Korean Job Discussion Forums

[McNasty]

I worked at a hogwan a few years back that was anti-foreigner even before the recent MBC show. My fellow collegue and I were new to the country and area of the city at the time so we made an effort to make friends with our colleagues; both male and female. I'm talking about dinner, bowling, drinking, etc. Neither of us had any interest in our colleagues, we justed wanted to get to know them and the area. All was well for a couple of months until suddenly one day we had a planned night of drinking and all the invited members cancelled for no apparent reason. After much prodding as to why they would act in such a way, we finally dragged the truth out of them.

The owners told them to stop hanging around the foreigners. So we had to keep the gatherings a secret from the boss. Can you believe that nonsense?!? Anyways, it became abundantly clear that we were no more than a passing phase for them and they never had any true intentions of friendship.


Even worse, the owner asked me to interview a potentially new employee they were interested in hiring so I did and they seemed well qualified and levelheaded. Then, the question that still disturbs me to this day was when she asked me, "Is he pure?" Meaning is he white? I looked at the picture and shook my head in disgust as I immediatley recognized that the person clearly had a SUNTAN!!!

This is also the same woman that wouldn't get me health insurance for 6 months but she was more than happy to take the fee from my check.

It's a vicious circle of hate between many hogwan owners and foreign teachers as they both loathe each other and rightly so.
The love/hate relationship will continue to flourish for many years to come.

On a positive note, my wife's family accepted me with open arms, which goes to show that not all Koreans are out to get us foreigners, except maybe hogwan owners.

McNasty

[some waygug-in]

So what was the MBC program about? (if we are allowed to discuss it at all) I don't have a TV, so I wouldn't know, but I have noticed a weird sort of change at my hagwan starting this week.

It wasn't still the english spectrum crap, was it?

[McNasty]

This might help:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=33039&highlight=MBC

[Tiberious aka Sparkles]

My wife was the secretary at the school I first worked for here, and even though I didn't start dating her until after she quit, the wonjang -- a good guy by all accounts, actually; not many directors'll fly their entire staff to Jeju for a long-weekend getaway -- called her and left angry messages on her cell phone. Then again, that school was notorious for its foreign teachers bagging the female Korean staff and then the gals quitting, so maybe it was sour grapes.

Sparkles*_*

[McNasty]

Tiberious aka Sparkles wrote:

[captain kirk]

A 'McNasty' point of view, but eerily familiar (like, unfortunately, you hit the nail on the head).