Do you speak 한글?

I've been in Korea for 8 months. One question I get asked a lot is 'how's your Korean?'

I studied French and Spanish at university, and have always picked up bits of vocabulary from other languages quite easily, so one obvious challenge for me whilst I was in Korea was to learn at least a little Korean (한글).

Korean isn't actually that difficult to learn. The different alphabet is intimidating to beginners but it's phonetic, which means every symbol has it's own sound, and most of these are even comparable to English. For example, when you see ㅏ it's always an 'a' sound ('a' as in 'cat'), but there are a couple that don't exist in English such as 의 which is something like 'uoiii' but I just remember it by thinking it's the same sound French people make when they're exasperated.

If that isn't simple enough for you, then try out these words; many words in Korean are the same as in English (aka. Konglish):
커피 [ko-pee] - coffee
콜라 [ko-ra] - Cocacola
햄버거 [ham-bo-goh] - hamburger
치즈 [chee-ze] - cheese
스파게티 [su-pa-gey-ti] - spaghetti
소시지 [so-sey-gee] - sausage
소스 [so-se] - sauce

At school...
Working with Korean co-teachers is a great way to learn Korean. They're always talking among themselves in Korean and whilst most of the time the English-speaking teachers sit quietly at our desks wondering what we're missing, I have picked up some words this way. For example:
진자 [chin-cha] - really (they use that a lot)
어머니 [oh-ma-nee] - mother

I also bug the other teachers by asking them lots of questions, especially Soomi, who sits next to me, she's taught me useful things such as:
대박 [dae bakk] - awesome
멍청이[mong chong ee] - idiot
미친 [michin] - crazy

Another way to learn Korean at school is by listening to the students when they're speaking Korean (which they're not supposed to do). Sometimes I let them tell each other the meaning of a word in Korean as it helps them understand (and saves me having to mime/draw/invent elaborate contextual definitions off the top of my head). It also means I can learn some new words, even if they're not very useful:
심 [shim] - pencil lead
유자 차 [yoo-ja-cha] - citron tea
시금치 [shi-cum-chi] - spinach

In taxis...
We take taxis a lot, and taxi drivers are often curious about the funny looking western person sitting in the back of their car. Usually they ask a question containing 어디 [o-dee] or 어디에 [o-dee-ey] which I can recognise as meaning 'where'. The trouble is, when you're in a taxi that question could be:
'Where are you going?', 'Where are you from?', 'Where in Korea do you live?', 'Where have you been today?', or even (at a stretch) 'Where's that bloke you're usually with?'.
Sometimes I get the right answer first time, sometimes I don't. It's hit and miss!

It's been fun learning Korean, I feel like I'm at a comfortable level now, where I can get by in most everyday situations (using grammatically incorrect words and aided heavily by body language).

Triumphs...
Some of my finer moments speaking Korean include:
- Helping tourists find their bus by interrupting them shouting "HOW CAN WE GET BACK" at the attendant, and instead asking him [in Korean] what platform the bus to Seoul left from.
- Being able to read 50% of the menu in almost every restaurant.
- After telling someone I'd been in Korean 3 months, they replied saying 'wow, three months, not three years?'
- Making phone calls to the hotel my parents stayed in while they were in Korea.
- Booking hotel rooms.

Fails...
Some of the more awkward moments include:
- Paying at a restaurant the server asked 'did you enjoy your meal?' and I replied 'there isn't'.
- Getting in a taxi and asking to go to the ferry terminal, only to be taken to the bus terminal.
- Ordering 3 meals for 4 people, getting 4 meals, and not a single one of them what we wanted.

The Heelcracker

T'was three nights before Christmas, when somewhere in Seoul

Four friends were meeting, in the freezing cold.

Their dresses were ironed, their hair nicely done

In hopes of enjoying some highbrow fun.

The beers were imported, the food meat-free

While the friends spoke of the ballet with glee.

Through the streets, to the Seoul Art Center

To the cheery elegance in the cold of winter.

The Christmas ballet, the Nutcracker show

But... where did all the people go?

You're late they cried, what were you thinking?

We were too consumed with our Christmas drinking.

The dancing ended, the bouquets were caught

Our trip to the ballet cut ever so short.

In commiseration, we set out on the town

Until one of the friends fell tragically down.

Her high heel was broken, her face was red

The night turning, to one full of dread.

Eventually we found our calm salvation

In the basement level of Gangnam station.

A pub, big beers, and a plate of chips,

No more ballet, no more slips.

I learned that friends play a crucial part,

And that not everyone is suited to highbrow art!

By Steph Wood

[adapted from The Night Before Christmas, by Clement Clarke Moore]

The failsome foursome in the opera house lobby.

Sydney, still smiling.

Meeting the dancers after the show, minus one heel and a chunk dignity   

Luckily we were still in high enough spirits to pose for cheesey photos.

Ric thought the evening was a huge success as there was a pub showing English football and serving huge jugs of beer.
I don't think he even realised we'd missed most of the ballet.

The people make the party... right?

Night bus home to the safety of Cheonan. Their faces say it all.