Blogs

Reflect on your learning experiences this semester. (a) What insights have you gained about yourself as a language learner and cultural explorer? What did you find difficult? What have you enjoyed? How will you continue your learning? (b) Which readings and learning activities did you find most useful? What would you like to learn more about?

In my first reflection paper, I had expressed that I struggle to embrace the process of learning. The goal that I had set for myself was that I wanted to be comfortable with only knowing small fragments of my target language and its culture in a single semester. This turned out to be a much harder goal than I had anticipated. One of my friends from the class- Emma pointed out in her reflection how not being able to voice complex thoughts in her target language was really frustrating. That is exactly how I felt! Having to start from zero level in ASL was both humbling and intimidating. Often times, there would be so much I would want to say in my head, but I would only have the option of fingerspelling to voice that thought. Looking back, I think I started as an impatient language learner who would get easily discouraged from failures. However, over the course of the semester, the encouragement from my language partner Ms. Kaye Wise started to do wonders for my confidence. I think my rapidly increasing ASL vocabulary helped a lot too. However, that process of adjustment was truly uncomfortable. On the other hand, I really loved learning more about the Deaf culture and its relationship with ASL. As someone who is very passionate about social rights and activism, the issues surrounding Deaf culture really resonated with me. So, when it was time to do a cultural presentation on ASL, I chose to present on the fundamental challenges that the Deaf community is facing in the current socio-political climate. I really enjoyed working on that presentation because it gave me an avenue to advocate for the Deaf community, even though it was only in front of a few people from my class. This experience reaffirmed my love for ASL. I will continue working on ASL using the online resources like: lifeprint.com, signingsavvy.com etc. that I have been frequently using all throughout the semester. As a pre-med, the ethical issues surrounding cochlear implants also struck a chord with me. I am in the process of scheduling shadowing sessions with otolaryngologists / cochlear implant specialists in the Richmond area to further explore my combined interests in medicine and ASL. Finally, I intend to find more in-person ASL opportunities when things get better with COVID-19. Doing language sessions over zoom and not having that outlet to practice the language in-person, has made me feel like I am still  missing a critical part of my ASL language skills concerning body language and facial expressions. So, finding in-person opportunities such as silent dinners and volunteering activities is going to be the next step in my language journey.

In terms of readings and learning activities, I found the 2007 interview When Languages Die most useful. It is one thing to just do readings and try to imagine the gravity of things in your head, but it is an entirely different thing to see it visually and understand why we should care. The words of Dr. Harrison and examples of his field wok were fascinating. Especially, the parts were they showed the challenges of working with old native speakers and trying to weed through the ramblings to make sense of the language, really made me think what a difficult and novel task linguists like Dr. Harrison are doing. In mainstream media, we only see the urgency in saving biological species and historic buildings/ artifacts, which are facing the threat of extinction. This class on dying languages was my first exposure to the extinction of spoken languages and it successfully managed to highlight the extent of loss that comes with losing a language. In addition, I also found the class activities on morphemes really helpful. My previous knowledge of morphemes was limited to prefixes and suffixes. The jamboard activities and problem solving as a group really expanded my understanding of morphemes.

Overall, this class has made me realize that I will forever be fascinated by languages and cultures around the world. I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to learn ASL and also work with this amazing cohort of friends from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Moreover, I have been greatly inspired by the wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm that Dr. Soloway has shared throughout the semester. So, I would like to thank all my friends and especially Dr. Soloway for being a part of my language journey and creating this wonderful class.

This semester I learned so much about the ways we can use language to gain insights about the customs and lifestyles of different cultures around the world. I had so much fun learning about different components of language since I was never taught about linguistics while learning a language in my previous school experiences, and I think it made my language learning more effective and sparked new curiosities for me as a language learner. Having the opportunity to self-direct my language learning helped me learn more about my learning styles and how previous language learning courses did not suit my goals and interests in the most effective way. Through this experience, I didn’t realize how beneficial it was to have a language partner to meet with each week to help me reach my goals. The one-on-one time with a native speaker helped me to gain more confidence as I learned Hangul and Korean grammar and syntax, especially since the alphabet was entirely unfamiliar to me so I really appreciated being able to learn at my own pace. I also enjoyed having an abundance of resources available to us through the Global Studio to enhance our language learning. I honestly wish I would have taken more advantage of the many different resources, but I really benefited most from watching videos to learn Korean pronunciation as well as informational videos about Korean culture and history, and websites such as 90daykorean.com and koreanclass101.com had very informative blog posts, learning guides, and interactive lessons which were extremely helpful outside my weekly meetings with my language partner. I think my biggest challenge this semester was learning correct pronunciation and memorizing grammar rules and vocabulary words, but with time I know these kinds of challenges will lessen in my future language learning experiences. This semester diminished my fears of getting out of my comfort zone to learn languages that seem completely different and more complex than what I’m used to, but the linguistic information I learned during class really gave me the confidence to believe in my language learning abilities and now I’m excited to challenge myself to learn even more! Over the summer, I plan to continue to study Korean in my free time and hopefully maybe next summer I can apply my skills with a trip to South Korea to visit a family friend! 

I also really enjoyed many readings and activities in class that really helped improve my understanding of language and how it connects with culture. One of my favorite readings from this semester was Figuring Foreigners Out because it’s so important to understand the culture of the native speakers for the target language that one is trying to learn. This chapter simplified the different characteristics that cultures may differ on that impact their communication and interactions with others, so understanding the values of that culture are crucial to culturally competent communication with native speakers. I also really enjoyed the Atchinson’s readings about linguistics, in particular the diagram depicting the scope of linguistics and the different disciplines that one can examine through linguistics. The diagram really gave me an idea of the foundational aspects of language to focus on in my language learning and guided me in the order I should focus on certain language goals. For example, I found it helpful to start with the phonetics of Korean as the foundation by learning the alphabet and the sounds, and with that basis I could move on to more complex concepts like morphology and syntax to be able to speak conversationally. Learning the different disciplines made me realize that language is interconnected with so many topics that I’ve been interested in, such as sociology, anthropology, health/medicine, psychology, and of course literature (stylistics), so this really sparked my curiosity of learning more about different cultures and how language shapes these different topics within their society and culture. I also really enjoyed class activities that gave us a look into the culture and communication of other language speakers. I remember the video we watched in class about a tribe that didn’t have many distinct colors in the way we recognize them, but they distinguish by different shades that to our eyes, we couldn’t recognize any difference at all! I just find it so interesting the many different ways we all see the same things in the world and how language shapes and reveals to us our values and way of life. In addition, I enjoyed the morphology activity where we had to try to interpret the meaning of Swahili words by recognizing patterns in the words we were provided. This lesson probably stood out the most to me because I began to understand how language works as a system so we are able to search for patterns to interpret meaning. Through this approach to language learning, I began to really appreciate the structure of language as it made it much easier to try to understand different words and sentences in Korean. Overall, this semester has been such an incredible language learning experience and I’m particularly excited to learn more about morphology so I can identify different grammatical structures in other languages!

Hi everyone! Here's a recap of my semester learning Korean with my language partner Jannette! It's been so much fun and she really helped me learn so much about the Korean language as well as Korean culture! 

Kayla-Podcast-Interview.m4a

Throughout the semester, I learned Korean with Rachel, and I learned a lot about myself as a language learner and a cultural explorer. I learned that I am a visual learner for language learning. I looked back at the assignments and the work I did and which one stuck with me the best. I found Quizlet flashcards and watching grammar or entertainment videos the most helpful, while I found worksheets the least helpful. I also learned a lot of different things about my culture throughout the semester. The cultural artifacts helped, but the suggestions that Rachel gave me to explore my cultural background helped me a lot as well. Watching “2 Days and 1 Night” also gave me the chance to learn more about the background of Korean culture and history. I learned about the different superstitions and proverbs that Koreans follow and believe in, which was really interesting and fun to learn about. My favorite proverb was definitely “고생 끝에 낙이 온다” which means at the end of hardship comes happiness. I related to this proverb as this semester was difficult for me, so this proverb stuck with me throughout the semester. My favorite superstition was dreaming of pigs means that you will become wealthy in the future. In Korean culture, pigs are a symbol of wealth and fertility, so if you dreamt of them, it is a sign that you will have wealth in the future. 

Out of everything, I thought that writing was the most difficult. Although I did improve since the beginning of the semester, I still think I need to improve a lot and practice to reach the level I want to reach. Because I had previous knowledge of Korean already, I think it was difficult for me to admit that I did not know something or was not sure about a topic because of the pride I had in Korean. I also found it difficult to write on paper in Korean, so I switched to typing. I know writing on paper helps with writing skills in a new language, so I hope I stop finding writing on paper difficult and uncomfortable in the future. Since I hope to write more fluently outside of diaries, I hope that I can improve my writing a lot more as I continue my Korean language learning journey. 

My favorite part of my language learning experience was the proverbs, superstitions, and watching “2 Days and 1 Night”. As I look at all three of these topics, I enjoyed learning more about Korean culture the most. I found it so interesting how random some proverbs were, but their meaning was so deep and meaningful. I also loved learning about the different superstitions Koreans believe in because as I learned about them, I remembered some that my parents used to tell me. I also loved watching 2 Days 1 Night because it helped me practice and learn in many different areas, such as listening and comprehension, vocabulary, culture and food, and history. I also found the Quizlet assessments on my vocabulary very useful. At the beginning of the semester, I originally did not get assessed on the vocabulary terms I learned from my lessons. However, after a class from SDLC 105, I learned how important it is to assess how much I am retaining the information I learned. So, I included Quizlet tests in my learning agenda, and I noticed a big difference and improvement in my ability to remember and retain the vocabulary I learned. 

Next semester, I need to continue improving my writing skills. I hope that I will move on from writing diaries and summaries on articles and move onto more complex writing. However, I do know that I still need to improve on my grammar more. So I want to learn more about the Korean style of writing in an educational setting. I also hope to continue learning about Korean culture because I feel more connected with my home culture, and I enjoyed learning about it. 

The reading that I found most useful and interesting was “Tribes Revives Language on Verge of Extinction.” “It taught me how fast language evolves and changes every day and that thousands of languages go extinct. I never knew how much effort and time it takes to revive or try to save a dying language. I never realized how important language is in our daily lives until I noticed how much linguists work to try to prevent a language from going extinct. Additionally, out of the learning activities we did in class, I enjoyed learning about phonetics. Learning about phonetics made me realize why I had such difficulty pronouncing some words in English when I first moved to America. It also made me realize that I still have some phonological areas in Korean that I struggle with pronouncing. Learning about phonetics made me realize how important it is in language learning. I also found it fun to do the phonetics practices during class, and I found it so interesting how we all had different ways of writing the IPA because we all pronounce words a little differently. I found phonetics the most interesting but also useful in my language learning journey. 

I will definitely love to continue learning more about Korean culture. I also want to continue improving my writing skills and hope to reach the proficiency level by the time I finish the self-directed learning courses.

The March first movement is a holiday celebrated in Korea to pay respects to the people who lost their lives during the protests on March 1^st, 1919. Back then, Korea was under Japanese colonization and there was a protest movement calling f nor independence from Japan. Thousands of students and civilians in Seoul protested in the city to show displays of resistance from Japan. During this holiday, people visit the Seodamun Prison History Hall to remember and pay respects to the people who fought for Korea’s independence and democracy. Furthermore, people go through spring season tours in Gwangyang and other villages to enjoy food and experience parades. Furthermore, many Koreans go to theme parks to enjoy and spend time with their family. Lastly, a lot of people go to Ski resorts to enjoy the last chance to ski before winter ends. The March 1^st movement is like Memorial Day in America. Jenna and I also learned fifteen vocab words related to the March 1^st movement. It was interesting to compare the March 1^st movement to holidays in America.

The blog that I read and learned about the March first movement was this link: https://blog.trazy.com/march-1st-movement-korea/

March 1^st movement is also known as Samil Jeol and is a public holiday celebrated in South Korea. On March 1^st, 1919 there was turning point in Korean history. There was a nationwide civil protest and an independence movement against the Japanese colonization of Korea. This led to the establishment of the provisional government of the Republic of Korea. In 1919, the Paris Peace conference caused many patriots of Korea believed in self-determination and independence from japan. Korean students studying in Tokyo demanded freedom from Japan.

The March 1^st movement is a very popular holiday in Korea and many Koreans take it seriously. It is a moment in history that changed Korea forever. It is similar to Memorial Day in America.

Last week, Jenna and I talked about Korean technology. South Korea is one of the best global innovation leaders. Samsung is one of the most popular companies in Korea and the company started in 1938. Now, Samsung is one of the most popular and successful companies in Korea. In 2018 alone, Samsung produced 15 percent of the nation’s GDP. Korean technology is very advanced and it’s crazy to think less than a century ago, Korea was a third-world country owned by Japan. This week, Jenna and I also went over my cultural presentation. I finished most of it and presented it to her. She said everything was really well made but told me to add sources for each picture I got and to add a design to the presentation to make it stand out more. Last week, we also did the podcast recording together. It was fun to talk about what I had learned so far this semester with Jenna. We talked about the political system I learned last month and the different historical events and holidays I learned earlier this semester. This week, Jenna and I met one last time. We talked about everything I have learned with her over the last four semesters with her. I am so proud of what Jenna and I have accomplished in the last few semesters. I have learned a lot about reading and writing in Korean. I accomplished my long-term goal of passing the COM2 exam last semester. Jenna was able to efficiently teach me the Korean language and Korean culture. Over the past few semesters with her, I have definitely learned a lot. I will continue to practice reading and writing in Korean in the future. I have read many articles in the last few semesters and I am excited to have had this journey with Jenna. I have watched many videos about Korean in Korean that has helped my skills in the Korean language. I am also happy to have learned so many vocabulary words with Jenna over the past semesters. It has definitely helped me expand my Korean speaking skills. One of the first goals in Korean SDLAP was to get better at speaking with my grandma in Korean. I am so proud to have been able to learn the Korean language and I have seen improvements in the conversations with my grandmother. I will preserve the Korean language as long as I live and uphold the traditions I was taught. I thank Professor Soloway for allowing me to embark on this journey with Jenna.

This week, Jenna and I learned about K-pop, also known as Korean Hip Hop. Kpop is mainstream music in South Korea and can be compared to artists like Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift. Kpop has many different musical genres involved in it. It can include genres like rock, hip hop, and electronic music. Kpop is a very new form of music when looking at the different genres in Korean music culture. Kpop was created in the 1990s and the roots of Kpop began in the 1950s. Since then, many western music and pop groups influenced Kpop in South Korea. The first Kpop group was Seo Taiji and The Boys. They were most popular in the mid 1990s and were famous with experimenting with many different genres of music. They were the pioneers for integrating rap into South Korean pop music. Growing up, I remember listening to K-pop with my family on long car rides. It was really nostalgic to listen to some of the old music I listened to as a child this week with Jenna. Furthermore, Jenna and I talked about our plans for the podcast at the end of the year. We reviewed the different topics I learned about in the past lessons so I can be prepared to talk about it with Jenna for the final podcast for class. I am excited to wrap up this semester strong and hope to learn more about Korean culture. Jenna and I also reviewed some of the terms we learned over the past few lessons and will continue to learn fifteen new words next week. This week, Jenna and I also talked about a big issue that prevalent in Korean culture. In Korea, men are considered to have more power than women. Many men have been caught for spy cameras and sexual violence towards women in South Korea. Women’s rights in Korea are a big topic issue currently in Korean culture. Feminist issues are becoming more popular and talked more about in the media. Korea has a lot of gender discrimination and it is violent and hateful. There are also many women who have died from sexual violence from men in Korea. Furthermore, there are many celebrities who have been caught for sexual violence towards women in the last decade. Women are taken advantage of in Korea, and it is a serious issue that must be talked about. Women are also having a disadvantage in obtaining a job in the hyper-competitive job market in Korea. Men have a better chance to get a better position and job than women do due to the unequal rights and the traditions of Korean culture. This is similar to America’s problem and issue of women’s rights in the past decade. America is definitely ahead of Korea in social norms for respecting women and giving them the same rights as men. There is currently still an issue in America, but Korea is definitely behind. Jenna and I also decided on what to learn about next week: Korean technology. I know that Korean technology is miles ahead than America, such as the WiFi technology and computer technology.

My third cultural artifact is a news article written in Korean about a basketball player in the Korean Basketball League. The basketball player, Deonte Burton, currently plays on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA. I was drawn to this article because the OKC Thunder is my favorite basketball team and Burton won MVP in the Korean basketball league the year after he graduated from Iowa State. This article talks about Burton's potential and future in professional basketball. The article also compares Deonte Burton as Michael Jordan in Korea. Because he is playing so well in the Korean basketball league, people think he deserves the MVP. They talk about his strength and skill set as a young basketball player and how he has quickly and efficiently adapted into the Korean basketball league. They talk about how he and his DB team defeated many teams and is currently playing in the semifinals in the playoffs. I thought this article was very interesting because Deonte Burton isn't as worshipped in America. They use words like "the best" when describing Deonte Burton and compares him to Michael Jordan, one of the best basketball players in the world. I think this comparison is a little too much, but the fact that Korean sports writers use this comparison really shows how different the perspectives are in America and Korea. Furthermore, I thought that it was really helpful to learn words in the world of basketball and sports such as win and playoffs. I want to continue practicing and reading news articles in Korean about the Korean basketball league. I will begin to watch live broadcasts in Korean to learn more vocab and understand the phrases and language in sports. The article also talks about how Burton has the potential to become recruited by G-League teams in the NBA if he continues to grow as a player.

Reading and understanding this article was difficult at first. There were many words and phrases that I had no clue about, but with the help of Jenna, I was able to better understand the article as a whole. I read the words out loud and asked her what a particular word or phrase meant if I didn't know what it meant. We didn't go through the whole article though, and during my own time, I started to read and translate sentences as practice. I looked up specific words if I didn't know what it meant, and used context clues to understand and write the translation of the sentence in English.

I will continue to read basketball articles about the Korean basketball league and articles written about the NBA in America. I found these articles on naver.com. I searched for basketball and looked for different articles written in Korean about either the NBA or the Korean Basketball League. Jenna and I will continue to read through articles together about different topics I am interested in (music, food, and sports). The COM2 language exam is reading through an article and answering questions about the article, so doing this every week will help me become more proficient in reading and writing in Korean.

Last week, Jenna and I learned fifteen new vocabulary words about the healthcare system in Korea. Furthermore, we decided on my final cultural presentation topic. I decided to research on the different holidays in Korea and how they differ from America’s holidays. I want to study the origins of the holidays in Korea and how people celebrate it. I am happy with what Jenna and I have accomplished so far in the course this semester. I have learned a lot of Korean history and it feels like a class about Korean history more than a Korean speaking class. I also started watching a new Korean drama on Netflix and it is really fun. They speak in Korean, and I understand most of it, but sometimes I read the caption to better understand what they are saying. This week, Jenna and I watched a Korean documentary about food culture in Korea. I already know most of the foods in Korea, but this documentary showed me more about the street food culture in Korea. There are many foods that are from western countries that has moved to the streets of Korea. For example, corndogs are beginning to gain traction in Korean street food markets, and it is a very popular dish. Jenna and I learned 15 new vocabulary words about popular Korean foods. I think my favorite food is Galbi, a traditional Korean barbeque food. I don’t know what more Jenna and I will cover for the rest of the semester, so I brought that point up to Jenna in this week’s lesson. We decided to learn about Korean K-pop next week. There is a lot to learn about K-pop in Korea. it is becoming a very popular genre in Korea and all over the world. I am very excited to learn about K-pop next week and how it has integrated into western countries. We only have around a month left of school, so I am very excited to finish my last semester of college. I will start my cultural presentation next week and hope to get some feedback from Jenna before I submit it next month. I will focus on four or five holidays in Korea and talk about the origins of the holiday, the date the holiday is celebrated on, and the different traditions done in Korea for each holiday.

Last week, Jenna and I learned fifteen new vocabulary words about the healthcare system in Korea. Furthermore, we decided on my final cultural presentation topic. I decided to research on the different holidays in Korea and how they differ from America’s holidays. I want to study the origins of the holidays in Korea and how people celebrate it. I am happy with what Jenna and I have accomplished so far in the course this semester. I have learned a lot of Korean history and it feels like a class about Korean history more than a Korean speaking class. I also started watching a new Korean drama on Netflix and it is really fun. They speak in Korean, and I understand most of it, but sometimes I read the caption to better understand what they are saying. This week, Jenna and I watched a Korean documentary about food culture in Korea. I already know most of the foods in Korea, but this documentary showed me more about the street food culture in Korea. There are many foods that are from western countries that has moved to the streets of Korea. For example, corndogs are beginning to gain traction in Korean street food markets, and it is a very popular dish. Jenna and I learned 15 new vocabulary words about popular Korean foods. I think my favorite food is Galbi, a traditional Korean barbeque food. I don’t know what more Jenna and I will cover for the rest of the semester, so I brought that point up to Jenna in this week’s lesson. We decided to learn about Korean K-pop next week. There is a lot to learn about K-pop in Korea. it is becoming a very popular genre in Korea and all over the world. I am very excited to learn about K-pop next week and how it has integrated into western countries. We only have around a month left of school, so I am very excited to finish my last semester of college. I will start my cultural presentation next week and hope to get some feedback from Jenna before I submit it next month. I will focus on four or five holidays in Korea and talk about the origins of the holiday, the date the holiday is celebrated on, and the different traditions done in Korea for each holiday.

Last week, Jenna and I continued learning about historical events in Korea. We learned about the Gwangju massacre. Gwangju is a popular city in Korea, and in 1980, 600 people were killed. Citizens of Gwangju took up arms after some students at a university were demonstrating against the martial law government. The government troops fired upon and killed some of the protestors. Tbe uprising is known as the Gwangju Democratization Struggle. Jenna and I also learned 15 new vocabulary words in Korean. I was really sad to hear of the oppression that occurred in Korean history and I am glad that I learned a little bit more about my culture. Jenna and I also began talking about what topic to research on for the final cultural presentation at the end of the semester. I decided with Jenna that it was going to either be about politics or history of Korea. I will update on what I will research on by the end of the next month. Another thing Jenna and I talked about and I learned in this week’s lesson was the Korean healthcare system. I pointed out last week that I currently take a class called Intro to Healthcare Sciences. In that class, we learn about the political system in America and how it connects with the healthcare system. We learned about how politics, power, policy and payment. These “four p’s” are very crucial in healthcare and all of these influence and control America. The healthcare system in Korea is universally accessible. The Korean healthcare system is a lot more efficient than America’s healthcare system. The GDP spent in American healthcare is way higher than Korea’s GDP for healthcare. There is a lot we can learn from Korea’s healthcare system. Jenna and I also talked about our opinions of universal healthcare coverage in America and how it could potentially help relieve the issues of American healthcare. This week, Jenna and I also watched a video on YouTube about the history of Korean politics. It was based on the material we learned last week about the history of Korean politics. The video talked more about the different presidents and the different coups that occurred in Korean history. Next week, Jenna and I will talk more about what I will research on for my cultural presentation. I have to narrow down the two topics I have chosen or come up with a new topic. I brought up the topic of holidays in Korea. I will update on the next bi-weekly journal in which topic I choose for the final cultural presentation.

Today is ironically March 1^st and signifies the March 1^st Movement. Last week, Jenna and I learned about the political system in Korea. The Korean political system is based on a liberal democratic political system currently. The president is considered the chief executive. In America, the term for the president lasts four years up to one reelection, but in Korea, you are only allowed one five-year term without any additional terms for reelection. Currently, the president is Moon Jae In, and she is a part of the democratic party. In Korean, the democratic party is called 더불어민주당. The other political parties in Korea include the centrist, liberal party and the merging of the democratic party and the new political vision party. The previous president before Moon Jae In was Park Geun Hye. He was part of the conservative party or the liberty Korea Party. In Korean it is 자유한국당. The Conservative party is also known as the Saenuri party or the 새누리당. It was previously known as the Hannara Party or 한나라당. Conservatism was shown through militaristic government leaders like Park Jung Hee and Jeon Doo Hwan. Conservatism is shown through economic freedom, but some older generations of Koreans are in favor of economic interventionism from Park Jun Hee’s Presidency era. Jenna and I also talked about Sung Man Rhee, the first ever president of the Republic of South Korea and was part of the Conservative party. The constitution amendment allowed him to have unlimited terms. Protests were forced upon him to resign and he was then exiled to Hawaii. The third president of the Republic of South Korea was Park Jung Hee. He stressed on industrialization and economic growth. He was the De Facto Dictator. He rose to power through military coup. He also created the Yushin Constitution or the imperial role. In 1979, Park Jung Hee was assassinated by the director of KCIA, Kim Jae Gyu, who was one of Park’s best friends. Kim jae Gyu also killed Cha Ji Chul, the chief bodyguard. Jenna and I also talked about the three national intelligence service. The central intelligence agency, the presidential security service, and the defense security command. The three national intelligence services in Korean are translated to 중앙정보부- 김재규 (central intelligence agency), 대통령경호실- 차지철 (presidential security service), 보안사령부- 전두환 (defense security command). Jenna and I also talked about Jeon Doo Hwan. He was the investigator and prosecutor of Park’s assassination case. He was already the military leader. He became more powerful after internal militaristic attacks. He became the leader of both defense security command the the central intelligence agency. There was a lot of college protests all across the country and this pressured the president for martial law command. Next week, we will also talk more about the political system in Korea and other historical events.

For the second cultural artifact, my friend and I went out to eat at a Korean restaurant the past weekend for dinner. The Korean restaurant was called “New Grand Mart” and had a variety of Korean dishes that my family as made in the past. Before going to the restaurant, I studied the history and culture of Korean food. I found that Korean families traditionally have “bonchon” or sides that accompany their main dish. Similar to America, where we have mashed potatoes with our Turkey for Thanksgiving, Korean food culture always has many sides that accompany main dishes like meat or rice. For food, I decided to order Jja-Jang-Myun, one of the most popular noodle dishes in Korea. Derived and influenced by Japanese cuisine, Jja-Jang-Myun is a black bean noodle dish that had a sweet and flavorful taste to it. Attached is the picture of the dish. The food to the right of the dish is the “bonchon,” or the sides that come along with it. It came with Kimchi, pickled radish, and sliced onions. Ordering the food in Korean was very exciting. The conversation went something like this (in Korean).

Jiwon: Hello! How are you?

Cashier: Hello, what would you like today?

Jiwon: May I get one order of Jja-Jang-Myun

Cashier: Would you like sides to come along with it?

Jiwon: Yes please, and can I get extra pickled radish on the side?

Cashier: No problem! Total is 6.50. I will call your number when your food is ready.

It was very interesting to order food in just Korean by myself. Although there were some words that I couldn’t understand, I was able to understand the general sentences and ideas the cashier was telling me. The food was really good and filling. Most everyone in the restaurant was Asian and spoke Korean. I spoke to one individual on what they ordered and what their favorite dish was. It was really cool being immersed in a Korean environment. I also recognized the accents of the cashier and the other customer. They had a pure Korean accent that I couldn’t replicate. I also looked around the store for other Korean snacks and candy with my friend. There were really interesting, and I even recognized some of the snacks that I used to eat when I was young. The experience of going to the restaurant and Korean store was really fun and interesting. Learning about different foods and different Korean candy and snacks was cool and how they differed with American foods and snacks. Also, the radio station and music in the restaurant and store was in Korean, so I felt like I was fully immersed in a Korean community. The fact that there was a Korean community present in Richmond was really fascinating and I was proud to be a part of it. In the future, I will definitely revisit New Grand Mart for the food and the atmosphere. I may even cook some Korean dishes myself in the future. In conclusion, the general experience was very enjoyable. I felt like I was learning the Korean language without trying to learn specific vocab words.

This week we looked at and studied Chuseok in Korea. Chuseok is known as Korean Thanksgiving. Chuseok is usually celebrated on September 19^th but it lasts for three days. Traditionally, Koreans go to their ancestral hometowns to spend time with their family. They usually celebrate by making a lot of food. One desert food in specific that is popular is songpyeon. Songpyeon is made of rice and dough filled with sesame seeds and red bean paste. Chuseok is also a day of gift-giving. Koreans give gifts to family members and friends to show appreciation and respect. Some examples of gifts include fruit, meat, and gift sets of beauty products. Chuseok originated to bring luck to the annual harvest for farmers in colonial Korea. Jenna and I learned fifteen words this week that is related to Chuseok. We also watched a video on Chuseok. It was really cool to see the tradition occur as a documentary film. I was happy to learn about Chuseok and it will definitely help me understand my Korean culture better. I will be able to talk to my grandma about Chuseok in Korea and she will definitely tell me her stories. Jenna and I also had a discussion on the stuff we learned so far. We took around 20 minutes talking about the video we watched about Chuseok. There were some questions I had, like what a specific phrase during the video meant in Korea. We also took time to share what we found interesting from the documentary and how Chuseok was similar and different from Thanksgiving in America. Both holidays celebrate a historical event or tradition. I hope to continue learning new traditions and holidays every week with Jenna. She has done such a great job in helping me understand and learn new traditions in Korea. The other lesson during these past two weeks, we took it easy and watched a video about the basics of politics. We saved most of the details in politics of Korea for next week, but we went over the current parties in Korea and the current president in Korea. We also talked about conservatives in Korea, similar to republicans in America. Because a lot of Korean ideals are based on democratic ideals of America, the political system in Korea is similar to ours. I hope to learn more about the political system in Korea next week with Jenna in class. I will report on more in the next bi-weekly journal. So far, I am proud of what I have learned about Korean culture. I remember when I was young, my family would celebrate some of these holidays, but I would never really know what it was based on. Learning about traditions and Korean culture has taught me a lot about myself and my family. It is amazing to see how all of it connects. One thing I want to add as a goal for this semester is to learn more about the healthcare system in Korea. I currently take HCS100 and that would connect well with learning about healthcare in Korea.

This past week we focused on the March 1^st movement. The March first movement is a holiday celebrated in Korea to pay respects to the people who lost their lives during the protests on March 1^st, 1919. Back then, Korea was under Japanese colonization and there was a protest movement calling for independence from Japan. Thousands of students and civilians in Seoul protested in the city to show displays of resistance from Japan. During this holiday, people visit the Seodamun Prison History Hall to remember and pay respects to the people who fought for Korea’s independence and democracy. Furthermore, people go through spring season tours in Gwangyang and other villages to enjoy food and experience parades. Furthermore, many Koreans go to theme parks to enjoy and spend time with their family. Lastly, a lot of people go to Ski resorts to enjoy the last chance to ski before winter ends. The March 1^st movement is like Memorial Day in America. Jenna and I also learned fifteen vocab words related to the March 1^st movement. It was interesting to compare the March 1^st movement to holidays in America. Another thing I did with Jenna was talk about children’s day in Korea. Children’s day in Korea is celebrated in May and is a day to spend time with your children and family. Parents get to take the day off from work and they usually take their children to amusement parks and gardens. I think Korean culture emphasizes on family, and we can see so many holidays being centered around spending quality time with family. I am very happy I learned more about Korean culture and traditions. Jenna is doing a great job with me limiting the amount of work I have to do for this class because I have a lot of work in other classes. That is why one of my main goals for this semester was focusing on learning Korean history rather than continuing to read and write in Korean. Next week, Jenna and I will continue our lessons with learning new holidays in Korea. We decided on learning about Chuseok next week. Chuseok is one of the most popular holidays in Korea and is also commonly known as “Korean Thanksgiving.” I hope to continue to learn about Korean history next week with Jenna. More specifically I am excited for Korean politics and how it contrasts from America’s politics. One thing that didn’t work out during out lesson with Jenna was our original plan of reading an article a week. Before we started lessons, Jenna and I decided that I would read one article a week in Korean. This would allow me to refreshen up on my reading and writing skills. But after the first couple weeks, reading an article in Korean was way too much work for me on top of everything I must already do. I hope to continue to learn about the rich history of Korea because I was born there.

The article that I read was from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-do-korean-eat-for-breakfast-3970112

For my cultural posts, I decided to investigate breakfast in Korea and how it differs from traditional American breakfast. In America, we know common breakfasts are light and not too much food. Examples of this include pancakes, cereal, oatmeal, etc. After doing research, Korean breakfast is totally different.

In Korean, breakfast is “Ah-Chim.” Very different from Western cultured breakfast, Ah-Chim contains a lot of food similar to lunch and dinner. This includes soups, stews, rice, meat, and banchan. Traditional Korean meals are based on the main entrée with many sides called “banchan.” There are hundreds of different banchan in Korean culture that can supplement main foods like meat and rice. For Korean breakfast, I found the most common meals include soups and rice for breakfast. I never knew that Korean breakfast was basically the same as lunch and dinner. I thought there would be breakfast Korean foods, but Korean breakfast foods include many dishes eaten at other times of the day. The article I read also stated that around 20 percent of Korean people don’t eat breakfast. Furthermore, Korean breakfast is also sold on the streets. Some popular Street Food Breakfasts in Korea include breakfast sandwiches, sweetbreads, and rice cakes. These are very popular with tourists and taste very good in my experience!

In the picture above, there are three main parts to this traditional Korean breakfast. Firstly, the main entrée contains two parts: the rice and the fish/eggs. The second part of the meal above is soup/broth. This soup contains cucumbers and tofu. The last part of the meal is the three sides of the banchan. The first bowl contains pickled cucumbers seasoned with spicy sauce. The second bowl contains pickled yellow radish. And the third bowl contains the very popular Kimchi, which is fermented cabbage.

Korean food is very important to Korean culture. There are many different traditional meals and banchan that are pertinent to different Korean holidays such as New Year’s Day. There are also a lot of Korean meals and snacks sold in different street vendors. There are a lot of yummy snacks and meals you can get quickly from street vendors. Some of the most popular snacks include fried tofu and mandu.

In conclusion, I have learned a lot about Korean food and snacks, specifically Korean breakfast. Korean breakfast is a lot different from American breakfast and shows how different even the most common aspects of life can be from culture to culture. Although my parents grew up in Korea, they eat American breakfast foods. I know that when I was young, my dad used to eat soup and rice during the morning but living in America has assimilated him to eat cereal and toast. I hope I can continue to learn more about Korean food culture and begin to memorize some of the words in Korean for different meals and banchan. Another thing I learned from reading a couple of articles about Korean food is that many comfort foods in Korea are spicy.

This week, Jenna and I met up on zoom and talked about what we should work on for the last semester of senior year. My main goal in SDLC was to pass the COM2 exam. But because I passed last semester, Jenna and I decided on focusing on the history of Korean culture. In the past, Jenna and I practiced reading and writing in Korean. But now I want to learn more about Korean history and understand more about the culture and traditions of Korea. Jenna and I decided on looking in depth about the different traditions in Korea. Specifically, the different cultural holidays that are celebrated in Korea. Furthermore, I talked to Jenna about how I want to focus on the different politics in Korea. I know that Korean history is very rich and in depth. I want to learn all about the history of Korea, and I hope to focus on that this semester with Jenna. The first week with Jenna was just an introductory lesson and the basics of what my goals are for the semester. Some of the resources Jenna and I decided to use for the semester included YouTube videos and articles provided to me by Jenna. I think the strategies we decided upon were very simple yet effective. I think that learning about Korean history will be very fun and interesting. I am very excited to embark on this journey in learning about Korean history and politics. The second week, Jenna and I got together on Zoom and learned basic vocabulary on Korean history and holidays. 고구려, 백제, 신라 are some of the words that Jenna taught me. One of the study methods Jenna and I decided on learning 15 vocab words every week. Some of the vocab words we will focus on involving the tradition that we will be learning about that week. This week, we focused on the Lunar New Year in Korea. The Lunar New Year is usually celebrated in late January or early February. Common traditions for the Lunar New Year are to pay respects to your elders and celebrate the new year with a traditional rice cake soup dish called tteokguk (떡국). Teeokguk is a Korean rice cake dish that is meant to refresh your soul and give you a fresh start to the year. Another common Korean tradition for Lunar new year is to visit the beach to watch the sunrise of the new year. Korean culture is based on luck and respect to your elders. Luck is a big part of the new year and most of the things they do to celebrate it is based on good luck and fortune. A cool thing about Korean culture is that they celebrate both the Solar new year on January 1^st, just like America. But they also celebrate the Lunar New Year in late January or early February. I hope to learn more about Korean culture next week with Jenna and will learn 15 new words regarding the Lunar New Year.