Korea: The birthMotherland

Are YOU thinking of going back?

2011-09-12T12:52:00.000+09:00

I receive the KAAN (Korean American Adoptee Netwrok) newsletter and it had a link to this article:

http://www.theawl.com/2011/07/america%e2%80%99s-korean-adoptees-part-4-return-to-the-motherland

The Korean adoptee who writes it, and the previous 3 parts, has some interesting and accurate, in my case, perspectives about growing up as a Korean Adoptee.

I think it's worth the time to read all four parts... it's nice to know that we're not alone.

I'm Going Back to Korea

2011-06-22T16:21:00.000+09:00

Hi Everyone... just when you thought my blog was dead... it's back.

I am planning a trip to Korea, with my non-Korean-adoptee significant other, in November.

We will be going to Korea as a part of Dillon International's Sharing Heart Mission Trip. I am excited to go back to Korea and excited to go with some other adoptees. I also really like the community service aspect of the whole thing. For more info: http://www.dillonadopt.com/SHM-Korea.htm

I am just about to dust off my Korean Language books and I have been on the look out for a Korean language tutor, so hopefully, I will be able to get around a little better than I did last time.

I think I also plan to do a little more searching into my birth family.

So, if you pray, please pray for me... and pray for my adopted family because they were a little heart-broken by the news, and my significant other, wh is amazingly supportive.

An Adoptee's Movie: In the Matter of Cha Jung Hee by Deann Borshay Liem

2010-05-07T01:28:00.000+09:00

Hi Everyone,

Last Monday, I went to the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and I saw In the Matter of Cha Jung Hee by Deann Borshay Liem, who also made the movie First Person Plural.

It was an AMAZING movie, especially for people who do not know that much about adoptions from Korea. The movie was informative, interesting, and heartwarming.

You can see more about the movie and Deann here, taken from an article on the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival's website:

INTERVIEW: DEANN BORSHAY LIEM

KOREAN ADOPTEE SWITCHEROO: FINDING THE REAL ‘CHA JUNG HEE’

Although documentary filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem had already delved into the topic of her identity as a Korean adoptee in her film FIRST PERSON PLURAL, there was a lingering issue that she felt was still unresolved, still nagging at her—the issue of Cha Jung Hee.

When Borshay Liem arrived in the US, no one thought to question her passport and papers stating that she was an orphan named Cha Jung Hee. The Borshay family had been corresponding regularly with the orphanage in Korea, sending money and receiving pictures of a girl named Cha Jung Hee. But that girl disappeared from the orphanage just as the Borshays wrote to say that they would like to adopt her. The orphanage arranged a switcheroo, replacing Cha Jung Hee with Borshay Liem, who was instructed not to reveal what had happened.

But six-year-old Borshay Liem knew that it was all a lie—her own family was still alive, and her name was not Cha Jung Hee. By the time she learned to speak English, she had already forgotten the truth about her history. It was not until college that she began to have flashbacks to her time at the orphanage, and that she became haunted by the idea that she was living someone else’s life.

IN THE MATTER OF CHA JUNG HEE documents Borshay Liem’s journey back to Korea some 50 years later to find the real Cha Jung Hee and solve the mysteries of her own identity. The film is screening at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival on Monday, May 3 at 7:00 PM at the Downtown Independent. BUY TICKETS Bearing her adoption documents, the shoes that the Borshays had sent to the orphanage, and a handful of photographs, she tirelessly searches for women her age named Cha Jung Hee.

“At first I think I had a simplistic notion of what the journey was,” said Borshay Liem. “That I would find this person and it would be fairly easy and I would give back her things and this would help me resolve these years of mistaken identity. But it turned out to be much deeper than that.”

Part of her journey includes meeting a diverse array of women named Cha Jung Hee. Even if they are not the right Cha Jung Hee, seeing what their lives are like is still an important piece of her puzzle.

“These women were all my generation, and I think through hearing about their struggles and successes, their experiences growing up in Korea which would have been similar to my own life if I had stayed, it gave me an insight and a connection,” she said. “I felt that was very healing for me. I think that girl adoptees are told that if they had stayed in Korea they would have been prostitutes, or end up with some terrible fate. But these women grew up and they did struggle but they had also survived and in some cases flourished.”

The film unfolds as a personal essay, with Borshay Liem narrating her own process of questioning and discovery. Through the course of the film she begins to understand with more clarity her relationship to her adopted and birth families, to the US as a country, and to herself. She believes that making the film has given her some closure on the issue of Cha Jung Hee.

“I think part of it has to do with simply claiming this life that I’m living now as my own,” she said. “In part that’s what the search was about, to allow myself to embrace my life as my own and not having belonged to someone else. I’m here and it’s ok that I’m here.” BUY TICKETS

-Lori Kido Lopez

I'm Alive and in America

2010-03-02T17:36:00.000+09:00

Hi everyone...

I know it's been over a month... but it takes time to get over the jetlag and to catch up with my friends.

So, I'm back home, safe and sound.

I promise to catch up because I have some great pictures... but for now, I just wanted to give you this link to the great article from the Los Angeles Times. It talks about gyopos (people who live in a country that is not Korea, but have Korean descent) and how they are treated in Korea. I felt that it mirrored my own experiences there, and was far better written than I could have done.

See what you think; here's the link: http://articles.latimes.com/2010/feb/14/world/la-fg-korea-return14-2010feb14

And I PROMISE, i will post my excellent pictures very soon.

Chopsticks AND a Spoon

2010-01-12T18:17:00.000+09:00

Many of my fellow "Native" English Teachers who had never been to Korea before, but were familiar with chopsticks, were surprised when I told them to eat their rice with their spoon. They were trying to fit in by eating with their chopsticks, but didn't realize that they woud fit in just as well if they ate their rice with their spoon.

I, personally, always think Koreans are pretty clever with their metal chopstick/spoon combo. First, I like that it's metal, which is far more sanitary than wood, more substantial than plastic, and also does it's own little part in saving the environment. Second, I like the fact that you have options; if it is too hard to eat your rice with the chopsticks, go for it with the spoon... if you are a picky eater like I am, go ahead and pick the onions out of the soup with the chopsticks. Finally, I like that you have the option of using both hands to eat, even though older customs dictate against it; that means I can divide that big piece of Kase (that's Tonkatsu, for those who don't know), by splitting it with my chopsticks and spoon.

If you ever wondered where the whole chopstick/spoon thing came from, here's a link:

http://www.buddhapia.com/eng/extensive/4-a5a1.html

I thought it was interesting and seemed correct.

(I took that lovely picture from this website, which also has an interesting, but gramatically poor, article about chopsticks and spoons in Korea, Japan, and China: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.prkorea.com/engnews/wys/file_attach/1184303793spoon%26chopsticks.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.prkorea.com/engnews/index.cgi%3Faction%3Ddetail%26number%3D518%26thread%3D10r01&usg=__vkw2SQ7PUmhpsA5CRW3f3VF4_2U=&h=800&w=600&sz=90&hl=en&start=5&sig2=sZqlt-rR_iGayhHwpMlnPQ&um=1&tbnid=JPlKCxlYFoRgLM:&tbnh=143&tbnw=107&prev=/images%3Fq%3DKorean%2Bchopsticks%2Band%2Bspoon%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7DVXA_en%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1&ei=pDxMS7NvhKa2A_na6IoB .)

It's in the mail...

2009-12-14T21:09:00.001+09:00

Last Wednesday, I finally decided to send a letter to my birthmother.

I made a card, because I thought that was more beautiful and I also wrote it myself. (I had help with the translation, though.) The card looks crooked, but I assure you that was the fault of the camera work, not my actual card.) :) Inside the card I wrote my birth name, birthdate, and place of birth. It then says that I was adopted to Americans. It says that I am looking for my birthmother and gives her last name. I then say that I am sending this same letter to many women, all with the same last name, in hopes of finding the one who is my true birthmother. HOWEVER, I know that it was her because I had her name and had done all the other footwork (please see my previous blog entries, if you don't know what I am talking about.) Then I write that I will be in Seoul until the the third week of December, so she should contact me soon, if she wants to contact me at all.

I dropped it in the mail, also with some help, the next day.

Seeing that the city is only 60 miles from Seoul, I figure the letter should have arrived Saturday or today, Monday. If that's the case, then from today onward... I guess I just wait.

So here I am, waiting.

But she better hurry up, because I might be leaving soon... I already quit my job.

Making Kimchi

2009-12-05T01:48:00.000+09:00

Last Saturday, the art teacher invited me to her house to make kimchi with her, her sister, her mother, and her nieces.

I had so much fun, and now I officially feel like a Korean. : )

Here are some pictures:

My Hood

2009-12-05T00:59:00.000+09:00

I was just cruising my favorite reference site, Wikipedia, and I saw an article about the neighborhood where I live. The article states that my area is "known for easy and cheap sexual entertainment."

Here's the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sillim-dong

Check it out... I thought it was really funny.

Insadong

2009-11-21T18:37:00.002+09:00

In my Korean textbook, there are sometimes mini-articles about Korean culture. One of the articles talked about Insadong and mentioned that is had many traditional crafts, especially crafts made of paper. My teacher asked me if I had ever been, and since I hadn't, we agreed to go together. We are about the smae age, and have many similar interests, so I was really looking forward to going with her.

After class today, we went to Insadong. But before we could see any crafts, we HAD to eat. We went to eat Kalguksu. It was SO delicious. Kalguksu is a noodle dish, with steaming hot broth and clams. Here is a picture of the dish as well as a picture of my teacher, serving it.

It was a perfect dish for the freezing cold, -1 C, temperature that it was that day. They also had the most delicious kimchi that I have eaten here. I like kimchi, but I usually eat about 3-4 pieces with each meal. However, here, I think I ate a whole plate of kimchi. It was so garlicky and delicious. If you go to Insadong, you have to eat here.

After lunch, we started shopping and walking around Insadong. They have many traditional arts and crafts, as well as some very nice museums and upscale shops. Insadong is also well-known for its shops full of traditional paper, hanji, which is similar to mulberry paper. While we were walking, I also saw this Starbucks. There are SO many Starbucks in Korea, so that's not the big deal. The big deal is that this is the ONLY Starbucks in Korea that says "Suh-ta-beok-suh-Keo-pi." If you know even a little Korean, you know that there is no "f" sound, so Koreans replace the "f" sound with a hard "p," so that actually reads, if you say it really fast, "Starbucks coffee." (Which I thought was hilarious.) Of course, I would not drink coffee there, though, because Insadong is also well-known for its Tea Shops.

We went to this great Tea shop, that I think was called "Tea Time." It was a little off the main street and was on the 2nd floor. I had cinnamon tea, and my teacher had this tea made out of a small melon-sized citrus fruit. (I have a friend whose father makes a jam out of that fruit, and it is univerally agreed that it is too sour to eat plain, but it makes really good marmelade and tea.) Those round colored things, are like crackers. The look heavy, but they are light and fluffy. In fact, if you break them little pieces flurry around, like snow. They are good, but they taste a little like air.

I had such a nice day that I can't wait to go back!

An article worth reading

2009-11-14T19:32:00.000+09:00

I am a member of the Korean American Adoptee Network, which is amazing. Every month, they send out an electronic newsletter of issues regarding adoptees. In this month's newsletter, there was this link to an article in the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/09/us/09adopt.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
I liked it because it helped me to come to the resolution that many Korean adoptees are going through the same sort of things that I went through growing up.

If you are an adoptee, and you are reading my blog, I want to tell you, that Korea is not like it used to be. In 2000, when I came, people were mean to me either because I was an adoptee or because maybe I look like I am not full Korean. However, this time, EVERYONE has been really nice to me. There was one jerk at the cellphone store who was rude, but I have a hundred people who are very kind. So, please don't let what the people in the article said dissuade you from coming to Korea.

I like Korea, not as much as California, but I like it all the same. If you have the chance, you should come too.

Merry Pepero Day! (and you thought Valentine's Day was commercialized)

2009-11-11T15:46:00.003+09:00

Right after I arrived at work today, one of the girls who seems to like me the most, ran up to my desk and gave me a box of Pocky, which if you don't know, is a box of long, skinny crakers dipped in chocolate or other things, but usually chocolate. That student is actually always giving me cute things, so while I was surprised, I didn't think it was anything out of the ordinary.

Then, two more students came in and gave me boxes of Pocky. One of them had this note attached to it:

In case you can't read it. It says: Dear Ms. ____. from. Hannah (in the corner) Today is Pepero (in Hangul) Day. Pepero (in Hangul) Day is a give and take long chocolate snack. It means "we are best friend!" or "thanks to (some person who wants give you)". So I give you this snack. (picture of a little girl face with HaHa written underneath). I always thanks for your teaching. It taste like coffee. I want you like it. Bye Teacher ^^ (^^ is the Korean equivalent of a smiley emoticon).

Is this the cutest thing or what? She was with another friend who gave me one of the red boxes and it said, "Merry Pepero (in Hangul) day" It was great. On the front of her box, the print says, "11story #1. Hugs!Hugs! All in my arms, in my soul I want to hold you baby" Classic.

That is my collection of gifts for Pepero day.

I felt so lucky that the students would remember to include me on this day. As I was arranging that picture, I noticed that one of the boxes even said "Pepero." It's the box on the top. Here's a better look:

So, as I was looking at this box, I realized that in Korea, Pocky is not Pocky, it's Pepero. This whole day was fabricated by the Pepero company,aka Lotte.

Later that evening, in the subway, I saw tons of Pepero displays. I saw a few people with these Pepero box towers wrapped in cellophane. So as much as we complain in the states about Valentine's Day, at least Hallmark attempted to ground their "Holiday" in some kind of historical event. However, Pepero (owned by Lotte) chose a random day, 11/11 and called it Pepero Day because the "double elevens look like Pepero in the box."

AND, just like in the states, on Valentine's Day, I love it and am so happy to have received boxes of Pepero.

I found a different house

2009-11-07T20:55:00.000+09:00

About a month ago, one of my language exchange buddies told me that he was willing to take me to Songtan to find the family house of my birth mother.

This is the same friend who Korean Googled the address and showed it in a field with a school and told me that it probably wasn't there anymore. Well, he turned out to be wrong and right, in that order. He was wrong about the address on the internet; it seems that because the town was redistricted, there is no address that matches THAT address. We asked a few people on the who lived around where the address should have been, but they said we were in the wrong area. Then we went to a real estate agent and he said that the area had been redistricted twice and that the only way we would be able to figure it out would be to go the police. So, my friend was right about the fact that the house probably did not exist anymore.

I was ready to give up, but my friend told me that we should go to the police. The real esate man told us where the nearest police station was located. We drove there, but it was closed; I was ready to go back to Seoul and forget about the whole thing. There was a sign saying the office was closed and it gave a number to call. My friend called and the police gave us directions to another station.

At the second station, it was like deja vu from ten years ago, except this station was cleaner and there was a young cute girl officer, instead of only older men. Both times though, the police were all very kind. As I was looking over my paperwork, the same paperwork that I brought to Korea on every trip, I noticed some writing in black pen. I could never read Korean, but since my friend was there, I asked him what the message said. My friend told me that the police officer from ten years ago wrote me a message saying that he was sorry that he could not find the exact address I had been looking for (the house where I was born tghat had been demolished in lieu of a road) and that he wished me a nice life and that God would bless me.

Today, there were three poice officers. A younger woman, who my friend had spoken with on the phone, a middle-aged man, and an older man. The older man took my paperwork and said that he knew every area in that city both before and after the redictricting. They looked at the paperwork, and typed in some stuff on the computer, and then once again, I was in the same position. I was in a police station in Korea with a police officer asking me if I wanted him to call my birth mother.

This time, just like the last, I said no. This time though, I had a better translator who had thought out the situation better than I could have. Before we got to the station, he asked me one last time if I wanted to contact her today and I told him, "No way." He said that he understood, but that either way, we would get my birthmother's information so hat I could contact her if I wanted to. And he was true to his word.

I know have, in my possession, my birthmother's current home address, her equivalent to a social security number, her husband's name, and his equivalent to a social security number. The police told me that there was no number listed in the database at that time. I was so grateful to the kind police officers and my language exchange buddy.

So, we went to the house. I got a good look; the pictures are below. There was someone home. A light in a downstairs window... but nobody came out and I didn't go in. We probably stayed about 15 minutes, and I kept thinking that maybe she would sense my presence and run out crying out something about her long lost baby girl... but I guess this wasn't a movie and nothing dramatic happened.

Her sense of my presence is about as bad as my sense of hers, because I thought she was gone. I was almost certain that she was living here in Seoul. I even wanted to give up, but my buddy is way more persistent; I guess he had no emotional investment.

So now, I don't know what to do. I had always thought I had a lot of information, but now I have more. I taught my buddy the word, stakeout... maybe that's what I should do. Stake out the place. My friend told me that the special sign we saw on the gate indicated that there was a neighborhood president living at the house. If my stepbirthfather is the neighborhood president, maybe my birthmother would rather avoid the scandal of her very gone adult daughter's return after a 30-something year absence. Or maybe, she has missed me all her life.

Either way, here are the pics of the house:

This is the front of the house. It looks relatively big and is on land that has a five-car carport on the side. That green and white oval sign is the one that says that a neighborhood president lives there.

This is a picture of the backyard.

Since my dreams have come true, can I go home now?

2009-11-02T20:15:00.000+09:00

I know it's silly, but whenever I would go to a big city, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Paris, I would always dream of how my life would be if I lived in a big city. I would look at the skyline and dream of my important life and busy schedule. How it would be SO great to take public transportation, I would go EVERYWHERE on the subway... I wouldn't even need a car.

Well, now I know. Here is a picture of the view from my school. As you can see, I finally live in a big city.

I use the metro and busses to get around; I have no car.

I also used to wonder what it would be like to live in the cold weather.

Today it was -1 degrees celsius. For those of you who do not know celsius, 0 degrees is FREEZING. I was so cold. All day long, even though i was wearing 3 layers, when I would leave my classroom or the teachers' office, the cold from the hallways would slap me in the face and the chest and especially, my legs, which only had a pair of jeans.

I get it now. I have lived in the cold. I have lived in the big city. Now I know.

I want to go home.

Dinner and Dessert weren't enough... but what about Halloween Treats?

2009-10-29T23:22:00.000+09:00

I was having a little bit of an emotional day at work today. I thought I was keeping it together, until this very nice part-time teacher talked to me, and the tears started weling up in my eyes. We had made plans to have coffee once a few weeks ago, but it didn't work out, so she came over to re-invite me for next week some time. I agreed and told her to call me.

I was out of minutes on my cellphone so I didn't have it on. When I did turn it on at around 6 pm, I saw a message from her inviting me to dinner or coffee. I texted her back telling her I had plans and that we could meet up next week because I had just finished eating dinner with the Head Teacher. She texted me back that it was okay, but that she had a Halloween present for me, but that she could just give it to me on Monday.

I was so surprised that I called her back and told her I would have coffee with her. This is the present she gave me:

She told me that she got me the cookies to make me think of the U.S. It's funny because I have actually never eaten that particular variety of that cookie, but tonight I ate it with gratitude. (It is really good.) She also told me that I was supposed to take a knife and slice open one side of the "broom" and all the candies would come falling out.

Sure enough, after I sliced through it, this is what I found: Lots of delicious candy! Just like Halloween. Can you say Trick or Treat?

Cheonggyecheon (청계천) (I stole that off of Wikipedia)

2009-10-29T23:05:00.000+09:00

So, even though you are supposed to go to the River Restoration in the summer, when it's really hot so you can refresh yourself, I happened to be walking by it a few Saturdays ago with some people from my Korean class.

As far as Wikipedia is concerned it is the only modern stream rivitalization. Here is the link in case you want to find out more. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheonggyecheon

As I walked down about half of the length, I could imagine that it would be nice in the summer. THey also have some really nice murals (but I didn't take any pictures of those) and they pipe in sound of pounding horse hooves (think: Monty Python and the Holy Grail coconuts).

I must be a good photographer because these are practically the smae pictures that are on Wikipedia.

However, they don't have this one:

These are the stones you can run across, like a screaming child, to cross the river. Just be careful not to get pushed over by the aforementioned child. Totally fun. :)

Update: Birth Family Search -- Walking the streets of Songtan

2009-10-28T23:23:00.000+09:00

I spent allof last weekend in Songtan, where my birth family lives/lived.

I asked any random Korean person who spoke English and many, many elderly Korean people if they knew the Kwak family. Let me tell you, that my Korean is not that good, but I think I managed to say that 1 phrase fairly correctly, but I could be wrong. In either case, no one had heard of the Kwaks.

This means to me that my family either does not live there anymore, or is not a prominent family, or both. I'm sure it is silly, but I was hoping my birth family wouldbe very rich and I could be a princess. Since that doesn't seem to be the case, I think I am giving up. (Although, I still dream of being royalty one day.) :)

I still plan to go this weekend, if my friend will still take me in his car, but otherwise, that's it.

It would be interesting to find my birth family, but I am not sure it is worth the trouble.

Sure, I could go to the police station, and just ASK where they are, like I did 10 years ago, but I am not sure that I want to find them that much.

I feel like if it is meant to be, then it will happen. If it is not, then I guess it won't happen. I know that you have to work for things you want, and I do, but I am not sure that I want that, AND I am leaning towards no.

I would love to hear your comments below.

Seoul Anglican Cathedral

2009-10-27T20:22:00.000+09:00

This is an article that I wrote for my church newsletter back home.

Greetings Church Family!

Korea is nice, but there are some things about the States that I just can’t forget. One of them, of course, is the church. I’ve been here over a month now but have only had the opportunity to attend church three times. I always take the hour-long subway ride to the Anglican Cathedral Church of Sts. Mary and Nicholas.

The first week, I attended service in Korean. I have been going to different Episcopal churches for at least 20 years, and I have seen my share of church bulletins, so I felt pretty certain that I would understand the verse numbers of the readings and the page numbers from the hymnal, even if the whole bulletin was in Korean… but I stand corrected. As you can see, you can’t read it, unless you know Korean. In fact, I’m not sure if this is the service or the announcements. But I let it go and just enjoyed the service. One thing I noticed, was that even here in Korea, where sermons at other churches usually last longer than an hour, the sermon here was 15 minutes. I have never read it in the Book of Common Prayer, but I think there is some kind of unwritten rule. And when it was time for Communion, the priest sang the service (beautifully, I might add)/; it was as if he had been singing in English. The melody was the same, the pitch was the same, I knew when to kneel; I finally felt a little at home. I think THAT is the power of our religion.

As I was leaving that day, I heard singing: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of power and might... .” It was coming from an open window. I ran around that whole little chapel looking for the hidden door; talk about feeling at home. That’s OUR song. Yeah, I know they use it at other churches, but you understand the feeling. I went in, but I was already late for an appointment, so I left after asking the service time. I decided that I would definitely attend the English service the next weekend. And I did.

English service is held in the St. John the Baptist Crypt Chapel, where the Rt. Rev. Mark Trollope is interred. This brass monument of The Rev. holding the cathedral marks his remains. There are about 50 attendees every week and it is nice. The service feels very familiar, but no one kneels and they don’t sing all the “good” hymns, just about 1 good hymn a week. They do have an organ though, but they only have a four-member choir.

I hope to be the fifth member soon.

At the Korean service, when it is time to give the peace, everyone just bows at each other, no hand shaking whatsoever. On the first day that I went to the English service, I didn’t know what to do. The first person I made eye contact with was the Korean guy sitting next to me. I didn’t know whether to bow or shake his hand. I bowed. Then I shook other people’s hands. Now that I know, I will definitely shake his hand if I ever see him again.

While I definitely think my home church is at Messiah, I think the Seoul Anglican Cathedral is like me. It’s a mix of west (the church architecture) and east (the architecture of the archbishop's residence).

Above: this is the Seoul Diocesan Bishop’s Residence, Anglican Church of Korea.

Hiking Season in Korea

2009-10-27T19:59:00.000+09:00

Last Thursday, I went hiking with some of the teachers at my school.

It was the day of the School Festival, which is a big deal because allthe students show off their arts and crafts that they have made in their afterschool clubs. By 11:00 am, though, all the teachers and students are free to leave. At 2:00, it was time for the hike. I thought we were going to carpool somewhere to go hiking, but really, all we do is walk out behind our school.

About 20 teachers decided to hike up Mt. Gwanaksan, which is directly behind my school. At first, we walked some steep trails, but it was okay. However, when we had to start climbing up rocks and I had to use my hands, I thought the whole hike thing had gone too far. I am a walker. (If that.) However, all the teachers seemed to love it. It must be a Korea thing. I did have some amazing views though, which are below. All the people in the pictures are teachers from my school.

Can my loyalty bought with dinner and cake?

2009-10-13T22:39:00.000+09:00

Tonight, one of the English teachers invited me and the rest of the English teachers to have dinner at her house. I think becuase I was "sick" last week, she didn't make all the side dishes this weekend, so she said we would go to a restaurant.

The restaurant was delicious. We had Chicken Soup, flavored with Ginseng, Garlic, and something else. They actually give you a whole cornish game hen in your hot stone bowl. The soup was really thick and had rice at the bottom. I know I should have taken a picture, but I was too busy eating. (I hated my school lunch, for the first time, so I barely ate. At dinner though, I was starved). Here is a picture I took off of the Internet, which looks just like mine did.

Then we went to the hosting English teacher's apartment (which is called "apart" in Korean). We had fruit and cake. They told me that they bought the most expensive cake at Paris Baguette. It was so delicious, it was worth EVERY bite. Here's a pic of our dessert spread:

(This teacher had Royal Albert China Tea cups which were beautiful.) The cake was so good, we ate more than half. They even made me blow out those candles. It was really nice, and I felt so honored that they would do this for me.

The host teacher dropped me off after dinner. We were talking about the other "Native English Teachers" that she had known(5) and if any had ever left early. She said most had, so I was like, oh, I'm not the only one. But then, just as I was about to get out of the car she said, "You make us so happy." I almost cried right there, but, instead, I got out of the car and said goodnight.

I had planned to tell my co-teacher that I was going to quit after tonight's dinner. Now, though, after the dinner, the cake, and the really nice comment, I don't think I can do it.

So maybe my loyalty CAN be bought for dinner and cake (and nice comments). It bought them a few weeks, at least.

What's In a Name?

2009-10-12T21:46:00.001+09:00

When I was here in Korea 10 years ago, people were not always nice to me. I am not sure if it is because I was adopted or if it was becasue I don't look full Korean, or maybe it was because I didn't speak Korean. Either way, people were rude. (People have been really nice on this trip though.)

Becuase of that previous experience, I was a little nervous to approach this guy who was helping out at the English Teacher Orientation in August after I found out we share the same last name.

On the last night, he was coming back at the same time I was and I decided to take my chance to tell him that we have the same last name, Kwak. In a country where everyone shares only about 250 Korean last names, I thought it would be difficult to figure out any familyline by last name. However, since the three most common (Kim, Lee, and Park) account for nearly half of the population, I only have 50% to go. That guy from Teacher Training told me the name Kwak is actually rare, only making up less than 1% of the population. (Check this link out for more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Korean_family_names)

A few days ago, I found the list of email addresses that was handed out at the training and I decided to ask him about Kwak and he replied with this message:

There are 2 root of Kwak family, which are Hyeon poong Kwak and Cheong ju Kwak. They are seperated by the area where their primary viliage was located long time ago.

And the roots are classified with different unit 'gong pa'.

i.e My root is Hyeon poong and XXX gong pa, I'm not sure what my gongpa is, and there must be many gongpa in the category of Hyeonpoong Kwak.

Then, tonight, as I was giving my family address to my Language Exchange Buddy, I saw it. On my own personal Family Register, it says that I am a "Hyonpung" Kwak, just like that guy from the teacher training!

Maybe I am getting closer and closer...

Just as an aside:

My first name is Yong and while I was looking up Korean last names, I found this:

Yong
The name Yong is a baby girl name. The name Yong comes from the Korean origin. The meaning of the name Yong is: Courage.

Similar Names:

Hong ( Chinese )
Rong ( Chinese )
Rong ( Chinese )
Yong ( Korean )
Yong ( Korean )

POSTED COMMENT: uhm im korean so yong means dragon too you know?

Awesome: I am a courageous dragon!

The area where my birth family lived when I was born

2009-10-12T20:34:00.000+09:00

My language exchange buddy typed in the address where my birth family lived 30 years ago.

Click this link to check it out:

http://map.naver.com/?lat=37.0650331&lng=127.0779830&level=1&mapMode=1

He said that the area looks new because it was probably rice paddies in the past. There are new schools and the houses look like they are new and may be replacements for older ones that have been torn down.

The other thing that I found out, was that even though I thought I had "the address," what I really had was the address of a small neighborhood, which is what you see in that picture.

I guess I AM really looking.

The Taste of Success: Curry Katsu

2009-10-09T20:56:00.001+09:00

So I am doing a language exchange with this guy over the Internet. He is really nice and taught me how to say my address and how to order something when I call on the phone.

For those of you who have never learned a foreign language, this is far harder than it sounds, because you have to speak REALLY clearly, and listen for ANY question that could arise. So I was really scared, but my language exchange buddy and I had just practiced it a few times, and even though I had already eaten, I went for it.

At 8:09, I made the phone call, and then got my 6,500 won ready (just like my buddy said), and then waited. At 8:26, the restaurant called me to let the delivery guy through the security door.

Here is my first meal:

Curry Katsu

There is the green delivery menu that was left on my door last week. It is where this all began.

There is kimchi, curry sauce, and cream soup in the small dishes at the top. They give you real dishes and real silverware. The delivery guy told me to leave the dishes outside when I was done. I guess he will come back and pick them up.

The cream soup was the best. The curry katsu was pretty good too. But nothing was more delicious than the taste of success.

Just when I think things really suck... they get better

2009-10-09T15:42:00.002+09:00

Since I have been feeling under the weather, I have not gone to work for 3 days. In fact, I haven't even left my apartment. It was good that before I became a hermit, I "stocked up," as much as a single girl with no stove can, on food. I had plenty, until today. So on the third day, I went to eat and buy some more food.

When I returned there was this note on my door:

(I didn't answer because I was at the store buying food.)

I ran down to the manager's office, but she wasn't there. Her office was open and I saw my bag on her desk with my name on it, so I left her a note telling her that I took it.

I opened the bag up and took everything out and got ready to eat, even though I had never had it before.

My pictures never do anything justice, because you can't smell how delicious it is, and of course, you can't taste how good it is.

The main dish is the biggest one. It is actually huge, in fact, I could only eat half and I was really forcing myself. The main part is a rice porridge, kinda like oatmeal, only made of rice. It is topped with dried seaweed, green onions and shitake mushrooms. In the porridge, though, is shellfish like mussels and clams. It was very delicious, but they give you more stuff. That little soup on the right hand side is cold, it tastes like radish and garlic. The small dishes, at the top are radish kimchi, marinated beef (which tasted like beef jerky), and chili paste. I think because the dish is on the hearty, more bland side, each of these dishes really "kick it up a notch." However, I happened to like the porridge by itself too.

Just when I think I REALLY hate my job, they do something nice like this and I have to go back. :)

I've been approved to be officially not Korean.

2009-10-06T20:13:00.001+09:00

Today my mom received a letter from the Korean Consulate in Los Angeles.

It was written in Hangul, so of course she couldn't read it.

It seemed important so I had her fax it to the school where I worked.

It had my Korean name on it and my birthdate at the top.

I tried to read it, but since my Korean is abysmal, I didn't have a clue as to what it said.

I asked my Co-Teacher and she told me that it said that my application for renunciation of my Korean citizenship was approved. (I wasn't even sure if I had applied, but I think I did on 9/3/09 at the Seoul Immigration Office.)

I was SO sad. I started crying right away. I went to the bathroom to try to just get it out of my system, but I couldn't make it stop. I finally decided that I would just tell my co-teacher that I wasn't feeling good and leave.

I packed up my stuff and then just told her I didn't feel good and was leaving. I don't know if I ever want to go back. The practical side of me tells me that I have to, because it's my job and I have a one year contract, etc. But I feel like never going back. I hate that school anyway. I make all these amazing lessons and the kids are so loud. But I digress.

So, I can't figure out why I am so sad. I am an American. The other day, as I passed by the American Consulate, a tear fell from my eye. I know all the words to the Star Spangled Banner, and can even sing them! I love baseball and apple pie, okay not really... but I am still American.

When I was adopted, my parents gave up my Korean citizenship so I could receive American citizenship. That was over 30 years ago. So why am I so upset about this now?

I am sure it has something to do with the fact that while I was receiving my purple registration card from the Immigration office, I found out that I was still in the system. For so long, I thought I was just forgotten, and then all of a sudden there I was. I was a real Korean. I couldn't believe it. So for all those people who say that I am not Korean, in your face!

But then I got sent to that OTHER office. You know, the one where they say you aren't Korean anymore. Like now it's official. You are officially NOT Korean. I even had to pay money (not very much) for them to tell me that I am officially not Korean.

And I guess today, I have been approved. I've been approved to be officially not Korean.

So if I am American, and if I have a perfectly nice life back home waiting for me, then why am I crying? Why does this topic bring me to tears EVERY time? And not just a tear trickling out of my eyes. Crazy, uncontrollable, sobbing, make you throw up twice, tears.

This was exactly the thing I came here to find out. I want to get rid of this feeling; I am so sick of it.

I AM going to do something about it, I just don't know what.

One adoptee's story of her trip to Korea (not mine)

2009-10-05T09:42:00.001+09:00

I found this link in the KAAN (Korean American Adoptee Network) newsletter.

It is a great story, with some great pictures, of a Korean adoptee and her sister and their journey to Seoul.

I thought it was well-written, which is more than I can say about myself. :)

Enjoy.

http://www.nola.com/family/index.ssf/2009/09/childlike_vulnerability_is_uni.html

A Korean Drama about Adoptees

2009-10-04T17:31:00.001+09:00

So I have to tell you that the one huge reason that I haven't posted in a few days is because I am addicted to this Korean drama.

It's called:

Women of the Sun

Alternative Title: Sisters In Love / Women in the Sun
Genre: Melodrama, Romance
Film Date: May, 2008
Total Episodes: 20
Korea Casts: Han Jae Suk, Jung Gyu Woon , Kim Ji Soo, Lee Ha Na

Description:
Shin Do Young is an announcer who instigates the jealously of all women around her because of her superior looks, great abilities, and great background. But Do Young has a deep, dark secret. She was actually abandoned at an orphanage when she was young but luckily she was adopted by a nice couple. The couple were unable to have their own children but were surprised when their biological daughter was born. Do Young, afraid that her parents would no longer love her anymore abandoned her 5 year old little sister, Ji Young, at a train station. Years have passed and Do Young meets a joyful girl, Sa Wol, who becomes her personal shopper. What happens when Do Young's terrible misdeed is revealed and that Sa Wol is actually the sister she abandoned at the train station all those years ago?

If you would like to watch it too, and learn a lot about the way adoptees and orphans are seen and treated in Korean Society, check out this link:

http://www.mysoju.com/women-of-the-sun/

On the First Day of Chuseok, the Art Teacher Gave to Me

2009-10-02T11:17:00.133+09:00

A trip to Suwon Palace and Hwaseong Fortress,
A dinner of Suwon Beef,
A trick to learn the days of the week in Hangul,
A Korean language workbook,
And a pair of purple crystal earings!

Not everyone exchanges gifts for Chuseok, but the Art teacher is SUPER nice and she took me out with her family to have a really nice day.

Suwon Palace and the Hwaseong Fortress were constructed in the 17th century by King Jeongjo, the 22nd King of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). The king was considering moving the capital from Seoul to Suwon and so he constructed this fortified city with a palace in the center. The gates are not as big as the ones in Seoul, but the walls here are still fully intact.

Here are some pictures of the fortress.

On the left there is the main entrance to the fortress.

That is a guard tower on the right. It's great to see how history meets the modern world with the bus traveling right underneath it.

I had to take a picture of this bell because, as historical as it is, it reminded me of home. Check out my post about the pictures from Long Beach, CA to see an almost identical bell.

In front of the palace is a huge mural of what palace life could have been like, back in the days. I don't know if it historical, but it is about 50 feet tall by 20 feet wide. Here is a small part of it, with the layout of the whole fortress:

It's a little hard to see, but that brown part in the middle is supposed to have been rice fields. When you walk along the walls of the fortress and look inside it is amazing how much modern city fits inside. Once you realize the fortress is big enough to hold rice fields which prodcued enough rice for the whole city, then you can comprehend its size a little better. (I think this picture is upside down.)

After walking around half of the fortress, which took about 2 hours, we went to the palace.

Here is the entrance:

There are many palaces in Korea, and I go to church next to one, so I see them all the time. What made this one special for me was that they had a lot of scene mock-ups:

They recently filmed a Korean drama, called Dae Jang Geum, about life here at this palace, so many costumes might have been left over from that. In this picture, a soldier and his wife are presenting gifts to the king, who is seated on the left side, out of the picture. Those tall things near the front, left hand corner of the picture are fruit and rice cracker things. The women is bowing and she is wearing those long sleeves and big hair (not like the '90's big hair, but you know what I mean). The soldier has layed his sword on the floor on some kind of animal skin. Anyway, I took SO many pictures of these "scenes;" I just loved them.

As you know, I am still in the very beginning stages of learning Korean. I have finally just memorized how to say, "Where is the bathroom" in Korean. The Korean word for bathroom is "Hwa Jang Shil." So you can imagine my excitement when I saw this:

I thought: I'm really going to impress the art teacher by saying, "Hwa Jang Shil?" and then pointing to that.
However, those are rice pots.
They are EVERYWHERE in the palace, like bathrooms... but not.

Everywhere you go, there are signs stating that the King constructed this Palace out of filial loyalty. So the story goes that the King's Grandfather, who was also a King, didn't want the King's father to become a King (I think because he had some kind of mental defect). So the Grandfather, made the father stay in a Rice Storage Box like the one on the left. Eventually the father starved to death and died at the age of 14. I guess they had kids REALLY young then, because the son, the Great King Jeongjo made this palace and fortress in his honor, after he grew up, of course and then later moved his body to be buried in that area.

Further, it is said that whenever King Jeongjo saw a rice storage box, he felt pained. So this picture is one of the 5 rice storage boxes in the same area. There are signs that encourage you to climb into the rice box to "feel King Jeongjo's sorrow."

I did NOT feel his sorrow (because I wouldn' crawl in the box).

I did however have a wonderful trip. And we finished our tour of Suwon with a Suwon beef dinner at this fancy restaurant which IMPORTS its beef ...from ... Los Angeles. So I went all the way to Suwon to have LA beef.

After dinner we went back to the art teacher's house and had the gift I gave them for Chuseok: a blueberry yogurt cake from Paris Baguette.

Then the Art teacher gave me my other gifts: the book to learn Korean and the earrings her sister designed.

Chuseok sure feels a lot like Chirstmas to me!

Seoul Street Food -- So Satisfying!

2009-10-01T01:42:00.003+09:00

One thing I can't resist is street food.

Normally I am a neat freak and uber concerned about sanitation and cleanliness, but none of my compulsions can overcome the odors that waft toward my nose and the feast of deliciousness that is spread before me in the streets of Seoul.

For my main dish, I prefer Ddok Kalbi next to Exit #1 at Ewha Women's University (which is the exit for InKAS, in case you are also an adoptee). Basically Ddok Kalbi is delicious hamburger wrapped around a chewy ricecake (ddok). The lady prepares a few ahead of time (stacked on the
right hand side, toward the front). When you order one, she regrills it so it is nice and hot. Then she spears it with a skewer and asks you if you want spicy or regular sauce (I like spicy). Then she dips it in the sauce and gives the whole thing to you in a dixie cup for a less than a dollar!

I think this lady may have won an award in 2007 & 2008 from KBS (Korean Broadcasting System) for the most delicious street food, becuase she has big banners saying somthing to that effect on the side of her stand.

I'm not sure if she did or not, but she won my award for some serious deliciousness in 2009.

For dessert, I have to recommend Yong Su Yeom, which means Dragon's Beard. You can find this in Myeong Dong. There was a man right by one of the subway exits, but I found this guy in the middle of one of the streets.

Basically, he starts with a regular prism (like a 3x3x1 "cube") of hardened honey (it might be almost frozen). Then he makes a hole in the middle and dips it into that white powder, which is cornstarch. Then he stretches the hole with his fingers to the length of his armspan. Then he folds them together (like two people would if they were folding a blanket). After he dips and stretches them again, he has 4 strands. He does this enough times, with each fold exponentially increasing the number and delicacy of the strings, until he has about 2000 strings.

It may be a little difficult to see, but basically he is holding the entire "beard" in one hand and seperating the strands with his other one.

After he does that, he lays down all the strands and cuts them into about 2-inch sections of thousands of "beard". After that he takes each section and rolls them arounds a nut mixture, making a bite-sized, delicious candy, which I think, tastes like divinity candy.

He fills up a box of ten and sells them for a little less than $5.

So, this is my box of Dragon's Beard, down there.

I have this policy that I won't bring home street food as a means of trying to limit my consumption. If I can't eat it right there, on the spot, or while walking to my next destination, then I just shouldn't be eating it. Therefore, I tried to buy 2 pieces of Dragon's Beard, but the guy told me I had to buy a box. I bought it because I had already bugged him to make some fresh for me (so I could see the process and share it with you). He also told me that it is good for months in the freezer.

What a mistake!

That piece, right there was my very last piece. I did give one to my friend, but that left nine for me to eat by myself. It has only been 1 day, and they are already all gone. The box is in the recycling and the plastic tray for ten is in the white, city approved, garbage bag.

There are so many more things to eat here is Seoul, but these rank as my favorite dinner and dessert for the time being.

Seoul Street Food -- So Satisfying!

What do CHristmas and CHuseok have in common?

2009-09-29T21:29:00.001+09:00

So, for those of you who don't know, Chuseok is Korean Thanksgiving. Like American Thansgiving, they seem to eat a lot and most people look at it as time to travel around the country and visit their families.

A huge difference, though, is that when you go to someone's house, you are supposed to bring a gift. Being a foreigner here, and knowing practically no one, I am fortunate enough to have three invitations for Chuseok.

Which means, of course, I have to buy three gifts. The most traditional gifts are fruit and meat (but I know one teacher who bought her mother-in-law a refrigerator). There are beautiful boxes EVERYWHERE of fruit and meat, some costing hundreds of dollars or thousands of Korean Won. It seems, though, that because everyone buys those things as gifts, that people might have enough fruit and meat, so I wanted to get something a little more unique.

For my first gift, I am going to buy a cake. The first time I spent time in this household, the very kind mother took me to the store and told me that they were no diets that evening and that she would buy me everything I wanted to eat. We proceeded to fill up a cart, but the adult daughter wanted a cake. Her mother told her that she couldn't have one becuase it would be too much food to eat, but since it's Chuseok, I'm bringing one over. I still have not bought it, because I want it to be fresh for the day we are going to eat it. I promise to put up a picture though, after the fact.

For my second invitation, I will be going to visit the family of a friend whose daugther is visitng Korea from California. I had stayed with this family once before, so I know that this particular family likes to party. So we bought him this Absolut Vodka set. Please notice the beautiful bag (which you have to pay extra for). Also notice the way it is decoratively boxed (think: gift sets at Walmart, but more expensive).

We also bought the matriarch of the family some crunchy rice cake treats, which, because they were on the less expensive side, didn't come with the beautiful basket or table display that the more expenisve ones did. They did, however, come wrapped in this beautiful pink cloth, which I think is also very nice.

For my third invitation, I am going to the house of one of the Head Techers at my school. She is a very warm, kind, "Christian" lady. When I was at her house last Friday, a huge box of Asian Pears arrived at her house and I could tell she had PLENTY of fruit, becaue she INSISTED that I take some home. So, I wanted to get her something different. I got her this AMAZING gift set:

Just for your own information. I LOVE Spam with rice and seaweed, so I didn't get this to be mean, I think it is a nice gift and many Korean people would like it, especially since SPAM costs about $4 a can. Having said that, this IS funny. Check out how it says, "For Your Smile -- SPAM." I could have gotten that knock-off Spam for less money, but I opted for the original; afterall, you get waht you pay for. This gift, also in a bag that costs a little bit more, contains 3 cans of spam, a bottle of grapeseed oil, and a bottle of olive oil (which was "for your health"). At least I know it will keep until she finishes all those other Chuseok gifts.

So there you have it. CHristmas and CHuseok have more in common than the "CH."

One last comment: My friend's adult daughter and I are both of Korean descent and we will both be sharing our first Chuseok this year. We agree that we oficially feel like "Koreans" now that we have purchased our first Chuseok gifts. It's amazing how celebrating holidays makes you feel like you might fit in, finally.

Namsan Tower -- Seoul

2009-09-29T17:21:00.003+09:00

If you have ever been to Seoul, you have seen the Namsan Tower. It is on a mountain and sticks up so high that you can't miss it. It's as if the tower were reigning over Seoul.

This picture is only taken from the base of the tower, to really see its height, you should see it from afar.

To get to the top of the mountain, where the tower and a Teddy Bear Museum are, you could walk, drive, or take a cable car.

The cable car was great becuase you could see all of Seoul if you weren't afraid like I was.

Here's a picture from our view on the way.

One thing that Namsan Tower is VERY famous for are the "couple locks." Many couples go up to the tower for a romanitc evening. They bring a lock, write their names on it, and lock it to the fence. The old tradition was to then throw the keys over the fence as a sign of the fortitude of your love. However, there were many complaints about the safety of throwing the keys onto the heads of the people who are walking to or from the Tower. So the Tower put up these signs that say, "Please do not throw your keys away." Many pessimists say that the sign is meant for couples who later break up, but I was assurred that it was for safety reasons and that it was just an interesting translation.

If you want to go to the top of the Tower, you have to eat dinner there. We went to a pricey Korean buffet, which also serves you a main dish which you choose from a menu with four options. I chose the Kalbi, I think. What I am sure of, though, is that it was beef and it was delicious. The buffet was good, and was worth the splurge, especially because you get this awesome view from the restroom:

As usual pictures don't do it justice. I guess you'll just have to see it for yourself.

My Image (Or Giving Credit Where Credit is Due)

2009-09-28T22:59:00.001+09:00

Is it wrong to "grab" pictures off of the Internet?

I was going to ask the author permission to use it, but I couldn't figure out how to do it from the half Korean, half English blog where I found it.

So, here's where I got it from:

http://www.google.co.kr/imglanding?imgurl=http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/2897/koreausaflagmashupob5.gif&imgrefurl=http://woot.tistory.com/archive/20080208&h=685&w=879&sz=32&tbnid=z7Tusj1vCEMVKM:&tbnh=114&tbnw=146&prev=/images%3Fq%3DKorean%2BAmerican%2Bimages&usg=__A6bvSiO6kwmOSPbcPkWoh4O7XjA%3D&ei=R7_ASrWJFpGQkAWlmdE2&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=3&ct=image&q=Korean+American+images&start=0#start=2&imgurl=http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/2897/koreausaflagmashupob5.gif

If anyone knows who this person is and would tell me, I would ask permission.

If he or she is upset about me using it, I will take it down.

Until then, it pretty much represents me and is great, so I'm using it as my pic.

Hope you enjoy it.

I think I'm an Endangered Species

2009-09-19T20:48:00.001+09:00

Okay, so there are about 200,000 Korean adoptees around the world, but the news is that by 2012, Korea will close off its international adoptions. (I found out this information in this August 2009 article: http://www.rainbowkids.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=664)

Just for fun, I checked out this definition of endangered species on my favorite website, Wikipedia, (or is that Craigslist?) and came up with this:

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters. (Check. This is me.) Only a few of the many species at risk of extinction actually make it to the lists and obtain legal protection. Many more species become extinct, or potentially will become extinct, without gaining public notice. (OH, you have to make it to a list.)

I guess I am not an "Endangered Species" afterall.

But I still could become extinct without gaining public notice. Great.

As if it weren't already hard enough to fit in. Most adoptess know, you can't totally fit in among Koreans and you can't totally fit in among Americans. The only place you do really fit in, is with other Korean adoptees. So, I am happy for all those Korean kids who won't have to wonder if they are white, but I'm sad for me.

For more information on Korean adoptees please visit this rather accurate (from my point of view) Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_adoptee

How do they stay SO skinny?

2009-09-17T23:10:00.002+09:00

When I first came to Seoul 10 years ago, EVERYONE was super thin. Now people are more diverse in body size, But many people, especially older people and really young people, are still really thin. This amazes me because they eat so much! Not only does everyone have a pretty tasty all-you-can-eat Korean lunch, but people are constantly giving you food and drink snacks.

Within an hour of arriving at this desk on the first day, I had my first treat. As I was trying to clean up my area, one of the teachers brought me a 1 1/2-inch piece of corn on the cob. Since I was cleaning and my hands were dirty, I didn't want to grab it, so she put it on a Kleenex. Corn in Korea tastes very different than corn in the States. It is chewy and a little sweeter. I love it!

The next day, one of the teachers brought in cookies she made. She took her basket to every desk in the teacher's office and gave one to everyone, on a Kleenex. I actually hated it because it wasn't sweet at all, But didn't know it until I had popped the whole thing in my mouth. Since she had made them by hand, I smiled and told her it was delicious.

Another favorite of the office seems to be Korean grapes. I think they are muscrat grapes, but I am not sure. These grapes however, take some work to eat. The skin is pretty bitter, so you pop the inside out of the skin by squeezing it. You can pop the insides into your mouth, but then you still have to deal with the seeds. The grapesare sweet, but a little bitter too. I have received at least 4 bunches of grapes since I started 3 weeks ago.

I have also received: more pieces of corn (1 dipped in sugar), free cups of coffee, yogurt drinks, vitamin drinks, grape juice and Moon Pies. I usually eat everything.

My biggest surprise came when I found this on my desk last Monday:

From my class, I had gone directly to the lunch room. While I was there, I saw the cafeteria women carrying 20-30 of these golden boxes, but I still didn't know what they were. They looked so shiny, I really wanted one. I assumed that I wasn 't going to receive one though because I had been at my desk all morning when they were giving them out, and I hadn't received one.

After lunch, though, when I went back to my desk, there it was. So gold, so beautiful!

I carefully opened the plastic to see what was inside.

Inside the pretty box, I found ddok, which are rice cakes. Not that crunchy, dry rice cake from the states. It's more like Japanese mochi. I haven't eaten them all, but some of them are pretty tasty.

I asked around, because I wanted to thank someone, but no one knew who had given them out.

To me, that is the nicest type of gift. It is one where the giver expects nothing in return, not even your gratitude. In fact, most of the food and drinks are left like that: on your desk, on a Kleenex, anonymously.

And people eat them, just like I do.

Which leaves me to wonder, once again...

How DO they stay so skinny?

Am I in Mexico?

2009-09-17T22:17:00.015+09:00

Am I in Mexico?

Look at this truck... it's selling vegetables. When it drives down the street, it honks and everyone is supposed to run out and buy their vegetables. I would run from 4th floor studio, where this picture is taken from, but I just can't imagine needing that many sweet potatoes.

When I was at the immigration office, there was a woman who had a cart and she was selling coffee. To be more correct, she was selling hot water and instant coffee. I like to think of it as coffee a la Nescafe. Korean people make it simplier though, they premix a bunch of non-dairy creamer and sugar into their little bit of instant coffee. (It is is good, but it's not coffee.)

I'm sure many subway stations have vendors around them, but the way people just spread everything out on a blanket on the floor, or sit on a box, reminds me distinctly of Mexico. (I think this is Ginseng in the picture.) Speaking of the subway, when I am riding it, trying to decipher the stops in Korean, I am often interrupted by a man trying to sell me something like CD's, somthing similar to crazy glue, or bug spray. Admittedly, the people who sell things on Seoul's subway are often wearing suits and they usually are rather polite in their interruption. Yesterday, though, I think there was a deaf man who was asking for donations. He walked up and down the subway car and threw a leaflet on every person's lap. I saw two people across from me try to discreetly thow their papers on the floor. The man across from me went as far as shoving his paper under the seat, but the woman left it on the floor by her feet. To our surprise, upon receiving nothing, the donations seeker briskly walked up and down the subway car and collected all of the papers. He even picked up the papers that had "fallen" to the floor. (Good thing I didn't take one; I'm sure I would have received one that had fallen on the floor of a previous car.) In Mexico, this type of thing happens all the time, except no one goes back to pick up all the fliers, which just adds to the trash.

Speaking of trash, here, just like in Mexico, people just throw their trash on the streets. In Korea, though, you have to buy these special bags which are particular to the district you live in. You have to buy the right bag or the garbage people, who come like magic trash fairies, will not pick up your trash. (I'm not sure how anyone knows that it is YOU using the improper bag, but anyway.) There are three bags. One is for food wastes; it is yellow. One is white and that is for the main trash, but you have to separate the recyclables. I know there is another color for recycleables, but you don't really have to buy that bag, because there are people constantly pushing these wooden wheelbarrow things up and down the streets to collect all the recycleables, including paper and cardboard. So if you just set out the paper, cardboard, metals, and plastics in a bag separate from the food waste and trash, someone will come by in an hour or two with a wheelbarrow and pick it up.

The last thing that just kills me (with laughter) is the way when the traffic gets bad, people walk up and down between the cars and sell refreshments. Last time I saw that, I was certain I was on the TJ border.

Of course, that all brings me to the last way Koreans are like Mexicans... both cultures really know how to hustle. They will sell you anything. And to make you really want to buy it, they will bring whatever it is they want to sell right to you. You gotta love that, or at least I do. I have to respect people who work SO hard.

I love Mexico, but Korea is cleaner. So, despite all the similarities, I guess I am NOT in Mexico.

Following the Signs (Pt. 1 of the Immigration Office Trip)

2009-09-03T23:08:00.000+09:00

I decided that Thursday would be the day I would go for my Alien Registration Card. My co-teacher was worried about who would teach her classes, so I told her I would go by myself (because I am so tough!). I had seen this Alien Registration Card mentioned many times in the plethora of handbooks we were given. I read chapters from about 7 different books, searched the Internet for information about the Alien Registrantion Card process here in Seoul, and talked it over extensively with a couple of Guest English teachers who had, that day, just gone through the process.

I made my list of required documents and memorized (and wrote down) my way on the subway. Green Line to Purple line, exit Omokgyu. Walk straight for ten minutes and you run right into it. But then, becuase I had studied the maps for so long, I saw that a leg of the green line, also takes you really close to the Seoul Immigration Center. The center looked like it was situated directly in the middle of the two places. Because I get lost so easily though, I decided to go green to purple like everyone else did.

Thursaday morning, I dutifully grabbed all my prepared documents and my subway map, exit circled in black sharpie, and set out on my way. I have not actualy been on the subway since I arrived at this place, so my first adventure was just to walk to the subway station. My neighborly English teachers, who use the subway every day, assured me that it was just a straight walk up the main street and there it would be. So I set out and immediately felt worried. As I was walking tentatively toward the station with an air of fake self-confidence, I spotted a man wheeling a rather large suitcase, wearing a heavy-looking backpack, and carrying a bag of stuff. I knew in my gut that man was headed for the subway and decided to follow him. He was wheeling that suitacase so carefully through the messed up sidewalks that characterize this part of Seoul, I was certain that I could keep up with him easily. However, I was wrong. I had to walk pretty fast and he was still ahead of me and getting further ( I might have broken a sweat). Fortunately, the street lights were long, so every block or so, I had the chance to catch up. After about 7 minutes, we arrived at the Subway entrance. First mission complete.

I read the signs and figure out which direction to go on the green line. I am now safely on the subway and I am going the correct direction. Second mission complete. I know this subway goes all the way to the purple line, where I am going to switch and then get off on Omogkyo. I am so good. But then there is this announcement that this is the last stop on the line (what?). Everyone gets off, and I get off too (and I panic). I am at a big station, but its the blue line connection. I follow the mass of people and then realize that it isn't going to work. And here is where I make my mistake, rather than get back on another green line going the same direction, I get on the green line that I think will take me on the other side of the Seoul Immigration Office. I get on the green subway, going the right direction, and feel better. I take the proper exit, and am a little worried, but I follow the crowd and exit just fine. Third obstacle overcome.

As I exit the station, I refer to my map. I see the station and see the general direction of the Seoul Immigration Center and then I see a sign, in English! I love how they are not hiding the ball here in Seoul. So, even though I see that this arrow is pointing the opposite way from where the office is on the map, I go left. (The map was free anyway and don't they always say, you get what you pay for?) I am a little nervous about this decision, but then I see another sign with another arrow. I see some other people who look like immigrants, also confused, follow the signs and I am feeling better and better about my decision.

All of a sudden I am faced with this huge flight of stairs. I thought I was in pretty good shape, but being in hilly, stair-filled Korea has taught me that I am not in good shape. I know that I have to go, so I just do it. (For scale, see how small the people are?) At about halfway, I think, "Why didn't my neighbors mention this huge stairway." She talked about how it takes her 15 minutes, instead of 10, to walk from the subway because she doesn't want to sweat and she fails to mention the Mt.Everest of stairs? I figured she just didn't want to scare me off and keep climbing. I finally get to the top, and I see another sign. I am SO on the right path.

I walk for another 5 minutes, following the signs and then arrive at the Immigration Office. But it's the WRONG Seoul Immigration Office. I have to go to this other one. I receive some directions, which I don't understand, from a very nice copy clerk. So I backtrack and do those crazy stairs again. As I was just about to finish walking down (which is WAY better than going up) ALL those stairs and I looked to me left and saw... the little Louvre of Seoul.

I also had the opportunity to take this amazing picture of the (above ground) subway tracks. I guess I never would have seen either of these interesting things, had I not followed the wrong Seoul Immigration sign.

By the way, when I finally follwed my original map and got back on the correct path, here is the sign I saw:

It's SO different from the other one, huh? Ultimately, though, I guess it's just part of the "joy" of getting to know another country.

So, I'm not an Alien? (Seoul Immigration Office pt. 2)

2009-09-03T22:56:00.001+09:00

(Let me warn you, before you sit down to read something fun or cute like I normally post, this is not fun nor cute. There are no pictures. I wanted to make it funny, which is why I waited so long to post it, but I finally realized that I am not always funny or cute or even happy. This is a long, boring story, but it is from my heart and reflects the real issues I have as an adoptee, the ones I always hide. It doesn't have a good ending, because there is none. -- 6 Oct. 09)

As far as Americans are concerned, I consider myself to be rather wordly. I speak English, French, and Spanish (almost fluently) and have been to several foreign countries. I have many friends who are immigrants and I feel that I have always been interested in everyone's culture and want to learn as much as I can about their worlds. However, going through the immigration process here in Korea has taught me that I know nothing.

To the defense of the Korean government, at least it attempts to welcome people from other countries and grants many visas for them to work and study. In the US, I know many people who are left without the legal means to even go through the arduous process that I am about to recount.

I guess it started back in the States when I applied for this teaching job. To get an E2 Visa to work in Korea as an English teacher, you must already have a job. To get a job here teaching English for the Government while residing in the States, you must not only submit a rather lenghty 11 page application with an essay and lesson plan, but you must also send sealed transcripts, sealed letters of recommendation, a copy of your diploma, and a background check from the police, the latter of the two which must be notarized, authenticated, and apostilized. If you don't know what those things are, neither did I. It took me weeks to get all that stuff together and then months for the government to interview me, accept me, and finally send me a signed contract. At which point, I could go down to the Korean Consulate and receive an E2 Visa.

However, I am "special." Having been born in Korea, even though I was adopted, I can receive an F4 visa. This is a better visa because I did not actually have to have all that paperwork to receive my visa, my visa is good for 2 years instead of 1, and I can enter and leave the country as many times as I want within those two years without having to purchase a mulit-entry visa. (I did still need all that paperwork to receive my job though, so it was not as if I was getting out of any of the hard work.) I could just bring my adoption papers, naturalization papers, and my family registry to the consualte and they would give it to me. I did that all and I thought I was on the fast track to getting my visa and that I was good to go.

When I got to Korea, though, I found out that I have to get an Alien Registration Card. To get this card, you have to have a clean bill of health, a job contract, and some other papers, all of which were irrelavant, becuase I am supposed to get the purple card. The A.R.C. card, as people loveingly refer to it, is for E2 Visa holders. I get a purple card becasue I am an F4 Visa holder.

So I grab the ticket out of the correct machine, you know the one NOT for E2 Visa holders, and I sit down to wait. I waited about an hour, which is rumored to be relatively short and I went to sit down. He immigration officer, for lack of a more appropriate name, looked at all my paperwork and then started talking to me in Korean. I couldn't understand what he was saying, but I had so much documentation that I was sure that I had whatever he needed. I handed him paper after paper, and yet he still was asking for soemthing else.

The Officer looks at all my paperwork, and especially at my adoption papers, and then types some stuff in the computer and up pops my file. I am in the Korean computer. I really exist! I'm really Korean! I am personally so excited and I can't believe that I am a Korean and that maybe I haven't been forgotten by this country afterall. By now, I have given him everything, including my health report, a copy of my contract, and my original diplomas, but the Immigration Officer still wants more papers.

Then this random man cuts in front of me. I was sitting down in the booth, so I'm not sure how that happened, but all of a sudden the Immigration Officer is asking the stranger to translate for him. The stranger tells me that the Immigration Officer is saying that I have to go across the street and get something and that something I need is written at the bottom of MY family registry, which was still in the computer with my Korean name and birthdate. I ask, "Which building?" (We are in the middle of Seoul, a huge metropolitan city, with tons of skyscrapers) And the man tells ms, "Across the Street." So I dutifully gather all my papers and walk across the street.

I see a police station, and I think I have to go there. But it's closed. I see an open door right next store, and there is free water, so I grab a paper envelope full and look around. It looks like a health clinic, so I leave. I am so frustrated by now and feel so stupid for thinking I could do this by myself. (Don't forget that I had already gotten lost and walked up and down that HUGE flight of stairs.) And so I go back. As I was walkng out, I passed a Korean guy who I met at English Teacher Training, so I decided to ask him for help.

He was just finishing up, so I asked him where my family registry said I shoudl go. He couldn't understand it, so he asked his co-teacher to help. As she was reading it and trying to figure it out, she said that she would take me acrosss the street. As we were entering the "health clinic," my friend translated what his co-teacher was telling me, and then I just started crying.

He said something about how this paper was removing me from the family registry or something like that, but I had just had enough. I couldn't understand what he was saying, even though he was speaking English. I was so worn out from the day, that I just couldn't take anymore. But what?, I'm not Korean anymore?

So there it was. I'm just not Korean anymore. I can't look American and I can't be Korean, and most people say I don't even look Korean anyway. I guess I'm no one. I mgiht as well be an Alien, but, according to the Korean government, I'm not an Alien either.

No Smoking

2009-09-03T21:25:00.013+09:00

After 10 days (which I thought were supposed to be 5) of training, and then a weekend staying with my art teacher because my studio was not ready, my co-teacher and head teacher take me to my apartment. When i get there, it's small. However, by Korean standards, it's fine. I was not the least bit surprised regarding the amount of space. (That TV is about 13 inches, so you can imagine how tiny that microwave is!)

What you can't see, and which practically killed me, was the wall of smoke that we hit as we entered the room. The stench was unbearable. I assumed that the previous tenet, the predecessor to my job, was a smoker and that even the blankets reeked of smoke because he smoked a lot in my room. However, both the "Officetel" and the teachers said that they never saw him smoke. So, we put the blanket on the roof to air out and I opened the window to let the fresh air in. Suprisingly, when I came home from my first trip to the grocery store and having dinner with my co-teacher and head teacher, the smell was pretty much gone.

After about an hour, though, I could smell it again. I actually happen to know the people who live directly beneath me from the 10 day training, so I knew it wasn't them. I could only guess that it was the tenent above me. Since I had the window open wide, the smell eventually went away, but then it came back again a few hours later. This person was clearly a chain smoker! In a period of a few hours he smoked at least 4 cigarettes and the next morning, while I was getting ready, he smoked another two. I want the tenent to have the right to live the way in which he chooses in the privacy of his own studio, but the smell was really strong and I was definietely getting all of the second-hand smoke.

That morning, I complained again to my co-teacher and head teacher. The previous day, my co-teacher called to complain. That day, the head teacher called to complain and the manager sent me this reply:

It was an interesting response because, while I deeply believe in the power of prayer, I was certain that this was not going to stop the problem. I loved how she used for faith to deal with what should be a practical issue. However, that night, there was no smoke smell.

Tonight, as I went to get water from the water cooler, there was this sign:

This must be the power of prayer at work! : )

The National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

2009-08-30T10:54:00.002+09:00

The art teacher and her husband took me to the Museum of Modern Art.

Here is a picture of some "totem poles" that were in the front.

They have some great pieces here including a huge display from a Korean-American digital artist. It is probably about 5 stories high and fills up the center of a huge spiral staircase.

I was also amazed, that in a country where there are so many squatty potties, there are also a TON of rather advanced toilets in public places. This is a toilet/bidet is a the restroom of the museum.

I don't like to use them becuase all the buttons are in Korean. I am also not sure I feel it is super sanitary.

The jury is still out, but at least it's good for a chuckle every time I see one.

63 Tower

2009-08-29T18:22:00.003+09:00

This is the 63 Tower on Yeouido Island.

I don't have much to say except that it is one of the biggest buildings in Korea. (The third largest to be exact.)

There is a small theater, many shops and restaurants, an aquarium, and a wax museum. I especially like this wax museum sample of Einstein. (It's hard not to love someone who was such a rebel genius.)

I think the real draw is the art museum which happens to be on the 62nd floor. The art museum was nice. There was a flower theme when I was there. I don't know if it was a permanent exhibit or not. The view from there though was phenomenal. I have included soem of my pictures here, but it was cloudy the day I went, so I am sure there are better pictures out there.

Here is a view of the Han River. Those are boats down there in the river. Each of those buildings is a huge complex of condos. I would guess that there are at least 1000 apartments in each of those buildings. And there are tons of these buildings all throughout Seoul.

I noticed they have a LUSH store there and a Totes Store where I bought an adorable purple polka dot umbrella with UV protection.

Even though it was cloudy, I had a great afternoon there and have some adorable souvenirs.

To find out more about the 63 Tower, please check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/63_Building

Cookin' Nanta

2009-08-26T15:35:00.001+09:00

I went to see this Korean Modern Stage performance of traditional Korean arts. It was great.

I was going to just give you a link so you could look at pictures, but I found this site instead:

http://danormansinkorea.wordpress.com/2009/05/01/cookin-nanta/

This girl tells you ALL about it and she has awesome pictures (I don't know how she got them though because taking pictures was prohibited during my show).

Either way, it was worth it, because she really tells you everything that happens.

If you have a chance to see it though, you should go, it's worth every penny.

The Title: An explanation

2009-08-19T04:04:00.001+09:00

I'm sure a "good" writer would make you figure out what the title means in the middle or near the end of the story, and some of you may already know, but I'm not like that; as a teacher I don't believe in hiding the ball and as a person, I just don't have that kind of foresight.

I started my journey on my "Motherland Tour" about 10 years ago. I and about 60 other Korean adoptees from all over the world were flown in from our respective countries and took a tour of Korea, our Motherland. Even though they call it the motherland, I know I am an American and wouldn't claim Korea as my motherland, it really is only the land where my Birthmother, in contrast to the mother who raised and loved me, is. And there you have it: the birthMotherland.