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  • Writer's pictureeliyambl

New Year, New Me: Twenty-Five Going on Twenty-Seven

“This blog is not an official site of the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State. The views expressed on this site are entirely those of myself and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations.”

Gwanganlli Bridge sunrise

First, Happy Super Belated New Year. I was not able to celebrate New Year to the fullest because from December to March, South Korea implemented a 9:00 PM curfew on restaurants and bars. So, I spent the New Year with friends at my home where we cooked a delicious meal and saw the first sunrise of the year.


Second, I wrote parts of this post back in December 2021 (two months after my last post in October) and continued to build on it in the following months. I have been carried away and have not had the patience to sit down and write. While I am no comedian, I must find the time where I feel influenced to write with sass and humor. If you look at my 'notes' application on my phone, you'll find lists of sentences to remind me to mention them in my post. Phrases like "weird relationship with shoes," "why are they so clean?" or "should I be brushing my teeth at work?"


Over the next few months, I will try to publish new posts retrospectively. Keep an eye out for posts on what it is like to get COVID in Korea, political discourses that I am learning to navigate, my weekend excursions, South Korean cultural idiosyncrasies, and exciting eats.


This post is dedicated to my great Uncle Ron - he enjoyed reading my blogs and hearing about all the little journeys I am on. He played a big part in shaping my identity as a young woman in high school and constantly mentored me through the higher education processes. Since I can no longer catch up with him during the family holidays over some soft tortillas or day-old pan dulce, I feel encouraged to 'write into the void' about what is happening halfway across the world. And I'll imagine his comments of encouragement on Facebook. "Keep up the good work!" Bring on the sass.


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Age is just a Number, RIGHT?


Let me tell you my story of getting two years older and entering my late twenties in a matter of six months. I turned 25 a week before I moved to South Korea. I dreaded the fact that I was 1/4 of a century. However, the day I arrived in South Korea (August 18th), I turned 26. Currently, I am 27 years old on March 16th, 2022. Now, I am miserable because I am in my late twenties.


Confused? South Korea measures age from the womb, and after every New Year, you add one more year to your age. For example, if I were born on December 31st, 1996 (I was not), I would be one year old out of my mother's womb. On January 1st, 1997, I would turn two years old despite being only one day old. That's the system. I don't question it. I don't like it.


The Korean language implements an honorific system. Instead of using he/her/they pronouns, they call people by their name, title, or age position. Let me break it down for those who do not know:


Woman Speaker

Man Speaker

Older Sister

Unnie

Noona

Older Brother

Oppa

Hyung

Thus, to young women, I am an Unnie, and to young men, I am a Noona. Overall, I am an older sister (familial connection not need), also known as an old lady per my terms. I am reminded that I am older than most of my friends on a monthly basis. My friend's younger sister calls me "Eliya Unnie," which I cringe in horror, but I am also touched that she sees me as such. However, I have one friend who finds joy in calling me "Eliya Noona" and rubbing in that I am a wise old lady. Roles have reversed. I used to be the one teasing old people. Now I am the one being teased.

Eliya Unnie and her dongsaengs (younger sibling, non-familial) at a cafe in Jeonju

White Christmas in Seoul

Eliya unnie spent Christmas in Seoul with her two dongsaengs, Hye-in and Hye-won. I wrote about Hye-in in my first blog post. We first met in 2017 at a local bar and continued to stay in contact. At Hye-in's home, I officially became an unnie to her younger sister and her dog. Hilarious.


Eliya unnie and her younger sister, Tigger the dog

Hye-in lives in the farther end of Seoul with her mother, father, sister, and dog Tigger. For several days, all we did was sleep and eat. Before I arrived at her home, her mother went to Costco to buy "American" foods for Christmas. She wanted me to feel at home during the holidays. We ate mac n' cheese, salads, fruits, and cakes. Hye-in's home was warm and cozy despite the freezing outside temperatures (a warm 7 degrees F). Her mother prepared delicious meals and played games with us. Her father traditionally prepared tea for me and displayed his pottery. I had a lot of common interests with her father, but the language barrier made it hard to speak with him.


Since it was Christmas, we had to do something Christmas-y. Hye-in, Hye-won, and I went to see the Nutcracker performance in the Seoul Arts Center. It was my second time seeing it - the first time was with the San Francisco Ballet. It was neat to see how people around the world interpret the Nutcracker. Following the ballet performance, we made our way to Myeongdong for dinner, to see the cathedral Christmas lights, and of course, get my eyebrows threaded.


Eliya unnie and her dongsaengs at the Nutcracker

During my short trip to Seoul, I also had the opportunity to meet my Fulbright friends in person. We went to one of Asia's best bars - Bar Cham, where they serve cocktails influenced by traditional Korean alcohols. And shared some delicious dalkgalbi, stir-fried chicken. I also saw my friend Evan from college that came to visit his family during the holidays. We lived in the same "house" during our first year at UC San Diego. Evan has been an unexpected friend that I have continued to keep in touch with over the past few years. We caught up over tea at the Ossulloc Tea House and ate Hamheung Naengmyeon, North Korean-style cold noodles.


Left to right/top to bottom: Korean rice cakes, a fancy cocktail made from my dad's favorite bourbon, traditional building near tea house, dalkgalbi, photo booth with friends, and Baskin Robbins in traditional Korean building.


It's a Korean Hannukah Miracle!

What do Koreans and Jews have in common? They enjoy an occasion to drink, and they both eat potato pancakes. If you are a Jewish person in Korea, you will have no problem celebrating Hannukah. While I am not a practicing Jew - I enjoy my pork belly and dipping my stir-fried chicken in gooey cheese - I do partake in the holiday traditions if they involve food and presents. Since I am a Fulbright student, it is my duty to engage my community in cross-cultural interactions. Thus, I packed my hanukiah and candles to share the celebrations with the patrons at a local bar.


It's not that hard to celebrate Hannukah. You need to be creative. All you need are some potato pancakes, wine, and jelly donuts. The train station near my home has a Dunkin' Donuts - go figure - and I have strawberry jam in my fridge, boom. Now you've got jelly donuts. Every culture has its version of a pancake. South Korea makes egg battered green onion, meat, perilla leaves, and kimchi pancakes. They also make their version of a potato pancake. So, I made my way to the local sool jib (literal translation: alcohol house, bar) to buy a couple. With excitement, I told the owners in Korean that it was Hannukah and it is required to eat potato pancakes! And their response was, "Oh! You're Jewish, and you're a researcher?! That's why you are so smart." I respond with a "Nawww." They also follow up with a "are you Mexican?" That was a first.


So, I had my potato pancake, jelly donut, and hanukiah. All I needed was wine, however, grape wine does not pair well with a Korean potato pancake. Rice wine does.


Hanukiah with all the fixings

Work Hard, Play Hard

It's not all fun and games. Sometimes I need to sit down and study. In December, I participated in the Yeosu Academy on the Law of the Sea. The course, usually in-person, but due to COVID, was hosted via Zoom lectures folks from developing countries on international ocean law. While the course touched upon interesting topics regarding ocean affairs and was led by prominent scholars on the law of the sea (like the best of the best), it was a little disappointing. The course failed to help students critically think about ocean law and how it may affect power struggles within and outside their countries.


Furthermore, what does scholar in Iceland or Norway truly know about the issues happening in Indonesia? The course did not bring the perspectives of folks from developing countries. And since the course was online, there was no opportunity to network with the speakers or students, which is the most important aspect of these types of courses.


Idiosyncracies Part 1 (shall be continued in future posts, maybe)

If you happen to find yourself in a coffee shop, you will come across two types of people. First, the boyfriend-girlfriend hosting a photoshoot in the middle of the coffee shop. But this is not your typical "let's take cute pictures." Here, the boyfriend will hold his girlfriend's phone in 'selfie mode' towards her as she looks at herself on the screen, and he presses the camera button. The second person you will find is the student with their shoes off, either massaging their nasty feet or placing them on another seat. Since I am not a foot person, and I know many of my friends are the same, I think this is one of the foulest things someone can do in a public area.


Let me preface, wearing shoes inside the home is disgusting. And, if you do that, you are bringing dog doo and human saliva into your home. In a pandemic, I would never. South Korea's relationship with shoes is very odd to me. Many people do not properly wear their shoes, and eventually, they ruin the heel of their shoes. And many stores sell shoes (Vans, Converse, Nike, Adidas, etc.) designed to accommodate that Korean taste of wearing shoes incorrectly. I guess it fits the need to easily take off your shoes when entering a home. But at what cost? Fashion, I think. That's the end of Foot Talk. Come again when I cover dating culture.


The End

I will dedicate a post to anything and everything on food if I remember.












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