This post is dedicated to the the masses of friends who will, very shortly, be joining me in enjoying all the adventures that teaching English in South Korea has to offer. The new academic year will be starting soon and I have some great friends (from SA mostly) arriving in a week. So this is for you guys.
Let me preface this post by saying that you are in for the adventure of a lifetime. You are going to have the opportunities to travel (even farther abroad than Korea), meet new fascinating people from different cultures, have your taste buds not quite be able to explain what you are trying, see sights that you have not even got the capacity to imagine yet, learn a new language, make great new friends and all of this while you are earning great money doing something that you love (and if you are not a teacher yet, something that you WILL LOVE). There is no doubt in my mind that you are going to be crazy happy here. Whenever somebody says "let me preface this" you should always anticipate the "BUT"....But along with all these great things you will experience a strange sensation in your first little while here. You not going to have mom's cooking and cleaning and you wont yet understand any of the foreign looking signs, nor will you comprehend what the lady behind the counter is saying while you fumble with the monetary notes that have ridiculously big numbers printed on them. You will be experiencing some culture shock.
Here are a few things that might make you aware of the fact that you are no longer in the proverbial Kansas.
1)Crowds of 'foreigners'.
It seems rather obvious, but it is something I never really thought about before coming here. You will be constantly surrounded by Asian people. They are lovely, friendly, GENEROUS people but you will not see the rainbow nation that you are used to everyday of your life (so far). This will be even more evident if you end up staying in Seoul (which has a population of about 20 million people, if you includes the satellite cities), if you don't end up in Seoul or Busan or a big city point 2 will be more real for YOU.
(pic taken from http://www.youngsamsung.com)
2) Staring.
Its not that bad anymore, maybe because i am used to it?? Or maybe because the Korean population is getting more used to people like me?? Either way it does still happen and it has the potential to make you feel a little uncomfortable. 아줌마s (Ajumas, or the old aunties) could even stare down Chuck Norris....its a fact, especially if Chuck happens to find himself of the subway. These stares are not daggers being darted at you or hairy eyeballs, they are just curious...for the most part...I THINK??
(pic from http://blogs.koreanclass101.com)
3)Communication
EVERYTHING will seem foreign to you, and so it should. The language and the sounds of the language will not register at first. The squiggles and lines that form and make up the letters and characters and words will look more like the doodles you make when chatting absentmindedly on the phone. But it is an AMAZING language and something you should respect, after all you are in "their" country now. DO NOT EXPECT PEOPLE TO SPEAK TO YOU IN ENGLISH! But don't worry when you go home you will be ACE at playing 30seconds!!
(pic from http://korean-muzik.forumotion.co.uk)
4)Food and their odours.
The food in Korea is PHENOMENAL! I absolutely love it here and am at times disappointed that my menu is always limited by the fact that i am a vegetarian. I hope you like spicy....i REALLY HOPE you like spicy! ;)
There smells that are associated with some foods that still don't make me all that happy. The only one i REALLY don't like is the smell of roasting squid. The best way i can describe it is like burning hair with a fishy twang to it... (Oooohhh i also don't like the smell of silkworm larvae stewing on the streets).
(Pics taken from http://www.flickr.com/photos/soemmia/588543106/
and http://jiaseemee.wordpress.com respectively)
5) Bowing and taking your shoes off.
This is actually a fun one. I am sure you will all be unsure of what to do at times, and when that happens to me I just smile and bow. The more uncertain I am the deeper I tend to bow, hahaha. Bowing is an important part of the Korean culture and it can convey different messages. A deep bow is respectful, whereas a nod of a bow, would imply superiority. So don't smile and nod, SMILE AND BOW :) . You will also have to take your shoes off A LOT! And watch your students faces when you tell them that you walk in your house with your shoes on.. :)
(pic taken from http://www.nypie.com)
Do not let this post scare you. That is not the intent behind it. I just want you to be a little more prepared than I was when I touched down for the first time in Korea (after my agency messed up and my bank card didn't work and I had to spend a weekend alone in a "love motel" before trekking to my school...but that's a whole different post altogether) HAHAHAHA
So welcome to South Korea my friends. May good fortune shine on you always. Enjoy it, rock out and Marc you carry on feeling buff!!!
