https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OqwFB0OiJBxa7B0NnWlB899UUrcHMsls/view?usp=sharing

There are only a few companies in the world that can claim themselves as multinational conglomerates. Most of these multinational conglomerates are companies based out of the United States of America. However, there are a minority group of companies that have originated from the Republic of South Korea, one being the Samsung Group. Samsung is a multi-faceted company that provides various types of goods and services both in Korea and internationally. The Samsung Group was founded by Lee Byung-Chul in 1938. The Samsung Group was originally founded just as a trading company. However, over the next three decades, the Samsung Group has expanded its domain into important markets such as food processing, textiles, insurance, securities, and retail. More importantly, it’s when Samsung Group entered the electronics industry in the late 1960s and the construction and shipbuilding industries in the mid-1970s that helped the Samsung Group propel into the multinational conglomerate status it holds today. Due to the Samsung Groups’ presence in South Korea’s markets, Samsung has impacted the South Korean economy significantly. In fact, the Samsung Group’s revenue was equal to 17% of South Korea's $1,082 billion GDP. 

During the 1990s, the Samsung Group started to garner international recognition as the construction branch of the Samsung Group was awarded the contract to build one of the two Petronas Towers in Malaysia. Additionally, the Samsung Group’s electronics branch began to make its mark as well. In 1992, Samsung Electronics became the world's largest producer of memory chips, beating out the tech giant, Intel. In the present time, Samsung Electronics is the world’s second-largest producer of memory chips, only second to Intel. Also, around 2002, Samsung Electronics had grown drastically to become the world's largest manufacturer of liquid-crystal display panels which are used for screens of laptops, phones, TVs, and etc. However, Samsung Electronics became a household company name when they started to invest and dive into the smartphone industry. In 2000, Samsung Electronics developed the first prototype of their smartphone and launched it with the name of Samsung Solstice. This line of the device would eventually be developed into the device that we all know today: the Samsung Galaxy. Not soon after, In 2012, Samsung Electronics became the world's largest mobile phone maker by unit sales, overtaking Nokia, which had been the market leader since 1998. The Samsung Group has not only been important for the large development of the South Korean economy, but it has had significant impacts on foreign affairs as well. For example, one of the Samsung Group’s clients is the United Arab Emirates government. The United Arab Emirates government hired multiple South Korean firms, one being Samsung, to build nuclear power plants in the United Arab Emirates. The Ontario government is also one of the Samsung Group’s clients. The Ontario government signed off on one of the world's largest renewable energy projects, signing a deal worth $6.6 billion for an additional 2,500 MW of new wind and solar energy. They hired a consortium led by Samsung and the Korea Electric Power Corporation will manage the development of 2,000 MW-worth of new wind farms.

Although South Korean law generally seems lean more conservative compared to westernized countries such as the United States of America, yet according to The Korea Women's Development Institute, the sex trade industry in South Korea was estimated to amount to 14 trillion South Korean won ($13 billion) in 2007. Let alone, according to a survey conducted by the Department of Urology at the Korea University College of Medicine in 2015, 23.1% of males and 2.6% of females, aged 18–69, had a sexual experience with a prostitute. This is happening in a country where pornography is illegal and up until 2015, adultery was a crime that was punishable by up to two years in prison for both the adulterer and their partner.

During the Korean war, the United States military used regulated prostitution services in South Korean military camp towns. Despite prostitution being illegal, the United States military sought after Korean women to be their fundamental source of sex service. The women in South Korea who served as prostitutes for the United States Military became known as kijichon (기지촌) women, which can be translated to "Korean Military Comfort Women". Even after the Korean War ended, the prevalence of sex workers in South Korea did not decline. The reason why there were so many willing South Korean women that worked as prostitutes was because the aftermath of the Korean War resulted in many families facing extreme poverty. The lack of employment and the urgency to make money produced a large influx of prostitutes as South Korean women resorted to sex work in order to support themselves and their family members.

In fact, during the 1960s, camp town prostitution and related businesses generated nearly 25% of the South Korean GNP. Over the next few decades, conflicts against prostitution arose as camp town prostitution grew concerns of public health(mostly sexually transmitted diseases), and as the women's movement against military prostitution began. Christian women and student movement activists came together to address the military prostitution issue and sought a common goal to eradicate and make prostitution illegal. My Sister's Place, also known as Durebang, was the first women's organization founded in 1986 to bring awareness to the kijichon movement. My Sister’s place also advocated for the abolishment of prostitution and against the exploitation of Korean women. My Sister's Place was also the center that provided educational and rehabilitation services for kijichon women. My Sister’s Place also put effort into activism against kijichon prostitution brought nationwide attention and inevitably became the subject for many South Korean feminist scholars.

During the early 1990s, the prostitutes became a symbol of South Korean anti-American nationalism. Horrific cases of servicemen in the United States military killing and raping South Korean women began to surface. For example, Yun Geum-i, a Camptown sex worker in Dongducheon, was brutally killed by U.S. servicemen and was found dead with a bottle stuffed into her vagina and an umbrella into her anus. 

I really had no idea that the U.S army was involved with sex trafficking in South Korea. However, I now am starting to understand why lots of older Korean have an unfavorable view of the U.S army.

A very popular sport in South Korean culture and society is baseball. In fact, one of the oldest teams in the KBO League, the Lotte Giants, set a new record for achieving the highest attendance in all of South Korean sports history. This new astounding record was set during the 2009 KBO baseball season, and they drew approximately 1.38 million people to watch their games inside the Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium and the Ulsan Munsu Baseball Stadium. Let me remind you that the population of South Korea in 2009 was only 49.31 million people. Baseball is believed to have been introduced to South Korea in 1905 by American Christian missionaries. It’s actually also believed that the U.S marines played exhibitions against the Seoul Athletic club. It was the 1980s that initiated the prominence of baseball in the lives of South Koreans. In 1982, seven Korean teams were formed: the MBC Chungyong, Lotte Giants, Samsung Lions, OB Bears, Haitai Tigers, and Sammi Superstars. And eventually in 1994, one of South Korea’s own, Chan Ho Park( a pitcher), made his debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers. This was a huge deal not only for Korean Americans but also all asians as asians are underrepresented in major sports leagues in the U.S. Chan Ho Park’s success made way for more Korean baseball players to have a chance at a career in the MLB. Some of the Korean baseball players after Chan Ho Park are: Hee-seop Choi, Byung-hyun Kim, Bong Jung-keun, Shin-Soo Choo, Hyun-jin Ryu, and Jung-ho Kang. I actually remember when I was in middle school, I went to an Indians baseball game at Progressive Field and I was able to watch Shin-Soo Choo play! There was a scarcity of Korean athletes I could look up to so seeing a Korean play at the highest stage for baseball were a big deal and great encouragement. I remember even screaming out his name after the game hoping he would recognize me. Just like baseball in the United States, the game extends outside the professional leagues and into high school and college. Just like the MLB’s minor league, South Korea also has a farm league called the Korea Baseball Futures League. Baseball is significant to Korean history because the popularization of baseball allowed South Korea to get involved with international affairs like the Olympics, World baseball classic, and the Asian Games. In fact, South Korea has been very successful in these international baseball bouts. During the 2000s, South Korea has won second place twice in the World Baseball Classic. Not to mention, the South Korean Olympic baseball team also won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics which was hosted in Sydney, Australia. Even though South Korean baseball lacks the talent American baseball may have, people argue that South Korean baseball is more fun and exciting to watch because South Korean baseball requires more participation from the audience. There will usually be a hypeman in front of the spectators and music and chants and dances to keep the crowds entertained.

During my language partner sessions with Rachel, we practiced talking in Korean by just talking about what is going on in our lives in Korean. We talked about the time we spent a couple days ago. Me, my roommate Ephraim, Janette, and Rachel all went to a Korean restaurant to eat some Korean food. Rachel kept nagging me about wanting to eat Korean food so I told her to ask Ephraim if he could drive us. Ephraim agreed and so we went! The restaurant is named Seoul Restaurant and it was moderately priced. I got a black bean noodle dish called jjangjangmyeon. I also got a spicy tofu soup dish that is called soondooboojigae. If I am being completely honest, the food was pretty bland. If I had to rate the food out of ten it would be mayb a 6. Rachel got a pork cutlet with some dumplings that is called donkasu. Janette got a galbi spicy soup and Ephraim got a cold noodle soup called nangmyeon. I ended up paying for them. R.I.P to my bank account. But overall, the experience was good. The restaurant actually had a little Korean supermarket so after eating we got some Korean desserts. I also bought chocolate wafers for a special somebody. It was also the first time Janette and Rachel hung out in person so that was good to see. Rachel also told me that she is pretty adamant about changing her major. She is uncertain right now of what to change it to, but she really does not like accounting. I’m in a similar pickle as I am reconsidering my Computer Science major. Rachel, Ephraim, and I also practiced Korean saturday as well. I invited Rachel out to visit friends I knew from VCU. She was hesitant at first to go with us but after I told her there would be Korean food, she changed her mind quickly and agreed to come. My friend cooked us some Korean barbeque. He fried up some pork belly called sam gup sal, and cooked some braised beef ribs called galbi that his mom dropped off. He also cooked us some jin ramen. It was nice to see Rachel eating a lot since she usually does not eat much in dhall. I felt sort of bad because of the fact that she was the only girl in the room for a while. But at the end of the night, I asked her if she had fun, and she said she did so yeah. I was able to dive in and enjoy more of Korean culture on Sunday! Ephraim’s mother planned us a feast! She literally bought like 10 pounds of meat and it was pretty nuts. She had galbi, sam gup sal, kim bap, kimchi, and so many side dishes! Everytime I go to Ephraim’s house I am thankful and impressed by the hospitality his mom shows me. My other roomates who are not Korean also came to enjoy the feast. It was fun to see them meet Ephraim’s family and enjoy Korean food.

For this semester, I have been studying Korean with the help of my language partner, Rachel Kim. We have really come a long way in terms of just getting to know each other better! I think we can both agree that it is very nice have fellow Koreans on campus to talk Korean and just share similar backgrounds with! I’ve talked to her during the usual language partner meetings. She has actually introduced to a bunch of Korean slangs that I never knew prior to talking with her. One phrase that she taught me was “ I got cancer”. The direct translation can seem a little offensive but this slang phrase is used as an hyperbole when someone feels great discomfort. I believe it is very similar to the phrase “I nearly died”. I told her that in America, this would be phrase would offend a lot of people and she agreed. Another funny Korean slang that I learned from our time conversing in Korean is that “ the more perverted you are, the more you hair grows”. This one is just whack. I’m still baffled by why people even say this in Korea. But it is pretty funny. She also told me while we were conversing Korean, that she received her first dose of the COVID-19 Vaccine. She told me that one of her friends in the swimming drover her to get her the vaccine. Apparently, she felt very tired and nauseous the after getting the vaccine. When I was talking to her over zoom, she did look tired and looked like she had a fever. Hopefully she will feel better the next time I see her! She is also very excited to return to Korea to see her family. In fact, she is actually counting down the days till she returns as she has already bought her plane ticket. I shared with her that I bought a new acoustic guitar! I bought it off of facebook marketplace and it plays like a dream. This in fact is my first “nice” guitar as it is a taylor 214ce. We also talked about our favorite foods! Coincidentally, we both agreed that pizza was on top. She told me that pizza in Korea is pretty dank. And I recalled that Korean Costco Pizza is the dankest. Then I asked her a very important question: Do you prefer Korean Fried Chicken or Pizza. And she chose Pizza. Then this conversation eventually lead us to talk about our dining options on Campus. She asked me what my favorite hamburger was a tlyer’s. I told her that I was not a huge of Tyler’s and that I usually order from the Cellar if the menu for the dining hall isn't too hot. She asked me then what I like to eat from the cellar. In which I responded that I like to order their beef burger and sometimes the Salmon BLT. Then I told her that the campus ministry i am apart of is doing an outdoor gathering and invited her! Overall, my Korean has been maintaining well thanks to Rachel!

For this semester, I have been studying Korean with the help of my language partner, Rachel Kim. We did not know each other very well when we first started. However, that has changed a lot through the conversations we have been having in Korean during our language partner meeting sessions. We have had great conversations about our previous lives before coming to the University of Richmond. It’s actually very pleasant to talk to someone who is of similar age as me in Korea because I am able to talk casually which is something I find myself not doing too frequently as the only people I talk in Korean with is my family in which I am the youngest. It turns out Rachel has a younger sibling who likes to play basketball. During one of our sessions, we actually shared photos of our friends and family and talked about all of the sentiments behind the memories that are attached to them. In fact, I showed pictures that were from ancient times… Before 2010! These photos were from back when I was in Korea and I was a little young fella. I am glad I have a community language partner that I am comfortable with sharing my background! Anyways also during our meetings, we have watched several modern Korean entertainment television shows together, of course virtually. We have seen this TV show called Crash Landing on you which is about a wealthy female CEO from South Korea who somehow landed in North Korea through a paragliding accident caused by a weather storm. The tv show, although saturated with cheesy romance just most K-Dramas, highlights the poverty and the income inequality that is a reality in North Korea. It definitely forced me to question and reflect on my own privilege. It not only showcased the lack of wealth in North Korea but Crash Landing on You also brought attention to the lack of human rights North Korean citizens have. I always did wonder what my life would have been like if I was born in the other Korea… Life would definitely be harsh. In fact, I could not be able to watch Crash Landing on You in North Korea since watching a South Korean could give me several years working in a prison labor camp.  Yet oddly enough, there were no mentions of Kim Jung Un in all of the episodes of Crash Landing on You. My guess is that the writers did not want North Korea to believe that South Korea was somehow mocking their leader or using his name to spread anti-North Korean propaganda. But maybe not including his name suggests that he is irrelevant??? Anyways I enjoyed watching Crash Landing on You as it was the first Korean Drama I have seen in a while. I shall give it a 7.5/10 as a rating. Here are some goals I will set for myself to achieve until the next language learning journal: I want to start listening to Korean music throughout my day. I also want to find new Korean artists to listen to since my playlist is getting kind of stale. Hopefully, I’m able to find some Korean Rock artists. Until then.

Christianity has made significant impacts across the globe through Judeo-Christian ideas such as the concepts of Imago Dei, a concept that all humans are created in the image of God, and the New Commandment, a commandment Jesus gave to his disciples telling them to love one another as he loves them. These ideas have been the foundations of not only the democracy of the United States but also the democracy in South Korea. The first encounters of Christianity in South Korea occurred during the late Joseon Dynasty which was around the 1600s. A diplomatic military official by the name of Yi Gwang Jeong brought many Christian theological books written by an Italian Jesuit named Matteo Ricci who was employed as a missionary in China. Due to the many liberal and democratic ideas within Christianity, the royalty of Korea saw it as dangerous and began to persecute and kill the believers of Christianity. However, during the more tolerant years of the late 19th century, the first Protestant missionaries arrived in Korea in 1884. The first protestant missionary to enter Korea was an American missionary and physician named Horace Newton Allen. Horace and the other protestant missionaries who came after him planted the seeds of Christianity in Korea through the building of churches, hospitals, and translating the Bible into Korean. According to the 2015 South Korean Census, 19.7% of Koreans are Protestant, and 7.9% are Catholic. 

During the Japanese rule and the Korean War, Christianity boomed and rose in numbers. The democratic ideals of Christianity appealed to South Koreans when the opposition was motivated by communist ideals. Foreign missionaries also encouraged the opposition of the communist government hoping for the democratization of Korea would lead to better lives for South Koreans. Christianity has also had huge influences on the development of women’s rights. Before encounters with Christianity, Koreans held dear to Confucian principles which support a patriarchal society. This teaching was fundamentally challenged by imago Dei and the thought that everyone was equal in Christ: Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” These ideas also challenged the divine rights ok kings and emperors and pushed for a more fair society. Christianity also has influenced the lives of many Korean-Americans as well. In fact, a study conducted in 1990 by Won Moo Hurh revealed that almost ¾ of all Korean immigrating to America were either Protestant or Catholic. In fact, there are more than 4,400 Korean churches in America! These Korean churches allow Korean Americans to have fellowship with other Koreans while in America. Korean churches often allow the members to make essential connections to find jobs and find places to live which are important tasks for immigrants. Korean churches in America also allow for the preservation of Korean culture and language in the U.S. I can confirm this as I have attended Korean churches in Ohio and Virginia!

This semester, I am going to try to repeat what I did last semester as I seemed to be able to retain my Korean proficiency last semester. Things that I will be doing would be talking to my language partner in Korea, talking to my mother in Korean whenever we chat over the phone, listen to Korean songs, and watch Korean Dramas. I found out that Rachel Lim is my language partner and we had our first meeting this week. We discussed what I wanted to do and what my goals were this semester. I basically told her what I did last semester with my language partner, Somyung Kim. Last semester, we made a rule that during our weekly sessions we would try to only talk in Korean. We would also read Korean news articles, learn some Korean history and discuss/watch Korean entertainment together. So this semester, Rachel Lim and I will be doing more or less the same things. During our first session, we got to know each other by having conversations in Korean. We discussed where we both came from. I told her that I was originally born in Korea, but then immigrated to the U.S when I was around eight. I also told her that I live in Ohio. Rachel told me that she was born in the U.S in Texas but she moved to Maryland when she was younger. However, her family moved to Korea and she attended an international high school in Korea. We also shared why we both chose the University of Richmond as our undergraduate school. I told her that I primarily chose the University of Richmond because they offered a generous financial aid package. Funny enough, she also chose the University of Richmond due to financial aid reasons even though she was accepted into other good undergraduate colleges. We also talked about our schedules and what we are studying at the University of Richmond. I shared with her that I am currently conflicted in deciding what I want to major in. I told her that I am considering majoring in either Music or Computer Science. I told her that I am currently working on making an album with Professor Brohening for my MUS 307 class. I told her that my plan is to make an album and submit it to some record companies to see if I could get a record contract. I also told her that If this plan fails I will be majoring in computer science. Rachel told me that currently, she is thinking about majoring in accounting, but she is still not absolutely certain about it. We also decide on a Korean tv series together so we have topics to discuss during our sessions. We were talking about some of the dramas we have watched and I remembered that a friend of mine, Ephraim, recommended that I watch this thriller Korean tv series called Kingdom. Although Rachel said she is not too fond of horror films, we both agreed to watch Kingdom for our sessions. I am looking forward to bettering my Korean this semester.

I have learned that I learned best when discussing and talking about what I’m learning with friends and family. I realized that I retain information pretty well after conversing with someone. I found that learning vocab is pretty hard without using it frequently. I enjoyed learning more cultural aspects of Korean. I want to continue my learning by watching K-drama and listening to more Korean music. I thought the videos were really helpful. One video that I recall is the video where the native American tribe cannot distinguish different shades of color due to linguistics.

I am realizing how much I am able to practice Korean with my family! During the car ride from Virginia to Ohio, I was able to play some Korean word games with my family. One of the games we played was a game where there is an established topic such as food and each person has to say a Korean word associated with that topic. Another game that we played was the translation game. It’s pretty simple. A person says a word in Korean and the other people have to say that word in English. The first person to translate the word gets a point. My brother and I played against each other and I destroyed him. I was decently surprised because before this semester he was definitely better than me in Korean and had a wider range of vocabulary. It looks like studying Korean this semester really paid off! We eventually took a break from driving at stopped at the NOVA/D.C. Area and went to this Korean BBQ restaurant called Honey Pig at Centreville. Man, it was good. Their pork belly tasted really tender and juicy. They also had this oily dipping sauce that was really good with the beef. I ate until I was very satisfied. Once back home, my brother and I started watching this show called Start-up. It’s a show on Netflix that is on air right now and is pretty popular in Korea and on an international scale. Also, our family was able to sing some nostalgic Korean hymns in the evening. Even though, I really did not like Korean hymns when I was younger, singing them now brings back memories of when I lived in Korea. I also was able to meet up with Somyung and Tommy over zoom for our language partner meeting. We practiced speaking in Korean and she told me that she really has not a lot to do while on campus. She said that she really wants to go home. Tommy seems to be fine on campus, he told me that he is watching this show called “Show Me the Money”. Apparently, it is a Korean reality tv show that introduces upcoming rappers in a competitive setting. The show has popular celebrities as judges kind of like the Voice. Tommy talked about this one upcoming rapper that is also Christian. We also reviewed our semester together and kind of recapped what we learned. Samsung also asked Tommy and me for feedback on the things we did. I told her that only speaking in Korean was really uncomfortable at first but it proved to be really fruitful as I could tell that my communicative skills improved a lot. Tommy told her that he thought the historical and cultural lessons were really helpful to him. He said that it helped him contextualize some of the things he was learning, but also made learning Korean more personal and fun. We also discussed other Korean Dramas that we should watch. Tommy suggested Extracurricular and Itaewon Class.

During these weeks, I have been practicing Korean a little than usual just because work from other classes is becoming more intense. However, I am kind of glad that I can learn Korean through enjoyable mediums such as watching Korean dramas and listening to Korean music. I started binging on a Korean drama show called Reply 1988. However, the outcome of the show has really disappointed me. Like most Korean dramas, Reply 1988 has lots of romantic components. The main character Dosak, is a teenage girl that lives in the same neighborhood as her group of friends who are all guys. Two of the guys that are in her friend group eventually develop a crush on her, but sadly the guy that I was rooting for Jungwhan does not get the girl. Besides that, the show helps to visualize what life was like in South Korea during the late 80s and early 90s as a highschooler. This is cool because my mother was born in Korea in 1974 so it is like seeing the environment where she grew up. It was interesting to see how competitive academics were in Korea even around fifty years ago. The drama also highlights income inequality among Korean families. This show helped me feel gratitude towards my mom as she decided to immigrate our whole family to America for better opportunities for me and my brother. During one of our weekly sessions, Somyung and I talked about the plot developments in Reply 1988. I told her about my disappointment and anger at the directors of the show because they played my boy, Jungwhan. She understood my opinion but did not have the strong feelings I did. Tommy also told me that his mom also grew up during the late 80s and early 90s in Korea. In fact, Reply 1988 is Tommy’s mom’s favorite show because she gets very nostalgic when watching it. Apparently, Reply 1988 is a part of the Reply series. The Reply series seems to focus on a decade and includes real historical events that happened during that span of time. This is a very cool concept and so maybe I will check out the other Reply shows during my winter break to maintain my Korean listening skills. Tommy and Somyung and I talked about our plans for winter break because it was drawing near. They both reminded me that they are going to be on campus for Thanksgiving break. I also called my mother over the phone to practice speaking in Korean. We just caught up on our lives, and she told me that she is excited to see me again. She also told me that it has been getting really cold in Ohio. I am not excited about that. I also got to go to my Korean friend’s house this week and eat some Korean food. Ephraim’s mom is a pretty good cook. She made us some Kimchi stew with ramen in it. She also made some Bulgogi which reminds me of my mom’s cooking. I still think my mother is a better cook!

For this cultural presentation, I will be talking about Korean Barbeque. In Korea, they label Korean Barbeque as 고기구이 or gogi-gu-i which translates to meat roast. Korean Barbeque is the type of cuisine where various meats are grilled and eaten with Korean side dishes and vegetables. In restaurants, the grills are prepared on gas or charcoal grills built into the dining table itself. Yet, people also grill using electric grills at their homes. One type of meat that is grilled in Korean Barbeque is 불고기 or Bulgogi. Bulgogi is made from thinly sliced marinated beef sirloin or tenderloin. Bulgogi is typically marinated in soy sauce. Another popular type of meat that is grilled in Korean BBQ is 갈비 or Galbi. Galbi is made from marinated beef short ribs also usually marinated using soy sauce. However, the most popular type of meat that is grilled during a Korean BBQ is 삼겹살 or Samgyeopsal. Samgyeopsal is pork belly. In popular culture, it is also called the “Korean bacon” as the taste of pork belly draws similarities with American bacon. Personally, I think Samgyeopsal is the best meat served in Korean BBQ just because the meat is very tender and fatty. Korean Barbeque is served with white rice and traditional side dishes such as kimchi. Korean Barbeque is also generally served with leafy green vegetables such as lettuce. Additionally, there is a sauce that is associated with Korean BBQ called 쌈장 or ssamjang. Ssamjang is a thick, spicy paste that is made of doenjang, gochujang, sesame oil, onion, garlic, green onions, and optionally brown sugar. Koreans typically eat meats, vegetables, and rice altogether. The general way to eat Korean BBQ is to get a leaf of lettuce and put some white rice on it. Then, you take a piece of meat and dip it in the ssamjang sauce, and put it on top of the rice that is on your lettuce leaf. Then you can choose to put additional side dishes such as kimchi on top of your meat. When I was younger, I would never eat Korean BBQ the usual way. I avoided eating vegetables because I thought it tasted like cardboard compared to juicy meat. Not to mention, I thought eating the vegetables would just waste space in my stomach for the meat. Yet, I now realize the lettuce adds a crunchy texture and a fresh aftertaste when eaten with the meat. Although Korean BBQ is a food event, there are significant cultural values during the feast. When Korean BBQ is eaten among people who vary in age, the youngest is obliged to grill the meat for the seniors. This also applies when pouring drinks. Korean BBQ creates an atmosphere where friends or family can gather together to eat amazing food. Lots of people eat Korean BBQ on special occasions. Whether it is to celebrate one’s success or to celebrate a minor holiday, Korean BBQ is very flexible. In fact, my family ate Korean BBQ instead of the traditional American food for this thanksgiving.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DEGHnWM_D3hfeEamYxIg9Tf9Bg_AbQR5/view?usp=sharing

For this cultural presentation, I will be talking about Taekwondo. Taekwondo or 태권도 is a type of Martial Arts that originated in Korea. Taekwondo is still very popular todays is has been developing for over 5000 years and still is relevant in many people’s lives. Taekwondo, under the leadership of the World Taekwondo Federation, has grown into an international art and sport that is practiced in over 190 countries worldwide. In fact, Taekwondo is an official sport of the Olympics. In the United States alone, there are more than 5 million practitioners of Taekwondo. The rapid growth and expansion of Taekwondo have allowed the exposure of Korean culture toward other countries. Practitioners of Taekwondo wear uniforms that are called dobok(도복). Doboks come in various colors, though white or black are the most common. Like Karate, Taekwondo also have belts to indicate ranks. The junior section of ranks includes belts that range in color from white (the lowest rank) to red or brown(the highest). The senior section of ranks consists of only black belts but with varying degrees. The first degree of black belt would be the owest and typically 9 would be the highest rank of black belt. In Korean, dan or 단 is used to indicate the rank of the black belt. So for example, 1단 would indicate the first degree of black belt. Although many people see Taekwono’s utility only to self-defense, Taekwondo applies to everyday life. We can see this when we observe the word Taekwondo. Tae means "foot," or "to step on". Kwon means "fist," or "fight". Do mean the "way" or "discipline." The culmination of the three words explain the philosophy of Taekwondo. Taekwondo means "the right way of using all parts of the body to stop fights and help to build a better and more peaceful world." Let alone, Taekwondo can be characterized by unity: the unity of body, mind, and life, and the unity of the pose. Taekwondo emphasizes form or 품새 because one of the main pursuits of Taekwondo is to make your mind peaceful and synchronize your mind with your movements, and to extend this harmony to life and society. Taekwondo seeks to allow the principle of physical movements, the principle of mind training, and the principle of life become one and the same. I actually remember when I used to live in Korea, my mom enrolled us in a Taekwondo academy. I remember going to Taekwondo tournaments, being late to classes, and being disciplined for it, and the fun games we used to play after classes. Taekwondo helped to teach me discipline. It helped foster mentor relationships that caused me to grow physically and mentally. That’s how I understand why many parents enroll their children in Taekwondo. Taekwondo not only teaches self-defense but it teaches you discipline that leads to confidence. Taekwondo also helps develop one’s purpose and guides one to a community of other people also trying to better themselves. It’s no wonder celebrities such as Joe Rogan and  Arnold Arnold Schwarzenegger practice Taekwondo.

During these two weeks, I have been binging on Korean Dramas shamelessly haha. I guess it is pretty embarrassing to say that I finished watching Hospital Playlist in less than a week. Each episode was about an hour and forty minutes and the show had around fifteen episodes! I feel like I was so captivated by the show because it exposed a lot of Korean culture in terms of food and music. Because the show is centered around a group of five friends, the show has lots of scenes where they hang around just eating Korean food like Korean BBQ. The people in the friend group are around 40 years old and also happens to be in a band that allows the audience to be exposed to older Korean rock music. After watching Hospital Playlist, I started watching a Korean show on Netflix that many people had been recommending me, Reply 1988. Watching Reply 1988 reminded me of the dramas I used to watch as a child back in Korea. The Show, like the title says, is set during the late and early nineties in Korea. The show setting happens to be historically accurate as they mention the Olympics in Seoul in 1988 and popular actresses and celebrities during that time. I actually never knew that Korea ever hosted the Olympics until I watched this show. Moreover, the neighborhood the main characters live in reminds me of the neighborhood I lived as a child in Korea. During one of my meetings with Somyung and Tommy, we watched a celebrity reality tv show. That particular episode was about the celebrities trying to eat extremely spicy ramen called BulDak. A lot of people in the west have actually heard of it due to its insane level of spice. After watching the tv reality show, we practiced conversating in Korean. During our second meeting, we watched a video that was more historically informative rather than entertaining. The video was about Korea’s most famous general, Yi shun sin, a.k.a, the god of war. The video addressed the historical context during General Yi’s life such as the unification of Japan’s samurais under Hideyoshi. The video also highlighted the virtuous characteristics of General Yi like his commitment toward his nation when facing adversities and the integrity of his character despite the harsh politics that sought to put an end to General Yi’s military career. Additionally, the video talks about Japan’s plan to invade Busan and push all the way to Korea’s capital, Seoul. I practiced Korean outside of my language learning group by talking to my mother in Korean over the phone. When I called her, I told her how much I was craving Chapagetti, an instant noodle that is close to a Chinese black bean noodle dish. I asked her to get some from the store before I come back home. I also told her about my recent post-hernia repair surgery pain and informed her that it seems that the pain was getting worse instead of healing.

During these two weeks, I have interacted with the Korean culture in a joyful manner! Choongman Chicken opened up in downtown Richmond! Choongman chicken is a franchise Korean Fried Chicken restaurant and it is known to be as close to authentic Korean Fried Chicken you can get to here in America. So as soon as I heard that they have opened, my roommate and I went to Choongman chicken on my birthday. Let me say, it was a birthday well spent. At first bite, tasting the Korean fried chicken brought back very dear memories from Korea. I remembered the time after our family read through the Bible together, we would celebrate by ordering from the closest Korean Fried Chicken place. Without shame, I can share that I came back the following week with my roommate and indulged in some good Korean food. During the times at the restaurant, I was able to briefly practice my Korean. Not to mention, I saw a familiar face working for the restaurant, my friend Jun. I highly encourage anyone reading this to try Choongman chicken!

I also watched an episode of Hospital Playlist, a Korean drama that explores the daily lives of doctors. It specifically follows a friend group of five doctors who all met during college and are working at the same hospital. It kinds of reminds me of Grey’s Anatomy. Watching the Korean drama helped me reminisce about the times when I visited my brother in the hospital after he had gotten into a car accident. I also learned that it is common for patients to call doctors “teachers” instead of doctors, especially if a doctor is in a higher position. I also have been practicing my pronunciation by signing some Korean hymns. Playing the guitar while singing these songs truly does give a nostalgic feeling as I grew up within the Korean church. Korean hymns also tend to be more emotionally in terms of both lyrics and melody compared to English hymns. 

I have been practicing my conversational skills with So Myung as well. In one instance, I asked her in Korean, how her family was doing. She told me that her sister was actually having trouble attending online classes. In fact, she has to call home to remind her mother to tell her sister to get to class. She then asked me how my family was doing. I told her that my mother’s body was recovering well after kidney stones. We then strayed from conversing about our families to talking about how each of us deals with anger. I told her that I usually express my anger through passive-aggressiveness and through intentional disregard towards the person I am mad at. So Myung also told me that when she is mad at someone she gives them the silent treatment as well. She then told me of the struggle of wanting to invite people over to her dorm but not being able to due to COVID. Her little brother is high-risk to COVID so she has to be more careful than other people.

During these two weeks, I have been able to practice Korean on multiple occasions. On Saturday morning I went to Park Joon’s(Korean Salon) again to get a haircut because my hair was getting a bit messy. I was able to use Korean to tell the hairdresser to give me a low fade and just trim my top hair. After the haircut, my Korean friend and I went to Grand Market which is right next door, and ate Korean food. I had Korean bibimbop and my friend has a mix of black bean paste noodles and Korean Spicy Sea Food noodles. I spent Saturday afternoon an evening with my friends from VCU. We ate Korean food together. We ate some Korean BBQ Galbi, Some spicy grilled pork, and some Korean bean paste soup. We also played Korean games together. After eating, we decided to watch some Korean comedy shows. I was surprised I could understand the jokes and the funny scenes with my limited vocabulary. 

I was able to practice Korean with my language multiple times throughout the week. Somyung and I focused on talking in Korean because that is what I am primarily concerned about. We talked about our favorite Korean foods. She told me that her favorite food was naengmyeon (Korean Cold Noodles). She says that naenmyeon has a very pleasing specific flavor and she craves it because she has not eaten it in a while. I proceeded to ask her whether she is able to get it in Maryland, where she lives. She told me that her mom usually cooks the Korean food that she eats. I asked her if she thinks that her mom is a good cook and she said yes. Then I told her my favorite Korean foods which are JJangmeon and Korean Fried Chicken. I could eat that pretty much every day. She then asked whether I was going to stay on campus during Thanksgiving break. I told her no and told her that when I called my mother earlier, she told me that she misses me too much! Somyung told me that she has to stay on campus during the break because she won’t have a place to study adequately at home. She said that there are also too many distractions at home like her younger siblings. I completely understand her situation because I lived and still live in a small apartment for most of my life. 

I also got the chance to talk to my brother over facetime in Korean. He seems to be doing well and he told me that he found a church he could go to that is only ten minutes away from his campus. We also talked about his plans for transferring to another school. He wants to transfer to either Cleveland State University in Ohio or Virginia Commonwealth University. I advised him to email the admissions to if he could obtain an application waiver because the application was seventy dollars. He told me he will, and I helped him form a draft of the email.

Chuseok, also known as Korean Thanksgiving or the harvest festival, is an important holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar on the full moon. It is common that Koreans return to their ancestral hometowns to eat traditional foods with family. In fact, train and plane tickets are usually sold out three months in advance. Although it’s true that food is often associated with Chuseok, the significance of Chuseok actually is to remember and spend time with family. It’s not uncommon that families visit their ancestor’s graves and perform different rituals to honor their memory. It’s similar to American thanksgiving in the aspect of sharing meals with family members. However, Korean Thanksgiving emphasizes more of the ancestors that are not alive while American Thanksgiving is focused on living family members. 

I remember celebrating Korean Thanksgiving when I live in Korea. I remember the taste of the soft sweet rice cake, Songpyeon. I remember helping my mom and grandmother make them while trying my best to contain my drooling. There was also Hangwa which is a Korean cookie. Hangwa is a desert food that is usually decorated with many different colors, textures, and patterns. Hang is generally made with rice flour, honey, fruit, and roots. I used to think that Hangwa was food for old people because it was considered a desert but was not that sweet. My favorite Korean Chuseok food is probably Japchae. Japchae is stir-fried glass noodles mixed with often with beef many vegetables such as onions, spinach mushrooms. The best combo is to have rice and kimchi with Japchae.

I also remember some of the games we used to play with my family. My favorite game we played together was Dak Sa Um, Chicken Fight. It’s a game where both players bring one of their ankles up above the knee and attempt to knock down the other person’s knee while standing on one leg. It definitely would get intense and physical, but it was loads of fun even though due to my size I did not win too many games. My family has not celebrated Chuseok in a while. We do however celebrate American Thanksgiving. Yet, I definitely do miss celebrating Chuseok. 

Following the traditions of your culture, the traditions that your ancestor had also participated in, gives you a distinct sense of fulfillment in ways that you feel like you are getting to know yourself better. I think that is something I have noticed during Thanksgiving. My family celebrates it because that’s what American families do. Yet, I have no individual attachment towards the American holiday because my ancestors and I cannot relate to it. Nevertheless, I’m glad that we still celebrate some sort of thanksgiving because it’s a time where we as a family come together and appreciate each other. I believe that most holidays are significant because of the gathering of family. It’s a time where you pause the mundane things of life to remember your roots and loved ones. Likewise, Chuseok is no different.

During these two weeks, I definitely have been using Korean more than last year. Due to the more frequent usage, I feel like talking in Korean requires less effort. Also, I tend to stutter less while speaking in Korean. 

I have been reading Korean Webtoons to better my reading comprehension and learn more about Korean culture. One webtoon is called the Tower of God and the other is called the God of highschool. I noticed that because webtoons are designed to have limited words, the words are very informal and concise. This makes it a lot easier to read and understand compared to a Korean novel. Reading the webtoons has weirdly led me to think more in Korean. When I say think in Korean, I’m talking about the voice in your head that talks when you think. It had been a while since I thought in Korean so that was very cool. I also have started studying a Korean song called Me Before You. On a google doc, I translated the lyrics into English and tried to understand each word. Now every time I listen to Me Before You, I will be utilizing active recall, and will help me memorize the phrases and words in the song. 

I practiced my Korean conversational skills with my brother. We talked in Korean over FaceTime for several minutes. He was pretty surprised that I could speak Korean more comfortably since before coming to college, my Korean was getting worse every day. He jokingly told me that he will also have to improve his Korean lest my Korean will be better than his. I also practiced my Korean conversational skills with my mother. I could not talk to her as much as I have wanted to because she is recovering from surgery. But during the time that we were able to talk, she told me that she noticed how I seemed more comfortable when I was talking to her in Korean. Yet, I still have a lot to work on. I get stuck sometimes when I speak because of my lack of vocabulary. 

I met with my language partners So Myung and Tommy. One week we just focused on our conversation skills and just talked about how our week was going, career goals, and family situations, etc. in Korean. During the second week, we read and analyzed two Korean articles. One article was about the weather forecast, and the other article was about how supermarkets’ sales of masks and over the counter medicine surged as COVID-19 initially hit South Korea. Tommy and I took turns reading each line out loud in Korean and translating them in English. The articles were definitely challenging to read because they use a lot of words that I did not know.  I had to use a lot of context clues using the words I already knew to figure out the articles were saying. But I think reading the article out loud helped me be more intentional with my pronunciation and analyzing the text.