2015년 07월 08일
Ah, Wednesday... I remember it like it was... well... two days ago.
Anyways, the day began as anxiety-inducing as I expected. It was the day in which all students were required to take a placement exam. What they failed to mention, however, is that we would have both a written test portion and a one-on-one interview with one of the Korean teachers in the program. Yay.
The written test was easy enough. I chose the test for Levels 1 and 2 and completed my goal of answering all questions (mostly accurately) in the Level 1A section. If I were to get at least 80% of my answers correct, I would be placed in the 1B classroom - my goal.
After the written test, we had about two hours to kill before our interviews began. My interview went... well, alright, I suppose. I was extremely nervous heading into the interview as I have had very little opportunity to actually speak with other individuals in Korean, largely learning by myself. My interviewer was very kind and began with asking some basic questions -- i.e. "What is your name? Where are you from? What time is it right now?" But, when she asked one question, everything changed: "Why are you interested in Korea?"
My response? "I love Korean food and culture!"
Her response? "What about the culture specifically? By any chance... Do you like K-Pop?"
Do I like K-Pop?
Admitting that I love K-Pop, I watched embarrassed as my interviewer nodded in understanding. She then asked who my favorite group was and my favorite member from that group. Answering with "Super Junior" and "Leeteuk," the interviewer (around 50 years old, mind you), replied:
"Really? Leeteuk is so old!!!"
Not knowing whether to storm out of the room or cry, I settled for awkward laughter and the two of us continued to talk about random topics for the duration of the ten-minute interview. Ultimately, I knew that my grammar was very poor and my answers to her questions were broken. But, if I could just get into 1B instead of 1A, I would be so happy...
After the interviews, a group of KIP friends and I decided to make our way to the "Express Bus Terminal" subway stop in Seoul. There, we walked around and explored SO many small shops! To be honest, I couldn't find anything I was interested in buying simply because my eyes were overwhelmed by the number of products and stores surrounding me. The market-style set up in the underground subway station was so interesting to experience. Although, it did make for a tight fit trying to walk past stores when people crowded in front of them.
When we finally got hungry, after walking in and out of the stores for a couple of hours, we settled on a school-style restaurant for dinner. I ordered 냉면 (naengmyeon, a cold noodle dish, served in a bowl of ice water and garnished with cucumber and egg). Although it was delicious, I soon found I wasn't as hungry as I thought... My main struggle with Korea so far? Trying to find a proper portion for my stomach! Although you get more food for your money in Korea than America, I still feel terrible wasting food because I get full too quickly...
But, I digress...
One of the highlights of the restaurant was my decision to try and use more Korean in public to become more comfortable with the language. Although I had been saying 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo, "hello") and 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida, "thank you") to a lot of individuals, I decided to use some new vocabulary in the restaurant, such as 저기요 (jeogiyo, "excuse me!") and 계산 (gyesan, "the check").
After our meal, we split into two groups and I joined the group headed back to Sogang. We were all exhausted after a long day and, to make matters even more tiring, we learned something important when we split up -- never take the subway around 7:30 PM. Because we left so late, we experienced rush hour "traffic" first hand (a.k.a. so many people packed so tightly into the subway car like sardines). Needless to say, Jennie was not too happy having to ride the subway for 15 minutes, sandwiched in between people at all angles on a sweltering hot day.
Eventually, we got home safe and sound. But, I don't think we were really prepared for the beginning of our language classes the next day...
Ah, Wednesday... I remember it like it was... well... two days ago.
Anyways, the day began as anxiety-inducing as I expected. It was the day in which all students were required to take a placement exam. What they failed to mention, however, is that we would have both a written test portion and a one-on-one interview with one of the Korean teachers in the program. Yay.
The written test was easy enough. I chose the test for Levels 1 and 2 and completed my goal of answering all questions (mostly accurately) in the Level 1A section. If I were to get at least 80% of my answers correct, I would be placed in the 1B classroom - my goal.
After the written test, we had about two hours to kill before our interviews began. My interview went... well, alright, I suppose. I was extremely nervous heading into the interview as I have had very little opportunity to actually speak with other individuals in Korean, largely learning by myself. My interviewer was very kind and began with asking some basic questions -- i.e. "What is your name? Where are you from? What time is it right now?" But, when she asked one question, everything changed: "Why are you interested in Korea?"
My response? "I love Korean food and culture!"
Her response? "What about the culture specifically? By any chance... Do you like K-Pop?"
Do I like K-Pop?
Admitting that I love K-Pop, I watched embarrassed as my interviewer nodded in understanding. She then asked who my favorite group was and my favorite member from that group. Answering with "Super Junior" and "Leeteuk," the interviewer (around 50 years old, mind you), replied:
"Really? Leeteuk is so old!!!"
Not knowing whether to storm out of the room or cry, I settled for awkward laughter and the two of us continued to talk about random topics for the duration of the ten-minute interview. Ultimately, I knew that my grammar was very poor and my answers to her questions were broken. But, if I could just get into 1B instead of 1A, I would be so happy...
After the interviews, a group of KIP friends and I decided to make our way to the "Express Bus Terminal" subway stop in Seoul. There, we walked around and explored SO many small shops! To be honest, I couldn't find anything I was interested in buying simply because my eyes were overwhelmed by the number of products and stores surrounding me. The market-style set up in the underground subway station was so interesting to experience. Although, it did make for a tight fit trying to walk past stores when people crowded in front of them.
When we finally got hungry, after walking in and out of the stores for a couple of hours, we settled on a school-style restaurant for dinner. I ordered 냉면 (naengmyeon, a cold noodle dish, served in a bowl of ice water and garnished with cucumber and egg). Although it was delicious, I soon found I wasn't as hungry as I thought... My main struggle with Korea so far? Trying to find a proper portion for my stomach! Although you get more food for your money in Korea than America, I still feel terrible wasting food because I get full too quickly...
But, I digress...
One of the highlights of the restaurant was my decision to try and use more Korean in public to become more comfortable with the language. Although I had been saying 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo, "hello") and 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida, "thank you") to a lot of individuals, I decided to use some new vocabulary in the restaurant, such as 저기요 (jeogiyo, "excuse me!") and 계산 (gyesan, "the check").
After our meal, we split into two groups and I joined the group headed back to Sogang. We were all exhausted after a long day and, to make matters even more tiring, we learned something important when we split up -- never take the subway around 7:30 PM. Because we left so late, we experienced rush hour "traffic" first hand (a.k.a. so many people packed so tightly into the subway car like sardines). Needless to say, Jennie was not too happy having to ride the subway for 15 minutes, sandwiched in between people at all angles on a sweltering hot day.
Eventually, we got home safe and sound. But, I don't think we were really prepared for the beginning of our language classes the next day...