Koreana Experience - Part I

Mianhamnida, speak no Korean. Sorry!

This happens to me all the time. Getting mistaken by a Korean as a Korean. Ahhh...Winter Sonata. This is the only Korean thing I know before I came to New Jersey. I definitely don't look anything like them so I don't understand how all of this could be. They're so cute & she's so darn fair looking.

Fort Lee & Palisades Park are two Korean towns near my place. In the beginning, I did consider learning more Korean phrases but the language is really hard to grasp; not to mention the intricate and complicated “hanja” characters or rather the now Korean-ized hangul. Their pronunciation is another matter.

"How are you?"

I am hangul illiterate so I see only lots of squares, stick men doing the split, sitting down, hanging upside down, etc. no? Well, that's just me being ignorant. But, I am no bigot. I have a lot of respect for the Korean community here. They work very hard and have blended in successfully into the American society.

"Sorry"

For those who speak and write Chinese/Mandarin, learning Korean should be easier for them since the language has Chinese roots. Unfortunately, the closest thing I speak to Mandarin is Hokkien (my genealogical dialect). So, I’ve resorted to learning simple Korean phrases by ear. It’s going to cause a lot of embarrassment but it’s just simpler for me this way.

To date, my Korean is still zilch, unfit even for conversational purposes. Meanwhile, my identity kerfuffle continues…

A week ago - Han Ah Reum Supermarket

Lady: blah, blah, blah… (Inaudible Korean - asking for some directions on how to cook a bunch of unfamiliar looking vegetables)
Me: Err, sorry, I am not Korean.
Lady: Sorry, sorry! Ha..ha..ha...
Me: Huh?! Funny meh? (Thinking to myself)


Three days ago - Little Ferry Laundromat

Lady: blah, blah, blah… (Inaudible Korean - enthusiastically chatting away, explaining something to me)
Me: Sorry but I am not Korean.
Lady: Oh, sorry!!! You, Chinese?!
Me: Yes.
Lady: Oh, I am the new owner of this place. New management - last Friday. Thank you for coming.
Me: Ok, nice meeting you.