Bittersweet. If I were asked
to describe the feeling that I’ve been having since coming home, I would have
to say, “Bittersweet.” It’s the perfect little word that conveys not only one
feeling, but two--- two very different emotions that seem to be intertwined
inside of me--- both feelings equally present, both feelings equally strong.
I remember sitting down, cross-legged, the night before my flight back to the US. I felt so tired from all of the packing/sending boxes home/getting rid of things/running around town to close accounts, etc. But then again, I also felt relieved to have all of that behind me and I was happy and eager to enjoy the delicious meal in front of me. As my chopsticks darted to and fro between several colorful vegetable side dishes, the bubbling hot pot of tasty chicken soup with hand cut noodles, and my mouth, my heart suddenly felt heavy because I realized that it would be my last authentic Korean meal in Korea for a while.
I remember sitting down, cross-legged, the night before my flight back to the US. I felt so tired from all of the packing/sending boxes home/getting rid of things/running around town to close accounts, etc. But then again, I also felt relieved to have all of that behind me and I was happy and eager to enjoy the delicious meal in front of me. As my chopsticks darted to and fro between several colorful vegetable side dishes, the bubbling hot pot of tasty chicken soup with hand cut noodles, and my mouth, my heart suddenly felt heavy because I realized that it would be my last authentic Korean meal in Korea for a while.
The next day, as I flew farther and farther away from the place that had become my home for the last year and a half of my life, I felt it--- that bittersweet feeling--- and it stayed with me as the plane continued to soar, bringing me closer and closer to my friends and family and to the place that has been my home since I was born. The “Korea” chapter of my life has come to an end and now I’m ready for the new chapter and the new beginning that I have ahead of me.
Trips and Experiences
After spending August 2011
in Germany, I felt refreshed and ready to jump back into life in Korea. The
first trip I went on in September was a trip to the past as I visited a
traditional Korean folk village with my Emo (aunt). We walked by Koreans clad
in hanboks and other commonly worn clothing of long ago; we walked in an out of
homes set up the same way they were hundreds of years prior. We sampled
traditional treats that are still enjoyed today and we followed a wedding
procession that boasted a beautiful bride.
Later in September, I found myself strolling down a street lined with tall green trees in Apgujeong--- a classy and chic upscale neighborhood with prices to match. Bursting with color and packed with two- and three-story high cafés and unique boutiques, this place had such a cool, creative vibe.
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| Apgujeong |
In October, I was given the opportunity to assist as a German interpreter for an Austrian tour group. As part of the tour, we visited Changdeok Palace (completed in 1412 under King Taejong) and its secret garden called Biwon (completed in 1463 under King Sejo). For lunch we stopped at a place well known for its “donkasse” (a lightly breaded and fried pork cutlet, sort of like German schnitzel). Next, we were off to Insadong, a bustling street with traditional Korean items for sale. There we were greeted with a wedding parade complete with drummers and a horse! Afterwards, our tour guide brought us from traditional Insadong to a modern musical performance called “Bibap” which included music, singing, and breakdancing. To end the day, we headed up to Namsan Tower to take in a stunning view of Seoul, just as the sun was setting and the blue, purple, red, and yellow sky faded to black, preparing the stage for the moon to come out. As the sky darkened, millions of city lights became more visible and highways became continuous streams of light as cars sped across them. I don’t think you truly come to realize how big Seoul is until you are looking down on it like I was, way up high above it.
The night wasn’t really over after our trip to Namsan Tower because no night is complete without dinner! So for our final stop, our tour group indulged in delicious Korean barbecue. The perfect way to end our event-filled day.
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| Tour |
My next trip in October was to Yeongju, a city in the northern region of South Korea famous for its apples. I enjoyed getting away from my neighborhood for a bit and I appreciated the fresh air and the change of scenery.
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| Yeongju |
November 11th is an important day in Korea. It’s known as “Pepero Day,” and last November 11th was especially special because it was 11/11/11. Pepero is a cookie stick snack dipped in chocolate syrup (nowadays there are several flavors) and the number 1 is supposed to represent a Pepero stick. On Pepero Day, friends and couples exchange boxes of this sweet snack and stores really get into the spirit with elaborate displays and stacks of Pepero boxes ready to be sold. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepero)
Another defining part of November was the annual Seoul Lantern Festival. Hundreds upon hundreds of bright, festive, and unique lanterns lit up the Cheonggyecheon Stream, creating an unforgettable experience for anyone who visited. There were big lanterns and small lanterns, lanterns strung up high and lanterns that formed tunnels for people to walk through. The glowing lanterns told stories and illustrated Korea’s past, and to me, they also symbolized Korea’s bright future.
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| Seoul Lantern Festival |
The last thing to mention about November is kimjang. Kimjang is a Korean tradition that takes place at the end of October to the middle of November every year. This is a time when families come together to prepare kimchi (and plenty of it--- about 20 heads of Napa cabbage for a family of four). Long ago, families made so much kimchi to prepare themselves with a supply of vegetables to get through the cold winter months. Last November, I got to take part in the kimjang tradition. My Emo showed me how to make kimchi, and I have to say that it is one very long process. However, the payoff (delicious, healthy, spicy kimchi) is well worth all the time put into making it. I now have my Emo’s kimchi recipe and I am prepared for the next time I decide to make it.
Early in December of 2011, I went to a European Christmas market. Many traditional German Christmas treats were being sold, so I helped myself to a cinnamon waffle with powdered sugar. Besides the treats to eat, there was a treat for my ears--- a lively band that sang many popular Spanish songs. I had a great time at that festival but I’d have to say that the best part of December didn’t arrive until Christmas Eve. That’s when my younger brother, Chris, flew in to Korea. He stayed with me for about two and a half weeks and we packed so much--- almost too much--- into the short time that he was with me in Seoul.
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European Christmas Market |
Aside from visiting many of the typical touristy spots around Seoul, my brother and I also went to some interesting tucked away places. My friends took us to Buamdong, a small town made famous because of its café that was featured in a popular Korean drama called “Coffee Prince.” I don’t think I’ve ever had a prettier cup of coffee than the one I had there.
In January my brother and I along with some of my friends headed west to spend a night at the West Sea. We made it just in time to see the sun setting over the sea and we enjoyed the view until we had to retreat indoors because of the cold. Next, we stuffed ourselves with samgyupsal (grilled three layer pork belly) and then we hung out together in the big room we rented for the night until we decided to venture out again. We went back to the beach and braved the cold, playing a Korean childhood game similar to “Red Light, Green Light” until about 4 am.
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| Chris |
After my brother left Korea, I went to Soraepogu--- a big port and fish market close to Incheon Airport. I went on Seollal (Lunar New Year), a national holiday. Basically everything closes on Seollal in Korea… except Soraepogu. It was hard to believe that it was a holiday based on the number of people out and about and it was even harder for me to imagine the fish market any more crowded than it already was. My Emo told me--- “It’s a holiday today so it’s not as busy as usual.” Had it gotten any busier, I don’t think I would have been able to take two steps out in front of me. Before heading home, Emo and I bought fresh “hoe” (raw fish, pronounced “hway”). We brought our tray of hoe back to her home and then wrapped thin slices of raw fish, garlic, and spicy sauce into lettuce leaves and sesames leaves and popped them into our mouths. The hoe was heavenly.
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| Soraepogu |
February rolled along faster
than expected and with it came my boyfriend for his second visit to Korea. Our
three most memorable trips were our trips to Busan, Dogil Maeul, and the East
Sea.
For our trip to Busan, a southern port city, NIklas and I took the KTX (Korea Train Express, South Korea’s high speed rail system). It took us two hours and forty minutes to get there (opposed to five hours by car) and the tickets set us back about $50 each (one-way). In Busan we visited Jagalchi Market--- a gigantic fish market where we saw fish of all shapes and sizes and other strange-looking sea creatures that we had never seen before. Aside from the fish market, Busan also has a huge outdoor market that sells everything you can dream of. The whole atmosphere was crazy--- tons of people, tons of things to buy, food everywhere, flashing lights and colorful signs, and on top of all that, loud music pumping out popular K-Pop beats.
Niklas and I also went to
Busan’s giant Lotte Department Store and saw an impressive water and light
show. After that, we walked through the seemingly endless underground shopping
center to do some “eye shopping” (a funny expression used in Korea that we
refer to as “window shopping”). The underground shopping haven stretched for over
a mile and we used it to get back to the area where we were staying. There are
many underground shopping centers in Korea, especially in Seoul. They are
usually connected to subway stations and other malls and walking through them
is a convenient way to avoid traffic or bad weather.
For me, the highlight of our trip to Busan was when we visited a charming, colorful little village nestled high above the city that I had first spotted in a magazine in Seoul. Gamcheon Culture Village, aka “Korea’s Santorini,” lived up to the pictures and article that I had read months earlier and it felt surreal and exciting to be there. Niklas and I had so much fun walking through the little town, taking pictures of the pastel colored lego-like homes, and walking through the narrow alleyways and up and down the steep streets. We were pleasantly surprised to see artistic touches everywhere! Vibrant arrows painted on the corners of buildings directed people to interesting spots around town. Cute little characters were even drawn on the arrows and lots of wooden fish decorations (each one uniquely painted) were all over the place. To sum it up, I’d say that Gamcheon Culture Village is like Busan’s mecca for the creative and artsy.
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| Busan |
Believe it or not, Niklas and I (as well as his flatmate from Germany and one of my Korean friends) went to a German Village. In Korea. We drove about five hours to reach this sleepy town by the South Sea and found it to be like any typical German town with the houses, gardens, and even the mailboxes exactly like the ones you would find in Germany. There even were Gartenzwerge (garden gnomes)! Gartenzwerge are a common example of German kitsch, so seeing them in Korea certainly got a laugh out of me.
This trip was especially
meaningful because when I watched the documentary about the German Village in
Germany in 2009 with Niklas, it really moved me and I hoped that one day,
maybe, I would be able to go to Korea (my plans for Korea weren’t yet set) and
perhaps, if I was lucky, I would be able to make it to the German Village too.
The documentary, “Endstation der Sehnsüchte” (The Last Station of Desire)
(Trailers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjnpq80PHQA,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igT6Yv2PRMI)
told the story of how the village was founded and followed the lives of three
of the village’s couples. You see--- in the 60’s, the Korean economy was
horrible, so thousands of young Korean women went to Germany to work as nurses
so they could earn money and send some back to their families. Many of the
Korean women married German men and some of those women, after living in
Germany for so many years, yearned to go back to Korea. Thus, the couples
journeyed back to the wives’ homeland, and as a “thank you” to the nurses (for
sending money back home), the Korean government helped them establish the Dogil
Maeul (German Village).
The most thrilling and absolute best part of our trip all started when a woman who was working in her garden overheard us speaking in German. When she looked up, I immediately recognized her as one of the wives from the documentary, and then she invited my friends and I into her home for coffee! The woman’s husband was at home too and we all sat down and enjoyed real German coffee, Korean chocolate cake snacks, and most of all, the conversation we had together. As I was sitting, I almost couldn’t believe how lucky I was to be there, in their kitchen, talking to them, especially since they were my favorite couple from the documentary. They were kind, they had a great sense of humor, and they were so open as they shared their experiences with us. I found it quite amazing when I learned that the husband was 73 years old when he agreed to move to Korea with his wife (nine years ago). I definitely admired him for being able to make such a bold and brave move for someone his age!
At the end of the day when we drove back to Seoul, I thought back to that night in 2009 when I watched “Endstation der Sehnsüchte” in a small theater in Germany, and how back then, I would have never even imagined that one day I’d find myself in the kitchen of one of the couples from that documentary. I guess life never stops surprising you.
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| German Village |
The last trip Niklas and I took before he left was with a tour group to the East Sea. On that day, we trekked through a tall fir tree forest with the crispest, freshest air in Korea, we drove past gigantic snow-dusted mountains in Pyeongchang (that’s where the 2018 Winter Olympics will be held), we stopped for lunch at a fish market and ate a spicy rockfish stew and raw, chopped up squid that still squirmed on the plate, and we boarded a small cruise ship for an hour ride/tour. After that trip, I was finally able to say that I had been to the four corners of South Korea! North: DMZ, East: East Sea, South: South Sea and Busan, and West: West Sea.
As a last little note, eating the raw squid that still wiggled around in my mouth was quite the experience. I think once was enough to last me my lifetime. Although… I was told that eating raw squid is known to boost one’s strength/energy and that even Korean farmers occasionally feed raw squid to their sluggish cows on hot summer days to give them a jolt of energy. So… if I ever need an energy boost in the future, I might consider giving it another try.
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| East Sea |
In Korea, age really
matters. Upon meeting someone new, one of the first things you are asked is,
“How old are you?” People do this to find out whether you are older or younger
than they are so that they can address you properly. For example, “sshi” is
usually attached to the end of someone’s name as a term of respect.
Another noteworthy fact
about age in Korea is that it’s counted differently compared to how we count it
in the US. In Korea, you are considered to be one year old when you are born
because you spend nine months in your mother’s womb. Therefore, in Korea your
Korean age is usually one year more than your real age. But--- to throw in a
curveball, most Koreans add another year onto their age on the Lunar New Year
(according to tradition, you get a year older after eating ddeuk guk, a rice
cake soup) regardless of whether or not it has been their birthday yet. So---
in Korea, I was 25 (Korean age) before I had even turned 24 (US age)! How?
Well, I was born in April 1988, so in January 2012, that meant I was still 23
(US age). According to the Korean way, I was already 24 (for the nine months in
the womb). After Lunar New Year (January 23), I automatically added one more
year to my age even though I hadn’t even celebrated my 24th birthday
yet, thus making me 25 in Korean age. Thank goodness we don’t count age the
same way here in the US!
In case you’ve ever wondered
about how school lunches are served in Korea, I learned from my 14-year-old (15
in Korean age) student that elementary, middle, and high school students each bring little
cases with metal chopsticks and a metal spoon inside for lunchtime. They
are served lunch (which includes rice, soup, kimchi, meat, and other side
dishes) in their classrooms on trays. The students use their own utensils and
then bring them home to wash and then bring them back the next day to use
again.
It’s common for apartments
in Korea to have PA systems in them. When I heard the PA system go off in the
kitchen of my student’s apartment for the first time, I was caught off guard.
My student told me that there is a speaker in every apartment and that someone
from the apartment complex regularly makes announcements. On that particular
day, the announcer announced that a grandmother was waiting for her grandchild
at the playground. I guess having a PA system could be useful, but at the same
time I sort of felt like it was similar to “Big Brother.” Aside from the PA
system, my student’s gated apartment complex with a parking garage underneath
has plenty of security cameras and even video cameras so you can see who is
ringing your doorbell before you let the person in.
In Korea something that I found odd was the fact that police officers always drive with their lights flashing (without the siren) even when there is no emergency. I also found it interesting that sale signs looked like this: “60% - 30% SALE,” always listing the bigger percentage first.
Little things that made me smile
In Korea, it’s common to see
cell phone stores giving out promotional gifts to people who sign up for
contracts. What type of gifts? Well, in Korea you’d typically see packs of
spicy Ramen noodles or packs of toilet paper. Not the type of promotional gifts
you’d get in the US, that’s for sure!
The German influence in Korea was greater than I expected it to be. From the German license plates on cars to the German style bars, restaurants, and companies that sometimes popped up in unexpected places, seeing those things in Korea never failed to make me smile.
Technology
I know this sounds crazy, but I kind of miss waking up to the sound of breaking glass and mirrors from the glass/mirror factory next door. Not to say I don’t like hearing the birds in my neighborhood chirping cheerful melodies (because I do), but I guess I just got used to the sound of that breaking glass… Next, I miss the fast, efficient, super-clean subway! Then there’s my beloved post office where it was so inexpensive to send letters to friends and family. I always left that place in a good mood. I also definitely miss being able to walk/bike/take the subway to wherever I needed to be. And of course, I miss all the delicious food. Everything from the street food to the snacks to the good old traditional food. Furthermore, I miss how eating out at a good restaurant didn’t mean burning a hole in your pocket, and tips? There is no tipping at restaurants in Korea.
I miss walking around
outside and seeing markets and sights like red chili peppers spread out on
tarps to dry or ladies weaving through busy areas carrying trays of food on
their heads to bring to their hungry customers. I miss seeing beautiful
brightly colored and intricately decorated temples, I miss the smell of tasty
treats sold on the street, and I miss the sound of Korean. I was so used to
seeing and hearing the language whenever I stepped out of my apartment. After
spending so much time in Korea, I really grew to appreciate Hangeul (the Korean
alphabet). It’s so well thought out and clever. For example, the consonants ㄱ (gi-ok) and ㄴ (nee-eun) represent how the
tongue is positioned in the mouth when the letter is pronounced. The vowels are
similar: ㅏ = “ah” --- the sound goes out.
ㅓ = “eo” --- the sound is
swallowed. Not only is the alphabet logical, it’s also gorgeous. Example: I
always thought the word for flower--- 꽃 (“ggot”) looked pretty, and I found it neat that the word for clothes--- 옷 (“ot”)--- looks like a
little stick figure man.
The End/Beginning…
You are a beautiful person Stephanie, inside and out! Thank you for sharing this wonderful journey and I cannot wait to catch up! :)
ReplyDeleteDid you notice that KorGeUs sounds like Gorgeous? :)
ReplyDeleteNow that you understand your sauerkimchi self 100%, you have all the tools you need within you to figure out what comes next!