The People of Korea (through my eyes)

I have been living in Korea for around 6 weeks now and I have never given any insight into my impressions of Korea thus far. On the way back from Seoraksan National Park, I made a list and divided it into 4 categories: food, living, culture, and people. Here are a few notes I have written down about the people of Korea.

I was surprised when I arrived in Korea, many people do not speak English and obviously, I don’t speak Korean. The hardest times so far have had when trying to navigate my way are through a menu. If there is not pictures, good luck, everything is in Korean! We hit gold when we go into a restaurant and there are pictures on the wall. I do have a sign that says “I don’t like fish” which I flash around at restaurants.

All the women wear high heels and are dressed perfectly, everyday. My friend Janine said when she was in Busan, she even saw women going to the beach in high heels (along with umbrellas as to not change the shade of their face.) Korean women and men both are very concerned keeping their face pale and as white as possible. This is because if you have darker skin you are considered working class or even poor because you were forced to work outside in the fields. I actually bought some new makeup called BeBe cream, which Janine swears by. After looking at the package not only does it have SPF 50, it has whitening cream and bleach too!

Korea has such a big population for how tiny the country actually is. Therefore, it’s crowded everywhere, for example this past Saturday I was in a shopping area called Myeong Dong, and every store I went into I was pushed, shoved and knocked over. Public transportation is extremely crowded as well but an unwritten rule on public transportation is you’re not allowed to talk. I have been given stares for raising my voice unbeknownst to me. When I get on the bus, I even turn my cell phone to vibrate. I have seen Koreans yell at people for talking too loud on the subway.



(subway stop in Seoul)

I realize that these are just a few insights into the lives of Korean people. Many people have been really friendly and enjoy practicing their English with us. Last Wednesday in Seoul, I was out with Janine and Barry and an older man started chatting with us with his son. He was so happy and proud that we were in Korea teaching English to the next generation of Koreans, he bought all of our drinks, and that’s the Korean hospitality for you.