Vacation to Taiwan

The other weekend, I took a couple of days of work to go on vacation to Taiwan. I went with Juan Jose, a foreign exchange student that I met in Korea. In Taiwan, we met up with a couple of Juan Jose's friends who had offered us a free place to stay. More importantly, they also spoke Mandarin.

Coming to Korea was certainly a foreign experience, but when I arrived, I could at least read the subway signs, ask for directions, and manage my way around. Taiwan was a different story. When Juan Jo and I arrived, we quickly ran into the language barrier problem. We fumbled around the Taiwanese airport for about an hour searching for anyone who could help us figure out a way to get from the airport to our friends address, which was in Chinese. We were lucky to eventually meet a girl who helped us out, and we finally got in touch with Jaun Jo's friends, Lucas and Raul, which was a huge relief.

In addition to the language barrier, Taipei was also a noticeably less developed city that Seoul. The streets were narrower, the infrastructure slightly poorer (although the subway still put MARTA to shame), and the roads and sidewalks were littered with about 10x as many scooter drivers- zooming around with no regard for the wellbeing of pedestrians such as myself.

The upside to Taipei's underdevelopment was the prices. For our first meal, we ate fairly well for the equivalent of under $2! The rest of the trip kept a consistant theme of "I can't believe how cheap this is!"

It was an eventful weekend, we played pick-up basketball against some Chinese college kids, went to a Taiwanese magic show, saw the National Palace Museum and Chiang-Kia Shek Memorial, and (my personal favorite) went to the top of Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world.

Taipei left me with a very positive impression, but I felt a sense of relief when I was back to Seoul. Having felt like an alien 6 months ago when I arrived in Seoul, it was an odd experience to re-enter the country after a trip to Taipei. I almost felt at home coming back to the familiar language, subway system, and my closet-sized apartment. I guess its a sign that after 6 months, I've truly adapted to living in a foreign culture- my number one goal for my time here. Now that that's accomplished, I'll be looking forward to coming home soon to see friends and family (and finally eating a nice steak).

Office Thriller

My Korean experience has provided me with some interesting stories, perhaps none as bizarre as what went down in my office yesterday afternoon.

Earlier in the week, I had been approached by one of my fellow interns. She said that there was a TV show coming through doing interviews of people who were really terrible singers. She asked if it would be ok if she signed me up. It sounded like a fun opportunity to get on TV, and I certainly fit the description (as you can tell in the video) so I agreed.

Having expected to be pulled into a nice quite room where I could embarrass myself in peace, I was shocked when tv studio staff members came into my office and began setting up a television studio around my desk. As it was happening, one of my other interns messaged me on gchat, "we're all watching you, better do a good job!!!"

What on earth had I gotten myself into? Everyone on the floor of the office was beginning to gather around my desk area, soon the hosts of the TV show were approaching me, the cameras were rolling, and it was "go time" for my interview.

I did the best I could to respond to the questions in my limited Korean. When I got stuck, I would whisper to one of the other interns for a little help. I gave a short introduction of myself, answered some basic questions, and did a respectfully lousy job singing a couple of Korean songs a cappella. It was going pretty smooth, but also pretty boring. It was clear that the hosts and some of my co-workers were expecting a bit more of a show.

"So do you know any pop? Do you dance?" asked the host. I hesitated, then decided "why not?" and went for it. "Sure I said, Michael Jackson, I like his song Thriller." The hosts got excited. Out of nowhere a karaoke machine appeared in front of me and suddenly I was standing on my own, surrounded by my Korean co-workers who were clapping to the beat and smiling eagerly. One of the interns on my team gave me a thumbs-up.

I had no idea what to do, so I just started to dance. I danced and I sang and had more and more fun with it as I went along. My co-workers all loved it and cheered me on. The experience was surreal. Soon I was bidding the hosts of the show goodbye and the temporary TV studio was being broken down and taken away.

The show is called 음치들의반란 or "Bad Singers Revolt." I was told that it will air sometime next month on cable tv in Korea. I will be interested to see the show, I still have no idea what its real premise is.

A day later, the whole thing still feels like a dream. The good news is that all of my co-workers loved me for it, especially the other interns, so I guess the risk paid off. How fond Michael would be of my actions is not so certain, I imagine he is likely rolling in his grave at the moment.

Meeting Governor Deal and the Head of Kotra's Germany Branch

The last week seems like a blur, in a short amount of time I've been overwhelmed with some of the best opportunities Korea has offered me so far. Last week, Gov Deal came to Korea to discuss potential investment opportunities in Georgia with Korean business leaders. With Gov Deal was my friend and former Professor Chris Young, who works with the Governor as the Chief of Protocol for International Affairs. I had gotten in touch with Chris a few weeks before the Gov's planned trip to Korea. I was able to plan ahead and take a day off work so that I could meet with Chris for lunch. Lucky for me, I also got the opportunity to sit in on an interesting press conference with the Governor, and briefly meet him and some of the other staff members traveling with him.

It was a great opportunity, and quickly followed with another great opportunity. The head of Kotra's branch in Germany was in Seoul for the weekend, and as a tribute, Kotra was hosting a small "October Fest" (a bit late) to learn a bit about the German tradition. It was a rather exclusive event, and closed to interns, but my boss who is always very kind to me pulled a few strings and invited me to come.

I was a bit nervous at first to show up to such an event. However, when I got there I found that I already knew a large number of the workers from the Kotra soccer team. Further, the presence of an all you can eat buffet and all you can drink bar quickly created a happy and relaxed environment. The event lasted for several hours and was a rare opportunity to really break down barriers with my co-workers and have some of the most insightful and valuable conversations that I've enjoyed in Korea thus far.

Both opportunities were incredible. A week ago I had fallen victim to allowing myself to just push through the tough Korean work weeks with my eyes always set on the opportunities of the weekend. Shaking hands with Gov Deal and a Kotra executive reminded me that every day in Korea is a valuable opportunity, and that I can't let a single one go to waste.

Remembering Korean Names

Yesterday marked the 4 month anniversary from the day I arrived in Korea. In the four months since coming to Korea, I have never once regretted my decision to make the journey, but that's not to say some things haven't been a little tough from time to time. Many of my struggles have come from anticipated obstacles, different cuisine, the language barrier, the long Korean work day. However, I have also had my share of surprising challenges. One that comes to mind is the constant embarrassment I feel at forgetting the names of Koreans.

From time to time, everyone is bound to forget a name or two. Sometimes we drift off into lala land as we shake someone's hand and completely forget to listen in as they state their name. Other times we are simply introduced to too many people at once and can't remember every single name. However, with a few nemonic tricks and the ability to listen in to the conversation, its often easy to pick up the names we miss.

Korea is a different story. Often I will pay full attention, but despite my best efforts, the conversation will go something like this:

(New Korean Friend) Hello, nice to meet you, my name is Kim Kyung Hwan (note: Koreans usually introduce themselves with their whole names, and their surname comes before their given names, unlike English)

(Me) Hi, nice to meet you Kyung Hwan, my name is Sean

(New Korean Friend) Ah, sorry, not Kyung Hwan, Kyung Hwan

(Me): Thinking to myself....what on earth? Was there any difference between the two names he just said... uh, sorry. Kyung Hwan

(New Korean Friend) No, No, Kyung Hwan

(Me) Kyung Hwan

New Korean Friend) No, No, No....ah, its OK, just call me Kim

And so my first few weeks in Korea this was pretty much the scenario that played out. It worked ok for a while, but pretty soon, I knew about 25 "Kims," 19 "Lees," and 15 "Parks." It was a disaster. What made the problem worse was that many of these people would get my phone number or find me on facebook. Soon, I was getting lots of messages from "Kim," but I had absolutely no idea who I was talking to.

In my four months here, I've done a few things to prevent this scenario from spiraling out of control. First and foremost, I no longer allow anyone I meet to let me call them by their last name, instead I apologize for my pronunciation and do my best to get as close as I can.

The second, less conventional thing that I've done is try and memorize the meanings behind names. Nearly all Korean names have some sort of meaning attached to them (for example, "Young" means Golden and "Kim" means Dragon). For some reason, connecting Korean names to English words helps my brain to better remember both. It's also a great way to start a conversation about my new friend's name, which helps me to transfer the name to my long-term memory.

Oddly enough, its finding tricks like this that have allowed me to continue to enjoy the pleasures of Korea without getting bogged down by the numerous (and sometimes exhausting) challenges that I face everyday being in a foreign culture. Now if I can only find a trick that helps me find a restaurant with a decently priced steak and an American beer, I'll be set for my last two months here.

Enjoying the Weather, and some K-Pop

Korea's weather has changed in a hurry. The hot, muggy, and rainy days that plagued my first couple of months here
have been replaced by blue skies and mild (sometimes a bit chilly) temperatures. I've welcomed the change and have been doing my best to enjoy the good weather. Korea had another holiday this past weekend. I wasn't as adventurous this time around and just used the opportunity to hang around Seoul and catch-up on some sleep. One exciting thing I did was go toyet another concert (I believe this is now my fifth or sixth since moving here). I went with Juan Jo, a friend of mine who is a college exchange student from Guatemala, to go see Girl'sGeneration. K-Pop is a booming industry in Korea, and Girl's Generation is at the top of the game. The concert didn't really change my opinion of the music genre (no thank you), but I still had fun and remain determined with Jaun Jo to meet the band so that we can ask them out on a date (they're a lot more fun to look at then listen to).

Tonight I'll be

going out to dinner with my fellow interns. The team has grown quite a bit since my first day at work, there are now eight interns including myself, the largest by far of any other team at Kotra. Dinner will be entertaining, I am now wearing suits to work and the other seven interns on my team are all girls. I already get odd looks w

alking to work in the morning, I can only imagine the looks I am going to get at the restaurant when I walk in wearing a full suite with seven girls tagging along. Not that I am complaining or anything.

Han River Boat Cruise

The Han River bisects the City of Seoul. The river is one of the most beautiful parts of the city, and you can take an hour and a half cruise at night for only about $15. I went with a group of college students that I've met while here and we enjoyed seeing Seoul's grand skyline contrasted with the water's edge. The highlight of the trip was seeing the floating stages built only a few years ago (if that) which light up and play music at night.

Speaking of music, I will be going to my second Korean concert tonight, a poplar veteran R&B artist named 인순이 (Insooni). Between work, my Korean language class, boat tours, concerts, and eating live squid, Korea is keeping me pretty busy!

Eating Living Squid in Pusan!

I had Monday and Tuesday off this week in celebration of 주석, Korea’s version of Thanksgiving. For the holiday I went South to Pusan, Korea’s second biggest city located off the coast of the East China Sea. Pusan is a beautiful place with great beaches and delicious seafood.

By far the most memorable experience I had there was eating 산낙지, or living squid. The plate was brought out with the small tentacles of the squid still squirming around. 산낙지 is a dangerous food, apparently, a few people have died in the past by not chewing well enough. The squid is still alive when they swallow, and latches on to the inside of their throat and suffocates them.

I went to grab one with my chopsticks and it wrapped itself around the tip in a stranglehold. Ready to do battle with my food, I dipped it in some soy sauce and attempted to put it in my mouth. The tentacle hopped from my chopstick and latched on to my outer lip with its little suction cups. I started laughing. I tried to work it into my mouth with my tongue, and soon it latched on to that. Then the little guy hopped from my tongue to the inside of my cheek. From there I began to fight back. After a couple of chews the lively squid stopped moving and I was able to swallow, with a shot of soju for good measure. The taste was actually quite nice and I enjoyed eating several of the living tentacles, making sure to chew well each time.