I would like to share some of the most memorable odd
experiences that I have had so far during my time in Korea. First, if being a
foreigner in Korea has made me realize anything it's that I stick out. People
look at me constantly. I find it sort of flattering. In the USA I would consider
myself average looking. I am not trying to put myself down, but I have never
considered myself worthy of being stared at by any means. I am just me.
However, that is not the case here. I have never been told I am beautiful more
in my life. While I know that this is mostly just a response to the fact that I
look very different in comparison to most people in the country, and that it
isn't something to let go to my head, I would be lying if I said that it hasn't
boosted my self esteem. It is nice to be noticed for once. In the USA I felt
like a ghost most the time. Here people notice me, even if it is just because I
am blonde. I am thankful nevertheless. So with that said I would like to share
some of my oddest/memorable (but most definitely not all) of my, "look it
is a foreigner" moments:
I think that one of the most memorable moments was during my
walk to school on one of my first days of teaching. As I was walking to school
a dog ran out of someones yard to greet me on the sidewalk. It was a shy dog
though and soon ran off. At this moment an older man who was walking toward me
further down the sidewalk suddenly started bowing and repeating the words,
"I am sorry" over and over and over again. My impression was that
perhaps the dog belonged to him, but I honestly have no idea. He bowed to me
repeatedly for several minutes as he apologized for some unknown reason and
talked and talked in a bunch of Korean too quickly for me to understand. He
also fist bumped me twice...and saluted me prior to leaving. I felt so awkward
and confused, but honestly I found the whole situation so funny that I was
giggling the rest the way to school. It was my first impression of,
"living in Korea is going to give me many odd experiences."
Another moment that left an impression on me was when I met
the students that I would be teaching for the first time. They were fascinated
by me. I had several boys who did nothing but gaze at me with wide eyes for
several days. The young girls were mesmerized by my hair. They asked me so many
times, "Teacher is your hair natural? No dye? Teacher your hair is
soft!" They also loved my eyes and would ask me, "Teacher, no lenses?
Lenses?" They would all shout in excitement at the fact that my eyes
really were blue and green. I have students come up to me just to gaze closely
at my eyes often.
Then there was the one K-drama moment that I found myself
in. I was walking home from school and it was raining a little. I had walked
most the way home, and was pretty wet, when I had to stop at the crosswalk to
cross the street to get to my apartment. There was a university guy also at the
crosswalk and he had an umbrella. I noticed him watching me as I stood there in
the rain. We crossed the crosswalk together and when we reached the other side
suddenly his umbrella appeared above me. I was a bit startled and took my
headphones out to look at him. He said something to me in Korean, something
along the lines of, "Don't you have an umbrella?" In English, I told
him that I had forgotten it at home. Well that was the extent of our
conversation...he was so quiet...but turns out we live in the same apartment
building, so he walked me to the door of the building and sheltered me from the
rain. I could not believe that a stranger was so kind, kind enough to do something
which in the USA would've seemed so trivial. In the USA most people don't even
use umbrellas where I am from. Walking in the rain is natural to me, but in
Korea nearly everyone uses an umbrella so I think seeing me without one made
him feel awkward and like he should help me. I thanked him several times before
we went to our separate floors.
At the bus stop...
Well it was Friday and I was at Naju's bus terminal
preparing to head out to travel for the weekend. I was standing there waiting
for my bus when an elderly woman walked in. She stood next to me and very
obviously was staring at me. She looked at me up and down, head to toe, several
times. It was at that moment that she said 예뻐,
which in Korean means pretty. I was flattered once again...she must have told
me 2-3 times that I was pretty, as she just kept muttering the word over and
over. I politely thanked her and she smiled at me.
The U-Turn...
It seems like most of these moments happen on my walks to or
from school...lol
I was headed to school one day and was waiting to cross the
driveway entrance to a rather large complex of apartments. The traffic was fairly
busy, so when it cleared I intended to move quickly. While I was waiting a car
had pulled into the driveway and parked across from me. At least I thought they
had parked, turned out they were waiting for the traffic to clear as well so
that they could make a U-turn. Well when the traffic cleared I went to cross
the same time they began their turn. When I noticed the car begin to move I
stopped right away, intending to wait until they passed me to cross. As they
made their turn though, the passenger window of the car rolled down. Inside
were two guys that looked about my age. The smiled at me as they made the turn,
waved and called out "Hello!" to me in English before they sped off
down the street...I am pretty sure that they saw how flushed and instantly red
in the face I became before they drove off. I was grinning the rest the way to
school, embarrassed and flattered at the same time.
The Karaoke Room...
So myself and another foreign teacher finally decided to go
to a karaoke place near our apartment. It was our first time there and turns
out it was a rather small place. When we arrived all the rooms were full, so we
sat down on some stools and waited until the next room became available. It
wasn't long before one group finished and they left their room. When the four
guys exited their room, they seemed a bit surprised to see foreigners sitting
there. They looked back at us several times as they left. We took their room
and began singing. We were one song in when there was a knock on our door. The
guys had returned, and one of them opened our door and politely asked if he
could have our phone numbers. Again I was very surprised. I have to say though,
it was pretty courageous of him to do that, so we exchanged numbers, he thanked
us and went on his way. About 5 minutes later there was another knock. The
group had returned. This time when we opened our door, the same guy reappeared
and said, "please except these drinks" and handed us two bottles of
soda from the convenience store next to the karaoke place. Flattered, we
smiled, laughed, and accepted them. Since they were so nice and obviously
curious about us, we offered to let them join us. They were our age, and
attended the university nearby. We had been hoping that we would be able to
meet some locals our age if we went out, so the trip was a successful one for
us that night. We had fun, sang, got coffee afterward and were able to meet
some people who could potentially become our first local friends in the city.
I have learned that for the most part Korean people are very
friendly. Unless they send bad vibes or the situation doesn't feel right, I am
learning to just go with it and see what happens. I am always with others and
never alone, so I think it is safe. Plus, otherwise I wouldn't have so many amusing
stories. Being stared at used to make me super uncomfortable, but it is
something I am growing accustomed to, as I can't really expect anything less
here. I understand that I am stared at simply because I am different,
interesting, and because I make people curious so it is beginning to bother me
less here.
However, oddly enough, when other foreigners see me and
stare, like in bigger cities with a higher foreign population, these stares
still make me uncomfortable. I know it is probably a ridiculous response, but
when other foreigners stare at me I do not like it. My first thought it, what
reason do they have to stare at me so openly...since they should know what it
is like. It is kind of a weird feeling.
The following day we made a trip to the 2017 Wando Seaweed Expo, and as you can probably imagine it is all about seaweed. Never before in my life would I have imagined all the things seaweed was capable of until I came here. Wando is Korea's largest producer of seaweed, and is known for its clean ocean as well. Wando produces 50% of the total seaweed, as well as 81% total abalone production and 68% of the fish in Korea. Here I was able to ride water bikes, taste seaweed flavored ice cream and seaweed lattes, as well as dye leather and make key chains, and even make my own seaweed facial masks. The seaweed flavored ice cream and lattes had a different taste for sure, but it was surprisingly refreshing and I liked it. We also had the chance to do a virtual reality tour of under the sea, walk through some amazing seaweed museums and touch and feel many different types of seaweed. Guides showed us how the seaweed was made, and even showed us the many potential future uses of seaweed. Did you know that one day our cars could run on seaweed, and that clothes and houses can even be made out of it? I didn't before I came to Wando. The extensive uses for the plant showed a promising future. Seaweed is also very beneficial for your health if you eat it regularly. According to the expo, seaweed not only helps keep you young, but also prevents cardiovascular disease, destroys cancer cells, helps you diet, protects the environment, is a eco-friendly future energy source, and even protects our bodies from radiation. 
If you ever have the chance to visit Wando and attend the Seaweed Expo I recommend it. I learned a lot more about seaweed than I had expected to and was able to have some amazing experiences and taste some interesting foods. There also were live traditional dancing performances and other events taking place as well.
To the left you can see one of the areas of the film site where people would've lived and worked in historical times. The photo on the right is from the cliff-side and the flag that hangs over the port.
To the left you can see one of the areas of the film site where people would've lived and worked in historical times. The photo on the right is from the cliff-side and the flag that hangs over the port.
