The Language Exchange!

Even though we are basically down to six months remaining in Korea, I have recently come across an experience that I am trying to make the most out of! Back in February, I started attending a language exchange meet-up. I attend the Tuesday morning ones, which are from 9:30 am- 12 pm, at a cafe called A Twosome Place. (A Korean chain, kind of like their version of our Starbucks.) This is a time where both Koreans and foreigners gather at a café here in town! It is a fun time where we discuss our different cultures and languages.

During this exchange, I typically ask any vocabulary questions I may have, and work on writing out the words in Hangul. And then I answer any questions on English phrases and terms, and help some ladies through their tv show scripts, since it helps them read and work on their English pronunciation!

When I first introduced myself, and when I continue to for newcomers, they are always surprised and find it hard to believe that I am only 21 years old, and that I have already been married for over 2 years!

A couple weeks ago, I was asked more about where I was from in the United States, and so the topic of Berne was introduced. They thought it was fascinating how small my town was and they were shocked when I mentioned that we only have three traffic lights in town! As I was explaining to them our historic background and the Amish, they asked if I could go over the Amish lifestyle at the next meet-up. I discussed how they are secluded from modern technologies and what traditions they still hold to, and the history of their journey to the United States! It is cultural exchanges like this that I will miss when I come back to the States. I am learning so much about the school systems over here and other modern Korean traditions! I am gleaning information on how the education system runs in Korea and it is quite different than in the United States!

Although I am nowhere close to understanding Korean grammar and reading it at a normal pace, I can now read short poems with the help of my friend at these exchanges! I am reading from a 4th grade level poetry book, really only because it was the lowest level I saw at the store when I was looking for more Korean books! A nice thing about being close to a variety of books at all different stores is that they are cheap here and it is easy to find children books and education books to learn the language from! (So now my lifetime library will have a nice mix of both English and Korean books!)