Learning Korean | GRRRL TRAVELER

Just Show Me Pictures! Simple Things that Slay an Expat (Pt II)

Filed under Just Show Me Pictures!, Korea by Christine Ka'aloa on May 5, 2010 at 6:32 pm {7 comments}

Living as an expat, you get to realizing culture shock comes in daily life-sized capsules called Language Barriers.; but unlike vitamins, these will eventually wear on you. They mimic your inability to sometimes do the simplest things. Do you feel stupid despite your MFA degree? Yes. Can you erase this feeling? Not easily. To an expat living in a new country, it’s the everyday, mundane things which quickly become your greatest enemies.

Beauty, Skin Care & Health Products:
Being here, I realized that I micromanage my life in unusual areas. I find pleasure in reading the ingredients of what healing powers my “miracle beauty products” possess. I also like knowing I’ve got the right product and am using it correctly!

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Confronting Korea with my Waygook card

Filed under Korea, Survival Issues by MyCrazyKimchi on April 28, 2010 at 5:47 pm {11 comments}

Last week, I did something very un-Korean…

I told my co-teacher, in a very truthful and direct manner about my reasons for resenting her. It was inevitable. I was pointed at the tip and I knew I had nothing to lose. Did I have money, love, friendship, a job I cared for, respected citizenship in this country..? Nope. When there’s nothing to lose, there’s nothing to fear. Nada. Nietz. Zip. No stakes. It was the perfect time to gamble for “change”!

My bitterness towards my co-teacher– her lack of help, support and welcome– had grown to the point of disgust.

Meanwhile, her dependency upon me grew. She wanted me to help her remove her workload of burdens. It was a reasonable request that I take (more…)

Pass the Paper: Experiencing Culture Shock in Korea

Filed under Just Show Me Pictures!, Korea by MyCrazyKimchi on April 26, 2010 at 4:32 pm {5 comments}

Photo of fellow EPIKer Amanda‘s ppt game

So you live in a new country, you’ve got a new job, you’re working out the variables of navigating new food, new work relationships, cultural and communication barriers… so why are you depressed? Welcome to culture shock.

Nothing you do can prepare you for what you think you will or won’t experience when you move abroad. As a traveler who thrives on experiencing cultural lifestyles, my experience of culture shock feels… surprising. I’ve lived in 4 different cities, I’ve often either traveled or lived (more…)

5 Tips for Speed Learning a Language

Filed under Just Show Me Pictures! by Christine Ka'aloa on February 8, 2010 at 11:36 am {2 comments}

Trying to learn a new language or in a rush to learn the language of the country you’ll be moving to? Here are some tips to help you with your memory technique, as well as ideas to help you optimize your speed learning process.

5 TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY & TECHNIQUE FOR SPEED LEARNING A LANGUAGE:

• Practice first thing in the morning.
Did you know that the morning is the best time for learning and memorization? Your mind is fresh, alert (after you’ve had your coffee…), retentive and most permeable to suggestion.

• Create your own immersive environment.
Dress up in your sari or beret and bombard yourself with the language in various forms- watch films, listen to radio news and music, listen to language tapes, join language groups. The more you surround yourself with a language, you become familiar with its sound and the way it’s spoken. This will help your mind’s receptivity to it- intuitively, rhythmically and tonally.

• Employ active listening.
Listening to a language doesn’t have to be a passive sport- you can add other activities to it to optimize your lesson and make it fun. Be creative! If (more…)

Learning Survival Korean (Part II)

Filed under Just Show Me Pictures!, Korea by MyCrazyKimchi on February 6, 2010 at 9:50 pm {no comments}

Hangul Chart

Note: Apologies to readers- I’m still in the shuffle learning about my new blog site, so this post was accidentally released before my final edit. I’ve since updated it. Enjoy and thanks for reading!

This week:

Countdown to Korea, my Self-Taught Language Lessons and an update on my Speed Learning
The countdown to my Korea launch date has officially begun so roughly put,… I’m trying to speed learn Korean. My learning obstacle? I’m kinda vacillating between a silent freak out and a scattered panic. A few weeks ago, I started my search for the Cinderella’s glass slipper of grammar books that would ultimately teach me Korean in the simplest (more…)

Written by MyCrazyKimchi Just Show Me Pictures!

Learning Survival Korean (Part 1)

To learn a word is to chew into it and digest it; and when you’re a vegetarian moving abroad to a foreign country, in order to eat you’ll eventually need to learn to read a restaurant menu, food ingredients or be able to ask the waitress …