아쉬움

Sorak is not his real name, it is how I remember him. Sorak like thousands of Chinese students in Korea, was vying for a place in the local universities. We met at Advanced 1 Korean language class. Being a non-native speaker of Korean, he has the best command of the language among the Chinese students I knew. The secret behind his language proficiency, he mixes frequently with native Koreans and kyobos for drinks and pool at night. He drinks soju like water and consecutive day-and-night drinkings do not seem to knock him out. I am hopeless when it comes to drinking but I match him in pool. Not too bad for someone who only practises on the pool table in the dormitory while doing laundry.

If heavy drinking is not bad enough, Sorak smokes like a chimney. He may sound like a problem student whom any teacher will not like to see in their class. On the contrary, Sorak is one of the most enthusiastic Chinese students I have seen. The one-child policy in China has not created the "little emperor mentality" in him. He is hardworking and was the only Chinese students in my class who passed his university's entry interview based purely on merits. The interview was conducted entirely in Korean which made it not an easy feat. Sorak has a long-held wish - to be the valedictorian during the graduation ceremony, an honour reserved only for the most senior graduate class. He never fulfilled his wish. He left for Sungkyungwan University after completing Advanced 1 Korean language class.

At the end of our graduation ceremony, I saw Sorak standing in front of an almost emptied auditorium with an indescribable expression. Something in me told me, it was actually an expression of "아쉬움" (regret). I recalled asking my dowoomi, does 안타까움 express a greater sense of regret compared to "아쉬움". "No, I use them interchangeably", she said. It seems then, there might just be only one degree of regret, you cannot have more or less of it.

I did not realise there was a face to "아쉬움". 동생, 고마워

선택

I have two teachers, one is in her early thirties and the other late forties. Both are happily married. We asked them, at different time, the same question: Why do you choose your husband?

The younger of the two has a story to tell,

"I didn't like him initially. He was not "my style" but he was very persistent. One night, I was alone at home. Normally, my boyfriend would call me every night, but for some reason he has not been calling me recently. I think it was one of those tricks guys normally use to make girls fall for them. They would start off calling you every day and night and after they have made it a habit for you to wait for their call, they suddenly disappear into oblivion, making you miss them. So that night, his call didn't come. As I was about to fall asleep, I heard some noises. I opened my eyes and right in front of me was a stranger. I was so scared to the extent I forgot to scream. Fortunately, the stranger left hurriedly when he saw me. I thought I have locked the door but perhaps I didn't. Anyway, while I was still recovering from shock, my phone rang. I don't know if it was a coincidence, it was my boyfriend who called. After I told him about the incident, he rushed over to keep me company. That was the time when I knew he is the one for me."

On the other hand, her senior didn't have much to say. Wearing a cryptic smile, she gave us a one-sentence answer,

"안 미워서..." (because I don't hate him)

냄새

The topic of discussion was smell. My teacher started talking about '청국장' (Cheonggukjang, fast-fermented bean paste). He pointed to a place in Cheongnyangni which sells very good '청국장찌개' (Cheonggukjang Stew). He was seen (or pretending to) wiping away his drool as he went about describing how delicious the dish was. I could not imagine myself enjoying it in any way despite some convincing 'sales talk' by my teacher. 'Cheonggukjang', like smelly tofu, is notorious for its strong 'stench'. A must-try for those who are adventurous with food.

From Cheonggukjang's smell, we moved on to talk about people and smell. It was a rather sensitive topic to dwell on, especially when you have to associate certain people to certain smell. One misstep and you may get people calling you a chauvinist or racist. However, the discussion was meant to be taken in good faith. It was meant to be some sort of a cultural exchange.

My teacher, a Korean, started the ball rolling by saying that Koreans have the smell of '마늘' (garlic). The baton was passed next to my Japanese classmate who gave a rather decent answer. She said Japanese have the smell of '간장' (soy sauce).

My Chinese classmate was next in line.

"중국은 너무 커서 지역에 따라..." (China is very big, depending on the region...), before my Chinese classmate could finish her sentence, my teacher interrupted.

"...냄새도 달라요.", (... the smell also differs) my teacher completed the sentence. The cause of my teacher's behaviour had to do with him hearing too much of the same old answer. Such is the Chinese students' dilemma. Because of the size and cultural diversity of their country, whatever answer they give will hardly be representative.

When it was my turn to speak, I gave a very frank answer but I won't reveal it here. Instead, I will write what I would have wanted to say, "싱가폴의 경우에는 인간미가 강하죠!" (In the case of Singapore, the smell of humanity is very strong, don't you think so?). I hope we will arrive there one day, the sooner the better. '인간미' (人間味) is what we should strive for and not the smell of some metal.

언어

My 'Japanese language teachers'

My 'Russian language teacher'. 안녕 is Привет.

(Pictures above are that of my classmates introducing their mother tongues in Korean language during lesson time)

My Chinese friends were full of admiration what I said I am proficient in both English and Chinese. Being effectively bilingual is their dream but a difficult one. I could fully appreciate their sentiments. I didn't have it easy as well.

Now that I know a third language, I am more open to foreign languages. Language to me, previously, is an exam subject that I had to pass. Today, I view it as a communication tool. If I have the wish to communicate, then learning a new 'tool' is not a big problem.

한마당

Going to school in spring was a wonderful experience. The cool weather was refreshing, blooming flowers were everywhere, school was abound with activities and I felt like I was charged everyday.

Below is a group of pictures which I didn't manage to upload last spring. Spring was a busy season, you know.

School's main gate was blocked off to traffic for one full day for Street Cultural Festival.

This is a 'lioness' that is supposed to 'fight' a lion (See the next picture to get what I mean). It is 'heavyweight' for sure.

'Lion' and 'lioness' pushing against each other. The winner is the one that forces the other party to move backward. If I am not wrong, this activity originates from Japan.

Cheering supporters

Festival crowd

Banners showing the events on each day during the festival week

Gaint inflatable slide. You will find this sort of slide in many festivals.

Weee~~~

Water bomb game with 'live' targets

You are supposed to kick a ball and the board which the ball hits is your prize. Prizes include sweet, sausage, bun, cookies, 1,000won note, mini fan, drink, soju and free hug. Not very attractive though.

A show of esprit de corps

Mass dancing to the tune of Korean folk song

Sparkle Sparkle 샤방샤방

Cheerleaders performance

Open concert for families and students

마니산의 봄

The journey up Mt. Mani (마니산, 摩尼山) was anything but a walk in the park. My leg muscles weren't conditioned for some rigorous climbing. Bad ache and cramps, however, failed to dishearten me from trying to reach the peak at 468m above sea level. There was this desire in me to want to be part of Korean legend, to be where Dangun (단군, 檀君) was said to have prayed to the heaven during the old Joseon Dynasty.

Spring flowers had started to bloom, though much of the trees were still left bare. Speckles of pink, purple and yellow littered the mountain. The spirits of spring must have been back merry-making at their playground. Wandering clouds joined in the spring festival, enveloping the mountain and hikers in a veil of mist. I could have mistaken Mt. Mani for the place on earth where heaven is found.

Misty mountain with blooming azelea and cheeful hikers.

Cherry blossoms overhanging a pool of tranquil water

벚꽃이 폈을 때

When the cherry blossoms were blooming, it was very difficult to concentrate on my lesson. There was this temptation to skip class and laze around at the fountain plaza. Not only was the cherry blossoms scenery beautiful, the sunshine was also very gentle.

서예

Calligraphy to the Chinese is called 서법(書法), to the Japanese 서도(書道) and Korean 서예(書藝). I learned this during my Hanja lesson.

Actually Hanja lesson had nothing to do with Korean calligraphy except that the professor who taught me Hanja is very passionate about it. He is a master in calligraphy and conduct lessons for the public during his free time.

It was two weeks to end-of-term exam and the turnout for the Hanja lesson was quite pathetic. To be exact, only three of us were present. Instead of going through our Hanja textbook, our professor wanted to introduce calligraphy to us.

He brought in his calligraphy paper, brushes, ink and inkstone and we arranged the tables and spread out the calligraphy paper. Before we could start our practice, our professor spoke at length the philosophy of calligraphy.

Calligraphy is not just writing; it is also a training of our mind. Once you can get your mind to focus on the brush strokes, it will start to calm down naturally. Soon, it will be fully relax as it leaves the mundane world behind.

It seems like calligraphy, at its best, is sort of a mind meditation. Anyway, I was quite hopeless at the writing but my Japanese classmates were very good. I practiced my writing with the word "된사람" (be a man) and it ended with my professor writing the word and giving it as a gift to me. His masterpiece (left) was originally written across. To accommodate this posting, I make it runs vertically.

To be a man, as in a man with high moral standard and discipline, is not easy. As a word, "된사람" is quite easy to write but a lot of hard work is needed to live up to it.

마무리

It was Friday and the time was almost reaching 1pm, the end of my day lesson and my five-day school week. Megumi had been presenting on her research topic for the past one and half hour leaving no time for the second presenter. At 5 minutes to one, our teacher, listening from the back of the classroom, told Megumi, "마무리하세요." (Please do your conclusion). Megumi wasn't really anywhere near the end yet, but had to end her presentation abruptly. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It was the start of weekend and I felt a sense of joy falling upon me suddenly.

With the above story, I shall also make my "마무리" here. I am going to have a long "lunch" and then enjoy my "weekend". If you are interested in knowing what I actually mean, you may want to read my previous posting.

Happy New Year and have a great weekend ^^

Given a chance, life will extend out of any cracks and crevices. The strength of it is inherent in life itself. The day when I let 'loose' my life, I found that I was no longer helpless.

I missed the train home so I thought I just took a picture of the departing train. I have learned that opportunity missed will come again, I just need to wait patiently at the platform.

If you have noticed, I took many pictures at the end of the day because it is the most beautiful moment of the day. Just imagine, if we don't allow a day to end, how are we going to see the beautiful sunset. 있을 때 잘해야지라는 말이 좋다.

33반의 사진첩

STUDY
추운 겨울 가운데 열심히 공부하는 척했던,



PLAY
에버랜드에서 마음껏 놀았던,



EAT
모인 벌금으로 피자를 시켜서 맛있게 먹었던 우리 33반

지난해 성탄 전야

Here is what I did last Christmas Eve.

I had to attend class as per normal from 9am to 1pm. However, there wasn't much serious learning that day. We spent the first hour going through a bit of homework. The second hour was spent playing "yunnori". The winners of the game got to chose their Christmas gift first from a table of gifts which everyone of us contributed one. My team came in last, so were left to 'fight' among ourselves for some "miserable-looking" gifts. Anyway, it was good fun.

In the 3rd and 4th hour, we had our first presentation of the term. It was not just a plain presentation. We had to get people interested in the Korean culture we were presenting. In other words, we had to promote Korean culture to others. A presenter who was promoting "ddeokbokki" asked, "여러분, 출출할 때 가장 먹고 싶은 간식이 뭐예요?" (What is the snack food you most wanted to eat when you feel slightly hungry?) We were quite co-operative. We responded by shouting out "ddeokbokki" in unison even though we could have other food in mind.

It was a simple but memorable Christmas Eve.

Our teacher-in-charge, Park 쌤, drew this on the board. 귀엽지.

Our first class photo. Everyone was holding to our Christmas gift.

Shin 쌤 came to class all dressed up for Christmas.

Shin 쌤 in her signature "megawatt smile" after receiving her gift.

The 'promoters' for Hanbok.

The 'promoters' for Korean Sauna.

Merry Christmas. If the forecast is right, it is going to be a white Christmas in Seoul ^^

여름, 겨울방학

There is no winter or summer holiday for language students. When most of the students left for their holiday we only had the stone lion in the courtyard to keep us company. The lion must be quite 'lonely' every winter and summer.

In Summer

In Winter

사랑이 뭐 길래?

I used to have an American classmate. He was funny. He cracked jokes, did 'silly' (in the funny sense) things which contributed to making our class's atmosphere lively. I believe this has something to do with his social circle; he befriended many Korea's well-known gag men (comedians). He probably has more Korean friends than American friends and among them, the most famous has got to be the Korean singer - 이승철.

While he may come across as a joyous person, his life story will tell you otherwise. He did not love his mother as a child because he hated her for choosing to divorce his father and then leaving him and his siblings in the care of his grandmother to work somewhere else. He related this story of his in his poignant speech, titled "조건 없는 사랑" (unconditional love) during the 12th WKLSCFF held in KHU on May 15 this year.

If you can understand his speech which he had made into a video, you will probably understand why the judges had selected him to be one of the 20 finalists from among 1,100 applicants. The most important point in his speech is perhaps what we would call the greatest love in this world - sacrifice. In the context of his speech, it is the sacrifice which every mother would make for their children. It was only after he understood the sacrifice which his mother made that he rediscovered his love for her. His speech was not just a tribute to his mother or grandmother but to all the mothers whom have made sacrifices without conditions or what he called "조건 없는 사랑".

My classmate's script was great but he forgotten his lines during the contest and was unplaced. We believed he had a good chance to come in top if he could deliver his speech fluently. We knew he had the ability to speak well but he just wasn't himself on the contest day. Despite that, we were still proud of him.

My American classmate delivering his speech on "unconditional love" during the 12th WKLSCFF held in KHU on May 15 this year. You will get to watch the background video behind him in full below.


This video was probably made about 3 weeks before the contest. It is about 3 minutes long because that is a contest's rule. Anyone who exceeds 3 minutes on the contest day would have their mic switched off.


This video was played in the background whilst he made his speech. He need not do this video since I don't think it gave him any additional points. But since it was done, it just only shows how much he feels about what he says. This video is his tribute to all the mothers in the world.

사진을 살펴 보자

Sometimes, photos capture more details than you expect, just like the two below. With no disrespect to my classmates, I am not going to talk about them, at least for this post. I am more interested in what was written on the blackboard behind them.

The writings on the blackboard behind my Japanese classmate was written by my teacher. It says, a fine system is (officially) introduced on Jan 29 (2009), Thursday. Latecomer will be fined 1,000won and absentee 2,000won.

A few weeks after the system was implemented, our class's secretary collected enough money to buy pizza for everyone.


The writings on the blackboard behind my Chinese classmate are guidelines on how we should conduct our current affairs' presentation. First, we need to introduce our selected article to the class. Next, it will be article reading. After that, we have to summarise and explain the article briefly. We also need to explain difficult words (when required). Finally, we have to think about the problems and issues that are related to our article.

There was a lot of stress preparing for the presentation but it was worth my effort because I got an 'A' grade for it.