I know I haven't been blogging often lately...writing for me is like working out - the less I do it, the harder it is to get back into it. Similarly, once I start doing it regularly, it gets easier and easier. I recently started reading my sister-in-law's blog. It describes the ups and downs of stay-at-home-motherhood. It was so much fun to read! Sometimes I don't blog because I think people couldn't possibly be interested in reading about my life. But I enjoyed reading my sister-in-law's blog so much, it made me realize, blogs really are fun to read!
Since I haven't been writing regularly, I'll try to catch you up to speed with one of my favorite things: a list!
Ten Notable Koreanisms
10. Koreans love their American phrases. "Nice Shot!" is a popular one. As in when I drop ANYTHING in class my kids all go, "Woah! Nice Shot!". They pick phrases up from movies and TV. A popular one among young people is "oh my god" which, given an overall ignorance over what the phrase actually means, has been changed to "oh my got!". My kids say it all the time. They know when to use it too ("Oh my got teacher, I didn't do my homework!" or "Copy 3 times??? Oh my got, teacher!") but they have NO clue what the phrase means.
9. They want bigger noses. I think I mentioned this before. Koreans generally have small noses, and they are usually flat with a very low bridge. To most Korean women, it seems having a high set nose and a long nose is considered regal and beautiful. People are always pointing to my nose. Just the other day I was browsing in a store and out of the corner of my eye I saw the saleswoman gesture to her coworker, point to my face, and make a Pinocchio-like movement on her own nose. This happens to me quite often and it was embarrassing until I found out that most Korean women want a nose just like mine. My friend Jamie from work is always telling me I have such a beautiful nose and how Korean women want bigger noses.
8. Koreans are the nicest people when they are waiting on you, or talking to you, or working with you. But when you're strangers walking down the street, they will push you aside, cut you off, or ram in to you without a second thought. They have horrible walking manners. When getting on a subway they will push you or shove you aside if you are in their way. And they never say excuse me or the Korean equivalent. This was something I had to get used to. As much as Americans have a global reputation for rudeness, I definitely think we have the Koreans beat on this one. It is still socially unacceptable, I think, to push someone aside in order to get past them in the States, especially without saying excuse me. But, like I said, here it's acceptable and you get used to it. In fact, if you don't do the same, you'll never get anywhere and end up waiting for the next train because you were too polite to assert your position in line.
7. Korean woman are always dressed up. No exaggeration here. They don't just dress up, they seem to have this nation-wide dress code of tights, skirts, layered tops, pretty coats, and designer (or at least knock-off) handbags. In a way it's nice. American women, I think, could use a little more femininity in their dress these days. It is rare to see a Korean woman in jeans and a top. If they do wear jeans and a top, its Korean style: perfectly fitted jeans, a fashionable top, stilettos, and, of course, a designer handbag.
6. Unlike in the Big Apple and other US cities, Koreans NEVER J-walk. Despite their high-paced lifestyles and determination to get wherever they are going as fast as possible, no matter who they have to shove aside, they only cross a street when given explicit license to do so by the little green "Walk" man on the lit-up sign. This is probably due to the fact that Koreans drive like maniacs and stepping onto a street is virtually a death wish. See the next point for more on this issue.
5. Koreans are horrible drivers! They drive fast, reckless, and with zero regard for any kind of traffic laws. There may or may not be strict traffic rules in Korea. It really doesn't make a difference. They don't use turn signals, run red lights all the time, weave in and out of lanes and traffic, and cut each other off. The only thing that might be more dangerous than driving in Korea is being a pedestrian in Korea. The situation is made even more dangerous by the constant presence of speeding scooter and motorcycle riders who have free reign not only of the roads but of sidewalks, alleys, medians, and anywhere else they can possible maneuver their vehicles at hair-raising speeds.
4. Customer service here is wonderful. I am getting so spoiled. Going to a McDonalds in Korea is nothing like going to one in the States. The place is spotless, the employees wear clean, adorable uniforms, and they are completely focused on serving you. Whenever you walk into ANY store, bank, restaurant, etc. here every employee within earshot will welcome you with a chorus of "Anyeong-Ha-Sayo!" and the same when you leave with "Anyeongi-gah-se-oh!". They may not speak English but they will smile and try to help you as best they can. Even the man at the convenient store is friendly and kind. For some reason you just don't have the attitude-laden, eye-contact-avoiding, talking-to-their-co-worker-while-ringing-you-up cashiers you find in the States.
3. They have caramel popcorn at the movies here! In fact, they prefer it to buttered popcorn. When you go to a Korean movie theater, the advertisements for concessions show pictures of caramel corn. At the theaters I've been to, you have to ask specifically for regular buttered popcorn if you prefer it.
2. At a Korean table, whether at a restaurant or at home, one's cutlery consists of a pair of chopsticks and a large spoon. In fact, at restaurants, you never find a table set with napkins and cutlery. The table is bare except for a box of tiny napkins and a box with chopsticks and spoons inside. Whoever sits at the end distributed the chopsticks and spoons to everyone else at the table. Also water is free but it is self serve. Restaurants serve water in two ways: They have a water cooler with metal cups in a sanitizer next to it. You just take a cup from the sanitizer and help yourself. Otherwise they bring you a jug of water and you pour it yourself. Now, in Koreanism #4 I said customer service here was wonderful however this does not apply to servers at restaurants. I mean, they're friendly but they don't do a lot other than bring you your food. This is OK though because A) usually you are all sharing from one big dish anyway and B) there is no tipping in Korea so you're not really paying for service.
1. The "uh". This is the sound Koreans put at the end of as many English words as they are able. Basically, any word that ends in a consonant, they add an "uh" sound to at the end. This is because in Korean, sentences and phrases rarely end in consonants, they almost always end in vowels. So Koreans tack "uh" onto any English word that doesn't end in a vowel sound. Let's take McDonalds. Well first of all they pronounce it "Mick-doe-nald-uh". If I want a #1 meal I have to say, "Number 1 Set-uh". The word for a combo meal is actually "set" but if you don't add the "uh" they don't get it. Similarly "cup" is pronounced "cup-uh", "knife" is "knife-uh" etc. etc. I have grown accustomed to speaking this way. So now when my students tell me they went to the park-uh or ate steak-uh, I know what their saying. Just for fun, here is a cute Korean McDonalds commercial. Among the last few words spoken in the commercial are "dessert menu" and "McDonalds". See if you can hear them and listen to the pronounciation!
Click here for the commercial
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