Korean Job Discussion Forums

[MacLean]

The lunches at my school are pretty good. But when lunch time arrives I get this mixed feeling of anticipation (because I'm hungry) and mild anxiety. The anxiety comes from having to eat with the other teachers. In short, their table manners are atrocious. Really, really, really bad. It's not just the slurping and smacking, talking with food in their mouths, displaying the contents of their mouth, vigorous throat clearing at the table ect. It's the coughing and hacking over other people's food - including my food. Who in their right mind coughs over other people's food? Some of them even have that phlemy cough that hardcore smokers have. And if I'm sitting directly across from them it's very unpleasant indeed. And the vigorous conversations carried on with their mouth bulging with food. Can they not see the food particles flying out of their mouths. Those particles gotta land somewhere.

[bobbybigfoot]

Disgusting.

I could not eat there. End of story.

I'd give notice before tolerating people spitting in my food.

[Caffeinated]

You should count your blessings that you get food. Please understand. At my lunchroom, the sucker who arrives last (usually me) is gambling on missing out on the entree or dessert after everybody has helped themselves.

There's always plenty of kimchi, however.

[sadguy]

if you think table manners are bad in korea (which i personally don't think it's bad at all) then you should go to china. way worse. they spit on the table, the floor, everywhere.

[MacLean]

[dyc]

[jrwhite82]

Well hey, guess what?! You're not in the West. Don't apply your standards to them! Now that you're in another country, it's time to start learning other people's customs. Some things you do (standing with your hands on your hips, waving, extending a hand shake to someone older, sticking your chopsticks in your rice, etc...) are considered rude. Smacking their lips and chewing with their mouths open, although impolite in the West, is not impolite in Korea. It shows they are enjoying their food and company. In Eastern countries, they slurp their soup to cool it down when it's hot. It is not considered rude. In the West, we blow on it.

Spitting on your food and coughing over your meal is nasty, yes. Figure out who are the worst offenders and don't sit by them. I have a feeling your exaggerating a little bit.

One other thing you should learn is that the amount of personal space you had in your home country is not going to be respected here. Their personal bubbles are much smaller. Time to get used it.

[methdxman]

[jrwhite82]

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

Step 1: Fill your mouth with rice and chew it up nice.
Step 2: Cough/talk/spit the chewed up mash all over the worst offender and his/her plate.
Step 3: Smile and continue eating.

[madtownhustl]

Oh fellas. OP never said anything about wanting everything to be like the west. He's simply doing a little ranting...
you may like eating others chewed food, but some people don't.

[MacLean]

In this case I must say cultural relativism be damned. Sure there are legitimate cultural differences. Who in their right mind would deny Koreans their right to offer food with two hands, pour others drinks, use chopsticks, or wait until the eldest has started eating. These are legitimate cultural differences. But I draw the line when the person next to me makes more eating noise than my sister's German Shepard. Or when people talk with their mouth bulging with food, or snort at the table. Cultural relativism can only be stretched so far.

I think it has to do with the general absence of refinement in Korean culture. They do, after all, throw litter everywhere, hork on the streets and blow snot rockets onto the sidewalk. Their table manners fit a pattern, and it's not a very pretty one.

Still Third World I'm afraid.

[marsavalanche]

Once again jrwhite hits the nail on the head.

A Westerner complaining because what other people do violates their standards. A Westerner that lives in KOREA. Amazing the lengths some of you people will go without realizing how foolish you sound.

[sadguy]

[jrwhite82]