Spend enough time in Korea and you will get asked the inevitable question: What’s your blood type? When I was first asked about my blood type, I wasn’t able to answer. In fact, I’ve observed most of my North American and European friends are uncertain of their blood type. Is it important to know? Sure. But …
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Fortunately, in our wide world of numerous languages and dialects, these words need not be spoken, or translated for that matter, for the message of a photograph to be conveyed and appreciated. Social media outlet (and my most recent app addiction), Instagram, proves this to be …
I love this time of year. No, not spring. Not Easter, either. It’s election time in Korea!! Two hundred ninety-nine new assembly members will be elected this upcoming Wednesday for a four year term. New members will come from one of the many parties established in Korea’s multi-party system. Currently, conservative parties dominate the assembly, …
Koreans love taking pictures of themselves. It’s not uncommon to be in a cafe and look around to find girls at surrounding tables holding up their cell phones, finding their best angle, and snapping away like they are the stars of their very own photo shoots. Riding on the bus or subway, I’ve watched girls …
There’s a Korean expression that describes the latest cold snap: 꽃샘추위 or “Kkotsaemchuwi” literally meaning “the cold is jealous of the spring flowers.” Whenever the weather starts to get relatively pleasant here, there’s always a few cold snaps before spring can get the chance to really to set in. Despite winter’s jealousy issues, I’ve been …
I had been putting it off for a while, so when I saw March’s visit advertised on the Korea4Expats website, I knew I couldn’t put it off anymore. With my time left in Korea getting shorter, I knew that it would be ignorant of me not to take advantage of the wonderful opportunity to visit …
Over the past few weekends, I’ve done a lot of fun things here in Seoul with great friends. These range from a fun night of cosmic bowling to a girl’s night bar hopping in Itaewon to seeing my idol, Taylor Swift, in concert. I’m not sure why, but although I’ve been doing such things, I’ve …
It’s holiday time across the world and people everywhere are celebrating. Including Korea. It’s my second holiday season in Seoul and I’m once again finding ways to incorporate traditions which I’ve grown up with into the practices and customs here. I’m not alone, either. In fact, the expat group here in Seoul is quite tight-knit …
One thing that sticks out about Seoul is that it is so dynamic. One neighborhood may find you feeling as if you’ve stepped back to ancient times where a few subway stops down the line will have you surrounded by PC bangs, neon, and other urban vibes. This has become even more evident to me …
In the past, I’ve heard people say many things about how to know a country’s culture. One of these said ways is to play their sport (“Dhani Tackles the Globe“). For anyone who knows me, they would say that this would be a joke for me, as I do not have an athletic bone in …