A few months ago, my mom gave me what seemed like a reasonable excuse to start a blog. Being someone who likes to hear herself talk, I'd always kind of wanted to have one, but blogs are so self-indulgent, right? But Mom insisted. "It's a great idea -" she said, "you're moving to Korea. Everyone will want to keep up with you." The thing is, I get the feeling that the "everyone" she was referring to is actually just her. But that's OK; if the grand unveiling of the much-procrastinated blog is a private party for Mom and me, we'll both enjoy it anyway.
Chris and I have lived in Korea for 54 days now, and there's been too much going on to start this page up before now. We've successfully moved in to a new home, started new jobs, and met some amazing people (in the course of those successes, I've also picked up a serious Limewire addiction, but that's a confession for another post). We've also begun the process of adapting to a new culture, and finally started Korean classes a couple weeks ago.
As much as I'd like to say that learning Korean was a breeze and that we could already converse proficiently with our neighbors in the Woomi Apartment complex, the truth is far less impressive. We spent some time before Chris went to sleep tonight practicing such advanced phrases as, "How many pencils are there?" and "Do you have a dictionary?" We haven't even learned any curse words yet. It's good for me to get a taste of how my students feel during the first few weeks of Spanish I: it's an unnerving sensation when our teacher, Anne, starts singling us out during class and asking us questions in Korean at an alarming speed. But that discomfort, and the discomfort we feel when we endure a meal that is not even close to what we wanted to order, is what will push us to keep learning. Unlike my students, we have the opportunity to walk to the grocery store after each class and practice what we've learned.
We love Korea. The trees and hiking trails everywhere, good public transportation and infrastructure, logical alphabet, delicious street food, strange mix of modern and ancient buildings, and proximity to all kinds of exotic destinations have done much to win us over. At work, our respectful, worldly students and outgoing colleagues make us grateful that we found such a welcoming community. And of course, the senseless English translations (see "With You Smile" in the margin, or consider our favorite bar names - "Loss Time," right across the street, and "Keep Your Proud" down the road), ridiculous driving, and Hello Kitty-style cartoons that decorate even the most no-nonsense construction site give us much to laugh about and marvel at when we begin to forget that we're in a new and very foreign hemisphere. Of course, coming from a home as heavenly as Seattle, there are things to miss, but other than friends and weather they are surprisingly few.
The Chuseok holiday, sort of a Korean Thanksgiving, began today for us, and we celebrated by sleeping until 1 p.m. in a much-needed attempt to catch up after a busy week at work. Now it's 1:22 a.m. and although there is much to add to this initial post, I need to get to sleep so that I don't spend Sunday in bed. Monday morning we brave China for the first time, on a short trip to Shanghai, and we're looking forward to seeing how Korea compares to its behemoth neighbor to the west. I (or Chris, if he can be persuaded to overcome the inherent dorkiness of blogging) will try to update this thing regularly. If no one reads it (other than you, Mom), at least we'll have a journal to record our time in Korea.
Suji Times: Stories & observations from Seoul's suburbs
Saturday, September 22, 2007
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5 comments:
This is great! Not even Simon Winchester made me more excited to hear about the other end of the world.
Of course,with appreciation and love, Mom
hey jess, I'm no blogger either, but this is a good idea!
HEY GUYS!!!!
OH MY GOODNESS...it's so weird to not see you guys on campus anymore, infact i still haven't been into either of your rooms just because i really don't want to see someone else in YOUR desk! I am so happy that the two of you are enjoying yourselves. it seems like everything you have experienced is definately worth remembering! i really like/ am suprised that you guys set up a blog, but i agree with the mother that it is a good idea! we miss you lots, and i hope you guys come back for graduation? keep it in mind:)
Love, Laura
PS CONGRADULATIONS!!!
Bring It On.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
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