Friday, September 22, 2006
Korea: First Impressions
We flew into Pusan Korea in late January of 2003. We had just left the relatively warm and sunny Orlando, Florida to be welcomed by the wet and cold Korea! We had been traveling for a full 26 hours. We had made it through customs and immigration, gathered all TWELVE of our trunks and suit cases, and headed out to find our team leader, Debbie. We saw her when her eyes bugged questioning what she had gotten herself into. How in the world was she going to get us and all of our stuff to our apartment in that one Starex van?
She pulled the van around to the pick-up area while we frantically hunted through the suite cases and trunks for coats, gloves, hats, and scarves. With chattering teeth us very warm blooded Southerners loaded the van and piled in. Now, it was our turn to be bug eyed! Debbie drove us through the narrow, crowded streets of Pusan. Every building was covered in Hangul (korean characters) signs that were blinking, flashing and glowing! There were hundreds of people walking down the side walks and driving along side us. It reminded me of the one time I had been to New York City, except I wasn't able to read a single sign. We road with mouths hanging open for 45 minutes. All I could think was "THIS is my new home!" and "God, are you SURE you called me HERE?"
We arrived at the Pusan Guest apartment, our new home for the next 4 weeks. We were greeted by the smell of fresh made popcorn and the smiling faces of 2 more missionaries from the area. They watched our daughter, who at the time was only 3 1/2 years old, while we unloaded our luggage and got settled in. We visited for a short time and then they left us for the night with a list of their phone numbers in case we needed anything. It was about 10:30 pm when we were alone for the first time in Korea. You would think we would collapse at this point, but we were all WIDE awake so we unpacked and settled.
I think we all finally went to bed at about 12:30 am but I am not 100% sure! Unfortunately sleep did not last too long. Jet lag got the best of us and at 4 am we were all wide awake with a movie playing on the computer. By 7 am we had all had showers, gotten dressed, eaten breakfast and were wondering what we should do next! Then we had the first of MANY big shocks! A voice from the ceiling began speaking to us in Korean at 7:30. I admit, I SCREAMED "CLARK WHAT DID YOU TOUCH!" He came running around the corner with hands in the air like I just pointed a gun at him! LOL! We searched the apartment trying to figure out what in the world we had done wrong to get this voice going on and on at us from the ceiling! After about 5 minutes he stopped and we decided we would just be careful and not push any buttons in the apartment again. At 8:00 am the voice started again. This time I was SURE Clark had pressed some button and we were getting in trouble. SO, I called Debbie and asked what I should do and she gave us our first lesson in Korean culture. Apartment complexes have a guard/mantainence man who makes announcements about anything and everything that goes on. It could be that someone Left their lights on, it could be that someone needs to move their car, it could be that the men are coming to spray for bugs or clean the windows. It is simply an announcement! WHEW...that put my mind at ease! We have since gotten used to these announcements and now use them to practice our language to see if we can guess the announcement before we call a friend in the complex to explain it to us! LOL!
Not too much longer and we got our second lesson. We kept hearing a sound coming from outside. It sounded like a chanting of some sort. We had NO idea what it was but soon discovered it was the fruit truck driving through the neighborhood with a speaker on his roof announcing the specials of the day. We bought the most delicious bowl of strawberries from him and headed back for a nice snack before venturing out in the city for the first time.
While we enjoyed our bowl of strawberries we received a dozen phone calls. All the missionaries in the city called to welcome us and introduce themselves. We also received phone calls from all the leadership up in Seoul to welcome us as well. They were SO wonderful to make us feel like we were at home!
Feeling more at home and relaxed we headed out into the city. My very first impression of Korea, that has not changed in 4 years, is that Korea is an amazing mix of old and new. There are grandmothers sitting on blankets selling fruits and veggies right in front of sky scrapers that have name brand clothing and modern electronics for sell in them. You will see a grandfather pulling a cart filled with logs walking down a 4 lane road with cars and trucks of all sizes zooming past him. You will she Shaman Priest in traditional costume walking down the street chanting in front of a PC Room. Between the huge 20 to 24 floor apartments you will see homes with traditional thatched roofs or flat roofs with kimchi and laundry on top. In America I have never seen old tradition mixed so much with modern technology. It still fascinates me to this day! Korea is truly unique!
During our walk I immediately learned an important lesson about Korean driving. Scooters/mopeds have NO boundaries! They drive on the road with cars, inbetween cars, on the wrong side of the road, AND on the sidewalks. They go as fast or as slow as they want. They have NO laws! I must have snatched the Bug up seconds before she got ran over 10 times during that first walk! We walked for about an hour and half just taking in all the sights of our new home.
Debbie met us back at our apartment for some time to visit and then dinner. Our very first meal out in Korea was PIZZA HUT! LOL! But that also was a unique experience. Debbie asked us if we wanted salad and we both agreed that would be nice. The waitress brought us one bowl and Debbie took it to the salad bar and filled it up. Brought it back with 4 forks and we all ate from the same salad bowl. It was the first of many, MANY times that I would eat out of a community bowl in Korea. In fact, I am so used to eating out of a community bowl now that I often feel it a waist of clean dishes to get one for everyone...LOL! Boy, have I changed a lot in 4 years! I must admit, I was SO uncomfortable that evening eating out of the same bowl as everyone else that I can't even describe it! But, when the pizza came and I had that first taste of home, I forgot all about the salad and enjoyed the taste of cheese and tomato sauce from home! LOL!
We visited with Debbie, talked about our first day of life in Korea, asked questions and had a wonderful evening. Debbie gave us the most wonderful gift she could have by setting us up with a dial up internet connection and a phone card to call home! Hearing the sweet voices of family members that night made us seem a lot closer to home even though we were on the other side of the world! We made ourselves stay awake until 8:00 pm and then we all collapsed for our second night of sleep in Korea! And that is what my first 24 hours of life in Korea were like. What my very first impression of Korea was. I will never forget those first 24 hours.
She pulled the van around to the pick-up area while we frantically hunted through the suite cases and trunks for coats, gloves, hats, and scarves. With chattering teeth us very warm blooded Southerners loaded the van and piled in. Now, it was our turn to be bug eyed! Debbie drove us through the narrow, crowded streets of Pusan. Every building was covered in Hangul (korean characters) signs that were blinking, flashing and glowing! There were hundreds of people walking down the side walks and driving along side us. It reminded me of the one time I had been to New York City, except I wasn't able to read a single sign. We road with mouths hanging open for 45 minutes. All I could think was "THIS is my new home!" and "God, are you SURE you called me HERE?"
We arrived at the Pusan Guest apartment, our new home for the next 4 weeks. We were greeted by the smell of fresh made popcorn and the smiling faces of 2 more missionaries from the area. They watched our daughter, who at the time was only 3 1/2 years old, while we unloaded our luggage and got settled in. We visited for a short time and then they left us for the night with a list of their phone numbers in case we needed anything. It was about 10:30 pm when we were alone for the first time in Korea. You would think we would collapse at this point, but we were all WIDE awake so we unpacked and settled.
I think we all finally went to bed at about 12:30 am but I am not 100% sure! Unfortunately sleep did not last too long. Jet lag got the best of us and at 4 am we were all wide awake with a movie playing on the computer. By 7 am we had all had showers, gotten dressed, eaten breakfast and were wondering what we should do next! Then we had the first of MANY big shocks! A voice from the ceiling began speaking to us in Korean at 7:30. I admit, I SCREAMED "CLARK WHAT DID YOU TOUCH!" He came running around the corner with hands in the air like I just pointed a gun at him! LOL! We searched the apartment trying to figure out what in the world we had done wrong to get this voice going on and on at us from the ceiling! After about 5 minutes he stopped and we decided we would just be careful and not push any buttons in the apartment again. At 8:00 am the voice started again. This time I was SURE Clark had pressed some button and we were getting in trouble. SO, I called Debbie and asked what I should do and she gave us our first lesson in Korean culture. Apartment complexes have a guard/mantainence man who makes announcements about anything and everything that goes on. It could be that someone Left their lights on, it could be that someone needs to move their car, it could be that the men are coming to spray for bugs or clean the windows. It is simply an announcement! WHEW...that put my mind at ease! We have since gotten used to these announcements and now use them to practice our language to see if we can guess the announcement before we call a friend in the complex to explain it to us! LOL!
Not too much longer and we got our second lesson. We kept hearing a sound coming from outside. It sounded like a chanting of some sort. We had NO idea what it was but soon discovered it was the fruit truck driving through the neighborhood with a speaker on his roof announcing the specials of the day. We bought the most delicious bowl of strawberries from him and headed back for a nice snack before venturing out in the city for the first time.
While we enjoyed our bowl of strawberries we received a dozen phone calls. All the missionaries in the city called to welcome us and introduce themselves. We also received phone calls from all the leadership up in Seoul to welcome us as well. They were SO wonderful to make us feel like we were at home!
Feeling more at home and relaxed we headed out into the city. My very first impression of Korea, that has not changed in 4 years, is that Korea is an amazing mix of old and new. There are grandmothers sitting on blankets selling fruits and veggies right in front of sky scrapers that have name brand clothing and modern electronics for sell in them. You will see a grandfather pulling a cart filled with logs walking down a 4 lane road with cars and trucks of all sizes zooming past him. You will she Shaman Priest in traditional costume walking down the street chanting in front of a PC Room. Between the huge 20 to 24 floor apartments you will see homes with traditional thatched roofs or flat roofs with kimchi and laundry on top. In America I have never seen old tradition mixed so much with modern technology. It still fascinates me to this day! Korea is truly unique!
During our walk I immediately learned an important lesson about Korean driving. Scooters/mopeds have NO boundaries! They drive on the road with cars, inbetween cars, on the wrong side of the road, AND on the sidewalks. They go as fast or as slow as they want. They have NO laws! I must have snatched the Bug up seconds before she got ran over 10 times during that first walk! We walked for about an hour and half just taking in all the sights of our new home.
Debbie met us back at our apartment for some time to visit and then dinner. Our very first meal out in Korea was PIZZA HUT! LOL! But that also was a unique experience. Debbie asked us if we wanted salad and we both agreed that would be nice. The waitress brought us one bowl and Debbie took it to the salad bar and filled it up. Brought it back with 4 forks and we all ate from the same salad bowl. It was the first of many, MANY times that I would eat out of a community bowl in Korea. In fact, I am so used to eating out of a community bowl now that I often feel it a waist of clean dishes to get one for everyone...LOL! Boy, have I changed a lot in 4 years! I must admit, I was SO uncomfortable that evening eating out of the same bowl as everyone else that I can't even describe it! But, when the pizza came and I had that first taste of home, I forgot all about the salad and enjoyed the taste of cheese and tomato sauce from home! LOL!
We visited with Debbie, talked about our first day of life in Korea, asked questions and had a wonderful evening. Debbie gave us the most wonderful gift she could have by setting us up with a dial up internet connection and a phone card to call home! Hearing the sweet voices of family members that night made us seem a lot closer to home even though we were on the other side of the world! We made ourselves stay awake until 8:00 pm and then we all collapsed for our second night of sleep in Korea! And that is what my first 24 hours of life in Korea were like. What my very first impression of Korea was. I will never forget those first 24 hours.
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