Wednesday, February 29, 2012

15 Reasons I should Have Moved to Korea Sooner (and 5 things that worry me about having done so now)

1) They don't use forks and knives.
Chopsticks and spoons. They're just so much easier!

2) I really really really (I can't stress this enough) like K-Pop. How can you not? It's so easy to dance to, the stars all dance and it's like relieving my 90s era childhood with some electro, rap and R&B mixed in. Loving it. ^__^.

Check it Out:
(As a side note, a bunch of the K Pop stars (namely Minzy from 2NE1 and a buch of the guys, the key one being Seungri, from BIGBANG) got their dance training in Gwangju! I stumbled across the latter's studio today. Too bad I'm not a hiphop dancer!)

3) Korean houses tend not to have too many chairs. This means I get to sit on the floor and it's normal!

4) Korean houses have heated floors  - all floor sitters know that this is crucial to staying warm in the winter.

5) It is perfectly normal to see people brushing their teeth anywhere, anytime. Such a great idea. No more food in teeth or bad breath after a meal!

6) Koreans believe that egg belongs in soup - this means that not only does the yolk not run everywhere, it naturally separates from the white, allowing me to avoid it without making it obvious.

7) Standing on Korean buses when they are racing about the city (or just from one stop to the next) without landing on the lap of the person next to you is a workout and a half. No wonder everyone's in shape!

8) The absence of ridiculous safety standards means that fun has not been dismantled. There are children's playgrounds everywhere! (many with a good set of parallel or uneven bars). 9) Koreans also like smothering things in spicy red sauce.

10) It is expected  that you keep your windows open even in the middle of winter - hah! no more people thinking I'm crazy on that count either! (there is a perfectly rational reason for this. Energy is gas based and there is worry about fumes.)

11) Everyone here likes hiking. It is a mountain covered peninsula though, so I suppose there might have been some problems if they didn't.

12) They really like their food. And they like to have lots of it on the table :D.

13) Everyone shares their food. This means no one threatens to stab you with a fork when you just want to try something.

14) All people take their shoes off when entering the house. Yay! No more OCD inspired cringing when people casually stroll across my floors in their outdoor shoes!

15) Not too sure how I feel about this one. It might be a bit much, but then I'm all for openness. Bowel movements are a regular topic of conversation... 

And with that, I will move on to the 5 things that most worry me about living in Korea
1) Despite their crazy driving, no one but the bus driver to Incheon Airport seems to be overly concerned with seat belts.

2) All rooms which do not have heated floors - namely bathrooms and hallways - seem instead to act as refrigerators. It seems like it's almost always colder inside than out!

3) Houses here have heated floors...

4)   You can buy a whole bottle of MSG  - powder or liquid - at, not only the supermarket, but your local 7-11.

5) Old people keep showing me up. No one will let me carry anything and the ajummas (older ladies) here all seem to be both far stronger and far hardier than I am. One I passed earlier was carrying a parcel that looked to be twice my weight without even looking strained!

2 comments:

S said...

ally why did i not know you were into the hangul wave. zomg we could have had our own private conversations on the chain obsessing about kpop and 1n2d and star golden bell and simonandmartina (they're on youtube - check them out! you'll find more fun things to do in korea sooner)
have fun and play safe!
- your korean-loving non-korean friend saach-mo

Ally S said...

LOL! We should've! I will look them up :)