Andrew and I got our visas! But that's not the point of this post! I wanted to share one of my developing pet peeves with you today.
It seems that when someone finds out I'm about to go to South Korea to teach English, the reactions I get are not "Oh wow, that's such an incredible opportunity! I wish you the best of luck!" It's more like: "Oh...really? Well...good luck with the food and alphabet" or "Is that the good one or the bad one?" or "Wow, that's scary. Aren't you nervous?" or a very odd "Well I'll think about (pray for) you while you're there".
If we were going someone in Europe, you know the reactions would be far different. Americans seem to be afraid that North Korea is going to come storming the border at any moment or drop a nuclear bomb on the lower part of the peninsula. And as far as I have learned, the South does not live in fear of the North.
It just seems like an unfair stereotype to me. I'm very excited about this, and it dampens my spirits when people make it out to be another Iraq. If SOK was so unsafe, it would not be the top TESOL destination, would it?
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
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it is very common and everyone is petrified of north korea too. it was all we heard when we got here. i think on one side, people are jealous that you are taking the leap to do something incredibly different and life changing, on the other side it is american ignorance thanks to the media when it comes to safety issues and such.
ReplyDeleteJust after we got to korea, i flew home from korea for my best friends wedding and an ex of mine pulled me aside and spent 15 minutes lecturing me about n. korea and how stupid i was.
FYI, best decision ever! ignore them and come have the time of your life.
i agree with Nicole and in a way i found it funny that everyone was nervous for us while we were completely stoked about coming here. To be honest, most people in the states take the mentality that if its not in the US, its just not right. You guys are doing something great and for those that are too close minded to appreciate that, shame on them.
ReplyDelete-adam