop Music). Kpop is hugely entertaining. If you’re in the mood for a laugh, you should check out “Lollipop” by Big Bang. The music video is fantastic. There’s also a thirteen member boy band called Super Junior (why thirteen?) that did a song called “Sorry, Sorry.” This song is wildly popular right now, and I highly recommend checking that out on YouTube as well.

I’d better stop now, but I have lots of things to say about Korean food. So maybe you’ll read about that sometime soon!