We are very curious about the EIE professors and their experiences of Korea - and no doubt you are too. So we interviewed Sue, Eric, Brian and Bruce and asked them 4 questions:

1. What was the first impression you got when you first arrived in Korea?

2. Why did you especially come to Korea?

3. What are the good sides and bad sides of Korea?

4. What are the differences between Korea and your country?

Professor Sue

What was the first impression you got when you first arrived Korea?

         When I came to Korea, I thought Korea was very technologically advanced which made things very quick and easy - especially transportation. Also, I thought Korean products were very cheap.

Why did you come to Korea?

         I came here to work. I came to Korea to teach English.

What are the good and bad sides of Korea?

         The good sides are that Korea has good transportation systems such as its subway or bus systems. Also I think Korean foods are very delicious, healthy, and cheap. I enjoy eating Korean foods. (However, sometimes the foods are too salty.) The bad sides are that Koreans did not seem to welcome strangers. They are afraid of strangers such as foreigners, so I have had a difficult time meeting new people.

What are the differences you have experienced between your country and Korea?

         In America, people are not really concerned about strangers, so they are more likely to be open-minded. However, in Korea, people seem to worry about the people they do not know, which makes them feel stressed about meeting people they do not know.

Professor Bruce

What was the first impression you got when you arrived in Korea?

         The first impression I had of Seoul was how huge it was. I came from Brisbane, Australia, which does not have many tall buildings. The downtown area of Brisbane is the only place with tall buildings and it would be even smaller than the size of 여의도. So, when I flew into Seoul, I remember seeing apartment complex after apartment complex, and huge buildings everywhere. It looked like the center of my city multiplied by a hundred times. It was a little scary because I was concerned about the masses of people who live here.

When I came into Seoul, the scale seemed huge and the lights and everything were all new to me; it was quite an experience. I knew it was going to be big, but I just didn’t think it would be as big as this. The number of people in subway… crowds. It was different.

Is there any reason why you came to Korea? (Why did you come to Korea?)

         I was a school teacher on leave, and I came here to travel at first. I stayed with a friend, who was living here and working for Samsung at that time. A few days after I arrived, he asked me if I wanted a short-term job at Samsung teaching English in the evening. They were looking for an Australian. These guys were going to go to the Australian office so they needed language preparation program before they left. It was only for five weeks so I thought that would be alright. At first I just intended to do it for five weeks and then travel on to another country. I was going to travel around. But, after I started working there, I discovered that I really enjoyed working there and teaching. I had never taught English before as a second language. Also I had never taught adults before. I figured out that I really liked teaching English and teaching adults. Then, after five weeks, they offered me a permanent job, so I took it. That was long time ago and I’ve been here ever since.

What are the good sides and bad sides of Korea?

         The good side is the people here. They are very welcoming, friendly, and hardworking. Moreover, they have pride.

I like the countryside here. I really do not like Seoul but when I get out of Seoul, it is really good. My favorite places would be the East coast area (Yangyang) and also the area just North-east of Seoul (Chuncheon).

I like to get out of Seoul. On the negative side, people are always in a hurry. Particularly when driving, they seem to have very little consideration of other drivers. Another negative is that a lot of times, people want things done quickly and sometimes it is too quick. Also, I do not like the environment in Seoul, particularly, the pollution.

What are the differences you experienced between Korea and Australia?

         As I said, the density of population is the most striking difference, and the speed of things. That has good and bad sides.

Professor Brian

What was the first impression you got when you arrived in Korea?

         The thing that stood out was how many people there were. There were just so many people.

Is there any reason why you came to Korea? (Why did you come to Korea?)

         I came for one year to teach at a university and I only planned to stay for one year and then ended up staying longer.

What are the good sides and bad sides about Korea?

         It is very modern. I feel like it is much more modern than my country, where I am from. Also, people are very friendly and the food is really good and getting even better.

The bad side would be that there are too many people. So it is so crowded, which sometimes makes people stressed.

What are the differences you experienced between Korea and America?

         The surprising thing was that there are not as many differences as I would expect. I expected when I moved here that things would be much different, but they were really not that different to me. Therefore, to me, the most surprising thing was how similar things were!

Professor Eric

What was the first impression you got, when you first arrived Korea?

         When I was first arrived I was tired, because I had a long flight from the US. When I went outside of the airport, there was some mist rising in the morning and people were speaking a different language. It left an impression on me. I realized I’m in a different country and it was interesting and exciting.

Why did you come to Korea?

         I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, and at that time a friend of mine was teaching English at a language institute. And he said he likes Korea, so I decided to come here. I taught at a language institute for a year in Korea and I thought ‘I like it’. After this experience, I went back to the US to go to graduate school to do a masters degree in TESOL. And then I returned to Korea.

What are the good and bad sides of Korea?

         I’ve lived in Korea for a long time, so overall, I like Korea. I like Korean people, culture, food, and the way of life here. But sometimes I don’t like it when people ride their motorcycles on the sidewalk or sometimes people cut in line when I am waiting for a bus. I get a little bit annoyed in these situations, but since I lived here, I have tried to accept them, and try to avoid the situations. Of course, some people do these types of things in the US, but it seems like it happens more often in Korea. But these are minor things, and overall I enjoy living here.

What is your favorite Korean food?

         Spicy Stir-fried Chicken (Dak gal-bi). But I like most Korean dishes except cheonggukjang. I don’t like its smell. But actually, I have never eaten it. Maybe I should try it because many Koreans like it. When I first came to Korea, I didn’t like kimchi. I thought its taste and smell is strange, but now I really like kimchi.

What are the differences you experience between your country and Korea?

         In Seoul, there is combination of old, historical buildings like palaces and modern buildings. You don’t see that as much in the US. Also, the language is a big difference. I’m studying Korean, but I’m not fluent.

It was interesting that professors felt totally opposite impressions in some respects. Sue said Koreans seem to have too much concern about the people they do not know. However, Bruce said Koreans are very welcoming and friendly. In some parts, they answered the same. All professors came to Korea (or decided to stay) to teach, and they like Korean food. It was nice to interview professors. Thank you!