What I left Behind - Jookyoung Oh
Jookyoung Oh
Professor Michal Eskayo
ESLTING 100
28 September 2022
What I left Behind
I
still have a lot left in Seoul. My favorite dolls, books, comic books, photos
with my friends, and my mom's letter were in my suitcase, but I left all my joy
in my country. When people go to another country, many people say they miss
their hometown food, languages, and friends, but I especially miss all the
entertainment that I took for granted in Korea on the other side of the world. I am satisfied with my life in the States, but sometimes I laugh and
chat with my friends in Korea in my dreams, and I go to a Korean cafe that I
liked. In my mind, I see pictures of myself that I am in Korea all day long
from morning to night when I wake up. I told my mom that everything is fine in
Chicago through video calls. However, I still miss everything in my hometown.
First of all, in Chicago, concentrated entertainment is not common as in Seoul. Unlike Chicago, Seoul has more convenient facilities than is ever necessary for cities because most Koreans live in cities. That is why I miss Seoul. In Korea, there are many various things to entertain oneself with until late in the morning. 24 hours in Korea Internet cafe, Karaoke room, claw machine, cartoon cafe, board game cafe, sticker photo machine, a dog cafe, and a room escape cafe. When I played claw machine at the claw machine shop, I always picked a doll and gave it to my mom as a present. I put a new doll in my bag every time. Adding to the Internet cafe, I quickly signed up for classes on the Internet cafe computer to take the courses I wanted every semester at my college. Furthermore, I sang with my friends until my voice was hoarse in the karaoke room. On top of that, I was lost in memories with my friends while watching old Korean cartoons at the cartoon cafe. When at the dog cafe, I took a lot of pictures looking at the big dogs that were hard to raise in a house without a yard. Lastly, at the room escape cafe, I try to figure out with my friends to escape and bragged about it on Instagram, saying it was a historical day. I have to drive out of Chicago to Northbrook or Chinatown to find an escape cafe, but I could easily find them in Seoul. There are no karaoke rooms or Internet cafes in Chicago. When I was in university in Korea, I used to go to internet cafes and karaoke with my friends after the exam, but now I am in Chicago and after the exam, I just play a song with my cousin at home, and we sing in a very low voice.
In addition, I can no longer have the alcoholic beverages I used to drink in Korea. I am not old enough to drink in this country yet. The age in Korea is the same whether born in January or December, so from January 1st, when I turn 18, I can drink with my friends together, but in the States, I can drink at 21 after my birthday. Furthermore, despite sizable Korean alcohol, there is no Korean drinking culture in the U.S. I miss the Korean alcohol, soju. In Korea, many people always gather with their acquaintances or friends to drink soju when something new starts, ends or celebrates. I also drank a lot of soju with my friends, and we talked about worries that started at the age of 18 to deep stories. When I drank soju with my friends, everyone would tell me their stories as if they had no secrets. Soju is not common in Chicago, and I have to pay a lot of money to buy soju at a Korean market.
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Moreover, South Korea is a fast-paced country. I could handle things very quickly wherever I go to public institutions, hospitals, and all shops. In addition, food, clothes, games, and other things to enjoy are always trendy, so I can find things that fit the trend quickly. South Korea’s latest movies are screened in various theaters until dawn. In addition, I can quickly access the latest games at a high-performance Internet cafe. In Chicago, movie theaters do not show until dawn. In South Korea, even if the movie that I wanted to see ends, I can see it video cafe. Plus, in Korea, the cosmetics and clothes released on a Monday are displayed in stores the Tuesday. The trend quickly changes, allowing visitors to experience various cosmetics and clothes. There is also a system called pre-order at clothing stores and cosmetics stores in South Korea, so I can receive a new product faster than anyone else.
Even
now, when I try to find my favorite place to hang out in Chicago, I sometimes
miss Korean entertainment shows especially when I see pictures on my friend's
Instagram. When I look at the pictures of friends that they going to the café,
I feel just like I am still there. However, I am currently in Chicago at a
different time, in a different space, and many different things from Seoul.
Therefore, it is time to get rid of the sadness about Korea and find a new joy
in Chicago. Maybe in the near future, I will find some interesting places in
Chicago and create new favorite places in Chicago, too. This place will
eventually feel comfortable to me.
This is a very interesting essay Jookyoung! I loved to read the things about your country. Also, it was very cute to put pictures of your dog!
ReplyDeleteHello Jookyoung I was happy to learn more about Korean culture from your essay and I can relate to lot of things that I read. For an example I used to occasionally have a drink in my country once in a while but here I am not old enough to do drink. I hope you continue to make a good transition to this new American culture. Are the infrastructures in Korea better than the one in the united states
ReplyDeleteHi Jookyoung, the story is very interesting and I like it. I like cat and dog cafe which they should have it here in Chicago, I think it will be more joyful.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in China, I owned a dog too. I actually want to have a dog here too, but I am too busy to keep a dog and spend a lot of energy to accompany it.
ReplyDeleteHi Jookyoung, I like your story and it makes me feel interesting about your country. I've heard the drinking culture in Korea. In China, many employees need to drink with their bosses for many times.
ReplyDelete