Korean Job Discussion Forums

Adventurer · Joined: 28 Jan 2006

Here are the general pleasant experiences I have had:

Today, I was looking at a map. As a former geography teacher, I love looking at maps and a fellow on crutches asked me if I needed help.
It turned out he was someone who works with handicapped people, and he seemed very kind.

I met a friendly gent who is probably 65 who was a former intelligence officer and we talked about that, the good relations between Korea and many in the West, the Korean War and how people were affected and how sweet looking the two little kids were near us.

I had some sweet smiles from nice, sweet looking Korean girls.

There was the friendly bar keep at the Rocky Mountain Tavern....

I generally like Korea. It is not perfect but where is it perfect?

The Bobster · Joined: 15 Jan 2003

Cerebroden · Joined: 27 Dec 2006

Pak Yu Man · Joined: 02 Jun 2005 Location: The Ida galaxy

It's vacation. I haven't seen any of my Korean workmates. It's been nice Surprised

Big_Bird · Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2007 9:55 pm Post subject:

This thread is a really nice idea Adventurer. I hope it takes off in the way it's intended.

schwa · Joined: 18 Jan 2003 Location: Yap

I've lived in the same small neighborhood of the same city (in fact the smallest city in Korea) coming up 8 years now. Cant step out my door without being warmly greeted by someone passing by. Its a nice feeling being part of the community fabric.

sadsac · Joined: 22 Dec 2003 Location: Gwangwang

My wife and I were hiking around Gajo one Sunday and we stopped to pat a couple of puppies. The owner of the house arrived back home and he and his wife invited us in for lunch, we spent a very pleasant couple of hours with them. We have had many similar experiences here and the good far outweighs the bad. Smile

periwinkle · Joined: 08 Feb 2003

I dropped a coin on the floor in Tous Les Jours yesterday, and the clerk came around the corner and picked it up for me, guessing it would be difficult for me to pick up. Then she asked when my baby was due. ^^

pdx · Joined: 19 Jan 2007

a guy JUST came to my apartment to give us a new fire extinguisher. Despite my complete lack of Korean, he still tried to explain to me why he was there and gave me a sheet to sign, ran away, and came back with the extinguisher and then conjured up a few English words, some hand motions, and some sound effects to tell us how to use the fire extinguisher. Quite a pleasant guy.

JAZZYJJJ · Joined: 18 Jul 2006

Yesterday, (ok, a couple of summers ago), I went to my friend's place. He wasn't home, but would be back soon. As it was a beautiful day, I decided to sit on a bench and read the paper (he lived in a big jugong place with lots of grass and trees).

Near me, a Korean family (mum, dad and uni-aged son) was having a BBQ. After a while, son trots over and asks me if I would like to join them.

Although I declined, I thought it was an extremely nice gesture.

Adventurer · Joined: 28 Jan 2006

Well, today one of my students (an adult) who is a nurse gave me a sandwich and a bottle of juice. I think she did because I asked her nurse friend who is another student of mine about her, and when she told me she was sick, I told her to give my regards. Maybe, that is why she gave me the juice. Also, many of my students who sometimes are other teachers' students told the new teacher that they really like me and my teaching. I also enjoyed this CEO's relating about his departed parents, and I almost felt I knew his parents somehow and could feel their presence through him and could picture him as a child with his father.

I have had many good moments in Korea including when someone who owns a Wa Bar in Cheonan would be kind and sometimes treat me and a friend to drinks. We enjoyed talking with him.

leebumlik69 · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:55 am Post subject:

stumptown · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 4:23 pm Post subject:

Today, I walked out of my apartment and this elderly couple looked at me and smiled. Wow, things sure are great in Korea these days!

kimchi story · Joined: 23 Nov 2006

I was packed into the #1 train a couple of weeks ago and this Korean guy started talking to me. He's living in South Africa and is visiting home with his two daughters. The kids were being saucy, and it was funny to hear them with their South African accents. We were playing stick-out-yer-tongue when the older one (7-8ish) puts her fingers to the outer corners of her eyes and squeezes them in, exactly the opposite of the classic nasty thing kids at home would do to make fun of asian eyes.

Father was a little annoyed, and a few people gawked as the gf and I busted a gut.

Funniest thing I'd seen in ages...and genuinely nice gesture.

The Bobster · Joined: 15 Jan 2003

I have a Korean coworker who really rocks my world just about every day.

She occasionally prepares my lessons for me, always tells me what is what with my students and with the higher-ups (basically, this means the only times I'm surprised by stuff at this school is when she is surprised as well), and any time I have a problem or question I know I can go to her and she'll stop everything she's doing - and of course, she works more than me and gets paid less - and solves my problem before going back to her own work.

Took me over 6 months to finally notice she's exactly the sort of Korean coworker I always wanted and never had at any other school, the kind any of you wish you had ... and it took a month or so later after that before it occurred to me to say thank you.

So, I leave things on her desk. If walk around the corner to Paris Baguette to get a croissant, I buy two. I taxi home every evening and she rides with me, another Korean teacher with us, because her home is directly on my route, so it costs me nothing to save them both a cold bus ride.

She's continually freaked out and surprised when I buy her lunch every Monday and put it on her desk, cuz she has to help feed the kindy kids (sometimes the food runs out before the Korean teachers get any, so they get none, and the food's not that great anyway) and has some office hour time that day so she can eat it - and even though I've been doing it like clockwork for a couple of months she always protests, "You don't have to do this - WHY are you doing this?"

Me, I'm wondering why other waygook teachers don't do it for their Korean counterparts who help them ... for her, the hardest part is that I flat out refuse for her to do anything similar in return for me, anything more than she has been doing all along. It goes against a very strong Korean cultural precept that gifts need to be repaid, but the last thing I want is to set up a situation of obligation that is harder for her than it is for me.

I recently decided the best solution is to announce to all and sundry that she is my "little sister." Little sister gets lunch once a week, and if the staff goes out in the evening for dinner and the boss is not there to pick up the check, then I do, for her share. If Bob's in the room, little sister does not pay. That's all.

The wife likes her, too, and she's a good judge of people. And the wife's a pretty jealous woman - I don't think she trusts me, entirely, and no wife ought to trust her husband so much as that, truth be told - but she trusts my coworker. Mainly, she's worried that people with ugly minds might think ugly things that are not true ... basically, she's more worried about the coworker's rep than mine or anyone else's.

The message here : if you have a Korean coworker even a fraction as good as I do, buy her a doughnut once in a while. It's very easy.