The Korean Dimension

Mary Hamilton Hall Collins

Adventures in South Korea

1995-2011

Chapter 5

JULY 18, 1995   

My apartment and roommate

My apartment was provided by ELS (Language Institute) where I was teaching.

It was modern, in a small building (maybe 4 apartments in one building).

It was located on a steep hill…actually some called this a mountain.  The drive to the building was at a steep angle….making unloading my heavy baggage from the van a difficult task.  Also difficult was walking up and down that drive every time I went to or left the apartment.  There were 3 steps leading from the steep drive to the front door,

Inside were two bedrooms (each room mate had a private bedroom) and one bathroom.  There was a “common room” with a kitchen table, the kitchen and some space for a drying rack or a shoe rack.

One does one wear shoes in Korean houses.  There must be a shoe rack close to the door in an entry way.  You take off your shoes and put them on the rack before you step on the regular floor.  Korean floors are a type of linoleum that can stand heat.  The heating system is recessed in the floors (it is called “ondul" heating or ondul floors). 

Usually you walk around in socks  (at a later time when I was the only tenant in an apartment, I walked around barefoot)

You also keep the floors clean at all times….even the edges and corners.

If I could I would have ondul floors in the US. This is the most efficient way to heat the apartment (with hot water pipes under the floor).  The heated floor certain feels good on your feet on a cold day. 

Many Koreans sit on the floor or even lie down on a pad on the heated floor.  You can’t imagine how good your back feels after this!

The bathroom was quite small.  There was a toilet, sink and a hand held shower in the room.  These are not separated by a shower curtain or wall or divider.  These are all in the same room.  There is a drain in the middle of the tile floor. When you take a shower the entire bathroom gets wet.  There are rubber shower slippers inside the door of the bathroom.  You are expected to wear these.The floor is often wet so you need the slippers.

Using a wet bathroom takes some getting used to (for a westerner who has only experienced dry bathrooms).  However, I soon learned that it is so easy to clean your wet bathroom.  When you are showering, just spray some water and soap on the toilet, sink, and floor.  Then later you have a clean bathroom and never have to lean over or work hard to clean behind the toilet or clean the toilet itself.  If I could I would now have a wet bathroom in the US.

The apartment was nice with a wonderful view of the mountains and the red tile roofs of the surrounding houses.

However, the roommate was another story.  She was also a teacher at the institute.  She was Korean-Canadian….and was teaching in Korea in order to find a Korean husband.  She had been able to have the apartment to herself for some time and really did not want a roommate.  Her lifestyle had been bringing young men to the apartment….not only for dinner but for the night as well.

Having me there disrupted this lifestyle.  She resented having me there. 

When I asked her to translate a word or two from Korean….and to help me she let me know that she was not there to be a translator or helper.

The first time I walked to the little neighborhood market, she flatly refused to show me where the store was.  It was not her job to help me in any way….she let me know that the first night.

The first night I was there I did go down the hill to buy a few things to eat…and that I needed.  I found the little family owned corner shop.  I could not speak a word of Korean.  Since there were several other teachers living in that area the shop owners knew that I was a new English teacher in town.

I found what I wanted to buy by just looking around the shop.  A teenage Korean girl helped me get everything to the cash register.  I did have Korean money with me.   She helped me know how much to pay.  Then she offered to help me carry things up the hill to my apartment. All of this was done with no English spoken…and some mime and hand signals.

I let her help me carry the baskets up the hill.  I was so impressed with her and her parents (who owned the shop).  After that I always shopped at their store as long as I lived in that area.

Doing laundry.  We did laundry by hand in the kitchen sink.  Then we put the clothes on drying racks set up the common room/kitchen. 

My roommate was very angry when I put my clothes on her drying rack. Apparently you were supposed to use only your own rack….no sharing.

I didn’t have a rack so I had to improvise by hanging things on door knobs and furniture. (Soon I bought my own drying rack at an outdoor market.)

Chapter 6

JULY 18, 1995   

My apartment and roommate

My apartment was provided by ELS (Language Institute) where I was teaching.

It was modern, in a small building (maybe 4 apartments in one building).

It was located on a steep hill…actually some called this a mountain.  The drive

Reaching the building was at a steep angle….making unloading my heavy baggage from the van a difficult task.  Also difficult was walking up and down that

Drive every time I went to or left the apartment.  There were 3 steps leading from

The steep drive to the front door,

Inside were two bedrooms (each room mate had a private bedroom) and one bathroom.  There was a “common room” with a kitchen table, the kitchen and

Some space for a drying rack or a shoe rack.

One does one wear shoes in Korean houses.  There must be a shoe rack close to the door in an entry way.  You take off your shoes and put them on the rack before you step on the regular floor.  Korean floors are a type of linoleum that

Can stand heat.  The heating system is recessed in the floors (it is called “ondul heating or ondul floors). 

Usually you walk around in socks.  (at a later time when I was the only tenant

In an apartment, I walked around barefoot)

You also keep the floors clean at all time….even the edges and corners.

If I could I would have ondul floors in the US. This is the most efficient way to heat the apartment (with hot water pipes under the floor).  The heated floor certain feels good on your feet on a cold day. 

Many Koreans sit on the floor or even lie down on a pad on the heated floor.

You can’t imagine how good your back feels after this!

The bathroom was quite small.  There was a toilet, sink and a hand held shower in the room.  These are not separated by a shower curtain or wall or divider.  These are all in the same room.  There is a drain in the middle of the tile floor.

When you take a shower the entire bathroom gets wet.  There are rubber shower

Slippers inside the door of the bathroom.  You are expected to wear these.

The floor is often wet so you need the slippers.

Using a wet bathroom takes some getting used to (for a westerner who has only experienced dry bathrooms).  However, I soon learned that it is so easy to clean your wet bathroom.  When you are showering, just spray some water and soap on the toilet, sink, and floor.  Then later you have a clean bathroom and never have to lean over or work hard to clean behind the toilet or clean the toilet itself.

If I could I would now have a wet bathroom in the US.

The apartment was nice with a wonderful view of the mountains and the red tile roofs of the surrounding houses.

However, the roommate was another story.  She was also a teacher at the institute.  She was Korean-Canadian….and was teaching in Korea in order to find a Korean husband.  She had been able to have the apartment to herself for some time and really did not want a roommate.  Her lifestyle had been bringing young men to the apartment….not only for dinner but for the night as well.

Having me there disrupted this lifestyle.  She resented having me there. 

When I asked her to translate a word or two from Korean….and to help me

The first time I walked to the little neighborhood market, she flatly refused.

It was not her job to help me in any way….she let me know that the first night.

The first night I was there I did go down the hill to buy a few things to eat…and that I needed.  I found the little family owned corner shop.  I could not speak a word of Korean.  Since there were several other teachers living in that area the shop owners knew that I was a new English teacher in town.

I found what I wanted to buy by just looking around the shop.  A teenage Korean girl helped me get everything to the cash register.  I did have Korean money with me.   She helped me know how much to pay.  Then she offered to help me carry things up the hill to my apartment. All of this was done with no English spoken…and some mime and hand signals.

I let her help me carry the baskets up the hill.  I was so impressed with her and her parents (who owned the shop).  After that I always shopped at their store as long and I lived in that area.

Doing laundry.  We did laundry by hand in the kitchen sink.  Then we put the clothes on drying racks set up the common room/kitchen. 

My roommate was very angry when I put my clothes on her drying rack. Apparently you were supposed to use only your own rack….no sharing.

I didn’t have a rack so I had to improvise by hanging things on door knobs and furniture. (Soon I bought my own drying rack at an outdoor market.)

SCHOOL, TEACHING

CHURCH

CULTURE notes

FOOD

RELATIONSHIPS