If someone had told me even a few months ago that one day I'd find myself sitting in a hotel room with four native Koreans from 경상도, whilst breaking bread over Korean beer and receiving a spontaneous lesson on the difference between Seoul speak and 사투리, I'd have laughed it off as a occurrence never to manifest. How wrong we can be in our lives and all the better for it!
This past weekend, I participated in a woman's 3-on-3 basketball tournament in 강릉. Suffice to say there were several pleasant surprises on our trip. The first being the discovery of girls in Korea who were quite adept at the game of basketball. It was great to play with females, and not all teenagers either. There were some woman well into their forties who were exact in their footwork and knowledgeable in the game.
Another surprise was the fantastic team and "managers" on our travel. They all hailed from the southern province of 경상도 and some spoke with severe 사투리 accents. It took all I had to try to comprehend their words. However, they were most patient and jovial in their teachings.
As I sat in that room with the four of them, I had to laugh to myself at the various quirks in one's life path. I never wanted the typical Korean-American experience during my time in Korea. I didn't want to attend a large Korean-American church or associate with only foreigners. I wanted to somehow infiltrate the essence of Korea, not through outings to tourist attractions or meals at the best restaurants, but through interaction with your everyday Seoul citizen. I hope this is just the beginning of such a practice.
See ya'll next time.
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