Crafty

Korea’s Incheon Airport (ICN) is a really nice airport. It’s huge – with lots of dining, shopping, and entertainment options. My favorite feature of the airport, however, is the Korea Traditional Cultural ExperienceCenter. The Culture Center has two locations in the airport. At both, you can look at Korean artifacts, see traditional musical performance, watch a reenactment of a royal parade, shop for fancy souvenirs, and make a craft.  

I always stop by to make a craft. I think they rotate every month or so. The crafts are free for foreigners too.  You just show one of the hanbok clad staff members your boarding pass (to verify that you have enough time to do the craft project) to get started. A staff member will then bring you your materials and set you up with directions on a tablet. I’m not very crafty and I can always follow the instructions easily. The crafts seem to be designed to take about 30 minutes. So, it’s a pleasant way to kill 30 minutes in the airport. Plus, you get a nice little souvenir to take home.

If you ever find yourself waiting around at Incheon Airport, find one of the Korea Traditional Cultural Experience Centers. You won’t regret it. 

One Location of the Korea Traditional Cultural Experience Center

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A Musical Performance

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Traditional Instruments on Display

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The Craft Area

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My Craft - It's a framed replica of a Korean Cabinet

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Jen in...Tokyo!

Hi,

I'm on vacation this week in Tokyo. Check back next week for a new blog post.

- Jen 

Garden at the Tokyo National Museum

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The Name Game

Korean and Western names are different. I’m aware of this but yesterday’s visit to the bank really emphasized the point. I went to the bank to open a new account. My old account is at a small bank that can’t easily wire money to the US. Since I often do this, I needed a more convenient bank.

Anyway, as the teller was setting up my bank account, she realized she couldn’t fit my name on my debit card. As she put it “The system allows 20 characters and spaces and your name has 23.” I told her to eliminate my middle name and she looked confused. This dilemma led to me explaining Western names to the teller.

Korean names, like Western names, have three parts to them. The difference is that they are much shorter and the first name is a double name while there is no middle name.  Also, the last name (family name) is first and the first name (given name) is last. For example, the president of Korea is Moon Jae-In. Moon is his last name and Jae-In is his first name. If he were in the US, his name would be Jae-In Moon.

To explain my name, I had to write down the teller’s name and then write my name under hers so she could see how the parts compared. This convinced her that it wasn’t really necessary for my middle name to go on my debit card.

Over the years, I’ve had debit cards with an interesting array of names. Some have had just my first name, some my first and middle name. One had my first and middle name but only the first two letters of my last name. Despite this, I never had a problem using the cards. Either no one noticed or they simply didn’t care.

Korean names and Western names are fairly similar. It’s just that Western names are often too long to fit properly in Korean systems. 

What's your name Korean name?

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The Late Dismissal

The other day, I walked by a high school and happened to see the kids coming out. Everything was normal except for one thing – it was 10 o’clock at night. Korean high school has a really long school day. The kids start between 8am and 9am but they don’t get out until at least 8pm. From what I understand, the start and end time vary by school but the school day ends up being 12 – 14 hours a day across the country. 

I read that the extra long day is caused by YAJA. This is an acronym for a Korean phrase and it’s the name of special self-study time that Korean high school students participate in. I watched a video on YouTube and, after they ate dinner at school, the kids went to a large room with little carrel desks to study for a few hours before they went home. 

Korean high school looks really intense. I once read that there’s a saying here that says something like “If you sleep more than four hours a night during high school, you’re not getting into a university.” I believe it. The competition is incredibly stiff. I was considered a good student in high school but I think in Korean high school, I’d have been considered mediocre.

The Kids Coming Out of School

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A video of the daily life of a Korean high school student

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Product Review: Acne Patches

Korean skincare products are great. Whatever issue you have, there’s a cool product to help. As a result, Korean people tend to have really nice skin. Since living here, I’ve become quite a fan of the skincare products. Thankfully, it’s easy to find cheap, high quality products. Otherwise, I’d be broke.

A few weeks ago, I noticed that one of my middle school students had these teeny, tiny bandage squares on her face. I thought maybe she’d had moles removed or a biopsy done. It turned out that these were acne patches.

While buy contacts lens solution, I came across a box of acne patches and decided to give them a try. Unfortunately, I had a pimple on my chin that just wasn’t responding to my usual treatments so I needed something new. I’m happy to say that the acne patches work!

Now, the patches aren’t a miracle cure. I wore mine overnight and I still had the pimple in the morning but it was better. The redness was still there but the inflammation was gone. I’ll take a flat red spot over an inflamed, swollen red spot any day.

I did a quick Google search and found this article about acne patches. It looks like some patches are designed to deliver medication and some are designed to reduce the inflammation. I assume I got the nonmedicated inflammation kind but, since the box is in Korean, I can’t be sure.

Acne patches are a useful product. I wouldn’t recommend wearing them out like my student did because they are pretty obvious and somewhat medicinal looking but they can definitely help with a pimple. 

This same brand is available on the Walgreens website. 

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I think this picture series means the patches will reduce the swelling.

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The patches come in two sizes.

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Dessert, Korea Style

Korea has one dessert that is unlike anything I’ve ever had before. It’s called patbingsu. It’s shaved ice, red beans, sweetened condensed milk, fruit, and other toppings. If it doesn’t have the red beans, it’s called bingsu.

I first had patbingsu several years ago and hated it. I just couldn’t get over the cold, sweet beans. I avoided it for years until I had a modern version of bingsu while out with my coworkers. We had an Oreo one and a strawberry cheesecake one. They were delicious. I even didn’t know the version without beans existed. I’d been avoiding it for years for nothing.

Last month, I went to a volunteer event at an orphanage.  We had a make it yourself patsbingsu bar for the kids. I added everything except the red beans on mine and it was good. A little soupy due to the melting ice, but good.

The weather is cooling and bingsu season is coming to an end but, I’ll be ready next time. 

Traditional Patbingsu

The first one I had looked like this.

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Modern Bingsu

Oreo & Strawberry Cheesecake

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Do It Yourself Bingsu

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Gauging the Mood

North Korea and South Korea have been in the news a lot. At the least, they’ve been in the American news a lot. Since I’m American and speak only English, this is the news I follow. I don’t think, however, that North Korea gets as much attention in the Korean news as it gets in the American news.

With all the news coverage, friends and family from home often ask me what the mood is here.  The answer is “business as usual.” That’s the best way I can describe the mood here. I’ve asked a few Korean coworkers about the threat of North Korea and they all chuckle and smile at me like I’m simple.

Several weeks ago, tensions were running high so I asked my boss if I should be preparing for anything. He looked so confused. He asked “Preparing for what?” I explained that I was worried about North Korea and he started laughing. He then said “If I had a dollar for every time North Korea threatened something, I’d be retired instead of standing in my office with you.”

The Korean government does do some preparedness drills. On the 15^th of every month, somewhere in this county is participating in a drill. I saw a drill several years ago. A message played over speakers, soldiers started directing traffic, and a tank rolled down the street. I didn’t know what was happening or which army was marching down my street so this really scared me. Thankfully, it was the friendly army.

In addition to preparedness drills, subway stations and other public places have emergency supplies. It’s often a glass front cabinet with gas masks, bottled water, and nonperishable food. The cabinets look easy to open so the supplies can be accessed quickly during an emergency.

Overall, I find Korean’s nonchalance reassuring. If they’re not worried, why should I be worried? I just hope that we never have a reason to be worried. 

An Emergency Cabinet in a Subway Station

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Gas Mask Instructions

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Bottled Water and Things I Can't Identify

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Gas Mask Packets

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All Eyes on Me

Back in March, I started at a new job. On my first day, I shadowed the teacher I was replacing, Hannah. In one class, a kid sneezed and everyone turned to look at me with anticipation in their eyes. I said “Bless you!” and the kids all looked amazed and then turned to Hannah who said “I told you that’s what she’d say!”

I’m the first and only foreigner to work at my language school. For many of my students and coworkers, I’m the only foreigner they have any regular contact with. Naturally, this led to some curiosity about me. Before I started, Hannah got a lot of questions about what I would be like. While she didn’t know me personally, she did know that I’m American and she herself lived in the US for 7 years. So, Hannah decided to share one particular custom that foreigners have that Koreans don’t: saying “Bless you” (or anything really) after someone sneezes.

While I’ve lived in Korea before, I never noticed it but Koreans don’t say anything when someone sneezes. They just ignore it and go about their business. I looked this up and it turns out that the China and Japan also don’t have sneeze related sayings but most other countries do.

It’s been five months and everyone still turns to look at me when someone sneezes. I wish I could stay quiet but it’s so ingrained in me that I always reflexively say “Bless you” and everyone giggles. I kinda wish Hannah had kept this nugget of cultural information to herself. 

This is how I feel when someone sneezes at work

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First Birthdays and Fortune Telling

A few months ago, I was invited to a first birthday party. I immediately knew it would be fancy since it was at a nice buffet and not at the child’s home or at something like Chuck E. Cheese’s. I was right.

When I walked into the private room, I knew this wasn’t going to be like the other kids’ birthdays I’d been to. The party room had a stage, two hosts, a dressing room, and a sitting room.  Mom and Dad wore matching red and white hanboks and the Birthday Boy wore a multicolored hanbok. Everyone’s hair and makeup had been professionally done.

The big event at the party was the doljabi (돌잡이). For this, parents present the birthday boy/girl with several items on a tray. He or she picks one and it determines his/her future. At this party, the tray had money (wealth), a big spool of thread (long life), a pen (scholar/intellectual), and a mouse (tech career).  

I didn’t realize how big of a deal this was until the baby didn’t pick anything. His parents presented him with the tray several times and he didn’t pick anything. He just clutched his father and looked confused. Eventually, after having the tray presented 20+ times, the baby picked the money. When he picked the money, the Dad started crying. I guess there was a lot riding on this. Personally, I like to think that the baby didn’t pick anything because he will have a unique path in life that can’t be easily summed up in one object.

Overall, I enjoyed the party. The food was great and it’s nice knowing the Birthday Boy will grow up to be rich. 

The Stage Area

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My Party Favor

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It's Not What You Think...

One day, during my early days in Korea, I encountered a sign with a swastika on it. I found it really confusing because why would Koreans be anti-Semitic? The average Korean isn’t even remotely familiar with Judaism. To dislike something, you have to know it exists.

After doing a little research, I found out that Korea is not littered with Nazis. It turns out that the swastika has been used for the last 5,000 years or so. It’s used in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Odinism. In Korea, it’s used in Buddhist temples.

I, for one, am glad that Korea is not crawling with Nazis. I’m not sure Indiana Jones is around to deal with it. 

Near my Apartment

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Attack of the Killer Hornets

Last week, as I was teaching a class, I heard a funny little plop. I looked at the floor and saw that a spider had fallen. I looked up to see where it had come from and saw a giant, flying insect perched on a light fixture. This was the biggest insect I’ve ever seen. I’m from South Florida and we have big palmetto bugs. This creature looked like it could eat a palmetto bug with no problem.

I guess I stared at the bug a little too long because my 3^rd grade students, Emily and Andrew, followed my gaze up to the ceiling. Well, as soon as they saw the insect, they jumped under the table. I crouched down to ask them if they were ok and Emily tried to pull me under too. The kids don’t speak much English but they did tell me “Bug…kill…people!” I wasn’t sure if this was true or not but that was a really big bug. It looked like a bee, but a bee who worked out and took steroids. I needed an adult.

I grabbed Emily and Andrew, took them into the hallway, and shut the classroom door. I found a Korean coworker and explained the situation to her. She grabbed a broom, marched into the classroom, and immediately came back out. It turns out that the bug is dangerous and there was a nest on the window sill.

My coworker called 119, the Korean emergency number. The next day, someone from the city came to kill the insect and dispose of the nest. Once he was finished, my classroom could be used again.

I later asked what kind of insect that was. My coworker told me it was a wasp but that was no ordinary wasp. She showed me a translation on her phone and the name was the Vespa mandarinia or the Asian Giant Hornet.

I looked up the Asian Giant Hornet and found that Emily and Andrew were right -  it can kill people. For an adult to die, they typically have to be stung dozens of times. For a child or an adult with an allergy, it’s less but seems to vary from person to person. Either way, it’s a scary insect.

I’m really glad that Emily and Andrew knew what to do. Not having grown up in this country, I had no idea that such an insect even existed. 

Sweden in Korea

According to my contract, my job comes with a semi-furnished apartment and a semi-furnished apartment is exactly what I got. The apartment came with a bed, a tv and stand, and a wardrobe. I needed a few more pieces of furniture but I didn’t really know where to go so I went to Ikea in Gwangmyeong.

Ikea in Korea is exactly like Ikea in the US, which is probably like Ikea everywhere else. You walk through a never ending maze of furniture, eat lunch, walk through the knickknacks, and end at the flatpack boxes. Normally, I’d take my boxes home in my car but I don’t have a car in Korea. I decided to have my furniture delivered.

Ikea had loads of English speaking clerks. I simply waited in line and a woman with great English started processing my order. Everything was fine until we came to the delivery options. It turns out that Ikea can only set up delivery for sometime in the next seven days. I was going away the next weekend so I needed something for the 9^th or 10^th day. This was impossible for them to schedule so I left without buying anything.

I got home, angry that I’d gone all the way to Ikea and came home empty-handed. I vowed to never go back. Well, that lasted about two more weeks. I tried to order from Gmarket and couldn’t make it work. None of my usual shopping spots carried furniture. I got tired of sitting on the floor and I went back to Ikea.

My second trip was way smoother because I knew what to expect. I already had my furniture picked out and I was prepared for the 7 day delivery thing. I wasn’t, however, prepared for the fact that Ikea cannot give you a delivery time if you’re not in Seoul. This meant that I could get a delivery anywhere between 9am and 9pm on the appointed day. I wasn’t happy with this but I dealt with it.

On the appointed day, my Ikea furniture came. The delivery arrived at 5:40pm, 8 hours and 40 minutes into the 12 hour delivery window. I’m happy with how the furniture came out but getting it here was definitely a mission. 

Directions to Ikea

1. From the Gwangmyeong station, take the east (I think) exit.

2.  Turn right and go under the covered walkway towards Costco. You'll see the Costco shortly.

3. Cross the small street and walk along the side of Costco until you get to the corner.

4. At the corner, turn to the left and you'll see Ikea and the Lotte Premium Outlets. Enjoy your flatpack furniture!

Keep Your Knees Covered

I’ve been coming and going to Korea since 2009. This last time, I was gone from 2013 to 2017. Somewhere in that time, a new habit started. Korean women now cover their knees when they sit down while wearing a skirt or dress.

In Korea, men and women are free to wear whatever they so choose. Now, sleeveless or lowcut tops are frowned upon but they aren’t illegal. A common outfit here is a miniskirt and a button-down blouse.

Since miniskirts are so prevalent, I don’t get the blanket over the knees. If you can see my knees while I’m standing, why are they suddenly offensive when I’m seated?

I looked this up on Google and found a few comments about this. Most seem to agree that this is done because, when seated skirts or dresses ride up a bit. If you’re wearing a micromini, this could be problematic. The blanket allows you to cross and uncross your legs without flashing anyone.

The logic behind this habit makes sense but it’s really hot outside. I don’t want to cover my knees with a fleece blanket. I have heard that some women carry scarves for this so they have something light and stylish. I’d be more inclined to do this but I never wear anything short enough to need it.

A basket of blankets at a coffee shop. I saw several women using them to cover their legs. 

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The pedicurist covered my legs for me. My shorts were not at all short.

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Becoming the Martha Stewart of Korea

Living in Korea means that some things require an adjustment. For example, I’ve gotten used to pretty much never knowing what’s going on. I just look around, see if I’m in immediate danger, and go from there. That, however, is something I expected. What I didn’t expect was to have to adjust my cooking.

When I first came, I knew I’d have to make some substitutions in cooking.  I didn’t expect Korean grocery stores to carry all of the same products. I’d read that cheese is less common so I knew not to expect a big selection of cheese at the grocery store. I’d also read that different spices were available and that more international products (like tortillas or hummus) are difficult to find. To combat this, I bring my favorite spices with me and improvise with the rest.

While I was ready to make ingredient substitutions, I wasn’t prepared to alter my style of cooking. Korean homes don’t have ovens and I never realized how much I used the oven until I got here. I’d read that you can easily buy an oven though. I tried to do this but really, only toaster ovens are readily available. I can’t bake a cake or roast a chicken in a toaster oven.

Since I didn’t have an oven, I had to learn to cook everything on the stovetop. I’ve even learned to make a few no-bake desserts using ingredients that are easy to find here. This wasn’t so bad when I lived in the big apartment with the 4 burner stove. Now, however, I live in a smaller place with a 2 burner stove.

The 2 burner stove brings even more challenges to cooking in Korea. Now, I have to use readily available ingredients, cook everything on the stovetop, and juggle my pots and pans to ensure that everything is hot and ready at the same time. To accomplish this last one, I’ve started making a lot of combo bowls. For example, on Monday, I wanted meat, rice, beans, and vegetables. Well, I made a stew-like dish with these items. It was easier to combine everything than to try to make them in 2 burner increments. The resulting stew actually tasted pretty good but it wasn’t the prettiest meal I’ve ever made.

Cooking in Korea is an adjustment I’ve had to make. It’s an adjustment, however, that will make me better. If I can learn to consistently make good meals on a small 2 burner stove, I’ll be giving Martha Stewart a run for her money in no time. 

Juggling 3 pots and pans

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I combined my zucchini and my pork to maximize burners

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 The resulting combo bowl

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Monday's stew-like concoction

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The spices I brought from America. I think my Abuela would approve of all of the Goya seasoning packets.

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Sleeping in the Rain

Sunday night, I started dreaming that I was at a pool and my nephew was shooting me with a water gun. The water gun started shooting out more and more water until I woke up and realized that it wasn’t a dream. I live alone and there was no creepy water gun toting intruder in my apartment. I was being rained on while asleep – asleep in my bed which is in my apartment and not outside.

Sometimes, everything about living abroad seems fun and exciting. Other times, I can’t help but wonder what series of poor decisions led me to this moment. Sleeping in the rain was definitely the result of poor decisions.

In this particular situation, everything stemmed from not learning to speak Korean. I only know about 20 words of Korean. I don’t even know the 20 most useful words of Korean. (Did you know that “nabi” (나비) is Korean for butterfly?) This means that in Korea, I’m really only half an adult. On a day to day basis, I’m fine but when something big happens, I need a real, full-fledged, Korean speaking adult.

Anyway, about two weeks ago, my air conditioner stopped working. At first, I thought it was because the batteries died in the remote control. I replaced the batteries but the unit still wouldn’t work. I pressed every combination of buttons and nothing but hot air would come out of the unit. I looked up an English manual for my a/c and it didn’t help. So, I turned to my designated real, full-fledged, Korean speaking adult aka my boss.

I went to school and told my boss my a/c wouldn’t work. I even brought him my unit’s remote to show it was on the correct setting. He didn’t say anything but I knew he’d assume since I can’t read Korean, I’m too dumb to operate an on/off switch. I was correct. He sent my co-worker over to my apartment to check and see if the unit was really broken or if I just didn’t know how to turn it on.

My poor co-worker had to come to my hot apartment and play with my a/c. She declared it broken and called the landlord. The landlord decided that two people, or 1.5 adults, weren’t competent to decide the unit was broken. She sent the building manager over to check out the situation.

The building manager came and played with the unit. He then declared it broken and called an a/c technician. It turns out that in Korea, technicians won’t come on a weekend so I had to wait.

Well, the tech came and verified that the unit was indeed broken. Unfortunately, the issue was the outside intake unit and it was raining heavily outside. So, he had to come back later in the day. That evening, he realized he needed a new part and it would take a few days to come in. Eventually it came and I got my a/c fixed but it was a long two weeks.

During this time, my apartment was hot and humid like a swamp. I slept with the windows open and that led to Sunday’s issue. It started to monsoon outside and the wind drove the rain into my bedroom. Hence, I got rained on while sleeping.

If I spoke Korean, this issue wouldn’t have been entirely avoided. My a/c unit didn’t break because I don’t speak Korean. The time frame, however, would have been shortened. My boss wouldn’t have felt the need to have someone check the unit was actually broken. Also, I could have spoken with the landlord myself, instead of having to wait for someone else to do it. I also could have, possibly, gotten a technician to come faster.

I’d like to say that this motivated me to learn Korean but it hasn’t. I’ll continue to be half an adult in Korea. But, at least I’ll be half an adult with working a/c and a dry bedroom. 

This A/C unit caused me a lot of problems!

I'm Back...Again!

I came back to Korea…again. Korea, I guess I just don’t know how to quit you. So far, it’s good though.

One question I often get is how to navigate the visa process. Since I just did it, I’ll let you know what I did. Keep in mind that I’m American so the process might be different for other countries.

Diploma with Apostille

You will need your university diploma. I lost mine but I was able to order a copy from my university.  If I’m not mistaken, the registrar was able to sign/notarize the back with the appropriate text. (Let your university know you’re getting the diploma apostilled. They can recommend the appropriate procedure.) Then, I sent it to the Florida Department of State – Apostille Division with a check, a letter explaining what I needed, and a prepaid return envelope.

I’m a little fuzzy on this procedure since I last did it in 2012. At the end of my last contract in Korea, my apostilled diploma was returned to me. I just reused it for this visa. A few recruiters tried to tell me that the apostille had to be less than 6 months old but that’s simply not true. My diploma didn’t change so why would the apostille need to be updated? I used my apostille from 2012 to get a visa in 2017 without a problem.

FBI Background Check & Authentication

The FBI background check is a little more complex than the other documents. This is especially true since you can’t use a background check that is more than six months old.  To get your background check, you first have to get fingerprinted. Then, you get the fingerprints to the FBI. Once you have your results, you have to get them authenticated by US Department of State.

For my FBI background check, I used a FBI channeler service I found on the FBI’s website. I used National Background Check, Inc. because they had an electronic fingerprint location near my office. The prints cost me $20. After I got the prints done, I sent in an order form and a credit card number. It costs $85 for them to take my request to the FBI and send me my results. I did, however, receive my results in only a few days. (In 2012, I sent a paper copy of my prints to the FBI and it took six weeks for me to get my results. It was cheaper but it took significantly longer.)

Once I received my clean FBI check, I used US AuthenticationServices to get the necessary authentication. I sent a check for $55 along with an order form, a return envelope, and my background check.  I got my authenticated document in a few days.

Getting a Job

Once you have your passport, diploma with apostille, and authenticated FBI background check, you are ready to look for a job. Most recruiters and hiring managers won’t bother talking to you without these documents in hand since they can take a while to get and you can’t apply for a visa without them.

To find job listings, I looked mostly on Dave’s ESL Café. There are a ton of jobs there. When you inquire about a job, it’s normal to send your resume, a cover letter, PDFs of your documents (passport ID page, FBI check, and diploma with apostille), and a few nice pictures of yourself. I like to be thorough (and a little extra, to be honest) so I also sent PDFs of my letters of recommendations and my TEFL certification.

I found that most schools hire through recruiters. I must’ve spoken to 10 recruiters over a period of a few weeks. Honestly, all of the recruiters were nice but most of them didn’t have a job for me. I was looking to go back to a specific city and that narrowed my options a bit.  I ended up getting a job through a recruiter named Kevin Pak of Teaching Jobs Korea.

The Visa Process

Once I signed a contract, I had to mail a bunch of documents to my new employer in Korea. I had to send the authenticated background check, the diploma and apostille, 4 passport sized photos, a health check form, the signed contract, a copy of my passport’s ID page, and a visa application form. Once these arrived in Korea, my school started the visa process.

When my school was finished with things on their end, they sent me a visa number and a few other pieces of information. This is when I had to apply for a visa with the nearest Korean consulate/embassy.

When I first came to Korea in 2009, the consulate required an in-person interview. Not this time. This time, it was all by mail. I sent in my visa application form, a money order, my passport, a passport sized photo, and a prepaid return envelope. (I don’t remember if I had to send in transcripts or not. I do remember ordering two transcripts from my university but I can’t remember if I needed them.)  I got my visa/passport back in a week or so.

Once I got my visa, I sent a photo of it to my school so they could go ahead and buy my plane ticket.

Overall, my process was pretty smooth. The worst part, by far, was meeting on Skype with recruiter after recruiter. Since the east coast of Florida and Korea are 13 hours apart (14 in daylight savings time) finding a time that worked for everyone could be difficult. Once I found a job though, I didn’t have any issues. 

The should probably be my own personal flag.