8 Things I Didn't Know About South Korea

As of August 4th I'll have been in Korean for a full month, and there have been a lot of things that have been new and exciting to see and experience. That being the case I wanted to list some things that I've learned in coming here that are a little different fro what I'd typically see and experience in the US. This is far from comprehensive, but just some fun things that I've learned and experienced as a new expat. 

1. BYOTP - If you want to use a public bathroom here, be prepared to bring your own toilet paper. Many (if not most) restaurants and businesses don't have their own restrooms in their establishments. This is especially common in the tall high rises that hold a wide assortment of restaurants, officetels, and other businesses. Instead, you'll find a public bathroom out in the hall that is shared between the businesses on that floor. It isn't clear to me who's responsible exactly for their upkeep, but I'll tell you one thing, if you look for toilet paper in the stall, you'll be grossly disappointed. But don't despair, generally each business will have toilet paper by the door coming in. Sometimes it's on a trendy dispenser, but most often it's just a roll of TP and you grab what you think you'll need on your way out. To be honest, I don't like disclosing my toilet paper usage to the general public, so I keep a packet of tissues in my purse for situations like these (or in the very rare case where there just isn't toilet paper at all). Also, be prepared to throw your used tissue away, and not flush it. The plumbing here isn't as fast as the WiFi. 
2. Not on the agenda - Something expats here will often talk about is the "Korean Surprise". Also generally categorized under the "they forgot you weren't there for that conversation", "decided you didn't need to know at the time" or "made a last minute decision" phenomenon. Let me give an example. One morning last week I was getting ready for work when L messaged me and said that my health appointment for my ARC card had been scheduled for that day at 10AM. Not a big deal to me how they choose to use my time, however for the sake of the blood test they needed it was a good thing I didn't eat breakfast. Examples friends have given include showing up to find out there was a last minute field trip, or finding out parents were observing class that day. These last two are not very common at my school (L does a really good job of giving me as much heads up as she can). But still, flexibility is key. If you get bent out of shape every time a plan changes here, you're going to be unrecognizable, and believe me, it's not going to be a glow up*.  
3. 
   Traffic - Driving in South Korea never ceases to amaze me. Mostly because I have been in several that have parked in impossible places, driven down impossible streets, and there has been no chipped paint, little to no horn honking, and no fatalities or injuries. So for context - downtown Salt Lake right after a session of general conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is probably the craziest situation I've ever had to drive in. It incorporates drivers from all backgrounds and traffic laws packed into one large city, all trying to leave at the same time, while simultaneously coming to terms with the fact that they've already failed at being a better person because they cut off the minivan behind them. It's a hectic situation, and not one I ever want to drive in again. So then take that, multiply by twenty, add motorcycles hopping sidewalks, pedestrians walking wherever they can fit, and you've got driving in Changwon. There have been many times here where I was in a car going down a narrow street with cars parked on either side, and I was totally convinced we were going to have to back out. Only to have my friend driving just smoothly roll through, talking away like we hadn't just narrowly missed collecting multi-hued racing stripes passing through. My working theory is that Korea has some secret shrinking technology, but I haven't found a way to prove it yet. 
4. Not racism - If you see a sign that says "no foreigner", it may not be quite what you think it is. I haven't seen this yet in Changwon, but in some places in Korea, you may see the occasional establishment with a sign that says "no foreigners". You might go to flag down a taxi, and they purposefully go past you to the Korean lady literally five feet away. In both cases, this is rarely RARELY because they have a problem with your race or skin tone. It's almost always going to be because of their concern with the language barrier. For example, I've tried to take a taxi before, and the driver wasn't confident enough in our ability to communicate to give me a ride. He was very polite and apologetic, but he did communicate to me that I should probably find another taxi. Take that inability to communicate and add the alcohol and environment that can come at a bar or club. It just may not be worth the risk to the owners if something goes South. Now, to be fair, there are cases of racism against foreigners (as in any country), and with South Korea being very homogeneous, they don't have the same discrimination laws that we do in the US. However, I want to reiterate that my experiences up to date have all been incredibly positive, and my friends from different ethnic backgrounds that I've met here will say the same. And remember, no matter what country you go to, some people just want a reason to hate. So, be flexible and don't let people get you bent out of shape. Most of the time, they aren't trying to be unkind.
   
5. Rounds - When you're sitting at dinner with friends and they say "lets do round 2", they're not just talking about pouring out another drink. It's not uncommon here for the hanging out to start at one place, and end three to four stops later, with each stop being considered a round. For example, my first night visiting Seongsan (basically downtown Changwon) we started at a 삼겹살 (samgyupsal, pork belly) restaurant, stopped at the local foreigner bar O'Brien's for some darts and pool, and then finished off the night at a coin noraebang (노래방) for karaoke, a total of 3 rounds. I called it a night with my friend at midnight, while several others moved on for either more drinks or clubbing. Often, especially on weekends, this can continue until early in the morning or until everyone's too buzzed to walk straight. 
6. Filling cups - Good manners here is never letting your friend's cup stay empty. It's considered impolite to let someone else fill their own cup, so someone else will generally fill it for you. Now don't think you have to drink it because they poured it. In fact, when you're done, just stop drinking. If there's still something in the cup (half full or more from what I've been able to tell), people will leave it alone. But once it's empty, someone will be there offering to top it off. Which might be why it isn't at all unusual for it to be 9PM and already have ahjussis weaving their way through Seongsan hanging onto each other for support. 
7. Eating out - It's really really common here for everyone to order one big meal that's shared between the group. For example, last Friday I went with a friend to a language exchange, and for round 2 we all went out to a chicken place for dinner. Our group easily took up a third of the restaurant, filling three large tables. Each table ordered separately from the other, resulting in 2 orders of chicken per table. We all were given small plates with tongs and a fork, then the chicken was brought out in baskets and set in the center of the table for the whole group. Appetizers or sides are brought out as well, and often are considered free with the meal. Then this is generally where you start to figure out who the "moms" and "dads" of the groups are. My friend Addy (has been here a couple years) started serving out the chicken and made sure everyone had plates, while Marco (a round faced Korean with smiling eyes) stirred the sauce into the coleslaw-looking side dish and made sure everyone's cups were kept full. Then one table would look over and see the other table didn't have enough chicken, or maybe not enough to drink, and so would send their baskets or drinks down to share. This resulted in plenty of food for everyone, with the total cost being about ₩5,000 (~$4.65) per person.
8. Buses - Finally I have to give a shout out to the buses here. If there is ever a time when I thought I'd die from a heart attack, it was riding a bus in Changwon. Rumor has it (heard from a friend of a friend who's a bus driver here) that the drivers are assigned a certain number of rotations for their routes, and once the route is up, they can finish and go home. Whether or not this is exactly true, I haven't yet verified, however the way these buses roll certainly seem to support that. With your phone notifying you of the buses coming in, and having so many available, there isn't really a need to have a set bus schedule for when the bus will arrive, because about every 5-10 minutes one will show up. But if there isn't a seat available close to the front be prepared to grab something quick, because you have on average two steps before the driver has shoved his way back into city traffic and you're in danger of getting thrown onto your face. It also means that while some buses are technically supposed to run till midnight, it's really about 11:30PM when they finish their rounds and head home. So if you're like me and don't leave round 2 soon enough, you're either getting a taxi or walking home. 

I'm currently working on a few more narrative-style posts that I'm really excited about, and hope you'll enjoy. While I generally write as I experience things, feel free to leave questions or requests in the comments if there are specific things that you'd like to know more about. 

TTFN!

-Shayla

*Glow up - colloquial term for personal transformation. Generally used to describe someone getting a make over or making significant physical improvements to their appearance.