Cultural Divergence

Ahh...Korea. You never cease to lift me up and bring me down. This entry is supposed to focus on cultural differences....I think. But, this blog usually ends up in a jumble...so just go with it. :)

"When in Rome...do as the Romans do." Its a trite phrase that becomes twisted to the writer's current situation. "When in China..." "When in Korea..." "When in America..." Yet...I think I'm still going to use it...and I do on a daily basis. I find myself in "culturally awkward" situations and it slips out..."When in Korea..."

I wrote my name on the board in red marker. I also wrote my teacher's name on the board in red marker. Had I been around for the whole orientation, I would have known that writing one's name, or the names of others, in red wishes death upon that person. "When in Korea..."

I yawned in class. One kid asked me if I was tired, and I said "no..." I yawned in front of one of my co-teachers and she told me to never yawn in front of her again or in front of the students. I told my other co-teacher what she said and with a gasp she said, "YOU YAWNED IN FRONT OF HER?" Woops... lol "When in Korea..."

Coffee is a staple of life. My street alone has over 14 coffee shops. I will henceforth affectionately refer to it as Coffee Street. :) My co-teacher asked me if I would like a cup of coffee (in Korean its Coppee lol they don't have an "f" sound in their alphabet) and I said...no thanks. She said, "Do you drink coffee?" And I said, "Of course. I had a cup earlier." She said, "Just one?" I said, "Yes.....How many did you have?" She said, "Oh...I think 5 today." It was about 2 p.m....but "When in Korea..."

Co-teach played a song in class today. It was catchy... I started whistling. :) Co-teacher came and whispered in my ear as I prepared for the next segment of the lesson..."Kyle...don't whistle." I asked her why and she said that Koreans think its rude. hmm...never heard that one...but "When in Korea..."

Take your shoes off in the house and school...but not anywhere else...
Always accept any food or drink from anyone. If you don't like it, pretend you're eating/drinking it.

Koreans are so VAIN! There are mirrors everywhere with a Korean in front of it examining their hair or dabbing a little makeup. Boy...girl...it doesn't matter...you're obsessed with your appearance. I laughed at first...but I find myself looking in those strategically placed mirrors more often then usual..."When in Korea..."

Lastly...and on a sappy note...Koreans are very kind and helpful. They will pick you up when you drop your coffee cup on the bus and fall over trying to pick it up. They will smile and keep your pace while trying to scale a gimonstrous  mountain. When trying to give you a haircut, they will tear their salon apart looking for the right magazine with the right hairstyle in it because they can't understand what you want. Total strangers on the street will give you directions or tell you "Eng-ah-lish.....no...soddy" but they will never tell you ...well you know what they might tell you in the States. They will hug you when you're sad. They will hug you when you move into part of their house. If they're students...they will bow to you. :) They will take money out of your wallet when you can't understand what number...and leave the other money right where it is. So..."When in Korea..."

They really are great people. :) I'm glad I get to make all of these cultural mistakes. I get peace of mind knowing that if they came to the US they would make mistakes too. They might cut someone off on the highway, or trust a stranger to take their money, or eat off of a person's plate...someone they just met lol. Cultural difference is exactly that...a difference. One should neither completely conform (so as to retain a part of their own culture) nor should they completely resist (because what fun would it be to offend everyone you meet on a constant basis.) I'm sure I'll make more of these mistakes, but for now...I'm happy to make them and learn not to whistle and yawn so often. :)