(no subject)
Reason Asia is weird #7993: the girls who went to AU in general speak much less English to me than people who didn't. Talking to Nae Young about this, she suggests (quite correctly, I think), that it's about expectation. They feel it's expected that they speak perfect English because they lived in America for two years. But since they don't they're really embarrassed. So they don't speak any English. However, Jung Eun's friends who have never been to America and aren't English majors, they'll say anything they can to me because there's no expectation that they should be able to speak English. This was reinforced when we went out with Jung Eun's brother, his friends and her cousin. her cousin is an English major. He said nothing the entire evening, but her brother and his friends used like every word of English they knew to try and talk to me. I guess I believe it, it's about expectation.
Two days ago we went to the beach on the east coast. It was a nice place. Then we took the bus back to Seoul and I had my last day in Korea here with Bomi and Nae Young. We walked around, played board games, and got totally trashed at night. I'm about to leave, in about an hour and a half. I've had a really great time. I wonder what it'd bew like to live here. In the end it'd probably be as frustrating - both culturally and linguistically - as China. The difference is that I'd already have friends here, and that Seoul, more than any other city I've ever been to, is a city based around having fun. There is so much to do here it's ridiculous.
Maybe after school I might give this place a shot. It's funny, I knew absolutely nothing about Korea before I met Jung Eun. The first time I met her I asked her about Korean food, and then two days later went out by myself to try the foods she recommended. I feel like I never ever would have thought about or cared about Korea if I hadn't met her, now it seems like some place I might live in the future. Life is so random.
PS On TV now is a baby goat (kid!) who likes to jump on top of things, like cows or other animals. Informative!