Why Now?

안녕하세요 ~ Hello! A couple months of Korean Rosetta Stone and many more months of watching Korean drama on Hulu as well as YouTubeing Korean Pop videos, I have become more familiar with many things Korean than I was a year ago. Granted, I know that watching KPOP and learning a few words cannot scratch the surface of a very ancient culture, but slowly and surely... I'm trying to learn. There are things that might suprise you, and it certainly suprised me! Such as, every male in South Korea has to serve at least 2 years in their military... and I mean every male! Doesn't matter if your Rain

- a super famous star in Korea, we are talking about Justin Bieber and Brad Pitt combined in South Korea... and he could only delay but not avoid, which is why he is enlisted right now. I could not imagine that our government could make every male enlist in the military for 2 years... let alone the celebrity status of Bieber or Timberlake. I am also learning that plastic surgery is more popular in South Korea than it is in America, or pretty much, anywhere else! It seems their culture is focused on striving for perfection in not only their academics (which is also why they have one of the highest, if not THE highest in suicide rate) but physical looks as well.

Kimchi or Gimchee is eaten all year round at breakfast, lunch and dinner, and in between. Could you imagine eating a specific item almost everyday, every meal for your entire life? Certainly not everyone in Korea does this, but it is amazing the fact at how many do. I certainly love Kimchi, and can eat it many times...but could not imagine eating it at every meal. My husband DEFINITELY could not eat Kimchi...very unique taste, one of those that you either love or hate when you try it. I've tried Bibimbap,

I've made my version of Korean bbq and Bulgogi... I like noodles and in school I was good at math. I like to dork out with video games and can spend hours on the computer watching youtube videos. I am a bad driver and very apologetic when I've done something wrong or feel like I have. Maybe I fit more into the stereotype than I realized... but before when I tried desperately to avoid fitting into any asian stereotype, now I embrace it. Why Now? ~ I can only reason that I am now determined to embrace the culture that I once refuted is due to me accepting more and more of who I am. I will never be fully American, and never be fully Korean. I may go to Korea and feel more different there than I do in America, and perhaps it may not be the experience I have in mind, if I EVEN have a certain experience in mind. I'm going because I've realized that despite not being 100 per cent one way or the other, Korea is a part of me, even if it's a small part. That small part is important to me, and I want to learn more about it while being proud of where and how I grew up.