week 3: finding my inner korean

i remember walking around mokpo my first week or so (which is now months ago) and feeling an absence of emotion for my korean experience. i live under a strict, self-imposed, no-regret policy, and i can honestly say that i never once felt regret about coming to korea, but i wanted to feel the sense of adventure and possibility that usually accompany such journeys. i am certain that the lack of enthusiasm was the result of a combination of factors that need not be mentioned here, especially since i have 8 weeks of posting to catch up on. what should be mentioned, however, is that that in week 3, i found the excitement that i had been missing; it was hiding somewhere with my inner korean.

[korean culture sidenote: one of the most intriguing aspects of korean culture is the obvious gender separation that dominates social interaction. this separation goes far beyond gender-specific schools; it is visible among the young and the old alike, in formal and casual situations. i haven't quite figured it out, but i find it fascinating. even in the school cafeteria, the male teachers and the female teachers sit at separate tables.]

one day at lunch, i walked up to the female teachers' table with my tray. as is customary, one of the teachers across the table from me (a chemistry teacher whose name i have yet to learn), bowed and said hello (in korean). i did the same, returning her hello in korean. she looked shocked, and another teacher sitting across from her (joyce) turned around with excitment. they both said (in english), "wow! you sound like a korean!" i laughed and thanked them. then, they asked who was teaching me korean. "no one," i replied, "i just listen to people speaking." they both seemed quite impressed by that, and the nameless chemistry teacher said, pointing at me, "genius!" oh yeah.

on friday of week 3, we had a sports festival for the faculty members of the 4 schools that are part of the hyein family (girls high school and middle school, boys high school and middle school). the schools competed against each other in a variety of sports, some more ridiculous than others. after the festival, the faculty of our school went out to dinner together at a traditional seafood place down by the harbor.

i walked in with joyce, a little later than everyone else. we started to make our way over to the right side of the room to sit at a table with a few empty seats. the principal of our school waved us over and insisted that we sit at the table with the administrators of the school and the owners of our 4 schools. i sat next to the principal, honored that they asked me to sit with them. the principal introduced me to the owners, who had some difficulty pronouncing my name. i suggested that perhaps they should give me a korean name to make it easier. after some deliberation, the principal (via translation) asked if i was christian.

"yes," i answered.
"then," she said, "you should pick a name from the bible."
"ok, what are some names from the bible?"
joyce suggested several, translating them into english. the last one was sarang. "love," she said.
"yes, love. sarang. that's the one i want."

the principal and others at the table approved. then, the pointing to herself, she said, "kim (this being her family name)." and then, pointing to me, "kim sarang." and, there it was. my inner korean was born, and then claimed by my principal. this, of course, was all done with boisterous laughter. and, silly though it may be, in that moment, i didn't feel like an outsider, like an american foreigner. i felt accepted into a surrogate korean family. and, man, do i love them.

the meal was...an experience. i ate all kinds of shellfish that i have never seen before, including a pink shellfish that i dug out of a shell that looked like i had picked it up on a beach somewhere and another that resembled turtle feet; i was told it was some kind of crab. both were very good. i also ate baby octopus (a mokpo speciality) for the first time. it was cooked and wrapped on a wood skewer, and actually, it was delicious. i ate the most expensive shellfish in korea, according to the people at the table, and another shellfish that was like chewing boulders. literally. not so good. we had several different kinds of raw fish, some traditional korean pancakes, two kinds of seafood soup and some really good potatoes. i tried everything on the table, and my fellow faculty members were impressed. although i was terrified in moments, the majority of the food was scrumptious.


during the meal, the principal (via translation) told me that she was impressed with my teaching and that the girls are loving my class. i was flattered, and happy to have the feedback, but then she told me that she hears the girls speaking english more and more outside of class, which thrilled me. i realized, for the first time, that my korean journey is different than other adventures i have had. excitement will not only be found in traveling and living in korea; it will be found primarily in teaching the 700+ girls at hyein high school. and really, i can't think of a better adventure.