Hallyu & Me (Part I)

안녕!저는 조이입니다.만나서 반가워요 ☺
(Hello! I'm Joy. Nice to meet you!)

I first became interested in korean dramas two years ago as a result of a good friend and partially my family as well. From what started as a fanaticism for Korean dramas slowly spread into a love for Korean culture and all things Korean.

"What is Hallyu?"

In Korea the sudden interests in Korean pop culture is known as the 'Hallyu Wave'. Hallyu Wave a.k.a the Korean Wave is especially evident in Asian countries. The term Hallyu actually originated in China in mid 1999 by Beijing journalists who noticed the growing popularity of South Korean goods in China; however, today it has become a global term. The Hallyu Wave officially began with the export of Winter Sonata (the most well known and overall the most popular Korean drama).

"Riding the Hallyu Wave-> ♥" (A Mini Composition)

I’ve become Korean according to my friends and my parents, immersing myself and changing my life around me to reflect what I believe is Korean. My ears instantly perk up at the slightest mention of Korea, Korean Dramas, 하류 (Hallyu), or anything I remotely relate to being Korean. I even recently restricted myself to purchasing only clothes from South Korean brands online, my Ipod only contains music from Korean dramas or songs sung by Korean Pop Artists, and the few albums I own that include Japanese songs are sung by Korean artists. I’ve even turned my cell phone into what my friends have deemed the “K-phone” (my Iphone turned into a Korean phone), because it features pictures of Korean flower bouquets with sparkly pink netting, my favorite actor 주지훈 (Joo Ji Hoon), and of course my favorite Korean dramas like 궁 (Goong). Slightly tacky, overboard, and obsessive perhaps, but some people might say it’s a way of demonstrating my love and interests for my heritage and culture. However, I must digress, I am not Korean, not even one percent. I’m purely simply, and only Japanese.

It would be impossible to deny who I am, my Japanese heritage, the numerous bowls of おぞに (Ozoni) I’ve devoured every New Year’s morning, and going to bon dances with friends. However, while I believe it’s important to understand, appreciate, and immerse myself in my own Japanese culture, over the past three years I’ve come to not only appreciate my Japanese culture and heritage but the Korean culture as well. My interest in Korean dramas has slowly blossomed into a passion for the Korean culture, and over the past three years has probably been my greatest cultural experience. It has led me on many great adventures like learning the 한글language, participating in Korean community cultural events in Hawaii, trying new foods, joining and organizing clubs, reading a different genre of books (books popular in Korea that have been translated into English, and even turning my dislike into playing piano into something that I enjoy.

Many people are often only immersed and feel closely associated with their own culture, which is by no means wrong, but very predictable and easily appreciable. Being practically immersed in only my Japanese culture for my entire life, up until three years ago, I easily took things such as knowing what words like おぞに (Ozoni) and着物 (kimono) meant for granted. Three years ago, words like 엄마 (umma), 아빠 (appa), and 친구 (chingu) was completely foreign to me, and each time I learned a new word it was like tasting the sweetness of candy or ice cream for the first time. The words dripped with familiarity and seemed to easily flow off my tongue in some conversations with friends, as if I spoke them all my life. Learning new words became addicting, each one a delicious delicacy to be devoured. Korean language classes suddenly became a must have, and leading me from one “adventure” to another new “adventure”…

I’ll never forget the first day or Korean language classes, the slight intimidation, the fear, and the excitement all tangled up inside me. Walking to the two-story white Korean Presbyterian Church, and wondering whom my teacher would be and if anyone spoke English. I was singled out and introduced as the non-Korean girl which was very important since everyone else was Korean, even the blonde hair elementary school girl with blue eyes was half Korean and spoke and understood more Korean that I did. I couldn’t speak as well or understand as much as everyone else in my class who grew up their entire lives listening to at least one parent speak Korean. In addition to being the only non-Korean in my class, I’m also the oldest in my class as well. Receiving my two Korean workbooks were like my most cherished presents on Christmas day, but reading my assigned one or two sentences from the story about two talking pairs of shoes was one of my greatest fears. Not because I had to read it out loud (although I do fear public speaking), but because I so desperately wanted to be good at reading and speaking the Korean language, something that seemed impossible, that I couldn’t bear the thought of someone telling me I was bad at it. All the other elementary and middle school kids in my class were so lucky that all Korean words seemed to naturally role off their tongue, especially since they didn’t seem even a tenth as interested as I was. It was so easy to be jealous of the kids who could sleep at the back of the class and say the correct answers when 선상님 (seonsangnim= teacher) called on them, especially since I was rigorously taking notes. Korean classes also led me from one adventure to the next, because for the first time I got to try new authentic Korean foods that I never had the chance to try before.

I never would have got to try 떡복이 (Tukbokki= Spicy Rice Cakes) or 만두국수 (Mandooguksu= Mandoo Soup) if it wasn’t for Korean language classes. I realize that now, being the somewhat picky eater that I am, my mom would probably not have allowed me to order it at a Korean restaurant and would’ve been too afraid that I wouldn’t eat it and only waste food. Trying new “authentic” Korean foods was in many ways an adventure for me, because like my secret desperation and want to be able to speak Korean well, I also desperately wanted to like these Korean foods. I don’t think anyone was more excited to be eating spicy rice cakes than I was. I could distinctly remember one of my favorite scenes from my favorite Korean drama 궁 (Goong) where 채경 (Chae-Kyoung) was so happy to be eating spicy rice cakes with her school friends when she wasn’t suppose to, and as I reflect back on that moment I think I desperately wanted to emulate her and her happiness.

My Korean cultural experiences have also led me to think about my 금 (geum), my dreams. Since I’ve become interested in the Korean culture, my life has seemed to greatly circle around it, and my dreams have definitely changed along the way. I dream of going to Korea now, and I can almost see myself hiking up Mt. Halla and screaming at the top of my lungs to relieve stress. I imagine eating kimchi and spicy rice cakes in one of the small restaurants owned by ajummas, running through the soft yellow daisies on Jeju Island. I dream of studying Korean in college and studying abroad at the infamous and prestigious Seoul University. However, if someone told me even four years ago that learning about Korean culture would be my number one interest, I probably wouldn’t believe them. Sometimes I even wonder I must admit if I’ll wake up one morning and wonder why I enjoy learning about the Korean culture so much, especially since I’m not Korean. However, although my dreams might seem foolish, I believe that my greatest cultural experience should constitute as something that changed my life and who I am, whether it might be for better or worst. For the rest of my life, this will probably be my greatest cultural experience, because what could be a more remarkable “cultural lesson” than being able to learn to appreciate and experience a culture other than your own.