We're So Ethnic!

This weekend was AWESOME!! I chillaxed with friends and made more adventures in Daejeon. One of our friend's came to visit from Busan and we went to our very first club! Club Cocoon was the name of it and it was a hip-hop club. It was so interesting how a genre of music can cross over into various countries and totally influence the culture. As soon as I stepped into the club I felt like I was back in the states, Jay-z was playing and Walk It Out, I almost felt like I was back in Atlanta! The bar offered free drinks until 4 am and the bartenders were doing fancy tricks juggling bottles in the air. The look was very 1999 urban hip-hop;one of the bartenders had some form of doo-rag on his head, hilarious to say the least. While we were there we made friends with a club promoter from Africa, he showed us around the club and introduced us to some of the Korean friends he made while living here for the last year. Making Korean friends is still on my list of things to do while I'm out here so that my language disability can eventually fade, and I can move around like a somewhat normal person. But yes the club was alive everyone at the bar was enjoying themselves and the music was bumping, all until we got to the dance floor. Although the place was packed everyone was grooving to the music like deranged zombies swaying from side to side. After a few more drinks the Americans (me-goos) and Africans decided to show them how it's done. We made our way to the dance floor and inspired a few Koreans to rethink their dance moves. Soon after we were on stage and all eyes were on us, (normally I would feel so awkward but intense staring is the story of my life out here so what can you do!) What happened after I was not ready for, I was snatched up by an overly excited 20 something year old Korean guy that was getting a little too fresh. It made me think back to our tips at orientation and how all the guest speakers were like oh no Korean guys are very passive, I thought to myself mmmmhm if this was the states he would of got a slap in the face and a kick in the balls! But I thought to myself it's best I do this in a subtle manner and "save face" as we were taught to do. Sidenote: saving face is a term used to describe the Confuscius way of thinking Koreans follow. In Korean society you must always save face, and beware of saving face for others, to not publicly humilate anyone. So I gave my friend the eye, (you know, the come save me right now eye) and he slowly whisked me away from the crazed dancer. After a few more dances and a few more laughs we decided to head back to our places of residences and get some sleep.

Saturday: Was a zombie day and a night owl night for me. I woke up early thanks to all the banging on my door from my friends. Later on that night we went to dinner and had samyopsun which is pork bbq Korean style. It's absolutely near impossible to shy away from pork in Korea; Korea is a pork nation. Apparently, beef is a delicacy here and much of the restaurants you'll find will have little pork cartoon characters on the sign. So to say the least, I'm a little tired of all the pork products, I actually would of been a lot happier with KFC believe it or not I'm missing American food. Nevertheless, I had to be a crowd pleaser and decided to go with the flow. My mood Saturday was kind of withdrawn, I really wanted to chill, listen to my friend play his acoustic guitar which he name Michelyah and maybe have a coffee or watch a good movie. Sidenote: Paul is our corky South African friend that actually had us believing that Michelyah was his girlfriend he brought with him to Korea and hid in his room for all 9 days of orientation. But since we haven't seen each other in a bit everyone wanted to hit the bars. The first place we went to looked like Olive Garden inside minus the bright lighting they always have. As soon as we walked in a table of Koreans fell in love with my friend Paul, it was like they had known each other forever. They called him over, offered him drinks and were laughing it up. Next thing I knew Paul was arm wrestling this giant Korean guy who basically toyed with him before he totally slammed his arm on the table. After that moment of male bonding, the Korean table and our table became friends and everyone was cheersing with the other and taking photos. Koreans are very serious about their picture taking; I think we must have taken 10 shots for one picture because the guy that was taking our picture was a perfectionist and kept trying to get that perfect shot! Then another guy that was from Japan decided to take on the big Korean for an arm wrestling match. Now to the uneducated eye this would seem like harmless good fun, but the history of Korea leaves a bitter taste in Korean peoples mouths whenever there is any talk of Japan. So this friendly match was friendly with slightly hostile undertones. When the Japanese guy won the big Korean was so disappointed and continued to sulk until he demanded a rematch and was defeated again! But all in all both crowds were good sports and loved us. As they got up to leave this one Korean guy that I had took a picture with earlier that night came up to our table and told us girls how stunningly beautiful we all were. He then drew out a heart with his fingers and pointed me out saying, "oh so beautiful so beautiful." I was pretty embarrassed and politely said kamsaneeda (thank you). It really made me feel good that whenever we go out we are always greeted so warmly by people, because before coming here I did quite a bit of research on what it's like to be a foreigner in Korea, and what I gathered was that Koreans didn't like Americans much less black Americans in particular. But I can honestly say that I have not experienced or felt "that kind of vibe" at all since I've been here. It has actually been the exact opposite. I think that Korean people are very fascinated by my black friends and I and are pleasantly surprised that we do not live up to some of the dreadful negative images depicted of black people on television. Not a day goes by that I don't have someone telling me how beautiful I am or how great my teeth are. It's pretty sweet and not only is it a self-esteem booster but in a way I feel like a mini ambassador showing this country that black people are smart, educated, beautiful, and positive. If I can leave here knowing I enlightened at least one person I'd be more than fulfilled. That's why everyday I get up for work, I put on my best clothes and always make sure that my image is respectable, professional, all while still being true to my identity. I understand that at the end of the day I represent myself more than anything, but I've also come to understand that my experience here is bigger than just me and my experience; I am a representative of my country and a representative of my mixed heritage and I try to carry myself as such. There is only so much you can get from reading books and going to school, ultimately the things that shape our perceptions most are those organic interactions we have with people. So yes there are days when I don't feel like getting out of bed, and yes there are days that I question why am I here I'm tired of this, but knowing that I have a purpose here whether it's just walking down the street and flashing a smile to someone or teaching a class keeps me going when I feel like quiting.